Dear friends,

We have left he hustle and bustle of Bangkok and have currently set up camp (or should we say, set up bungalow) on the tiny island of Koh Tao (with an area of only 20 km²) in the Gulf of Thailand. Koh Tao, which literally means “Turtle Island” (Koh=Island, Tao=Turtle), got its name due to the abundance of turtles that used to inhabit the surrounding waters. Nowadays the turtles have been replaced by tourists and the island has become one of the premier dive-sites in Thailand and a major backpacker hangout. Still, some of the more remote parts of the island have been able to retain the peaceful paradise-island feel.

View from our Bungalow

Currently, I am sitting in a comfy lounge-chair on the deck of our little bungalow, which is home not only to us, but to some pretty chilled out lizards that hang out on our ceiling (well, its their ceiling really, we are just borrowing it for a bit). In front of me are clear blue skies, sparkling water, protruding rock formations, and small forests of palm trees. Four of the palm trees stand right in front of me, growing at angles to each other, and just about forming a big letter W. Every time I see them I am reminded of “the big doubleya” from that wonderful old movie “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad World” and I am half tempted to descend to the base of the big W, and start digging for hidden treasure.

Our Friendly Upstairs Neighbor

Each palm tree is sheltering a cluster of coconuts right below its plentiful green branches. These coconuts are a major food-staple in all of South-Eastern Asia, going into everything from curries, soups, sauces, salads, drinks, and cocktails. Misha and I have established a morning tradition of drinking one of these enormous coconuts for breakfast. The coconut is picked fresh off the palm tree, and then the top is hacked away by a large machete, revealing the juice that fills the coconut to the brim. The warm coconut juice tastes sweet and nutty, is supposedly super healthy and nutritious, and is incredibly refreshing in the morning. Sure beats a cup of coffee. After the juice is all gone, you can hack off a piece of the coconut shell and use it as a spoon to scoop all the yummy soft coconut pulp lining the inside walls. Yummmm.

A Boat and a Coconut

But watch out… there is a menacing dark side hidden behind the innocent exterior of these large, smooth green orbs. Apparently, some of the coconuts have a homicidal tendency; at least one person a year is killed by a falling coconut hitting the head. Now that you have been warned, remember to avoid sitting or sleeping under a palm tree, and tread carefully every time you’re under one. (I am sure this is awfully useful advice to you New (and Old) Englanders).

Rita Signaling OK Underwater

So here we are. We have traded in the temple hopping in Cambodia for beach bumming in Thailand, and I have to say that as much as I enjoyed the amazing temples of Angkor Wat, I am enjoying this trade. We’ve spent most of our time partaking in the quintessential Koh Tao activity: scuba diving! Misha learned to dive three years ago making him an old pro, but for me it was all new and I am still reeling from the breathtaking first experiences of the underwater world.

Underwater World

The bright coral reefs are brimming with life and light and color, and the underwater life is not shy or much scared of humans (they don’t really see us as a threat) and so have no qualms about coming right up to your face and checking out the crazy diver with the goofy suit and heavy oxygen tank. It’s amazing to be down there in the quiet blue world, suspended in buoyancy between the coral reef floor and the translucent top of the water serving as the ceiling. We’ve seen giant triggerfish, and angelfish, and barracudas, and porcupine fish, giant groupers, stingrays and moray eels, and every type of underwater life imaginable. I swam through giant schools of hundreds and hundreds of scads that formed a sort of superhighway and made me feel like I was in “Finding Nemo”. But the hands down highlight was the awesome whale shark that we were privileged enough to share the waters with for an entire afternoon. The mermaid in me was (and still is!) thrilled.

Whale Shark and Friends

We’ve spent the rest of our time swimming in the obscenely hot water. Swimming is a bit of an overstatement as the beaches here are only a few feet deep for hundreds of meters from the shore. You end up spending most of the time in a lounging position with the shallow water barely covering your shoulders, and crawling around the sandy bottom like a crab. We’ve spent our afternoons playing volleyball with the locals until our arms were purple with bruises. The Thais are scrappy little volleyball players, taking the game rather lightly, laughing, joking, and making fun of each other. It’s a hoot.

Otherwise, we have avoided the touristy party scene filled with smoking and booze, preferring to enjoy the quiet of reading, playing cards, doing crosswords. Yes, we’ve become an old, boring couple, but we kinda like it this way. We just sit around and watch the horizon and the nightly lighting storms that illuminate the dark starry sky, and listen to the soothing sound of the calm ocean waves rolling on the shore. And how could I forget, our most important daily activity: EATING! We have been able to find some excellent Thai food on this island, and still can’t understand why most of the tourists stick to boring second-rate overcooked (but safe?) Western food. Oh well, that just means that there is more for us … more pananag/ massaman/ coconut curries, coconut soups, and papaya salads, and yummy, nutty pad thais, and all that good stuff. Mmmmm… I’m getting hungry just writing about it… I think its time for lunch.

Tomorrow we are leaving this lovely paradise and heading for Indonesia (Bali, Lombok, Gilli Islands, etc). We have a month visa, and will probably only just skim the surface of enormous Indonesia in this time, but it should give us a taste.

~R (and M)

p.s. acouple more general, random observations about Thailand…
First of all there is a 7-11 on every corner. You can’t walk one block without passing at least one of these convenience store mini-marts. Strange, huh? But I have to say, that I have never enjoyed a 7-11 quite as much as I do here in Thailand… often it is the only fully air-conditioned place I’ll visit all day, and in the extreme humid, over 35 degree weather, it’s a welcome relief.
Also… Thai people seem to be incredibly open-minded about sexuality. It is perfectly normal to encounter numerous transvestites during the normal daily routine, working as waitresses or just at the local 7-11. Women dressed as men, men dressed as women, lesbian couples, gay couples... all goes in Thailand, and nobody seems to pay the least bit attention. Kinda cool…