washed out in samui

Ok folks like every good story there needs to be a twist. So with the illness's cured and some nice beaching under our belt, we have been loving the life in Bophut, north Koh Samui, which as with lea's comments i would totally back up and recommend this place to everybody, fisherman's village is a fantastic little spot with a really trendy feel to it.

So time to venture out, to the scooter hire place. Beautiful day, scooter filled up (1 pound 15 to fill up, sorry no pound sign on the keyboard) and we hit the open road for some 15 mile an hour wind through our hair (again i would like to remind you all of the dumb and dumber scene). Samui has one main road the is like the scooter version of the M25 the circles the whole island only the M25 is a walk in the park, this road is like they get their tarmac from slabs of the moon.

Anywho we start our lap and head out to see the "big budda" (literally a big budda) its like 25 meters high and painted gold, pretty mental really, and a little surreal. (Since going there we have realised you can actually see it from pretty much everywhere along the north coast) So tick on the sight seeing list and off we go.

Next up Chawang, Like a chunk of Phuket dumped on this island, i think we may have actually reached a soring 25mph as we put our heads down and powered through the main strip. Lil Mario (scooters name, printed on the front) pushed us through the vile smell of sewers and out the other side of Chawang as we head further south again and hit Lamai (this is the place we were going to stay) and as we stoped on what appeared to be a nice beach for a little refreshment (15mph really works up a thirst) we realise its pretty dirty and the sand is mostly just shells. So we end up loving fisherman's village even more so.

Back on the road and to some of the islands infamous waterfalls, getting pretty excited as these should be some good photo op's. So we pull into the parking spot pay the woman 20 baht (not much) and off we trek down hill into what appears to be the jungle. Keeping our eyes peeled for insects, bugs actually pretty much anythig that bites (i still have lots of open weeeping bites on my feet that seem to just attract more insects to bite me, pretty clever really its like the bugs have tagged me as tasty and stuck a sign on me for all thier mates) so down and down we go to what we are thinking is going to be a huge water fall as we have properly treked down hill. Picture this if you will........................A rock the size of a football surrounded pebbles and other loose stones and such with a half turned on tap dripping out onto a hill about a mile away trickling through the gaps in the rocks. Awesome, us along with some angry german men practically run back up the hill as to show whoever was watching our utter disgrace with the so called waterfall. Nobody was there hence nobody really cared what we thought, it was a rubbish tourist attraction, (As i am writing this it suddenly dawns on me that it was obviously a rubbish tourist attraction as the was no gift shop/men trying to sell anything, no fee's, no donation pots, nobody around, nothing) Well back out we head to the next one. As we pull in a man flags us down and calls us over to a desk, (yeah a desk/reception more promising already) he says we can not get to the waterfall by road and have to pay him 1500 baht per person for elephant ride to the waterfall. Clearly seeing the road running right off ito the distance and combine that with the fact there was not a single bike around (rare thing for Thailand) plus the fact it was an absolutely extortionate price, we spotted the scam and told him where to go and we were off. He shortly came running on over and said its fie we can drive on up to the waterfall. (con-man defeated, we might actually be wising up) So as leanne decided against her will to put her fingers up to the man we zoom towards the fall, Pretty good one this time, lots pf people jumping off rocks into the fall (some whimping out), good old dirty looking water though (someone please let grandad know we didn't go near the water, not that i think it makes much difference as i have probably been given everything by the bugs anyway). Was actually pretty impressive though a good 30 meters high, in monsoon season i bet if chucks down off the rocks at the top. Leanne had a nice little climb on some vines, and i had a jump around, seeing how close i could get to breaking my ankles!

Good day out.

Planned a day by the pool as we are in a nice hotel and it had a clean pool, (alot of the one's we have seen look like river water, mossy, dead things floating on the water etc, you get the picture) Plus lea wanted some long deserved sunbathing. Cue clouds lots of clouds no sun = day wandering round various coffee and ice cream shops. We decided though as it was cloudy anyway to hop on the scooter and head to the golf course where randomly they have zorbing (put in a 10ft inflatable ball and rolled down a hill, but this one rather than tie you in they just put you in and half fill it with water, random but lots of fun.

We had booked a trip over to Koh Panghan for the day to meet up with Ben (friend from bournemouth) after getting up at 6:30!!!!! (those of you who knows lea will know how challenging this was!!!! )to get the early ferry across we were not impressed, The clouds had turned into rain (= A VERY UNHAPPY US), lots of rain. Full moon party scrapped, Day in Koh Panghan scrapped. Sorry ben got so close but we had to come back, as forest gump would say "its that big old fat rain that feels like the sky is falling on you" So 11 am we head back to hide.

The we did the unthinkable, checked the weather forecast 5 days rain and thunderstorms.

The only thing we could possible do in a situation like this is rent a dvd player by some films and sit it out. We have changed some plans, we decided not to head back to Phi Phi for 5 days as the rain will destroy any chances of doing anything there, They dont even have power during the day. So we are in our nice hotel a couple more nights finding indoor things to do.

Yesterday (look at us almost up to date) we booked a thai cooking course, very excited as we had been getting pretty bored of hiding from the rain. So back on the scooter (down down to about 6 or 7mph as the rain is still hard, and the road system has become a canal system. Had to head back to the dreaded Chawang, but we could just about bear it for the afternoon. So cooking, a little thai lady took the class were we mostly learnt about chillies (awesome) but it was a really good course we made three dishes, Chicken Massaman curry, spicy King Prawn salad with dressing, and fish balls soup (fish meat rolled into balls, not the other thing). Was an experience and hopefully we can remember the technique for when we get back ( well i say we, but really we all know its gonna be lea as i have already forgotten it) But really good afternoon/evening and it even tasted amazing. And i only got laughed at once by the thai people, although lea was befriended by a middle aged german woman who felt the need to start cutting up her ingredients and generally helping her out by explaining what a peanut was?!. We actually had the dinner with some aussies and they found it good to tell us every possible way we could get stung, bitten, poisoned, trapped, eaten, dead'ed by everything in OZ. Even what to watch out for in Sydney, Although one of the guys was most scared of the road systems as he described you can be driving down a road one way one day then BAM the next day they have changed the direction of the road on you, (sounded like a contraflow to me, but i didn't wanna say so at the time).

So you are all invited to come over for a Massaman curry when we get back (oh yeah and have somewhere to live)

Next stop we are heading back to phi phi and try and run away from the rain.

Hope everything is well at home.

Lots of love US.

XXX

Stacey, good update today, loved the detail and thorough narrating! you have skills

Gem thanks for the update, and hope everything works out with work.

Mum say hello to nan, and hope she gets better hope she knows who its from.

mum and dadoflea hope your ok and keeping grandmas attacks on the fellow WI - ers to a minimum!!! tell grandma and grandpa we'l send some postcards this week! love you lots xxx

the pics in order.....

• we await the chance of sun!!
• dumb and dumber on the road again
• leanne has a erm.... go!
• leannes geeky arty pic
• we cook thai style!
• we explore the jungle..........and matt impersonates a flying squirrel
  
• matt wanted to adopt this little boy so leanne calls him Angelina Jolie!
• oh yeh we rolled down a big hill in giant bubbles......as you do!
• pretty nice sunset (whilst on the ferry to samui)
• leanne visiting a Buddha
• a waterfall we visited in the middle of the island.