Paradise Found

We finally got over to Ko Phangan after some changes to our travel plans due to bad weather. We were planning to take a overnight ferry from Surat Thani to Ko Phangan, to save on the logging for the night. We arrived in Surat Thani in the evening where the minivan dropped us off at a little restaurant, we have no idea where in the city we were. It was 8:00pm and the boat was scheduled to leave at 11:00 so we had a little time. There was a lot of confusion when we got off the moonbeam and no one spoke English so we couldn't get any of our questions answered. After a lot of hand gestures a man finally showed up that spoke English. He told us that the waves were to big and the night boat was not running and we were going to leave on the first boat the following day and he knew of a guesthouse that we could stay at for the night. This situation sounded like quite a scam and we were a little frustrated, cranky and tired.
We ended up going along with the few other people that were in the same boat, or lack there of, and going to the guesthouse. The guesthouse was sufficient and not very expensive. We walked to the market had some dinner before walking back to our room for the night.

The Next Day:
We got up the next morning and Ethan was on a mission to find some coffee . We were still not sure where we were in the city, it was a little after 6:30, and there were not a lot of places open yet. Ethan returned in ten minutes with two bags of coffee, that is how they do takeaway in Thailand, and we drank our coffee and watched the city wake up and get ready for business.
The travel company told us that they would pick us up at our hotel at 7:00am and take us to the wharf. We had been sitting in the lobby talking with some of the other people that were also forced to spend the night in Surat Thani. By 7:30 no bus had shown up and we all started to get nervous. The boat was scheduled to leave at 8:00 so a group of people jumped in a taxi not waiting for "the bus". We talked to several employees at the hotel and after many phone calls we were made a bus showed up and we were whisked in to it.
The boat did not leave until almost 9:00 and it was packed people were sitting all over the place where ever they could find room to squeeze in.
We arrived on Ko Phangan in the afternoon and rented a motorbike. We were headed to the other side of the island and we had to get us and the bags out there. We tried to get someone to take our bags out there for us or have Sara take a taxi with the bags but in the end we saved the money and piled us on the bike with my backpack between my legs and Sara's on her back. The road was very steep and unpaved for most of it. It was a scary adventure for the forty five minute ride and then we found it!


A jam-packed ferry of farang headed to Ko Phangan for the Full Moon



Nai Pan Yai Beach, early morning...

The cove is called Nai Pan Yai and it was exactly what we were looking for. It had a good beach, clear water, quiet and comfortable bungalow. It was the perfect ending to two full days of traveling so we stayed there for four nights.


Our bungalow....