Friday, November 23, 2007
Koh Samui – November 5, 2007
We are leaving Koh Samui today. Our plane left late in the afternoon, so we felt like we should do something a little more than just sitting on the beach. Paola read in the guidebook that there were neat waterfalls in the area, so we packed our stuff, and headed out to a waterfall.
Koh Samui – November 3-4, 2007
Paola really adjusted to the charm of our little bungalow. We are not too far from the beach, maybe about 100 meters. Our door opens to a path that is lined with a nice garden that has different tropical plants, and even some fish ponds. We could go up into the small town, but we just stay here in the bungalow, or on the beach. There really isn’t much more to do here, and this is why I have never really wanted to take a vacation like this. However, being here now, I can see the value of just resting and relaxing on the beach. There is some value in forgetting about your worries, and laying on the beach with nothing to do and getting a tan. The only negative thing is that there are more than a few mosquitoes. They sold a natural bug repellant at the counter of the resort, and I have been spraying it on myself a lot. It smells a bit, but I have not been getting any more mosquito bites, unlike Paola.
Dinner
Later on, we took a little walk down the beach. Paola wanted to compare the other resorts and bungalows with ours. After seeing the other ones, she did finally come around to liking what we got. Ours was less crowded, with fewer people that looked like snobs (according to Paola’s standards), and she actually liked the shabby look of ours; other bungalows were too overdone, and that seemed to take away from the charm of a small tropical island.
Just before we got to our bungalow, the resort next to ours was setting up for dinner. They were setting up tables right on the sand. This appealed to Paola, so she made a reservation for an hour later. Like I said before, we came during the off season, so there was no need to make the reservation, but we wanted to be sure.
We had a nice little tropical dinner with seafood and drinks. The server was very nice and friendly. He served us a drink in a pineapple made like Mr. Potatohead. It was very charming, and enjoyable, so we came back here for dinner every night that we were in Koh Samui.
Just before we got to our bungalow, the resort next to ours was setting up for dinner. They were setting up tables right on the sand. This appealed to Paola, so she made a reservation for an hour later. Like I said before, we came during the off season, so there was no need to make the reservation, but we wanted to be sure.
We had a nice little tropical dinner with seafood and drinks. The server was very nice and friendly. He served us a drink in a pineapple made like Mr. Potatohead. It was very charming, and enjoyable, so we came back here for dinner every night that we were in Koh Samui.
Lamai
Our resort was on a beach called Lamai on Koh Samui. There is a more popular beach, but Paola did not want to go somewhere that was too crowded with tourists, so she booked our room at a place that was a bit further out of the way. However, this was the second most popular beach on Lamai, so it wasn’t completely free of tourists.
Having the taxi drive us from the airport to our resort, we passed a lot of other resorts. Paola has a bad habit of always doubting herself, and so she was thinking that she should have booked our room at this place rather than that. I tried to assure her that everything would be ok, and that the place that we booked would be fine.
When we finally got to our resort, called U___, it looked much more shabby than some of the other places that we passed. Paola was immediately disappointed, but I tried to convince her that she should give this place a chance.
The man who welcomed us remembered speaking to Paola on the phone. He was nice, and guessed that her name was Italian. Although he was German, when he does not live in Lamai, he lives in the north of Italy. He was very friendly, and showed us to our bungalow. Paola still felt a little disappointed, especially when we did not get the beach front bungalow. I really didn’t care, and I was happy with what we got. It was very quiet, and had a very tropical feel to it (all the way down to the mosquitoes that were constantly biting). I felt like I could get a lot of reading done while we were here.
After settling in, we walked out to the beach. Paola found something else to be disappointed about when she saw the beach chairs. Other resorts had lounge chairs that were made of wood, and had cushioned mats to lay on, with umbrellas covering people from the sun (or in our case, since we came during the off season, the rain). Our hotel had white plastic beach chairs with no umbrellas or cushions. With a towel on top, I was fine, and I sat and began to read my book. (Being that we live in Japan, I am trying to read as many books about Japan, or by Japanese writers as I can.)
It seemed that everything that Paola had expected was not there. Our bungalow was shabby, the sky was overcast, and the sea was not a crystal blue that had been advertised. I knew that this is how Paola always gets with new places, and that she would soon come around to accept and even like this place. The same thing happened when we first arrived in Japan, and when we first arrived in Bangkok. All she needed was time.
Having the taxi drive us from the airport to our resort, we passed a lot of other resorts. Paola has a bad habit of always doubting herself, and so she was thinking that she should have booked our room at this place rather than that. I tried to assure her that everything would be ok, and that the place that we booked would be fine.
When we finally got to our resort, called U___, it looked much more shabby than some of the other places that we passed. Paola was immediately disappointed, but I tried to convince her that she should give this place a chance.
The man who welcomed us remembered speaking to Paola on the phone. He was nice, and guessed that her name was Italian. Although he was German, when he does not live in Lamai, he lives in the north of Italy. He was very friendly, and showed us to our bungalow. Paola still felt a little disappointed, especially when we did not get the beach front bungalow. I really didn’t care, and I was happy with what we got. It was very quiet, and had a very tropical feel to it (all the way down to the mosquitoes that were constantly biting). I felt like I could get a lot of reading done while we were here.
After settling in, we walked out to the beach. Paola found something else to be disappointed about when she saw the beach chairs. Other resorts had lounge chairs that were made of wood, and had cushioned mats to lay on, with umbrellas covering people from the sun (or in our case, since we came during the off season, the rain). Our hotel had white plastic beach chairs with no umbrellas or cushions. With a towel on top, I was fine, and I sat and began to read my book. (Being that we live in Japan, I am trying to read as many books about Japan, or by Japanese writers as I can.)
It seemed that everything that Paola had expected was not there. Our bungalow was shabby, the sky was overcast, and the sea was not a crystal blue that had been advertised. I knew that this is how Paola always gets with new places, and that she would soon come around to accept and even like this place. The same thing happened when we first arrived in Japan, and when we first arrived in Bangkok. All she needed was time.
Lamai
Our resort was on a beach called Lamai on Koh Samui. There is a more popular beach, but Paola did not want to go somewhere that was too crowded with tourists, so she booked our room at a place that was a bit further out of the way. However, this was the second most popular beach on Lamai, so it wasn’t completely free of tourists.
Having the taxi drive us from the airport to our resort, we passed a lot of other resorts. Paola has a bad habit of always doubting herself, and so she was thinking that she should have booked our room at this place rather than that. I tried to assure her that everything would be ok, and that the place that we booked would be fine.
When we finally got to our resort, called U___, it looked much more shabby than some of the other places that we passed. Paola was immediately disappointed, but I tried to convince her that she should give this place a chance.
The man who welcomed us remembered speaking to Paola on the phone. He was nice, and guessed that her name was Italian. Although he was German, when he does not live in Lamai, he lives in the north of Italy. He was very friendly, and showed us to our bungalow. Paola still felt a little disappointed, especially when we did not get the beach front bungalow. I really didn’t care, and I was happy with what we got. It was very quiet, and had a very tropical feel to it (all the way down to the mosquitoes that were constantly biting). I felt like I could get a lot of reading done while we were here.
After settling in, we walked out to the beach. Paola found something else to be disappointed about when she saw the beach chairs. Other resorts had lounge chairs that were made of wood, and had cushioned mats to lay on, with umbrellas covering people from the sun (or in our case, since we came during the off season, the rain). Our hotel had white plastic beach chairs with no umbrellas or cushions. With a towel on top, I was fine, and I sat and began to read my book. (Being that we live in Japan, I am trying to read as many books about Japan, or by Japanese writers as I can.)
It seemed that everything that Paola had expected was not there. Our bungalow was shabby, the sky was overcast, and the sea was not a crystal blue that had been advertised. I knew that this is how Paola always gets with new places, and that she would soon come around to accept and even like this place. The same thing happened when we first arrived in Japan, and when we first arrived in Bangkok. All she needed was time.
Having the taxi drive us from the airport to our resort, we passed a lot of other resorts. Paola has a bad habit of always doubting herself, and so she was thinking that she should have booked our room at this place rather than that. I tried to assure her that everything would be ok, and that the place that we booked would be fine.
When we finally got to our resort, called U___, it looked much more shabby than some of the other places that we passed. Paola was immediately disappointed, but I tried to convince her that she should give this place a chance.
The man who welcomed us remembered speaking to Paola on the phone. He was nice, and guessed that her name was Italian. Although he was German, when he does not live in Lamai, he lives in the north of Italy. He was very friendly, and showed us to our bungalow. Paola still felt a little disappointed, especially when we did not get the beach front bungalow. I really didn’t care, and I was happy with what we got. It was very quiet, and had a very tropical feel to it (all the way down to the mosquitoes that were constantly biting). I felt like I could get a lot of reading done while we were here.
After settling in, we walked out to the beach. Paola found something else to be disappointed about when she saw the beach chairs. Other resorts had lounge chairs that were made of wood, and had cushioned mats to lay on, with umbrellas covering people from the sun (or in our case, since we came during the off season, the rain). Our hotel had white plastic beach chairs with no umbrellas or cushions. With a towel on top, I was fine, and I sat and began to read my book. (Being that we live in Japan, I am trying to read as many books about Japan, or by Japanese writers as I can.)
It seemed that everything that Paola had expected was not there. Our bungalow was shabby, the sky was overcast, and the sea was not a crystal blue that had been advertised. I knew that this is how Paola always gets with new places, and that she would soon come around to accept and even like this place. The same thing happened when we first arrived in Japan, and when we first arrived in Bangkok. All she needed was time.
Koh Samui – November 2, 2007
I was happy to get out of Bangkok today. It was especially pleasing since I felt a lot better than the previous day. Today we went to the airport, and took a plane to an island of Bangkok called Koh Samui. It is one of the only (if not the only) island to have an airport. If we would have had more time on the schedule, then I would have been for traveling to some of the other islands by ferry. However, since our time was limited, I thought that it was best to just fly to this one island, and try to enjoy what we could there.
I think that the thing that Paola wanted to see most about Thailand was her tropical islands. When we lived in New York and talked about going on vacations, Paola would always suggest that we go to the Caribbean. She likes the idea of laying out on a pretty, tropical beach with blue water and yellow sand. This appeals to me only very slightly, and for that reason, I had to use my veto power to stop us from vacationing so, since I would rather spend travel money on places that are of cultural value, rather than recreational value. However, since this trip was planned on the fly, and the places that I wanted to visit were too expensive, I had to give in and accept that we would take a nice tropical vacation.
I think that the thing that Paola wanted to see most about Thailand was her tropical islands. When we lived in New York and talked about going on vacations, Paola would always suggest that we go to the Caribbean. She likes the idea of laying out on a pretty, tropical beach with blue water and yellow sand. This appeals to me only very slightly, and for that reason, I had to use my veto power to stop us from vacationing so, since I would rather spend travel money on places that are of cultural value, rather than recreational value. However, since this trip was planned on the fly, and the places that I wanted to visit were too expensive, I had to give in and accept that we would take a nice tropical vacation.
Wat Phra/ Wat Pho
It seemed to us that all of the main cultural sights of Bangkok were located right adjacent to each other. The Grand Palace was closed, so we walked past it to Wat Pho. It is one of the large temples in Bangkok. (Just to be clear, I am not sure, but it seems to me that the same complex is alternately called either Wat Pho, or Wat Phra. If this is not the case, then we saw one, but not the other, and I am not sure abou the name of the one that we saw (although I am confident that the two names are used for the same place).)
The main attraction at Wat Pho is the Reclining Buddha. It is a large sculpture of the Buddha lying down, as he is dying. Like the other Buddha that we saw yesterday, it is covered in gold, and has the distinct Thai style. Again, other than the face and the size, the sculpture does not appeal to me much because of the lack of detail. The feet were mere blocks with lines in them for toes, and the hands were globs with long cylinders coming from them for fingers. Before we came to Thailand, when I finally got excited about coming, one of the reasons for being excited was to see this sculpture. In any case, it was rather underwhelming, and I just went outside to a fountain and sat down, trying to recover from drinking too much. I let Paola walk around a lot while I sat, which suited me fine. Even though these temples in Thailand were stylistically different from the ones in Japan, I still felt like I saw too many temples, and I wasn’t too excited about seeing another one.
Because we started late, and it took a while to walk to the temple, it got late in the day quickly, and we called it a day. I promised Paola that when we came back to Bangkok at the end of the week, we would see more, and I would not get sick from drinking too much.
The main attraction at Wat Pho is the Reclining Buddha. It is a large sculpture of the Buddha lying down, as he is dying. Like the other Buddha that we saw yesterday, it is covered in gold, and has the distinct Thai style. Again, other than the face and the size, the sculpture does not appeal to me much because of the lack of detail. The feet were mere blocks with lines in them for toes, and the hands were globs with long cylinders coming from them for fingers. Before we came to Thailand, when I finally got excited about coming, one of the reasons for being excited was to see this sculpture. In any case, it was rather underwhelming, and I just went outside to a fountain and sat down, trying to recover from drinking too much. I let Paola walk around a lot while I sat, which suited me fine. Even though these temples in Thailand were stylistically different from the ones in Japan, I still felt like I saw too many temples, and I wasn’t too excited about seeing another one.
Because we started late, and it took a while to walk to the temple, it got late in the day quickly, and we called it a day. I promised Paola that when we came back to Bangkok at the end of the week, we would see more, and I would not get sick from drinking too much.
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