Our Trip 2012 (9)

We took off for the beach after we had been in Bangkok for 11days. Went to Koh Samet, we have been there a few times in the past.

• Took a taxi to Ban Phe,  takes about 2 hours, where we got a ferry boat across to the island. Samet is a National Park but honestly you think it by all the building now going on. It is a bit sad as it has some of the most beautiful beaches in Thailand, certainly in the gulf. The beaches are soft and white and you can wade out to sea for quite a way before it gets above your head.

  

  

  We stayed at Saekaew beach, which is very busy with all kinds of tourist, we didn’t like that. Also the Thais were not very nice, I guess they are fed up with a lot of rude tourists who have no idea how to behave in Thailand and shout and complain about everything. This is a laid back beach area and a lot of the tourists expect “American polish” service instead of appreciating and enjoying Thai ways and having a laugh and some fun when mistakes are made instead of getting mad which archives nothing in Thailand. Anyway we had some fun,  tried to ignore the loud mouthed Russians and very fat old men in tight “speedos”, found a coffee shop with free wifi and met a lovely Finish couple with whom we spent a couple of fun evenings. Their English was excellent!!

The day before we left we saw some jelly fish in the sea, only tiny ones and not too many, but the next day their were loads of them and we neither of us liked to get into the water. They stung but only a little and it didn’t hurt, it was just the thought of swimming with all that jelly that put us off!

 The one thing that disturbed me a little was the fire dancers, mostly young boys/men they performed every night, whilethey were very good, the smell  of petrol fumes was intense and I am concerned for their health breathing those fumes every night, not to mention the fact that they must occasionally get burnt! They are like street performers so go amongst the audience to collect money after they dance.