Postcard Perfection

For my first travel outside of Bangkok, Koh Samet (or Samed as it is frequently written both ways) was literally the perfect place to go. As much of the international students were already there, a large group of us went late, because we either went on the Grand Palace tour, or had class. So, to arrive by Saturday morning, I woke up at 3:45, met a group of fellow students downstairs, took a 45 minute taxi followed by a 3 hour bus ride and a 20 minute speedboat ride to the tiny, secluded island. It was well worth all the exchanges in transportation. The island was beautiful. The water was crystal clear, a pleasant change from the dingy brown waters of Bangkok, the sand was an incredible white, and the weather was surprisingly nice. It was a perfect day. I was a little nervous, because reading weather reports, there were chances of thunderstorms, but luckily, we didn't see a drop of rain all weekend. With no previous reservation, the control freak in me was going insane at the thought of not having a place to stay. Again, mai pen rai, don't worry about it. I don't know what it is about Thailand, but somehow everything seems to go wrong, just so it can be incredibly right two seconds later. I have already started to mellow out, and I cannot wait to see what I will be like in five months! We found accommodation with no problem. I shared a room with two other girls from school, and for 700 baht a night (20 dollars us) split 3 ways, I had to remind myself 'you're in Thailand!' As soon as we threw our stuff in the room, I was ready to hit the beach. The water was just taunting to look at, and after the two weeks I've spent sweating in the sweltering heat, I was so ready to swim and cool off! Well, here's the second snag of the trip. I forgot my swimsuit. Now, as a rule of thumb, your bathing suit is normally the first thing you'd back for a weekend at the beach. I don't know if it was the nerves of leaving my new comfort zone to travel to a weekend of unknown, or the fact that I had to pack at 1 am, but I left it at home on my bed in Bangkok. I was so mad at myself. So, as everyone else suited up and headed for the beach, I began to walk down the beach in search of a bathing suit. The first three shops were no luck. There were a nice collection of european thong bathing suits and barely there speedos and string bikinis, but being a little more modest, I was extremely nervous about finding something I could actually be seen in public in and feared for having to wear shorts and a shirt into the water. But luckily, with my new optimistic attitude I continued on to find a little store that had tons of bathing suits, and finally! I found one that was decent enough, and although It was a little old-ladyish and I would never have bought it in the states, I had to have it! After I had a bathing suit I couldn't get back to my room fast enough! I was so incredibly happy to finally be on the beach and I hit the water! It was so refreshing and judging by the temperature of the air, I couldn't believe the water was as refreshing as it was. I venture that it will probably be hotter as the "hot season" starts, but I was in heaven. Tired from the trip, I rented a little umbrella and a chair, and took a nap. Regrettably, I woke up to a completely red body. I apparently had been sleeping for about 5 hours and naturally, the sun shifted, as the shadow from my umbrella did. I didn't even care about being a lobster for the day, I was in a remote beach on the coast of Thailand! I was just in awe. So, I ordered a Pina Colada, and started into a new book. (Thanks to my christmas present from April Bias) I felt so relaxed sitting on the beach that I never wanted to leave! I couldn't believe how peaceful and quiet it was! After living in the booming and bustling Bangkok for the last two weeks, I can't think of the last time I heard the still of silence!

After the sun started to set, the group of international students we traveled with started to make plans for the evening! As everyone cleaned up and prepared for dinner, I was excited to experience the beach nightlife! There was so much to do! The island just came to life! First, we experienced the fire dancers. These shows were happening every couple feet and they seemed to just move down the island. One thing I really loved about the island is that the restaurants were literally right on the beach. It was so cool to be eating dinner while feeling the sand beneath your feet and watching the waves crash just feet in front of you. The fire shows were crazy, I had never seen one before, and I was so impressed by the coordination that they had! Flaming batons, fireballs on ropes, and flaming hula hoops were just part of the show. The men who put on the shows were so insanely fit that it almost hurt to look at their 8 packs. These guys must have invented the word cut. There was also little boys, probably around 7, that participated in the act. I was really impressed, I know at that age, actually I don't know what I'm talking about. I know even now I would burn my entire body if I tried to hula hoop with a flaming hoop. It was such a neat experience. They also had a flaming jump rope. They put on a little routine, then invited the crowd to jump through it. Well, I guess in theory this was an okay idea, but most of the crowd was heavily intoxicated, so it was painful to watch as some people fell on top of the rope! OUCH! The beach was just as beautiful at night. With lanterns, strands of lights, and colorful signs lighting up the entire beach, it was a completely different atmosphere. There was also a Muay Thai boxing bar, which was really cool. I only got to watch one fight between two small children, which was really weird. I don't know why, but I just felt bad for these kids, it just made me really uncomfortable to watch two little kids fight such a hardcore way. The cool thing about this bar is that if you signed up, you could fight your friend and the winner would receive a free bucket of beer! Ha! How's that for entertainment?!

The next day I wanted to spend the entire day on the beach, and that is exactly what I did. The area where we were had a cool little dock that you could swim out to and lay out, so many us just spent the day laying out and swimming. It was a great change of pace since I was going non-stop in the city. I did get a little freaked out because something large- thankfully I didn't see it, touched my leg when I was swimming. I have seen too many discovery channel shows about wild thailand to be okay with something touching me out in the ocean!

I was sad to leave the beach, but as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. I started the last morning on the beach off with watching the sunrise. Although it was a little cloudy, I still thoroughly enjoyed seeing a blend of reds and oranges across the wavy horizon of the beautiful island. I caught the noon ferry back to the city and said goodbye to the amazing weekend I just experienced.

Back in Bangkok. The feeling is bittersweet. Bangkok has come to be my home now, and I could feel myself missing it a little when I was gone. It was definitely nice to come back and shower and sleep in my own bed, but the city is so noisy and dirty, that it was so nice just to take a weekend to relax. I feel a lot better after taking a weekend off, and I would definitely like to travel back to Koh Samet before I leave!

Now it's another week in the city, and back to school. When I first arrived here, I thought that my time here would be so long, but I can tell that my time here is going to fly by, and it will be over before I know it! I am excited for the next weekend and can't wait to make more plans to travel around and experience more of Bangkok and Thailand!