Roller tour through Chumphon

Since we didn't really like the city, we decide to explore the surrounding area on a scooter.

Have we ever ridden a scooter before? No, we skipped that phase from 16-18. I've only ridden a moped a few times until I crashed. Have we ever driven on the left side of the road? Yes, two days ago on a bicycle. That should be enough.

So we rent a scooter and since I'm the one with the bigger mouth and did better in the left side traffic the other day, I drive. Once I finally figure out how to start it and how to accelerate, I seem to park quite clumsily. The owner of the store immediately comes running and asks with wide eyes if I have ever driven before. He says the scooter has a big engine. So now I have to lie and nod. With Max sitting behind, we head into the busy traffic. We start off at 20 km/h to the gas station. Wow, it feels so strange... I really need more practice.

But soon we're out of the city and at least now I can't run anyone over. The nature is so beautiful, so much green!! It's like a green bomb exploded. Green mountains, huge palm trees, rivers and canals, cows in the forest, temples and also many palm and rubber plantations. At least I can excuse my slow driving :-D I have to be careful.

We drive through small roads, forests, and along the coast to Hat Tung Wua Laen. In between, we explore some interesting-looking side streets and end up on a peninsula. We sit on the rocks by the water. First, I see a rat, which I'm not so happy about. But then Max finds 100 Baht under a rock. That makes me happy.

Once I drive faster than 50 km/h, I hear a 'ooohh' in my right ear. That probably means I should slow down :-D On a scooter, 50 already feels really fast. Especially in shorts and a top. But at least we've exchanged flip-flops for sneakers.
We read on the internet that the beach is touristy and that there are some hotels. We don't see any. Just small huts and we have the beach all to ourselves (we see some holiday bungalows at the other end of the bay later on). We're really amazed that we have the whole beach to ourselves. It's a big beach after all. After playing in the waves (awesome waves that make you feel like a kid again!) and lying down on our towels for a few minutes, we notice that we're not alone. The crabs have come out of their holes and accepted us. And it really looks like a flash mob! They all move in unison and in the same direction. They wave their claws. I need to google why they do that! When I dare to sit up, all the crabs scurry back to their holes. But since I don't move, they wait a few seconds and continue their choreography. We spend some time on the beach, enjoying the peace.

Later, we continue on the scooter to a mountain with a viewpoint. Conveniently, the road goes all the way up (yes, we're lazy today) and our scooter clearly has more than 50ccm, which is the limit with our driver's license, but that seems to be normal here. The road is really steep but the scooter handles it easily.

When we return the scooter in the evening, our bums are a bit sore, but scooter riding is really fun and afterwards I was almost confident xD It would have been a bit easier without Max sitting behind. The store owner is visibly relieved when we return the scooter without any accidents :-D
After washing off all the sand, we look a bit crabby. Who can blame us? After all, I didn't put on any sunscreen today and Max is naturally fairer. I got sunburned on my forearms and thighs (only on the outside). That's probably from riding the scooter. The bikini tan lines are from sunbathing. When Max puts on a white t-shirt after taking a shower, I almost spit out the water from laughing :-D He's glowing in it :-D He gives me an annoyed look, but when he looks in the mirror, he laughs too. Gray is definitely the better choice today... Now we just need to quickly book our next accommodation. One night in Kawthaung - Myanmar. Exciting!
It's dark outside now. The Thais are already not laughing at us Germans because of our sunburn. Tonight, we feast at the night market (fried noodles, Thai muzen with coconut dip, fried coconut pudding, and mango). For breakfast tomorrow, we'll get a portion of sticky rice with mango. The best!