Day 10+11 Koh Phangan

Day 10 - Chinese Temple/Waterfall/Koh Ma Beach/Thong Sala

Today we rented a car to explore the island a bit. Here people usually ride mopeds, even with kids, but we don't dare to do that. Yesterday we actually saw a Thai person riding a moped with a small child standing in front and holding them on their lap. It's completely normal here. But it's just not our thing, as usual ;-) Therefore, Zwergi chose a small blue car for us. Since Zwergi wasn't so excited about the beach, we all took a break and drove to the Chinese temple. Joe's comment of the day when we arrived was, 'Is it really smart to go to the Chinese temple right now with the coronavirus?' He'll be mad, but I had to tell that. Of course, there were no Chinese people there, only 3 very charming Thai women. How do I know for sure that they weren't Chinese? Only Thais go crazy when they see children. The temple and the prayers were immediately forgotten and they were only focused on Samuel ;-) This is how you immediately recognize genuine Thais, whether they are men or women. No man can look so angry or grouchy here, if he looks at Samuel, he smiles from ear to ear and does funny things to make him laugh. The temple and the view of the island were great and something completely different, and Zwergi came alive again and ran and ran and ran, he was uncertain about the steps and went up and down the last steps alone about 10 times. He was in paradise.

Afterwards, we went to a waterfall where there was supposed to be a restaurant with lots of animals, we saw the photos of the girl who sent us there. We didn't find it and the waterfall was a bit disappointing because there was no water, it's dry season after all, somehow logical ;-) But it doesn't matter, the short walk there was already an experience, it felt like real jungle, including loud and strange jungle sounds that were so loud and strange at times that we weren't even sure if they could really be animals.

Then we went to Koh Ma Beach near the small island of Koh Ma. The plan was to go to the island, where there should be a sandbank according to the pictures. Problem 1 Samuel was asleep, Problem 2 was that the sandbank was underwater, I guess it only exists in the evening or maybe only in summer when the water level is much lower at low tide. But it doesn't matter, we ate well, had the best banana shake ever, and relaxed until Samuel woke up. Since it was already 5 p.m., it was the perfect time to go to Thong Sala where we met Angie, Markus, and Adriana to explore the Food Market and the Saturday Night Market.

At the Food Market, Joe met a Peruvian who surprisingly gave him an Austrian phone number when they exchanged numbers. He'll be working in Austria from March onwards :-) The food was really Thai and incredibly delicious, the market afterwards was also quite nice and we bought some orders for friends and souvenirs. On the way back home, we got a bit lost because apparently that part of the city wasn't downloaded by Google Maps. So instead of a 15-minute drive, we ended up driving almost 30 minutes across the island.

Day 11 The miracle at the beach happens

Today we had another beach day and what can I say. Miracles happen. First, we managed to get Samuel into the water and he even had great fun. Then Joe went to the Food Market in Thong Sala with Markus and Adriana to get food for us. And the real fun began. Zwergi actually played in the sand, really played, without shoes. Then we played football for a long time, he ran and kicked the ball and laughed, and we played up and down the beach, into the water and out of the water. I really thought I was dreaming. And then Zwergi even got to sweep the beach in front of the Vagga Bar, that made his happiness complete, and he did a pretty good job too, even if the waiter probably wasn't quite as happy ;-) When Joe came back, he couldn't believe his eyes. Samuel walked up and down the beach and into the water and back, as if nothing had happened. We had a picnic on the beach and it was a really cool feeling. Zwergi was also thrilled and really enjoyed it. Afterwards, we went back to the room where he quickly fell asleep after taking a shower and playing with Duplo for a short while. So our first real beach day came to an end and we're excited to see what tomorrow brings.

With that, we wish you a nice start to the week and greetings wherever you are right now. Karin & Joe & Samuel