Thailand - Traveling & Diving

In November 2016, we were in Thailand for 2 1/2 weeks. We flew from Düsseldorf to Abu Dhabi and from there to Phuket. From Phuket, we went to Khao Lak, which is about 1 1/2 hours away. Khao Lak is a backpacker's paradise, with everyone walking around with their backpacks. We checked into the Gerd & Noi Resort, which had small bungalows with a pool. They served breakfast and everything was well-maintained. The resort was also close to the beach.

There is a fantastic market in Khao Lak called the 'Bang Niang Market'. They have everything there - food, clothes, and nice souvenirs. You can eat until you're full for 2-3 €. We bought a lot of clothes there, so we didn't pack too many clothes to begin with. Khao Lak also has many good bars, and our favorite was the Monkey Bar, a small bar with live music. There is also the Song's Bar right next to the market. My friend had been to Thailand 2 years ago and went to the Song's Bar frequently. The owners even remembered him. You can buy food from the market and enjoy a drink at the Song's Bar.

In Khao Lak, we rented a car for a week because we wanted to see other parts of Thailand. We drove to the Khao Sok National Park, which was about an hour away. We stayed at the Khao Sok Tree House, a large accommodation with various tree houses in the middle of the rainforest. They even had a large pool and served food from morning till evening. We booked an elephant tour through the resort, but we were disappointed to find out that we couldn't bathe with the elephants because the rivers were supposedly too high. That was a bit of a shame.

We also went on a night walk through the national park, but it was disappointing. The guide wasn't good and didn't show much interest in showing us anything. He even tried to explain that a lizard hanging from a tree was a chameleon, which was really dumb because we have a chameleon at home. We didn't see anything special on the tour. I wouldn't recommend booking through this resort again. The good thing was that the entrance fee to the national park was included, so we could go back the next day. The national park has a beautiful river where you can go swimming. We had the whole place to ourselves. The park itself is really beautiful, but we didn't see many animals during the day.

We wanted to go to the island of Ko Samui, so we had to drive to the port town of Donsak. Unfortunately, we arrived very late, and there were no car ferries running. We stayed the night in a cheap hotel and left early in the morning to catch the first ferry. On Ko Samui, we had breakfast and then looked for accommodation. We chose the 'Cactus' resort, which had beautiful bungalows. Unfortunately, there were no small bungalows for 2 people available, only a bungalow for a family with a child. The owners of the resort were very nice and gave us an upgrade. We got the family bungalow but paid the price for the small one. It was really nice there, with a restaurant and everything right by the beach. Ko Samui has a small fishing village called 'Fisherman's Village' with many shops and restaurants. It's a really beautiful village. In the evenings, there is a huge night market that you have to see. They have everything there! We probably bought more things there than anywhere else haha :D :D. It's really well done. After that, we went to a bar for a drink. I highly recommend visiting the market.

On Ko Samui, there is the 'Magic Buddha Garden', which is located deep inside the island. It's a bit difficult to find, but it's worth a visit. It's nothing special, just a small garden with various statues, but it's definitely worth seeing.

A must-visit on Ko Samui is the Big Buddha Statue, which is 12 meters tall. You can reach it by climbing a long staircase. Make sure to cover your shoulders and knees, otherwise, you may not be allowed to go up. But also out of respect for the religion, it's important to follow these rules!

The most beautiful beach on Ko Samui, in my opinion, is Coral Cove Beach. It's a small bay with warm and calm water. However, it's not great for snorkeling because the water is quite murky. There is a small beach bar where we had a delicious breakfast in the morning. The beach wasn't crowded, so I highly recommend it!

Our little round trip was coming to an end, and we had to go back to Khao Lak. We had a diving appointment there! In Khao Lak, I got my diving certification at the 'Loma-Diving' dive center, which is a German dive school. My friend had gone diving with them in Khao Lak 2 years ago and we met them at the boat fair in Düsseldorf. They have a diving and travel hall there, which takes place every January. You can book amazing dive trips there. Before our 3-day boat trip, I did some pool exercises, which are part of the certification. This is where you familiarize yourself with everything. After successfully completing the pool exercises, we set off. I did the theory part on the ship. I received a book with several lessons to read, and then a test was taken at the end of the boat tour. It was really easy :D. We sailed to the Similan Islands, which are a paradise for divers, according to the advertisements. However, experienced divers may not find it as impressive because much was destroyed by the 2004 tsunami. But for me as a beginner, it was paradise. I saw so many Nemos and Doris, you can't even imagine :D. And of course, other cool fish, moray eels, and seahorses. Diving was really fun. After a few dives and underwater exercises, as well as the theory part, I got my diving certification. One afternoon, we stopped at a beautiful island. We were taken there by small boats. The island has a stunning beach. I think it's one of the most beautiful beaches I have ever seen. I wouldn't recommend taking a day trip there by boat because it gets really crowded during the day with the boats. When we were there in the late afternoon, we were the only ones, luckily. We stayed until sunset. It was really beautiful.

The 3 days went by quickly. After getting off the ship, we had 2 more days in Khao Lak. The dive center arranged our accommodation, which was also really nice. We stayed at the 'Suksompong'. They had small bungalows with a pool and included breakfast. We didn't do much during the last two days, just walked around the market again and relaxed at the beach or pool.