After a full day in the sun I had to meet my dive instructor and the rest of my open water course group in the evening. While I was in class, Stijn explored the island a bit and found an amazing beachfront restaurant serving fresh seafood kabobs right off the barbeque. We headed straight there as soon as I was done my class and enjoyed every minute of the scenery and great food.
The next three days I had morning dives followed by afternoons in the classroom. We had hoped that Stijn would be able to explore and go off-roading with the skooter we rented but sadly the weather didn’t cooperate. He still managed to find some interesting places and took me to a few amazing viewpoints after my classes.
The first day of diving was done in the pool and it’s a good thing because it was very stormy and I’m glad I wasn’t at sea- being in the pool was bad enough! The next morning we headed out to the ocean for a series of two dives where we practiced emergency ascents and other necessary skills. The weather was still quite stormy and I had some issues keeping my breakfast down on the way back on the boat but the time in the water was amazing. Even with the choppy seas we were able to see some interesting things… for me every creature was so amazing and the whole experience was unlike any other.
The next morning we headed out early again for two more dives and this time Stijn was able to join us which was really nice. The weather had calmed down considerably so we were able to see a lot more and go to more interesting dive sites. I’m sure Stijn has seen much better but to me each dive gets more and more exciting and it was really nice to be able to share it with him. We managed to stay together the whole dive and figured out a pretty good buddy system. I have a feeling there will be plenty more dives to come for us!
That night we met a couple of the instructors and a few of the other divers at the beach bar at our hotel for a couple of drinks. There were a bunch of master divers that had just finished their four week course and were celebrating- it was pretty funny to watch as they had several competitions including drinking a bucket through a snorkel! After all the chaos there was an acoustic band playing great tunes so Stijn and I sat around soaking up the atmosphere while sipping on a few drinks. The island life is treating us well and I think it suits us!
The next morning we woke up early and headed to the top of the mountain to catch a glimpse of the sun rise coming up over the island. Many of the roads here are dirt and sand and with the recent rain, they can be quite bumpy and hard to manoeuvre. Luckily for me my job is merely to sit on the back and hold on tight! Our next stop was one of the most amazing beaches we’ve ever seen- it was a private beach at a $500 a night hotel but the guard let us in and said we could use the beach. I fell asleep under a tree while Stijn bravely went hunting for reef sharks… clearly I was happily sitting this one out! He managed to find one but since the visibility still wasn’t great it’s a bit scary to be swimming around when you can’t see what’s lurking around you!
This afternoon we took a longtail boat taxi to Koh Nangyuan which is just beside Koh Tao where a beach hut overlooking the stunning bay awaited us. This place is truly heaven. We had to take a small boat from the hotel reception over to where our hut is located- there is a sandbar that can only be crossed at low tide a few hours during the day, so we are truly away from it all. There is only the one resort here and very few people though it is one of the best places to snorkel in the world. Stijn once again took to the crystal clear water while I hit the beach which feels as though it was made especially for us! Only a tiny patch of sand but absolute perfection.
As I lay in bed writing this I can see the lights of Koh Tao reflecting off the water and the cool ocean breeze sweeps in through our window. When Stijn and I dreamt about taking a year off this is what we envisioned only its way better than we could have ever hoped for. Hopefully the weather will continue to dazzle us for the next few days as we enjoy our slice of heaven.
Later that night, Stijn took a hike to the top of the other side of the island to take in the sun set… I on the other hand thought it more pertinent to indulge in frosted drinks at the bar while reading my book! Luckily the hike didn’t take him too long though it must have been quite steep as he re-emerged quite ‘damp’. The pictures were worth the hike and I ensured that frosted drinks awaited him too! The restaurant on the island is quite good which is a good thing seeing as it’s the only one!
This morning we enjoyed another morning in paradise and visited all of our friends at the restaurant for breakfast. We seem to have a great animal following but the fondness is mutual… even the cats here are too cute for us to begrudge. I can’t pretend it’s completely by accident though as we have on occasion shared our food with them which I suspect is a regular occurrence as some of the animals, including our favourite Beagle with shorter legs –type dog, are very picky about the kind of scraps they receive! ‘Beags’ the Beagle prefers affection to food which worked for us considering we are Mia-less!
After breakfast we headed out to the beach to soak up some more sun and instantly took to the water- the ‘hike’ from our room to the reception area is quite long and includes passing over a coral filled sand bar which more often than not is covered with water. Once having waded through, and hopefully having avoided cutting your feet open, there is a series of scant wooden walkways that lead to more sturdy cement ones and finally to heaps of stairs. This may sound like too much of an undertaking every time you want to eat or go to the beach but I assure you it is well worth every step and the water is an indescribable reward. With our snorkels in hand we hit the ocean and were instantly surrounded by schools of fish. Stijn was still on the hunt for Nemo (clown fish) and while he had dove down to take a closer look at the coral in which they are found, I found a blue spotted sting ray. They are really beautiful with their fluorescent blue spots and rarely come out during the day. Not only did he come out but he actually gave us a little show and went for a bit of a swim- it was really amazing to see!
While the sting ray was the rarest fish we saw, there were many just as beautiful. Almost everywhere we looked we were dazzled by the bright colors and amazing sights. It’s easy to see why this little bay has been highly touted for its underwater life.
Later this afternoon we had to head back to Koh Tao in order to make a visa run to Burma. As I type this we are laying in our beds upon the overnight boat to Chumporn (quite a great set up!) after which we will take a bus into Burma and then back to Chumporn before heading to Krabi for a few days. We hope the good weather will follow us for our remaining two weeks in Thailand.
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