A Cut Above

So I guess you may have been thinking that I'd disappeared off the face of the earth. No blogging for 3 days! Heaven forbid, I think I've even experienced a teeny bit of withdrawal.

There is no doubt that Koh Phangan is a cut above Koh Samui in its beauty. The island is littered with coconut groves, granite boulders, breathtaking crystal clear bays, fine white sandy beaches, stunning mountain vistas, laid back people, and local reefs that offer some outstanding snorkeling. Koh Ma (pictured below) is teaming with different species of fish that can often been seen in large schools. We're getting into a bit of a routine with the old early morning snorkel. It's got to be one of the best ways to stay fit!

Can we live here? Possibly. Thongsala is the main town and seems to have everything we might need. If we'd like to go to a cinema, then we could skip across to Samui, no problem (12 mins via speedboat! Hey, I could even commute to work this way! How cool would that be?!).

We spent a couple of nights in Haad Rin (home of full moon party). The party was a few days prior to our arrival so we practically had the whole place to ourselves as the party is what most people come for. The vibe there is pretty cool and there are lots of cheap eateries with a range of food on offer (which is good for us!). There's even a place called 'Same Same Burger Bar'. Most of my dear friends in Welli will know that I was a wee bit crazy about Brooklyn Fish Supplies cheeseburgers, so seeing this spot had me somewhat excited. I miss my cheeseburgers (but not my thighs!).

There's quite a few more shops and roads in Haad Rin than there were last time and the beach is as stunning as its always been (bar the 2 zillion cigarette butts and bucket of joy straws strewn all over the sand).

It's amazing how quick and easy it is to get about on the island. They have a new highway that shoots straight up the middle, taking only 15 mins on the scoot from Chaloklum in the north to Thongsala in the south. That means we can pretty much live anywhere on the west coast and still be nice and close to town. The beaches on the west coast are sublime, Haad Yao being our favourite (which is where we are now).The accommodation here is the best value we've found. Bay View Resort has low season rooms for 900 Baht (NZ$40) a night with sliding glass doors onto a large patio overlooking one of the most stunning bays on the island, a gorgeous swimming pool (also overlooking the bay), and it's only a hop, skip and a jump to the beach.

Here are some other spots we've had the privilege of staying as we've fluttered from bay to bay (some not all that cheap!).

The internet here is not as fast as Samui but Bighead has managed to forgive the slow connections when working from his mobile office.
Stayed tuned for night market and sticky rice with mango (O.M.G!)