Vacation from vacation

[by Jonas] After our short slump on Koh Samui, we quickly moved on. The next destination was Koh Pha Ngan, which is about two hours away by ferry. We booked a combo ticket which included a pick-up from the hotel. He took us to the same pier where we arrived a few days earlier and after an hour of waiting, we boarded the same ferry that shuttles daily between the three typical islands in the Gulf of Thailand (Koh Samui, Koh Pha Ngan, Koh Tao) and the mainland. The ferry ride took two hours. We noticed that the two islands are closer together than we thought. One has a clear view of the other.

When we arrived at Koh Pha Ngan, we found ourselves back at the pier in Tong Sala, the "capital" of the island. But since our hotel was near Haad Rin Beach, in a different part of the island, we organized a pick-up shared taxi that was heading in that direction (100 Baht / person = 2.60€). It brought us to our hotel.

At check-in, we noticed that we both really liked it here. The hotel originally consisted of two hotels, each with two pools. So there were a total of four pools, three of which were directly on the private beach with an unrestricted view of the sea. When we were led to our room, we noticed that the last pool was located between the trees right next to our balcony. After we had settled in for a short time, we inspected the extensive facility and got an idea of where we would find breakfast the next day. We also discovered the two pools of the other hotel, both of which looked wonderful. But we decided to go to the beach pool, which was closest to us. This one already thrilled us! You could lie directly on the beach, there was quiet music playing, and the pool was empty so we had it all to ourselves.

We enjoyed the afternoon here until we got hungry and went out to find something to eat. So we went to the nearby small "town" called Haad Rin. The monthly party takes place on its beach, Haad Rin Beach, for which the whole island is famous: the "full moon party". Unfortunately, we were not there during the full moon. Nevertheless, the city had a special atmosphere because of the parties that take place there. Literal buckets of spirits were sold on every corner and most restaurants cater to Western travelers. Nevertheless, we sat down in a local restaurant and had rice with chicken (each portion 50 Baht = 1.30€).

The next morning, we were finally able to use the breakfast buffet, which we were completely thrilled with. The restaurant was open towards the sea and the tables almost reached one of the pools behind which the sea stretched out. The buffet offered a wide selection and was a welcome change from Koh Samui, where breakfast was not included.

We were so impressed with this pool that we spent the rest of the day there. It was an infinity pool, which merged with the vastness of the sea from the right angle. In the pool were two small islands, each with a palm tree. On one side of the pool, there was a bar with bar stools in the water.

But apparently, we can't do nothing for a long time, so on the second-to-last day, we rented a scooter from the hotel (250 Baht / 24 hours = 6.49€) to explore the island. We had already picked out some sights on the island beforehand. We noticed that the island is very hilly when we drove to our hotel in a pick-up taxi, so we drove with extra caution. The first stop was a waterfall in the middle of the island. But visiting a waterfall during the dry season was probably not our best idea because there was none. You could only see where it falls down during the rainy season.

That was quite cool, but not very impressive, so we quickly moved on. Next, we went to a Chinese Buddhist temple on the mountain in the middle of the island. It had a great resemblance to Thai temples, but still had its own style. Admission cost 40 Baht per person (1.04€). But you should actually speak of a temple complex, as there were many smaller temple buildings along the gentle slope of the mountain. From here, you also had a cool view of the surrounding mountains and their slopes down to the sea.

Then the sea was already the next destination. Although the beach at our hotel is known for its beautiful sunsets (we'll get to that later), you can't swim there very well. There are also supposed to be several other sandy beaches on the island, of which we had selected three.
The first one is probably one of the most famous on the island, 'Mae Haad Beach'. It offers a long stretch of fine sand that turns into a sandbank at the end, which leads to the small island "Koh Ma". The beach is also known for snorkeling and diving, but less so for swimming. When we arrived here by scooter, some thick clouds came up. Nevertheless, we lay down on this beach to take a break and were lucky that the clouds just passed over us. Sometimes even the sun appeared.

We didn't really see the famous sandbank due to the tides, as it was partially covered with water. It also didn't look particularly interesting, especially not compared to what we had seen in Krabi. So, maybe also because of the weather, we didn't like this beach as much as expected, so we continued towards "Salad Beach".

It is rather small and difficult to find, we already knew that, but still, we missed the entrance from the circular main road and took a while to realize it, turn around, and find it from the other direction. When we thought we had arrived there, we had to realize that it was only the entrance to a resort and not access to the beach. It took a little longer to find it, but in the end, it was just a crumbling side street!

This beach is located in a bay, which gives it a peaceful atmosphere. The water is clear, but it only gets deep further out, so you have to sit on the sandy bottom in the sea to cool off.

After a period of relaxation, we got back on the scooter to drive along the western coastal road to the capital, Tong Sala. From here, you had some cool views of the sea and the island. On a longer stretch of beach that didn't look particularly inviting, Franzi noticed a palm tree while driving past. It had grown in such a way that it bent over the beach horizontally and then made a bend upwards again. The perfect photo location.

When we continued driving, we decided to bypass Tong Sala to avoid the city traffic with the scooter, so we went straight to the hotel. In a hilly section, we then came across something unexpected. Although there are signs in many places in southern Thailand that you shouldn't feed these animals, we were still surprised when we finally saw them: wild monkeys. They sat in a group by the roadside on the power lines and on the ground, and one even ate a banana.

In the evening, we were so tired from the tour that we chose a relaxed evening activity: we watched the sunset on the beach. It was really beautiful, and the atmosphere was equally wonderful since the beach belongs to the hotel and was therefore super quiet. So, the Sunset Beach is rightly named.

Still exhausted from the scooter tour, we planned to get a massage the next (and last) day (2 massages, each one hour, for a total of 700 Baht = 18.19€). Franzi got a classic "back and shoulder massage" and I dared to try a traditional Thai massage. It started with a normal massage of the legs and back. But it didn't stay normal for long, which I noticed at the latest when the lady stood on my back and massaged certain areas of my back with her body weight. After a small arm, hand, head, and foot massage, the real action began. She started pulling on my limbs and putting them into positions that didn't feel healthy. When she started focusing on my back, I thought she was going to break me into several pieces. She twisted me so much that joints cracked that I didn't even know existed. And all of this while Franzi lay next to me on her stomach, simply enjoying the massage. But somehow, every movement actually felt pretty good, and when the hour was up, I felt extremely relaxed. We spent the rest of the day at one of the pools on the beach and enjoyed the sea air one last time because the next day it was time to say goodbye.

But more on that in the next blog!

Until then :)

Franzi and Jonas

P.S. We have now arrived back in Germany! However, we didn't have good internet in the last few days and had a lot to do, so the blogs are coming a little late. But there are still a few more to come, so it's worth taking a look! :)