Koh Samui, Thailand

Koh Samui is located in the Gulf of Thailand and is Thailand’s second largest island.  One thing to remember is that it rains a lot on this little Island. Lucky for me, I was there for a week and didn’t see rain once but that was during the dry season, or dry month I should say, February. When I landed in Koh Samui I noticed the airport was different than any other airport I have been to. It is completely outside protected from the rain by an overhead roof.  It was magnificent.

Smelling the open air while your waiting for the airlines to bring your baggage to the little circular belt was like nothing else. Looking around seeing the mountains and ocean. The well kept lush greenery of the plants and trees surrounding you. It was truly a beautiful small airport.

After getting our bags we were shuffled to the local round-a-bout road full of taxi’s waiting to take the tourist to their hotels. During the taxi ride to the bungalow that we had rented I noticed that the stores were really old and the streets were dirty, but you still get the feeling that you are in a special place, worlds away from your home.

We arrived at the bungalow and noticed that we were in a nice, quite area. It had a very cozy outdoor bar, which also doubled as the breakfast area. Palm trees led you down to the bungalows private beach. Each bungalow was small, about the size of a large garage but they were evenly spaced out where you wouldn’t be bothered by your neighbors. Our bungalow was about 30 feet from the beach. As we stepped inside I saw a bed in front of us and a TV on the right, next to another door. I opened the door and what I saw was one of the most beautiful outdoor bathrooms I have ever seen. It was surrounded by 8 foot rock walls for privacy but the top was open with a great view of the trees and sky. It came complete with a big tub and a rain shower. Don’t worry about safety, the door locks from the inside so no intruders can get into your room through the bathroom.

WARNING: My wife and I both went into the bathroom and ended up getting locked out of the bungalow and stuck in the bathroom. I had to crawl over the rock wall, go to the office and get someone to unlock my bungalow so I could unlock the bathroom door. Make sure the door isn’t locked if you both go into the bathroom. However, we can laugh about it now.

There are quit a lot of things to do on this island and I wish I could tell you that we tried them all but the truth is, we didn’t get out much, besides sightseeing. We mostly stayed at the private beach and relaxed, soaking up the sun. That is what vacation is “supposed” to be right? Relaxing? Well, we did our share on this vacation. When we did go out, we went to see the Big Buddha and got some food and walked for a while, chatting. Then it was time to go back and relax.

Koh Samui is a place where you want to slow down. It would be a shame to come to this island and never get to relax and take it all in.