Drove an hour Saturday morning to the pier at Ban Phe
Ferried 20 minutes to Koh Samet
We've been on several recent boat rides and Allie has been a nervous wreck each time. If we were to sink, our state medalist swimmer would likely have best chance of entire boat load at surviving. She reports fear of sharks & jellyfish should she go over, as she hasn't forgotten nasty jellyfish that got her on Corsica
Island getaway that felt of a weekend back home heading up north
15 minute ride in back of a pick-up on unimproved roads from island pier to the beach resort we picked out of Lonely Planet guide. Like a roller coaster ride with bumps, hills, and laughs galore
Drop off point 20m from ocean
Found the little girls room
Then lunch
After lunch Allie's foot immediately discovered coral in the turquoise waves. Not bad, but she bled all over the beach for quite a while. Glad it settled down fine. We were a bit remote & wouldn't want to need real medical attention in this place
Bumming
Building
Voila! Little did she know her creation closely resembles shape of Koh Samet. We stayed just south of her shadow hand touching island. Scampering stray pups kept knocking down her efforts. White silky sand beaches compete with Lake Mich, but Mitten sand wins in our book, as Thai is very sticky. Played in water all afternoon, wonderful, as it was 100 degrees air temp. Never saw a jelly fish
Every once in a while someone walks buy selling something
Only vacant bungalow for 4 we could find on short notice, about 75m from waterfront.... upper peninsula 1960's motel charm & no air con
No vacancy in the updated bungalows. Great locale, and we will return.... girls want to come back every weekend
In transit to the island, Ry proclaimed as if a grown woman desiring margarita, "I need a pineapple drink once we arrive," and she doesn't even like pineapple
My dinner, girls were intrigued by the teeth
Poor Allie cannot yet tolerate much heat in her food, so Rob is trying to toughen her chops. He talked her into putting peppers on her noodles... too hot... Ry asked to try a bite and then said, "It's not spicy at all," shocking Al that her little sis can tolerate more heat than she can
Girls cartwheeled down the beach outside restaurant while awaiting...
... beachside thai massages just down from our table. Ocean is about 20 feet from their heads, girls were in heaven
Rob too... only $12 total for hour & half massages for kids while we finished dinner & drinks
Just before 7am
Swam to the raft multiple times & played on it all Saturday afternoon. Tide was out so it wasn't such a trek
Monks making morning collections along beach
Lucky pup
Lucky girls, and a little sleepy-eyed
We were reminded why "tropical island" & "paradise" are typically used in same sentence.... wow, what a great weekend away! If we can't snowboard hills, might as well hop to an island for some waves. Easy to get to, kids love it, inexpensive. Rob visited Koh Samet when he studied here in '96. He got the worst sunburn of his life and extremely sick, yet for 14 years I heard about its beautiful white sand and how we would visit someday. Saturday was that day. At times I still can't quite believe we made it to Thailand. Then I watch a monk walk a silken beach at sunrise, and I see the evidential truth.
