A Week in Paradise

December 1-8

We were ready for a break.

I hate to burst the bubble, but 3 straight months of traveling isn't always glamorous. The constant adjusting, figuring out new languages and cultures, determining where to stay next, figuring out where the heck to get your next meal--it's a lot. This trip has been such an incredible adventure, AND we are tired. So we decided to take a break from traveling and just take a vacation for a bit.

If you are unfamiliar, the islands in Thailand are quickly becoming the next big thing in tropical vacationing. After all, the last season of White Lotus was filmed on the very island we ended up visiting (unbeknownst to us until we got here). While it's a bit of a haul from the US or Europe, getting to the islands from elsewhere in Thailand is super easy. We booked an inexpensive 1 hour flight out of Bangkok to Koh Samui, and the airport is about a 15 minute drive from our hotel. We arrived early on Sunday morning, so we couldn't yet check into our room. However, our hotel allowed us to drop our luggage, provided a place to change, and invited us to start enjoying the amenities as soon as we arrived. We quickly shed our heavy backpacks, changed into swimsuits, and headed down to the beach.

Our hotel is small and cost us about $450 for the whole week, including breakfast. We are right on the water, and in addition to the clear turquoise ocean, there is also a pool for taking a dip. You can order drinks or food to be delivered to your sunchair. Up the street from the beach, after passing cobwebs of ominously buzzing power lines, there is a row of delicious Thai restaurants where the best curry of your life costs about $5. Competing massage parlors each offer hour long foot massages for about $10. If you feel like venturing further into town, simply hail one of the red pick up trucks that serve as a mix between a bus and a taxi--tell the driver where you are headed, get the price, jump in the bed of the truck (along with others), and hold on!

We spent our first couple of days here just resting by the water, reading, and (unsuccessfully, in poor Cal's case) trying to avoid sunburn. It is hot and humid here, so even laying in the shade you need to take a dip every half hour or so to keep cool. For dinner each night, we made our way up the road, passing the security guard at the next hotel down the way, who started to salute us each evening as he asked us our plans. He even made a point to tell us when he had days off so we wouldn't miss him!

Our big day out was taking a day tour around the island with Aekky, our new favorite tour guide. We piled into an air conditioned van with about 8 other tourists (including, unfortunately, the most ill-behaved 4 year old I've ever met) and enjoyed as Aekky and Mr. John, our driver, took us around to the various temples and viewpoints around Samui. This included the Big Buddha temple (aptly named), the Red Temple (again, self-explanatory), a beautiful viewpoint across the ocean, and one of the many beautiful waterfalls in the jungle of the island. Along the way, Aekky told us about Thai people, food, and culture, explained the history of the various sites we were visiting, and told us we absolutely had to eat KFC while we were here because it is better than the US (which we confirmed). Aekky also continuously offered to take pictures for us and everyone in the group and generally kept an eye on us all day. It was a great experience, and we got to see a lot of the island without having to worry about navigating on our own.

Other adventures included a couple of visits to the hospital on the island to continue my Rabies protocol (like Bangkok, this was an incredibly easy experience), and a visit to none other than Delaney's Irish Pub! Who knew I would have to come to Thailand to find it?

Overall, this little vacation in the middle of everything has been a perfect reprieve from the stresses of traveling, and has been exactly what we needed to gear up for our final few weeks on the road. We continue to be amazed by the kindness of Thai people, delighted by the deliciousness of the food, and generally comforted by how safe and welcoming everything feels here, no matter where we go. Tomorrow, we fly to Singapore, and then on to Taipei before tackling the final leg of our journey: Japan.