Thailand Thoughts

This picture was taken on the evening after our boat trip out to Angthong, but it seemed to be a good closing picture of our entire week + in Bangkok and Ko Samui. We had a truly wonderful time and would love to come back again sooner rather than later.


Posted by Picasa

Thailand Vacation, Day 9, Ko Samui

Our last day in Thailand. Here is a photo of the tiny little airport on Ko Samui. Basically a couple of open air buildings with a single runway just past the buildings. We took a bus to the plane that will take us back to Bangkok.

Our route home takes us back to Bangkok in the early evening, with an overnight (red-eye) flight on Korean Air (Delta codeshare) to Seoul/Incheon. At midmorning Seoul time, we hop on a Korean Air 747 that takes us to Washington-Dulles, landing Saturday at noon US Eastern Time. A few hours after that, we will be back in Atlanta. Total travel time = 37 hours.

We are sad to leave such a great place, but will also be glad to get home and begin making preparations to move into a new home!


Posted by Picasa

Thailand Vacation, Day 8, Ko Samui

Our last full day on Ko Samui. Patrick went to play golf at Santiburi Country Club on the northwest corner of the island. Santiburi is the home to an annual Asian PGA Tour tournament in June, and the course was very much set up to be a very challenging test. This is a picture down the first fairway.


Posted by Picasa

This amazing par-three on the front side was a knee-knocker of a shot. I got away with a bogey after coming up short and left of the green. Totally under-clubbed it . . .


Posted by Picasa

A huge pineapple grove looking out from a high point on the 17th fairway.


Posted by Picasa

A very hot and tired Patrick at the end of the round (shot a 93).


Posted by Picasa

One last look out over the north end of Ko Samui from the clubhouse.


Posted by Picasa

Back at the hotel for one last afternoon of swimming.

Here is a great picture of some great folks (the Gentles family) we met at the Long Island Resort. Bruce (shown on the right), Kate, Philip (left on Patrick's shoulders), and Angus (on Bruce's shoulders). We met them on Tuesday at Long Island and got to know about their British background and living in China as expatriates. They are living in Shenzhen, China, which is in the same southern China region that Patrick toured on Monday-Tuesday of the previous week.

We really enjoyed meeting them, and hope to stay in touch with them over time.


Posted by Picasa

Thailand Vacation, Day 7, Ko Samui

Today, we took some time away from Ko Samui and participated in a charter off to several islands for snorkeling and to explore the Angthong National Marine Park.


Posted by Picasa

Shannon getting ready for some snorkeling. Those are some big goggles.


Posted by Picasa

Patrick in the water, moving on to check out the next school of fish.


Posted by Picasa

Rocky coastline on a chain of islands.


Posted by Picasa

More coastline . . .


Posted by Picasa

and a few more scattered islands to dot the seascape.


Posted by Picasa

The sign over to the left is the marker for Angthong National Marine Park. We did some canoeing here and had a pretty simple Thai lunch.


Posted by Picasa

Before taking off to the next stop on the island hopping tour, we played a quick game of volleyball with the boat crew.


Posted by Picasa

One last picture to capture the mountainous, rugged terrain of these islands off the Thai coast. This one made Shannon and me think a lot about our favorite show, "Lost".


Posted by Picasa

Thailand Vacation, Day 6, Ko Samui

Tuesday was a pretty laid back day. Another massage for Shannon in the morning, lazy pool time and reading for Patrick.

That evening, however, a great time was had when we took a Thai cooking class at the Samui Institute of Thai Culinary Arts (SITCA). We learned how to make three traditional Thai dishes (Tom Yum soup, Penang curry and one other dish), which we cooked and then had for dinner as a group. This is the leader of the class, showing us some preparation for the chicken.


Posted by Picasa

Shannon getting her pan ready for the main dish. She was in heaven, even if it was a hot heaven!


Posted by Picasa

Patrick and Shannon at the end of the cooking portion.


Posted by Picasa

This was the son of the cooking instructor seen in an earlier picture. He was very friendly, and especially liked Shannon. A funny story. . . . he saw the name Shannon and thought it was a Thai who was coming to take the class (a Thai cooking class). When he met us, he told us that Shannon is a male Thai name, and that is what made him confused that a Thai would come to this class!


Posted by Picasa

Getting seated for a great Thai dinner! Turned out great and way more food than everyone could eat.


Posted by Picasa

Thailand Vacation, Day 5, Ko Samui

So, this little area off the pool and the hotel "lobby" was the massage area. Shannon got to know this area very well, with a massage to get most everyday started.


Posted by Picasa

During the day on Monday, we also took a bus tour of the island. The first stop was on the northern end of the island (near the little airport) and the Big Buddha. And, man, was this thing big. These steps behind us are all marble and they cooked those who went up in bare feet. Fortunately, there was a sign that allowed people to keep their shoes on when going up to the Big Buddha.


Posted by Picasa

Cute Shannon imitating Buddha. They will not be pleased with her sense of humor.


Posted by Picasa

Very unusual statue of some form of Buddha.


Posted by Picasa

Hin-Ta (Grandfather Rock) on the northern shore. You can figure out for yourself what these look like and why its called a 'tourist attraction'.


Posted by Picasa

And the requisite Hin Ya (Grandmother Rock). Giggling is acceptable.


Posted by Picasa

This was a hoot. These monkeys are trained in Thailand to retrieve coconuts from high up in palm trees. In this case, they also seem to enjoy Shannon's shoulder as a resting perch.


Posted by Picasa

The next stop on our island tour was the "Mummified Monk", which was both creepy and somewhat unbelievable. Supposedly, this monk died many, many years ago, and yet, its fingernails and hair continued to grow. Buddhists believe strongly in its validity as a spiritual icon.


Posted by Picasa

We also got to visit a small animal park including some elephants. As Shannon shows, they were quite willing to gobble on peanuts from the tourists.


Posted by Picasa

The last stop of the day on the island tour was this fabulous waterfall called Na Muang. We decided to make the trek up to the top.


Posted by Picasa

A nice photo of Shannon right at the top of the Na Muang waterfall.


Posted by Picasa

After the climb to the top, here is a view back down. This was a steeper climb than we expected!


Posted by Picasa

A vending stand on the trek back down the waterfall/mountain.


Posted by Picasa

Fridge and Snow are enjoying their view and time on Ko Samui . . . while staying indoors since the humidity and heat are more than polar bears really can stand.


Posted by Picasa