After spending many days resting on the island of Koh Samui, I actually began to relax more and appreciate the beautiful island. We ventured out around our beach hut and ate some delicious local food. One evening, we ventured into the main town and watched a Thai Reggae Band, who I must say where incredibly talented and sounded amazingly like Bob Marley & The Wailers. This was not even the highlight of the whole evening, the walk across the street was, in order to watch the Muay Thai Boxing. We viewed two men's and two women's fights, each demonstrating great skill and technique. The most exciting thing was how the crowd reacts and the whole atmosphere set when viewing this competition. The sport of Muay Thai is highly respected in Thailand and many people follow, therefore, watching and being apart of this event was an exciting evening indeed. After many days of rest, we opted to catch our boat across to the 'famous island' of Kho Phangan, all I could say is that I was eagerly excited, ready and well and truly deserved to have some fun.
After a smooth and enjoyable boat journey across the islands, I departed the boat feeling hot, excited and most of all ready to party! We wandered through the small streets and located our hostel easy enough, then was greeted with a huge smile from 'Wan', the manager of the hostel. She checked us in and showed us to our swanky room. Well, when I say swanky, I express now what I was greeted with. The walls on the way upstairs where smeared with an array of neon colours of paints, plenty of yellows, oranges, pinks and greens. Then, as we pushed heavily on the door, the room was filled with around 20 bunk beds. We opted to choose the far corner near the window, as I was on the top bunk, the mattress was actually made of wood. I actually didn't mind, as I knew I would hardly be getting the perfect sleep on this island anyways. We ventured out to the beach and the whole vibe on the island is amazing. The people who venture here are all in search for a good time, wanting to socialise and party. We chilled on the beach for a couple of hours and then randomly bumped into some friends we had met in Bangkok, Trey and Karla. It's crazy as me and Karla after talking for 2 hours, realised we knew the same person from back home, a mutual friend. We ended being joined by a Dutch guy called France and we all sat on the beach in darkness enjoying some Chang Beer. As the night drew closer, we decided to go and eat at Karla's bungalow, this entailed getting a fisherman's wooden boat out to sea, cruising around the bay and hopping off across rocks around the next bay on the island, this is only accessible via boat. It was a little scary zooming through the waves in darkness, especially having consumed one too many beers, but it was fun! We chilled at there place all evening, eating nice food, drinking beer and listening to Trey, who is a great musician and reminds me of Bob Dylan play lots of songs.
The next morning we awoke happily, knowing that we actually arrived home safe and that we could head out to the beach and hopefully bump into some others friends who arrived that day Karlie & Ronnie. Luckily, we bumped into them and we spent the next few days and nights, enjoying the island and partying even more. One night, me and John stayed out late and under our feet in the sand we found a new iPhone, I checked the pictures to see if I could see who it belonged to, but it was no use as the person who seemed to appear on all the pictures was nowhere to be seen. I decided that I would keep hold of it, then in the morning we can call or somehow get in touch with them to return their phone. I always believe in doing something good, in a way helps the karma of my soul, but also just being a 'good' person, as I knew this person would be gutted to have lost their phone. The next day, we ended up drinking beer and having cooked breakfast with Karlie & Ronnie around 3pm, then we mentioned about the phone and showed them the picture, it's crazy but they replied "that's our next door neighbour"!! So, after our food and drinks, we ventured back to their place to return the phone, that's when we met two great people...Kyle and Damon. They are two Americans, who are real characters and really nice people. Damon was so happy to have his phone back that he declared we all drink a bottle of Samsong on his balcony to celebrate, so our evening was filled with great times and lots of fun with four Scousers and two Americans.
The day had finally arrived....The Full Moon Party! The island had become much more busier now and the whole atmosphere was exhilarating, I loved it. I ensured I had my bright coloured top on, mini mouse glow in the dark headband and most of all body paint, this is compulsary for the Full Moon Experience. In order to totally integrate yourself with the party and whole vibe, you have to splash and dash some sort of neon paint on yourself. The night was one of the best partying nights I have ever experienced. We began lightly with beers before moving onto buckets, this is a must in order to last the night. Once we had our body paint in tact, we ventured out into the streets, I enjoyed some street food, a nice piece of crispy chicken. Then, we opted to make our own buckets (cheaper!) going to the 7-eleven and opting to fill it with pineapple juice. This is our own special drink that will become famously known throughout the night as the 'Samsong Colada'! We eventually reached the beach around midnight and was greeted by thousands of people all having a great time. You can be mesmerised by the fire shows that take place on the beach, each bar has lots of entertainment and most of all, there is so much variety in what music you can enjoy. There are bars that have strong drum and base, reggae, dance, cheesy pop, there is literally everything. Me and John ended up partying through at least 10 buckets of 'Samsong Colada's' and adored viewing the sunrise from the beach. It was so enchanting and an amazing experience, the party was still in full swing even at this time. We managed to stay up until 9am, then opted to have some food...breakfast. At this time, still finishing off our last bucket, I opted for sweet and sour chicken for breakfast, well not the normal type of meal I would go for, but I was on Koh Phangan and you can eat anything at anytime. We eventually settled into our bunk-beds for sleep at 10am, I am almost proud of this achievement.
After two days of recovering from the massive party, I was glad to leave this island and in need of rest and relaxation, especially in the means of no alcohol. We ventured onto the nightmare of a catamaran, that not only made me sick, but myself and another 100 people. The whole hour and half journey, produced two full sick bags from me, I felt as though I was about to faint and there was nothing I could do about it, as I was thrashing around as we bashed through the choppy hurling waves of the sea. Once we reached Koh Tao, I instantly felt happy. Of course for reaching Koh Tao itself and also for being off that catamaran, never again. The next six days, I spent relaxing along the beach and by our wonderful pool. John opted to complete his PADI Open Water Scuba Diving, so he is now a qualified diver, whereas, I spent the days relaxing and taking it easy...I needed it. Koh Tao has a quaint nightlife, lots of beautiful restaurant and bars lined along the beach, each dishing up delicious food and a very uber chilled atmosphere. Therefore, my evenings laying on cushions on the beach, surrounded by live acoustic music and fire shows was well appreciated and most of all enjoyable. I loved my time on Koh Tao and now as I venture into the jungle and visit the Khao Sok National Park, I wonder about how many bears, tigers and monkeys I may see?
After a smooth and enjoyable boat journey across the islands, I departed the boat feeling hot, excited and most of all ready to party! We wandered through the small streets and located our hostel easy enough, then was greeted with a huge smile from 'Wan', the manager of the hostel. She checked us in and showed us to our swanky room. Well, when I say swanky, I express now what I was greeted with. The walls on the way upstairs where smeared with an array of neon colours of paints, plenty of yellows, oranges, pinks and greens. Then, as we pushed heavily on the door, the room was filled with around 20 bunk beds. We opted to choose the far corner near the window, as I was on the top bunk, the mattress was actually made of wood. I actually didn't mind, as I knew I would hardly be getting the perfect sleep on this island anyways. We ventured out to the beach and the whole vibe on the island is amazing. The people who venture here are all in search for a good time, wanting to socialise and party. We chilled on the beach for a couple of hours and then randomly bumped into some friends we had met in Bangkok, Trey and Karla. It's crazy as me and Karla after talking for 2 hours, realised we knew the same person from back home, a mutual friend. We ended being joined by a Dutch guy called France and we all sat on the beach in darkness enjoying some Chang Beer. As the night drew closer, we decided to go and eat at Karla's bungalow, this entailed getting a fisherman's wooden boat out to sea, cruising around the bay and hopping off across rocks around the next bay on the island, this is only accessible via boat. It was a little scary zooming through the waves in darkness, especially having consumed one too many beers, but it was fun! We chilled at there place all evening, eating nice food, drinking beer and listening to Trey, who is a great musician and reminds me of Bob Dylan play lots of songs.
The next morning we awoke happily, knowing that we actually arrived home safe and that we could head out to the beach and hopefully bump into some others friends who arrived that day Karlie & Ronnie. Luckily, we bumped into them and we spent the next few days and nights, enjoying the island and partying even more. One night, me and John stayed out late and under our feet in the sand we found a new iPhone, I checked the pictures to see if I could see who it belonged to, but it was no use as the person who seemed to appear on all the pictures was nowhere to be seen. I decided that I would keep hold of it, then in the morning we can call or somehow get in touch with them to return their phone. I always believe in doing something good, in a way helps the karma of my soul, but also just being a 'good' person, as I knew this person would be gutted to have lost their phone. The next day, we ended up drinking beer and having cooked breakfast with Karlie & Ronnie around 3pm, then we mentioned about the phone and showed them the picture, it's crazy but they replied "that's our next door neighbour"!! So, after our food and drinks, we ventured back to their place to return the phone, that's when we met two great people...Kyle and Damon. They are two Americans, who are real characters and really nice people. Damon was so happy to have his phone back that he declared we all drink a bottle of Samsong on his balcony to celebrate, so our evening was filled with great times and lots of fun with four Scousers and two Americans.
The day had finally arrived....The Full Moon Party! The island had become much more busier now and the whole atmosphere was exhilarating, I loved it. I ensured I had my bright coloured top on, mini mouse glow in the dark headband and most of all body paint, this is compulsary for the Full Moon Experience. In order to totally integrate yourself with the party and whole vibe, you have to splash and dash some sort of neon paint on yourself. The night was one of the best partying nights I have ever experienced. We began lightly with beers before moving onto buckets, this is a must in order to last the night. Once we had our body paint in tact, we ventured out into the streets, I enjoyed some street food, a nice piece of crispy chicken. Then, we opted to make our own buckets (cheaper!) going to the 7-eleven and opting to fill it with pineapple juice. This is our own special drink that will become famously known throughout the night as the 'Samsong Colada'! We eventually reached the beach around midnight and was greeted by thousands of people all having a great time. You can be mesmerised by the fire shows that take place on the beach, each bar has lots of entertainment and most of all, there is so much variety in what music you can enjoy. There are bars that have strong drum and base, reggae, dance, cheesy pop, there is literally everything. Me and John ended up partying through at least 10 buckets of 'Samsong Colada's' and adored viewing the sunrise from the beach. It was so enchanting and an amazing experience, the party was still in full swing even at this time. We managed to stay up until 9am, then opted to have some food...breakfast. At this time, still finishing off our last bucket, I opted for sweet and sour chicken for breakfast, well not the normal type of meal I would go for, but I was on Koh Phangan and you can eat anything at anytime. We eventually settled into our bunk-beds for sleep at 10am, I am almost proud of this achievement.
After two days of recovering from the massive party, I was glad to leave this island and in need of rest and relaxation, especially in the means of no alcohol. We ventured onto the nightmare of a catamaran, that not only made me sick, but myself and another 100 people. The whole hour and half journey, produced two full sick bags from me, I felt as though I was about to faint and there was nothing I could do about it, as I was thrashing around as we bashed through the choppy hurling waves of the sea. Once we reached Koh Tao, I instantly felt happy. Of course for reaching Koh Tao itself and also for being off that catamaran, never again. The next six days, I spent relaxing along the beach and by our wonderful pool. John opted to complete his PADI Open Water Scuba Diving, so he is now a qualified diver, whereas, I spent the days relaxing and taking it easy...I needed it. Koh Tao has a quaint nightlife, lots of beautiful restaurant and bars lined along the beach, each dishing up delicious food and a very uber chilled atmosphere. Therefore, my evenings laying on cushions on the beach, surrounded by live acoustic music and fire shows was well appreciated and most of all enjoyable. I loved my time on Koh Tao and now as I venture into the jungle and visit the Khao Sok National Park, I wonder about how many bears, tigers and monkeys I may see?
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| Resting and taking it easy on Koh Samui |
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| Watching the Muay Thai Boxing in Koh Samui |
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| Our beach huts on Koh Samui |
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| DIY Dinner - we ate at a local Thai place, cooking our own food |
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| Arriving on Koh Phangan...loving the beach |
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| Chilling at sunset, observing local men fishing in the sea |
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| Chilling with Kyle, Karlie, Ronnie & Damon...watching sunset! |
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| Enjoying a day at the beach with John & France (Dutch Guy!) |
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| On a night out, bumping into our Israeli friends (Thomas & Adam). We've seen them in every country we've visited. |
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| The 'Fire Limbo' on the beach on Koh Phangan |
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| This is the vision that me and John had by this time in the night |
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| Chilling on my cushion on the beach at night in Koh Tao |
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| Kyle taking a nap on me and John, chilling on the beach |
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| Scuba Stan!! John on one of his diving lessons for his PADI |
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| Our last night in Koh Tao, relaxing with some friends |
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| My memories of Koh Tao, the laidback nights of fire dancers and live music |
