Koh Samui - 24.04.19

Since I am very interested in where I actually am and also want to see a bit of the island, I took an island tour today. If you're not crazy and rent a scooter to explore the island on your own or don't want to take a taxi to every highlight individually, which I have to mention is very expensive here on the island, you don't really have many other options than to take a classic guided tourist tour, which is not really my thing. But well, for just €15 for a 6-hour tour, it was a bargain. Since there are no big tour buses on the island, we traveled in minibuses, a group of 10 people, which was very positive. The tour took us to the highlights of the island and I got a good impression of the country and its people. I had a bit of trouble with orientation during the drive, I didn't always know exactly where on the island we were, as many back roads were taken to get from A to B. At each stop, we had between 10 and 30 minutes to explore, take photos, or browse the stalls. The tour stops included the Big Buddha Temple, the Plai Laem Temple, the Laad Koh View Point, the Grandfather & Grandmother Rocks, the Mummified Monk, the Namuang Waterfall I, and Nathon Town. The Thai construction and design of the temples and Buddha statues is quite crazy, if I may say so. During the tour, I also tried a few culinary delights. At one stop, I treated myself to a cool fruit shake made from fresh mango, and at another stop, I had the Coconut Ice Cream, which was beautifully presented that I didn't really want to eat it. It was a feast for the eyes. Delicious! Before we were taken back to the hotels, we had an hour at our last stop in Nathon Town, the main town on the island, to eat or shop. Since I don't have much appetite during the heat of the day, I focused on shopping. I found a store that had really nice things at reasonable prices and where you could browse in a relaxed manner without being constantly approached and pressured by the salespeople. I found a lot of things and made some purchases. My loved ones at home can look forward to it ;-). The ride back to the hotels was entertaining for me, as my hotel is only ten minutes away from Nathon Town. Considering I was the first one to be picked up in the morning, I was lucky to be the first one dropped off at the hotel in the afternoon. Although it was a classic tourist tour and there wasn't much time at the stops, which was completely sufficient due to the heat, I am satisfied and returned with great impressions of the country and its people. Since the heat is really exhausting, I ended the day in a relaxed way.