Days 10, 11, 12 and 13

We're currently sat on the pier at Koh Tao waiting for the boat to arrive. It's 11am on Wednesday morning and we've been told it's about half an hour away. It should have departed at 10am. The taxi driver on the way here laughed about the 'big waves' in the sea today. Can't wait.

Yesterday was a great day though, it was our final day on Turtle Island so we decided to enjoy the beach some more before heading off. It was probably the hottest and sunniest day we've had so far on this trip, so a couple of hours sunbathing was perfect.

The rest of the day didn't really amount to much, we just had a couple of drinks in some of the local bars, and took a fifteen minute walk upto the pier area for a bite to eat. Bed before 10pm again, doing a lot of nothing really takes it's toll on you.



Back to the pier: the boat finally arrived, and despite the choppy waves, the journey was actually quite pleasant. We arrived at koh phangan and stopped for a quick bite to eat whilst we waited for the second boat on to koh Samui, another journey that went without a hitch. We experienced some more Thai generosity when one of the staff on koh phagnan pier told us we'd be stopping at a different part of the island, he then called our hotel to re-arrange the shuttle transfer. The people here in general seem so much more helpful than at home.

We got to the hotel fairly late, and had a quick look around before going out for some food. Josephine tried shark meat which she said was actually her favourite meal so far. After dinner we went back up the mountain to our lodge, and had a party for two until the early hours.

Koh Samui was a very chilled out part of our adventure, and the next day we stayed in the resort mainly due to bad weather, hangovers and finally high quality wifi good enough to catch up on some TV! That night we had a meal in the local restaurant - which was the most expensive meal so far, but it was worth it. The food was delightful, and it was almost a fine dining experience all for £40 for three courses and an two drinks each.


The weather picked up for the last full day here so we went down to Lamai Beach. A few stops for drinks in the beach bars and a walk along the front preceded a lovely BBQ style meal and drinks in Bikini Bar. A slight mishap (the driver of our 'free shuttle bus service' falling asleep instead of picking us up) meant we had to stick around for a couple of hours later than planned, and then eventually get a taxi back, but a midnight swim and drink in the pool washed away the disappointments.

So Koh Samui was quite an uneventful few days, but it was a very relaxing time and we're glad we had it. Tomorrow we head back to Koh Phagnan for the final island in the Gulf of Thailand before heading across the country to the Andaman coast, starting with Christmas in Phuket.