April Fools day....
So, for humour's sake... I have the video of the show, and the video that was shown on the video screens at the same time... enjoy!!
Thursday 31 March 2011
Wednesday 30 March 2011
31st March 2011
So, it continued....
The rain did abate but then the wind came in, and with almost constant speeds of 30+ knots... It was a few windy days.
Being without simple things like power, gas, and water gets frustrating very quickly.. We hadn't showered in days since no running water, our gas had run out so we couldn't cook anything. Boats were still not arriving on the island with supplies.
We spent the last few days holed up indoors waiting for the power to come on so we could charge phone, pc, etc up each time it came back.. If we weren't home waiting, we were at Vibe Lounge, playing cards, settlers of catan, and eating.. There is simply nothing more to do but wait it out.
Yesterday, I went searching for a loaf of bread and milk, riding around the south of the island in the stinging rain, I drove past Thai navy helicopters who had arrived to evacuate tourists to an awaiting aircraft carrier. To be honest, I would rather stay here than battle the 4m waves to the mainland!
Anyway, as each day passes, the weather improves and the forecast in 3-4 days looks beautiful...
x
SD
The rain did abate but then the wind came in, and with almost constant speeds of 30+ knots... It was a few windy days.
Being without simple things like power, gas, and water gets frustrating very quickly.. We hadn't showered in days since no running water, our gas had run out so we couldn't cook anything. Boats were still not arriving on the island with supplies.
We spent the last few days holed up indoors waiting for the power to come on so we could charge phone, pc, etc up each time it came back.. If we weren't home waiting, we were at Vibe Lounge, playing cards, settlers of catan, and eating.. There is simply nothing more to do but wait it out.
Yesterday, I went searching for a loaf of bread and milk, riding around the south of the island in the stinging rain, I drove past Thai navy helicopters who had arrived to evacuate tourists to an awaiting aircraft carrier. To be honest, I would rather stay here than battle the 4m waves to the mainland!
Anyway, as each day passes, the weather improves and the forecast in 3-4 days looks beautiful...
x
SD
Monday 28 March 2011
28th March - Bad Weather Update
Well.... a tan we are most definately not getting.
As I type the wind is howling and the rain is beating against the door. It has been pretty dull weather for a week or so now, but the hardcore weather hit yesterday morning and has not stopped since. Has Monsoon come early?
Boats have ceased going to and from the island, people are stocking up on food, so the next couple of days should be very interesting.
When we woke this morning the electric was off (not an unusual event). There was also no gas, so we called the landlord who asked a very interesting question... "Is next door there?" "Is your house still standing?" These questions worried us, so instead of staying indoors, we went to Mae Haad have a look around... we had been wet for 36 hours, so a bit more rain would not hurt.
Arriving in Mae Haad, we came across a scene of destruction. Parts of road have broken up, signs blown apart. People were busy trying to clear the roads from all the sand washed down.
All boats (pleasure or business) are cancelled... we are on our own for a couple of days....
I went out with Nathan for a walk to look around... Meeting people who have been here 12 years and never seen it so bad.... its some crazy weather... and the forecast is for more..
After spending most of the day in the Crystal area, we went home to check the damage.... Thankfully none yet...
As I type the wind is howling and the rain is beating against the door. It has been pretty dull weather for a week or so now, but the hardcore weather hit yesterday morning and has not stopped since. Has Monsoon come early?
Boats have ceased going to and from the island, people are stocking up on food, so the next couple of days should be very interesting.
When we woke this morning the electric was off (not an unusual event). There was also no gas, so we called the landlord who asked a very interesting question... "Is next door there?" "Is your house still standing?" These questions worried us, so instead of staying indoors, we went to Mae Haad have a look around... we had been wet for 36 hours, so a bit more rain would not hurt.
Arriving in Mae Haad, we came across a scene of destruction. Parts of road have broken up, signs blown apart. People were busy trying to clear the roads from all the sand washed down.
All boats (pleasure or business) are cancelled... we are on our own for a couple of days....
I went out with Nathan for a walk to look around... Meeting people who have been here 12 years and never seen it so bad.... its some crazy weather... and the forecast is for more..
After spending most of the day in the Crystal area, we went home to check the damage.... Thankfully none yet...
Koh Tao Festival!!!
The yearly enviromental festive was here!
This year there was a spectacular effort put on with stage building and general organisation. Unfortunately, the weather turned for the worse and it bucketed down.
But, with a brief respite in the evening.. the Crystal crew gathered for our show.
We arrived at 7pm and were due on stage at 7.30pm. Delayed until 9pm, we drank some beer and buckets of dutch courage, and by the time we went on stage.... was quite tipsy! ;-)
A short time later, we finished (and movie to be uploaded as soon as I receive it). We then carried on our drinking, whilst dancing to a band...
The rest of the night is a bit of a blur, apart from having a bet with a friend and getting a henna tattoo over half my face (which is still there 4 days later... doh!)
We got home about 2am, and went to bed, ready to face another day at the festival... this time being the audience and not the entertainment.
xx
SD
This year there was a spectacular effort put on with stage building and general organisation. Unfortunately, the weather turned for the worse and it bucketed down.
But, with a brief respite in the evening.. the Crystal crew gathered for our show.
We arrived at 7pm and were due on stage at 7.30pm. Delayed until 9pm, we drank some beer and buckets of dutch courage, and by the time we went on stage.... was quite tipsy! ;-)
A short time later, we finished (and movie to be uploaded as soon as I receive it). We then carried on our drinking, whilst dancing to a band...
The rest of the night is a bit of a blur, apart from having a bet with a friend and getting a henna tattoo over half my face (which is still there 4 days later... doh!)
We got home about 2am, and went to bed, ready to face another day at the festival... this time being the audience and not the entertainment.
xx
SD
Severe Weather
Whilst I have internet... I thought I should quickly post, that we have some extreme weather here, which is causing all sorts of power, gas, and internet issues.
Sit tight and when we get back to normal (in a couple of days) then expect a shed load of blog posts..
Much love
Simon
Sit tight and when we get back to normal (in a couple of days) then expect a shed load of blog posts..
Much love
Simon
Wednesday 23 March 2011
The Open Water Video
Finally, I have managed to get it uploaded.. The internet is extremely unstable at present.. hence the issues!
It looks like I will have to sign up for an internet service for 1000 baht (£20) per month... The speed is less than 1.5mb... so the price is extortionate...
Hope you enjoy!
It looks like I will have to sign up for an internet service for 1000 baht (£20) per month... The speed is less than 1.5mb... so the price is extortionate...
Hope you enjoy!
21st March 2011
ITS MY BIRTHDAY!
I woke with a big kiss from Mrs D.. then a fresh cuppa..
Then it was card opening time... With lots of little pressies from the family.. Sweeties, veggie seeds... all great stuff and thank you for that.!
After all the pressie opening, it was time for some hard grafting... our artificial dive site (Junkyard), had its anchor dragged about 60m south of its location in the storm we had the other day. So, a few hardcore Eco divers including me and Jen went to Biorock to transplant some coral, and then to Junkyard to raise the anchor with lift bags and muscle it underwater to its correct position.
After 20mins, I had already burned my air and returned to the surface to co-ordinate the surface divers and boat position while a few others carried on.
It was a hard slog, but we accomplished it, although I would imagine that the same thing will happen again... until we put a decent sandscrew in.
Returning, we were shattered, and shot home for a quick change before dance rehearsals. A few beers at Crystal, and then Vibe, where numerous evil people bought me hideous shots... My all time nemesis being the "FlatLiner" which is a mix of Tequila, Sambuca, and for that extra kick... tabasco sauce.
Needless to say... after these... it was time for bed!
A very nice birthday had!
x
Monday 21 March 2011
March 20th 2011
Apart from spending most of the morning packing and then popping to 'Cafe Del Sol' for breakfast and bumping into Ronald, not a lot happened. Si did manage to do a bit of UK work but the internet was up & down.
After leaving Cafe Del Sol, we headed back to the Regal pool and met up with Nathan & his kids where we spent the next two hours just mucking around in the pool before we headed back to the room.
Bags packed, we gathered our belongings and struggled down to reception. I still can't believe the amount of luggage we have. Once the taxi arrived we loaded our bags and I jumped in, Si went on ahead to the apartment on his bike.
It was so nice to be able to unpack properly and have room to spread out and to know that we will not be moving for some time.
That evening we met Ronald before he left on the night boat for Chumpon at the Crystal bar for a couple of drinks and then headed to 'Safety Stop' for food. We all ordered the roast, as it was Sunday but for some strange reason, mine was cold, I sent it back and then it came back just as cold and then I also found out that my chicken was still raw ...so by then I'd given up with the roast. Im glad to say that both Si and Ronald enjoyed theirs.
So after paying, we walked Ronald to the night boat. We said our goodbyes and waited till he was on board before waving goodbye one last time. He was excellent company and a great student. We're so glad that he came to see us. He did said that if he'd nothing else planned he would have quite easily stayed. Arghhhhhhh BYE RONALD!!!!
After leaving Cafe Del Sol, we headed back to the Regal pool and met up with Nathan & his kids where we spent the next two hours just mucking around in the pool before we headed back to the room.
Bags packed, we gathered our belongings and struggled down to reception. I still can't believe the amount of luggage we have. Once the taxi arrived we loaded our bags and I jumped in, Si went on ahead to the apartment on his bike.
It was so nice to be able to unpack properly and have room to spread out and to know that we will not be moving for some time.
That evening we met Ronald before he left on the night boat for Chumpon at the Crystal bar for a couple of drinks and then headed to 'Safety Stop' for food. We all ordered the roast, as it was Sunday but for some strange reason, mine was cold, I sent it back and then it came back just as cold and then I also found out that my chicken was still raw ...so by then I'd given up with the roast. Im glad to say that both Si and Ronald enjoyed theirs.
So after paying, we walked Ronald to the night boat. We said our goodbyes and waited till he was on board before waving goodbye one last time. He was excellent company and a great student. We're so glad that he came to see us. He did said that if he'd nothing else planned he would have quite easily stayed. Arghhhhhhh BYE RONALD!!!!
19th March 2011
Si woke after a very restless nights sleep thinking about his wallet. All his bank, instructor cards, driving license and a fair amount of cash were gone.
As soon as we showered and dressed we headed out and retraced our steps. Our first port of call was Crystal, noone had handed anything in,, then Zest. They said that they hadn't found anything and then we finally went to DDP (Deep Down Productions) which was padlocked as theyre were still out on the morning boat and not in for another hour. So we just sat and waited....
We didnt even have enough money to go and have breakfast. DDP was our last port of call. If it wasn't there, then we'd have to contact the bank, cancel cards, get new ones sent out which would take forever plus we're due to meet with the landlord of our new apartment and he needed a deposit. I was just praying that it was in there. After 20mins or so, Tony turned up with keys to open up DDP. Sat next to the printer was his wallet ...PHEW!!!!
Later that evening, as it was Ronald's last evening, a crowd of us met at Crystal bar for a beer and then we went for a meal at 'Morava' ..the food was very tasty and after sharing a banoffee pie with Ronald we headed to 'Fizz' (beach bar) Ronald was bought a lot of shots which he didnt really object to at all. ;-D We're just pleased that we didnt have to drink any ;-D I think Si and I snuck off around half midnight and the others followed shortly after...
As soon as we showered and dressed we headed out and retraced our steps. Our first port of call was Crystal, noone had handed anything in,, then Zest. They said that they hadn't found anything and then we finally went to DDP (Deep Down Productions) which was padlocked as theyre were still out on the morning boat and not in for another hour. So we just sat and waited....
We didnt even have enough money to go and have breakfast. DDP was our last port of call. If it wasn't there, then we'd have to contact the bank, cancel cards, get new ones sent out which would take forever plus we're due to meet with the landlord of our new apartment and he needed a deposit. I was just praying that it was in there. After 20mins or so, Tony turned up with keys to open up DDP. Sat next to the printer was his wallet ...PHEW!!!!
Later that evening, as it was Ronald's last evening, a crowd of us met at Crystal bar for a beer and then we went for a meal at 'Morava' ..the food was very tasty and after sharing a banoffee pie with Ronald we headed to 'Fizz' (beach bar) Ronald was bought a lot of shots which he didnt really object to at all. ;-D We're just pleased that we didnt have to drink any ;-D I think Si and I snuck off around half midnight and the others followed shortly after...
Saturday 19 March 2011
18th March 2011
Woke early this morning and went for a swim. Lengths done, we showered and changed and hopped on the bike and headed down to Crystal to hand some washing in and to knock for Ronald. We had planned to go for a dive at Junk Yard but due to the poor condition and the fact that Ronald still had a blocked ear, we cancelled. Instead, after a long breakfast at Zest, I decided to go with Ronald for a massage and then go to Yoga. Simon had volunteered to go with Nathan and help out with another Reef Check.
Our massage was fabulous and after a slow walk to Sairee we stopped for a juice and then went to Yoga which was unfortunately so full that we couldnt squeeze in, so Ronald and I took a leisurely stroll around Sairee, did a bit of shopping and stopped off at a couple of beach bars to rehydrate ;-D It was about 5.30pm by the time we got back to Crystal, just a Simon was washing his kit ...apparently I hadnt missed anything as the viz was pants
After 7pm dance rehearsals, we met up at the bar and headed to Farango's for a tasty pizza and then headed home. Oh, on paying Si couldnt find his wallet, which was very worrying.
Our massage was fabulous and after a slow walk to Sairee we stopped for a juice and then went to Yoga which was unfortunately so full that we couldnt squeeze in, so Ronald and I took a leisurely stroll around Sairee, did a bit of shopping and stopped off at a couple of beach bars to rehydrate ;-D It was about 5.30pm by the time we got back to Crystal, just a Simon was washing his kit ...apparently I hadnt missed anything as the viz was pants
After 7pm dance rehearsals, we met up at the bar and headed to Farango's for a tasty pizza and then headed home. Oh, on paying Si couldnt find his wallet, which was very worrying.
Thursday 17 March 2011
17 March 2011
Chris,
MANY HAPPY RETURNS OF THE DAY!!!! ..have a magical day!
& Happy St Paddys day to everyone else :-D
Last night we had our Open Water Movie. It was brilliant. Jace (videographer) had done a superb job.
Our students were all in an celebratory mood and before long had started challenging the other newly qualified students to participate in drinking games which I managed to avoid but Simon participated in one ;-D ....not a good idea with an empty stomach. After an early escape and a quick stop at 7Eleven to pick up some water, we headed home and crashed out.
From what we've heard, our students got extremely drunk, and just about got home in the early hours. I dont envy them on their rocky boat journey today ..3metre waves in places with a hangover!!!
Well, the plan for today was to go for a fun dive at Junk Yard but as the wind and rain had not stopped all night, we abandoned that idea and spent most of the day in a coffee shop, drinking coffee funnily enough, mailing and watching movies ...Si's been doing something most unpleasant, superimposing peoples heads on bodybuilders, ready for our Village People medley at the Koh Tao Festival ..
MANY HAPPY RETURNS OF THE DAY!!!! ..have a magical day!
& Happy St Paddys day to everyone else :-D
Last night we had our Open Water Movie. It was brilliant. Jace (videographer) had done a superb job.
Our students were all in an celebratory mood and before long had started challenging the other newly qualified students to participate in drinking games which I managed to avoid but Simon participated in one ;-D ....not a good idea with an empty stomach. After an early escape and a quick stop at 7Eleven to pick up some water, we headed home and crashed out.
From what we've heard, our students got extremely drunk, and just about got home in the early hours. I dont envy them on their rocky boat journey today ..3metre waves in places with a hangover!!!
Well, the plan for today was to go for a fun dive at Junk Yard but as the wind and rain had not stopped all night, we abandoned that idea and spent most of the day in a coffee shop, drinking coffee funnily enough, mailing and watching movies ...Si's been doing something most unpleasant, superimposing peoples heads on bodybuilders, ready for our Village People medley at the Koh Tao Festival ..
Wednesday 16 March 2011
15th and 16th March 2011
Our Open Water Course went really well. It was great to be back teaching again. I did feel a bit rusty after a few months out of the water, only to be expected I suppose.
We started out with a very large group of 17 but then the next day, the group was split into 3. I ended up taking 5 students, two Canadian & English and a friend from Motorola who was German. Simon decided to assist me as he had a slight ear ache and didn’t want to chance starting the course and then not being able to finish, otherwise he would have taken a group of 6. Better to be safe than sorry ;-D
Yesterday, with academics, the final exam, confined water skills and swim test complete we took the plunge into the sea. The visibility wasn’t great, 6 or so metres and there seemed to be divers everywhere but the students did brilliantly. We even had a couple of close encounters with a couple of Titan Trigger fish but everyone kept their cool. They all got to grip with their buoyancy pretty quickly and we had a great couple of 40minute dives at ‘Twins’
Today we were up at 6am and down at Crystal by 6.30 in order to get the good BCD’s and dive bags as the ones we used the previously were all pretty tatty.
Todays dive sites were ‘White Rock’ and ‘Japanese Gardens’ .....thankfully the visibility was better, thought still not brilliant, maybe 10-12metres. With only a couple of underwater skills to do, which the students sailed through. We had a great dive, spotting, barracuda, a moray eel, butterfly, banner fish, a nudi branch to name but a few. Everyone came up with smiles, so Simon and I were happy.
Having completed log books, paperwork and completed their temporary certification cards, Simon and I picked up a sandwich, went back to our room to eat and then spent the next couple of hours playing around in the pool.
Tonight, we’re going down to Crystal to watch our Open Water movie and celebrating with our students.It will be uploaded as soon as Simon gets the video... so look out for it soon... it should have some nice comedy moments.!
x
J
Monday 14 March 2011
13th and 14th March 2011
Hey guys..
Well, on the night of the 12th... Jen was asked to start an open water course.. so the last 2 days have be full paced with Jen taking the lead and me assisting.
In light of the intensity of the course, plus dance rehearsals... we have had no time to do anything else... but expect more stuff tomorrow when the students go for their 1st dives in the ocean.
x
SD
Well, on the night of the 12th... Jen was asked to start an open water course.. so the last 2 days have be full paced with Jen taking the lead and me assisting.
In light of the intensity of the course, plus dance rehearsals... we have had no time to do anything else... but expect more stuff tomorrow when the students go for their 1st dives in the ocean.
x
SD
Saturday 12 March 2011
12th March 2011
Yesterday, while we were diving Mae Haad reef, one of Crystals dive boats went to Chumphon Pinnacle, and saw 2 whalesharks!!!
So this morning, in the hope that they were still hanging around, the boat returned there fully packed with 60 divers including us.
The conditions were not too calm, the sea was rolling well... and after a 45 minute choppy journey, we arrived at the dive site.
Needless to say, no whalesharks appeared, but we saw a decent size school of big boy barracudas.. cool! Once everyone had returned from the dive, we went to White Rock. The journey to White Rock was even choppier! Jen struggled, not quite having her sea legs yet.... but made it.
White Rock was uneventful, some nudibranchs, angelfish, and a sting ray... but Jens camera leaked a little so we spent most of the time worrying about that.. Once back on the boat, we removed the camera and dried everything out... luckily its all okay..
Speaking of things breaking, the throttle cable on the bike snapped last night... so I had to take that to a mechanic in the afternoon... so we are without vehicle at the mo..
We spent the afternoon swimming and relaxing, then at 7pm, Jen went to a clothes swap party with Tracy, and I chatted to Carsten at the Crystal Bar.
Tomorrow, Jen starts an Open Water Course! It was a bit of a surprise to get one so quickly... but great...
x
SD
So this morning, in the hope that they were still hanging around, the boat returned there fully packed with 60 divers including us.
The conditions were not too calm, the sea was rolling well... and after a 45 minute choppy journey, we arrived at the dive site.
Needless to say, no whalesharks appeared, but we saw a decent size school of big boy barracudas.. cool! Once everyone had returned from the dive, we went to White Rock. The journey to White Rock was even choppier! Jen struggled, not quite having her sea legs yet.... but made it.
White Rock was uneventful, some nudibranchs, angelfish, and a sting ray... but Jens camera leaked a little so we spent most of the time worrying about that.. Once back on the boat, we removed the camera and dried everything out... luckily its all okay..
Speaking of things breaking, the throttle cable on the bike snapped last night... so I had to take that to a mechanic in the afternoon... so we are without vehicle at the mo..
We spent the afternoon swimming and relaxing, then at 7pm, Jen went to a clothes swap party with Tracy, and I chatted to Carsten at the Crystal Bar.
Tomorrow, Jen starts an Open Water Course! It was a bit of a surprise to get one so quickly... but great...
x
SD
11th March 2011
After a terrible nights sleep for some reason or another, we headed down to Crystal around 8.30am, ordered breakfast and met up with Nathan and some Marine Biology students over from Koh Phangan.
This morning, we dove Mae Haad reef, off the longtail and assisted in putting down some 5metre cross transects. This didn’t take long at all so, Simon, Nathan and I left the group and swam over to Junk Yard to see what additions had been made and to see the Sea Hares (really large Nudi branchs/sea slugs) which have appeared in the last couple of months due to the abundance of algae growing on the sea bed. It didn’t take long before I spotted one ..oh my goodness, I wasn’t expecting them to be so big. It was about the size of my fist.
Apparently the numbers have declined in the last month but I think we saw at least half a dozen of them on the dive. Apart from the new sea life, puffa’s , batfish to name but a few, the coral nursary’s we’d put down before we left, are doing extremely well. I think we’ll soon be doing some transplanting!!
After a 65 minute dive, we headed back in to shore, washed out kit and went home for a shower. I had intentions of mailing people but promptly fell asleep for a couple of hours while Si did some UK work.
Around 7pm, we met the Crystal crew and started dance rehearsals which went pretty well seeing we’ve missed 3 sessions ..as I think we’ve mentioned it’s a medley of the Village People tracks ..really annoying when you’re humming them whilst diving ;-D
Rehearsal over and done with, we headed out for food and beer to the ‘soft’ opening (I suppose that means, not quite finished) of ‘Vibe Lounge" ...which used to be Dirty Nellys but is now under new ownership. ‘VIBE’ used to be a cool beach bar down in Sairee but had to close do to landlord issues .. anyway.. a few drinks later it was bed for an early nite..
x
Jen
Friday 11 March 2011
10th March 2011
After a 13 hour solid sleep, we woke feeling pretty refreshed,
We started the morning, with a swim in the hotel pool and then headed to Zest for breakfast. 2 Cappuchino coffees and some scrambled eggs on toast and we were off to the dive school. We grabbed our kit bags and got ready to jump straight back on the Eco wagon.
Nathan, and a few of his students, were heading out on Crystal 1 (the smallest of the fleet, beside the longtail) to Hin Fai (Bio-Rock) to mark some 1 metre square quadrants and some settlement plates for a study a university on the mainland has created.
Being back in the water was bliss, and no equalising issues... which is great news.
Two dives later and we were back at shore.... a quick change of clothes and straight to dinner. Jenny had a Thai Jungle Curry, a spicy soup kinda thing, I had Pad Thai Tofu.
After munching through a tasty dinner, we headed over to Nathans house to catch up on the dance moves for the Underwater festival in a couple of weeks. We ended up just gassing and drinking Green Tea... but rehearsals are tomorrow, so Jen and I need to keep up as we have missed out on 3 sessions!
Before bed, we nipped to Crystal for a quick drink and to meet up with people we hadn't caught up with... another early night! Nice!
x
SD
We started the morning, with a swim in the hotel pool and then headed to Zest for breakfast. 2 Cappuchino coffees and some scrambled eggs on toast and we were off to the dive school. We grabbed our kit bags and got ready to jump straight back on the Eco wagon.
Nathan, and a few of his students, were heading out on Crystal 1 (the smallest of the fleet, beside the longtail) to Hin Fai (Bio-Rock) to mark some 1 metre square quadrants and some settlement plates for a study a university on the mainland has created.
Being back in the water was bliss, and no equalising issues... which is great news.
Two dives later and we were back at shore.... a quick change of clothes and straight to dinner. Jenny had a Thai Jungle Curry, a spicy soup kinda thing, I had Pad Thai Tofu.
After munching through a tasty dinner, we headed over to Nathans house to catch up on the dance moves for the Underwater festival in a couple of weeks. We ended up just gassing and drinking Green Tea... but rehearsals are tomorrow, so Jen and I need to keep up as we have missed out on 3 sessions!
Before bed, we nipped to Crystal for a quick drink and to meet up with people we hadn't caught up with... another early night! Nice!
x
SD
Wednesday 9 March 2011
9th March 2011
So folks... Now I am awake finally... I can update the post.!
At Bangkok airport, we went to bed, and both were awake at 1:30am... Jen stayed awake watching naff movies until 4am, and I stayed up messing with the internet, seeing if I could get BBC iplayer to work outside of the UK.. I did, so Jen will be happy to keep up with all the Eastenders stuff.
At 7am I woke Jen with a cuppa, and we had breakfast before shooting back to the airport for our domestic flight to Surat Thani (southern province).
On the short flight to Surat, we were served with sandwiches.. mine were veggie of course, and a very strange mixture of cream, green beans, and carrots... needless to say, I left it.
Landing at Surat Thani, we were going to get the bus to the town centre, but it was pretty full, and we were not travelling light, so got a cab.
20 mins later and we were at the ferry. We bought at tickets, and starting thinking what to do for 12 hours, before the boat left.
Surat Thani is a town that supplies the islands with various food, building materials, bikes etc. So shopping here was not very fun... we stopped after an hour as there was nothing to see. I then had my hair shaved at a barbers and we returned to the boat, to watch the loading of cargo on the boat.. its amazing how much they fit on.
The waiting around was tedious, Jen bought some fruit from a market stall, I bought a couple of beers, we watched Monday's episode of Eastenders.. snoozed... that was it.
Eventually, 11pm had arrived, and the boat started off. Most people went to sleep. I watched a couple of films, snoozed a little, and watched the sunrise from the back of the boat. The journey got quite choppy for a couple of hours, but thankfully, no one was sick.
So, we arrived on Koh Tao!! YAY! 3 days of travel and we were shattered... and still wearing the same clothes (Yuck!)..
We caught a taxi to the Koh Tao Regal hotel (sounds better than it is) and got showered and changed. Then hit the pool for some exercise. Then off to Zest for breakfast, and meet Nathan and family. Lots of chit chat later, Nathan gave me a lift to pick up my motorbike...
It would not start, and I pushed the bike to the nearest mechanic... knackering!. The mechanic checked and noticed there was no fuel !!! It must have either leaked, or evaporated... who knows... anyway... a little while later, and my bike is running.
Returning to Jen, we had a couple of hours snooze and head out to dinner.. just a quick Thai bite.. which was delicious.. Jen had Pork and Ginger.. I had Tofu Red Curry.. both meals were very good.
Off to the Crystal bar, for a quick hello... and we retired for a 13 hour kip.... I need it.
At Bangkok airport, we went to bed, and both were awake at 1:30am... Jen stayed awake watching naff movies until 4am, and I stayed up messing with the internet, seeing if I could get BBC iplayer to work outside of the UK.. I did, so Jen will be happy to keep up with all the Eastenders stuff.
At 7am I woke Jen with a cuppa, and we had breakfast before shooting back to the airport for our domestic flight to Surat Thani (southern province).
On the short flight to Surat, we were served with sandwiches.. mine were veggie of course, and a very strange mixture of cream, green beans, and carrots... needless to say, I left it.
Landing at Surat Thani, we were going to get the bus to the town centre, but it was pretty full, and we were not travelling light, so got a cab.
20 mins later and we were at the ferry. We bought at tickets, and starting thinking what to do for 12 hours, before the boat left.
Surat Thani is a town that supplies the islands with various food, building materials, bikes etc. So shopping here was not very fun... we stopped after an hour as there was nothing to see. I then had my hair shaved at a barbers and we returned to the boat, to watch the loading of cargo on the boat.. its amazing how much they fit on.
The waiting around was tedious, Jen bought some fruit from a market stall, I bought a couple of beers, we watched Monday's episode of Eastenders.. snoozed... that was it.
Eventually, 11pm had arrived, and the boat started off. Most people went to sleep. I watched a couple of films, snoozed a little, and watched the sunrise from the back of the boat. The journey got quite choppy for a couple of hours, but thankfully, no one was sick.
So, we arrived on Koh Tao!! YAY! 3 days of travel and we were shattered... and still wearing the same clothes (Yuck!)..
We caught a taxi to the Koh Tao Regal hotel (sounds better than it is) and got showered and changed. Then hit the pool for some exercise. Then off to Zest for breakfast, and meet Nathan and family. Lots of chit chat later, Nathan gave me a lift to pick up my motorbike...
It would not start, and I pushed the bike to the nearest mechanic... knackering!. The mechanic checked and noticed there was no fuel !!! It must have either leaked, or evaporated... who knows... anyway... a little while later, and my bike is running.
Returning to Jen, we had a couple of hours snooze and head out to dinner.. just a quick Thai bite.. which was delicious.. Jen had Pork and Ginger.. I had Tofu Red Curry.. both meals were very good.
Off to the Crystal bar, for a quick hello... and we retired for a 13 hour kip.... I need it.
Monday 7 March 2011
7th March 2011 - The Journey Back
So, slighty over 3 months after arriving back in the UK, we left the farm on the sunniest day since we had returned... was the bad weather following us or something??!We were dropped at Heathrow by Charles and Rosie (thanks guys!) and after a slightly tearful farewell by the two sisters, we checked in.
14 hours later, we arrived at Bangkok airport, and after a bit of wandering around, we found the shuttle bus to the hotel.
After check in, we went to our room, and I immediately got on the internet to sort some work stuff out, while Jen went to the gym (good girl!). We both met at the pool bar, before going back to our room, showering, and sitting in our dressing gowns.
Jenny wrote an email to her sis, and then we hit the hay ready for another flight in the morning.
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