Koh Samui, Thailand – The Calm Before the Storm

Hi Friends! After leaving Cambodia, I made my way back to Thailand for the holidays. I flew from Siem Reap to Bangkok to Koh Samui. I decided to stay on Samui for a few days to see what was happening before heading to Koh Phangan for my Christmas yoga retreat.

My first day I decided to walk and see what I could find. I was told the beach was just a couple minutes down the dirt road and across the main road (the ring road). Well, it was a surprise! First of all, the ring road was super busy with fast traffic and very curvy with no sidewalks or good place to cross. Terrified, I ran for it. Then the beach…It was covered with trash and not at all what I had pictured for a beautiful tropical island. I walked to the end and back before returning to the small resort where I was staying. Totally disappointed, I spoke with the manager, Juliet, and asked her for some help regrouping and coming up with a new plan. She was great!

Juliet gave me some insight on getting around the ring road and told me I could flag down a Songthaew (a shared pickup truck taxi with bench seats in the back and a cover over the top). These are actually pretty funny to see during busy commute times when they are packed full!

Being in between two beaches, I chose Lamai, which is known to be a bit less of a party and more chill. I also had noticed a balanced rock park with a hike on my map which looked interesting. Feeling confident again, I headed down to the ring road and a couple of minutes later the Songthaew arrived. I negotiated quickly with the driver and hopped in.

Lamai was not really the happening area I was hoping for either, but I strolled down the beach road and looked in a few shops and grabbed some lunch. Re-energized, I decided to take the walk to the balanced rock hike. Of course, when I arrived, it was the hottest part of the day and as I was warned, it was a steep hike. Luckily, I met a super nice Russian guy and we sweated it out together. The rocks were pretty cool to see and the view was nice!

The following day, I booked a tour since I had exhausted my walking options. I found a Jeep jungle tour on Trip Advisor and thought what the heck? It stopped at many sights and looked like it would be entertaining. Although it started out slow and many more people joined that what the description said (6 jeeps full!), it turned out to be a total blast and I spent the day with some great folks from around the world! Here are some of the highlights!

We visited the Mummified Monk, Tamin Magic Garden, the Big Buddha, The Happy Monk, and the Impressive Wat Plai Laem where much of its structures sit over the water. Towards the end of the day, we even had a water fight in the jungle right as the torrential downpour started!

And the downpour then turned into a huge storm in the Gulf of Thailand and my boat, and all of the boats, were canceled for two days, so Koh Phangan had to wait. But, as things always do, it worked out. The place I was staying was great, they had a nicer bungalow they moved me two for the same price, and I got to hang out with my new friend Noni, who was staying there with her friend Larry and dog Bella. We went walking by the lake, shopping, and to a great yoga class on the bay!

And that’s it for Koh Samui….more island vibes coming soon.

Hugs, M