Operation Ko Samui

You should have expected this blog update to take so long with our change over to island time. For the last week, we've plopped ourselves on various stretches of sand and done little else than read, sleep, and relax.

Ko Samui, although more westernized than its neighbors, is known for its long stretches of palm fringed beaches, white sands, and clear warm waters. The beach tends to be over crowed for much of the year, but is currently undergoing its very warm, but low-tourist, season. For nearly a week, we spent each day on a different beach, including Chaweng, Lamai, and Bophut.



During this time, Steve started to live in his silly looking fisherman pants, which he picked up for $2 in Luang Prabang. It's getting hard to remember when he wore something else.



We also took time to indulge in some western cuisine, and treated ourselves to an absolutely massive tasting menu at the swank 'Library'. The restaurant/hotel looks as if it were designed by Apple, which especially delighted Steve's nerdy-ness. The meal consisted of ten appetizers, five soups, ten entrees, and five desserts. Needless to say it was entirely too large of a sampler.



As fun as a 30 course menu was, our favorite food in Samui came from a deli, reminding us a bit of being in New York.

We also took a day away from beaches (well, almost) and headed by boat to the nearby An Thong National Marine Park. We motored around this collection of 42 pristine islands, stopping to snorkel, see some incredible vistas, and lay on more beaches.



The inside of one island holds a blue lagoon, that was especially beautiful.



The postcard-perfect waters put Ko Samui to shame and we especially loved the small beaches throughout, depsite their coarser sand. In this shot, the rock in the middle is known as the praying monkey.



After five days of relaxation, we headed to nearby Ko Pha Ngan for a change of scenery. This smaller island, infamous of its full moon parties, also has its share of secluded beaches that we'll search out. More to come, although don't expect it too soon.