Ipapashiwe: 26.11.2018
Quickly, the three booked nights at Bottle Beach turn into six. The peace and seclusion are simply good for the soul. I sleep until I wake up naturally and then I leisurely head to the restaurant's common area.
There I meet Declan, the native Irishman, who lived in New Zealand with his wife and two Thai adopted sons for many years and now works in Thailand for two years to give his sons more access to their own roots. While his son snorkels enthusiastically in the water and I wait for my Thai breakfast and an instant coffee, we have interesting conversations about New Zealand, Thailand, and the education system in both countries. To my surprise, he is disappointed with the school system in New Zealand and tells me that the teachers there have constantly praised his son's abilities and in Thailand, he was told that his son had great difficulties in mathematics, that he was significantly behind in the curriculum, and that they are now working on it. He said that the constant praise did not help anyone because they missed the opportunity to help his son earlier. When Nathan comes to our table and "calculates" the cost of the food using his fingers, I understand what Declan means. Wow! Later, I meet a German couple, Annegret and Kay. They are very nice and absolutely enthusiastic about Thailand and the friendliness of the people, so they are here for the second time already. They have thoroughly explored the island with their scooter, so there is a lot to talk about. Since there is nothing here, neither a supermarket nor an ATM, they bring me some money from an ATM during one of their trips. When backpacking, there is always a creative solution for everything, hehe! The atmosphere here at Smile Bungalow is absolutely relaxed. I understand why so many guests come back and even spend months here.