East Thailand: The Middle

So we’d done Bangkok and the West Islands but now we were going to Surat ThanI (the port to take you to all the East Islands). Let stage two of Thailand commence ...

SURAT THANI

Ok, do not stay here. It’s not awful, it’s just really

not that great. There’s nothing to do, nowhere to eat, and the smell is pretty rancid. It’s literally just a place to get ferries to the east islands (but you can tend to get boats from all the West islands to the East if you’re not bothered about going to Koh Sok or anywhere in between). For us it worked well as a meeting spot as we had three others coming out (so now Grace, Lauren and I were joined by Holly, Helena and Ceri). We all arrived late afternoon, caught up, went on a wild goose chase to find some food, and then left at 7AM for a ferry the next morning.

If, like us, you do find yourself forced to stay a night, I’d massively recommend A3 hotel. It was so nice and the perfect place for a stopover (Oh, and it was only £6 despite being a 3* hotel)!

KOH TAO Phi Phi had been a good taster of what to expect, but my god we had a wild time on the East Islands. I can’t even begin to put into words the sights you see and the things that happen but if you ever go I’m sure you’ll see what I mean. Basically, there’s a reason Thailand has such a reputation and the East Islands are definitely the places for going a bit wild. Even on our “chilled nights” we had shots poured down our throats so we were basically signing up for three weeks of drinking, recovering and drinking again (don’t worry, we all paid the price for it when we got to Laos)! All I can say is, never has “what happens on tour stays on tour” been such a sacred code!

Koh Tao was our first stop and then Koh Phanyan as we wanted to go to the full moon party but planned to leave almost straight after to have enough time up North; therefore we had to do Koh Tao before hand. However, most people go to Koh Samui, then Koh Phanyan and finish at Koh Tao as Koh Samui is the closest and Koh Tao the furthest of the islands.

This was definitely the most beautiful (and my favourite of the East islands). It is a weight up between Koh Phi Phi and Koh Tao in terms of my favourites. We had a long journey from Surat Thani to the island which involved watching Zombieland II three times over, with each time it getting progressively louder (I’m fairly sure I could recite the whole film now). Eventually, we did arrive though.

We stayed at Goodtime 4P Backpackers which was such a great hostel to be at. It was right on the beach and they gave us a free transfer to and from the ferry port as it’s quite out of town. Like Phi Phi, we were on the beach so Goodtime and Blanco’s were definitely my two favourite hostels. Our first night we went for a wander, had drinks on the beach as the sun set and then had grub at Vegan island which was another must go to in terms of food.

After that we went to fishbowl which is a very popular bar in Koh Tao and we met Gerard, our lovely Irish mate from Phi Phi. From here on in he stayed with us so we now had a new addition to the group, and what a great addition he was. A few of the others went back, but three of us may have had a cheeky skinny dip. A very liberating experience which I’d 100% recommend (but ideally in the middle of the night unless you want a crowd watching).

The next day we went for brunch at a lovely cafe on the path just behind the beach which is great for food and drinks. We then met up with Lauren, the girl who‘d spent the day with us at Railay Beach, and sunbathed before getting ready for a bar crawl. All of us did it, including Lauren and Gerard, so eight of us started off at choppers with a free bucket of alcohol before going to a pool party. Three of us jumped in and went down the slide (which we were awarded with with a free shot) then we were off to a cabaret ladyboy show. This was quite the experience, but my god were they talented performers!

We cheekily got tinnies from 7/11 before getting to our last stop, fishbowl bar. Our group drifted off in dribs and drabs but somehow three of us ended up skinny dipping once again (it just had to be done). We got back around 4AM feeling refreshed and sobered up from our swim and a bit of drunk street food.

The next morning Grace, Lauren and I had breakfast at a lovely place near the hostel called Through the Looking Glass (would definitely recommend)! We then got picked up for a day tour we’d booked. We were meant to go to shark bay for snorkelling but unfortunately the water was too choppy so we had to miss out this stop. Instead, we went to freedom beach and had a snorkel and explore there. We were then given a buffet lunch which once again did not disappoint (even though we were all fairly hung over and sea sickness was threatening a couple of us).

After lunch was Mango Bay for yet more snorkelling but it was really good visibility here. Unfortunately, I lacerated my foot on the coral so as I boarded the boat I was greeted with gasps as blood poured out (that’s probably a bit dramatic but it was messy)! Basically, be careful when snorkelling near coral, I had to learn that the hard way.

The final stop of the day was Nang Yuan which was the best part of the tour by far. You can actually just do day trips here and there’s options to stay over on the island which I’d definitely consider if I ever went back. It was so gorgeous and had a fabulous viewpoint (even if climbing up has us dripping in sweat)!

For our last dinner on Koh Tao we ate at a place called Vegetabowl which had such insane grub. After that it was to bed for a well earned sleep, or at least that was the plan. Grace and I had a roommate with Bronchitis so after so much spluttering we ended up sleeping outside on a rock hard wooden bench. We were now dodging Bronchitis and the Corona Virus. Not fun.

KOH PHANGAN Us six girls met Lauren and Gerard at the ferry and were delighted to find Zombieland II was playing AGAIN for the duration of our trip to Koh Phangan. We were all staying at Slumber in a 16 bed dorm so we knew it was going to be an experience.

We checked out the beach which was fairly disappointing compared to Koh Tao but we saw that there was another Goodtime 4P hostel on the beach which looked chilled and had a nice vibe so I’d recommend either that or Slumber for Koh Phangan (ours was very heavy on partying but I wasn’t complaining).

For our first night we got in the pool, having met a lovely Irish couple and all drank cocktails. I think that time chatting and drinking together was actually my highlight of all of Koh Phangan! Ten of us went for food and when we came back the hostel was popping so it was more drinks for us. All the guys in our dorm were out too so we had a boogie with them and just a generally fun night which went on until the early hours.

The following day we went on a tour which was great fun (despite a painful excursion half way through). We started off at a waterfall which we climbed and then cooled down in before going to a Slip N Slide (effectively a huge slide which catapults you into water). I was the dummy which went down first and of course I managed to do it wrong (I sat up instead of lying on my back) so I hit the water with one hell of a thud (typical me). My whole back flared up red but it didn’t stop me from giving it another go later. It seemed very hit and miss as to whether you hurt yourself or not (all about the landing which some executed perfectly and others, I.e. me, did not).

We moved onto a secret beach (which wasn’t that secret) but definitely a lot nicer than the one near us. It had a gorgeous place for drinks and food which was hidden amongst luscious vegetation. There were also lots of swings and places to jump into the sea.

Our last stop was the Amsterdam Bar where we watched the sun set whilst we ate some food and drank. Again, all 10 of us sat together so it was really nice having a solid group and the bar was stunning with an incredible view and a small pool on the side.

Once back we had a chilled one at the pool and all us girls had a night to together which was nice. I definitely needed it as my throat was in bits, my feet were still lacerated, and I was generally just a broken woman.

Full Moon party day!! So despite not having a heavy night, I didn’t get up until 1PM (oops). I met the girls at the beach which really did not compare to the others (the sea was covered in seaweed so our dip wasn’t the most successful). We then did some boring admin stuff (booked flights to Chiang Mai and decided to leave Koh Phangan early as it really was the worst of the islands, but then again, we weren’t really exploring it properly). We then bought alcohol for the night and got ready.

We had our own drinks and a few at Slumber during their happy hour. I also tried a joss shot (effectively a shot with energy powder in it) and I couldn’t recommend anything less. When we got to Full Moon it wasn’t what I expected (but then again I’d drunk too much so god knows if my memory of the night is accurate). Basically, I ended up going to 7/11 all night, during which I bought three cheese toasties and let’s just say they didn’t stay down long ... In fact, they mostly ended up in the sea. A bit of a shambles of an evening but at least we only had one more day to endure on the island.

It felt like pathetic fallacy kicked in as the heavens opened the next morning (our first, and only, experience of rain). We got some food then I spent the majority of the day under an umbrella lying on a beanbag by the pool with Gerard keeping me company when he wasn’t tracking down his phone which he’d left in a taxi the previous night (he did get it back, yay). Slumber put on a free buffet curry and after that the free all day happy hour seemed too tempting to pass up on so we got vodka slushies and cocktails.

Of course that led to more skinny dipping, but unfortunately the water only went up to our knees so it wasn’t the most successful. Instead, we all got out and went to 7/11 and I got ... yep, you guessed it, another cheese toastie (because apparently 3 the night before hadn’t satisfied me enough).

KOH SAMUI Drinking last night no longer felt like it had been a good idea as I put my phone on snooze three times trying to put off the journey to Koh Samui. Eventually, reality kicked in and we got ourselves together. We had to say goodbye to the friends we’d made (bar Gerard who was one of us now).

The seven of us boarded the nicest boat we’d been on yet (typical that it was only a 20 minute trip but the nicest mode of transport we’d experienced so far; plus Zombieland II didn’t play ... result)!

We stayed at At Hostel which was so perfect. It was very chill, had a small pool, free breakfast and a little bar. I loved it but it was such a contrast to having constant shots being shoved down our throats 24/7 in Koh Phangan.

We went to see the Big Buddha which was very impressive and great fun as we all chucked on kimonos (us girls were actually covered up already but we were so taken with the silky material we decided to put them on anyway). Nearby was a night market with street food which was to die for. We all got multiple bits and bobs before heading back for a few drinks at the bar (I wish alcohol counted as 5 of your 5 a day).

The following day we split. Half went to a National park whilst my gang went on a tour which I think actually turned out to be my favourite day (mostly because we went to pig island which had actual pigs on it and I just couldn’t really contain myself with that).

We were popped on a speedboat and taken to see dolphins but these were special as there was a mix of grey and pink ones. The older they were, the pinker they went and as they circled the boat we got a proper show put on. Oh, and apparently they’re attracted to noise so at one point Bruno Mars started blasting out from the boat speakers (I mean why not)!?

Somehow I drifted off in between the dolphins and next stop (which was pretty impressive seeing as two women were so sea sick they threw up over the boat)! I had a blissful sleep though! My lovey friends took plenty of pictures and videos of me which they all found hilarious (thanks guys). Revived, we all went for a snorkel at our new stop and we found a tire swing hanging over the sea which was fun. It was only a brief stop, though, before going back into the boat.

Next up was a platoon which had rope swings into the water, metal rocking mechanisms which flung you in the sea, a waterslide and platform to jump off. We had such a ball here and I wasn’t sure much could top it until ... we arrived at the pigs. I sprinted onto pig island like my life depended on it and found a lovely little chap (who was actually a monster of a pig and not little at all) who I cuddled contently for a ridiculous amount of time. We then caught wind that a baby piggy was nearby so it was straight over to him and my heart actually could have melted.

We got in mojitos and I almost cried when I saw that the menu had pork on it. Maybe it was just the fact that the pigs were on a beach, but I just fell in love with them. When we got back we were given a buffet lunch and dropped at our hostel. We considered going out to another Buddha but decided to get drunk instead (classic). We all played psyche at the bar until the others got back. Sounded like they had a really good day too so it was happiness all round.

As we were drinking at the bar we met a couple that had taken pictures of us at Nuan Yang viewpoint and Full Moon Party (what are the odds)! They were a lovely couple from Wales and we also met another guy called at the hostel so all of us went for dinner. After some food we went for more drinks as we wanted to check out Koh Samui’s nightlife (we were right next to the strip so it would have been rude not to)! The bar we found was absolutely popping so it was another great night to mark the end of the East Islands. Chiang Mai, here we come!