TRAVEL WRITING CHALLENGE
Island Dreams in Thailand
The A to Z of my favorite travel destinations
Massive cloud formations were rising on the horizon just as the sun was melting in the sea. The entire sky burst into a festival of colors just as the beach awoke. Couples were taking a walk looking for a romantic dinner place and solo travelers were already sipping on their happy hour cocktails.
It’s been only four years since this holiday we took while living in Thailand but it feels like a lifetime ago. It’s incredible how quickly experiences move into the past if you’re active and always moving around.
David and I had been working in Thailand for a couple of months when we took this vacation and decided on two weeks in Koh Tao. We decided on the island because my husband wanted to take a diving course and convinced me to join even though I never wanted to go scuba diving. But that is another story.
The complicated thing about our relationship has always been and still is the passport issue. Getting married didn’t change much about the fact he usually needs a visa where I don’t or the other way around.
Not getting into details here but I remember we flew separately as he needed to be out of the country and I could take a domestic flight. It was a mission to organize it all for me and to make sure he wouldn’t get lost halfway between Bangkok, Malaysia and the islands where he had to switch ferries.
While I was so worried about him, I should have rather focused on my own journey as I traveled to the wrong airport in Bangkok and almost missed my flight rushing a taxi driver to race through the capital during rush hour to get me to my plane in time.
I arrived first on Koh Tao and checked into our bungalow by the beach while waiting for David to arrive. We opted for this resort as it was part of a diving school and we didn’t have to move places around.
And of course, it was right by the beach.
Our bungalow wasn’t on the ocean front but we decided to save money and stay longer instead. Hidden in the lush green vegetation of the island, we had a quiet place only meters walking distance away from the beach.
As it was the rainy season in Thailand, the clouds were building daily pouring down on us every other day which made up for stunning sunsets and cooler temperatures.
Koh Tao was busy but not crowded. Tourists were walking along the beach and in town but we could find a place to sit whenever we found a restaurant we liked.
The beaches were as pretty and the water as clear as in the travel brochure and the palm trees perfectly placed along the shore. The sky was shining blue unless it was painted in hues of orange during the twilight hours.
Every evening, we found a different restaurant to settle down, watch the sunset and embrace a culinary experience. Of course, we ate lots of fish, freshly prepared and grilled right on the beach in front of our eyes, but also tried some different dishes.
And yes, on day number two on the island, the diving course began. Despite all the hiccups, setbacks and fear from my side, I finished the course after four days with one more dive than the rest and a certificate in my hands.
While this was a very stressful experience for me, I was more than proud for having achieved what I did and for stepping so far out of my comfort zone.
While David added a few more dives and the advanced diver course on the following days, we both went on one ‘fun dive’ together where he took the camera with and filmed the fascinating marine life and me in the great blue ocean.
If we weren’t scuba diving, we were snorkeling. An activity I was a lot more confident in and enjoyed just as much. We saw the most colorful and spectacular fish while snorkeling around the island of Koh Tao.
One day, we rented a longtail boat and a local who drove us around the entire island and stopped at six different sites for us to snorkel. We stayed between 30 minutes to an hour at each site and were certainly exhausted by the end of the day.
But it was just so much joy to swim among these schools of fish.
Parrot fish were one of my favorite ones as their color is so strikingly beautiful.
And on one of the days when David had another lesson for his advanced diving course, I signed up for a climbing session. Just with a guide, we drove up into the forested parts of the island, hiked through the jungle to the base of the rock face and made our way to the top.
It was humid and hot and I certainly suffered as I hadn’t been climbing since I left Namibia half a year before but I enjoyed the experience and exercise together with the views I got from above.
If we weren’t diving, snorkeling or admiring the sunsets, we went paddleboarding or played beachball down by the sea. I didn’t have my own paddleboard yet but rented one on a few afternoons.
While our resort was fuller on some days, the beach out front was mostly empty and free for us to enjoy.
You do what you have to do when in Thailand and of course, we did rent a scooter for one day to explore the island and other bays. Getting up those hills wasn’t always easy and I had to get off more than once but it was so worth the adventure.
Back to our beach and back to the setting sun. It was the last night at this lovely place as I had organized a bungalow in a different bay for our last two nights on Koh Tao.
Leaving the bustling Sairee Beach behind, we took a tuk-tuk to get to this tiny resort on the other side of the island. With a bungalow right by the beach, we had two more days to relax.
While the ocean still invited us to go snorkeling and we also borrowed once the resort’s kayak for a short trip, we mostly enjoyed the quietness of this place.
Also, there was a hammock on the veranda and I put our hammock (Yes, I travel with my own hammock) up next to it so we could both be swinging in the wind as the rain began to pour down around us.
Koh Tao wasn’t the first or the last of the Thai islands we visited but it was certainly one for the memories.
And if I can leave you with a message from Koh Tao, then it is this one.
Why is anyone still littering?
This is a response to a writing prompt started by Sam Millichap and many have participated since. I’m so happy to see the community is growing. So many amazing destinations coming up. We welcome anyone to join the fun. Write your own alphabet of your favorite travel destinations.
Sam Millichap with “Discovering Orkney’s 8,500 Years of Human Occupation”
Adrienne Beaumont with “Tallinn”
Robert G. Longpré with “P is for Peru”
Darren Weir with “Tel Aviv — Paris Of The Middle East”
Michael Rhodes with “Grand Canyon”
Dan Carlson | Meandering Naturist with “G is for Gavdos, Greece”
Jerry Dwyer with “Napa Valley”
Jillian Amatt — Artistic Voyages with “G is For Greece”
Nishan Fuard with “Anaheim: I Remember the Parking Lot from the Hotel Window”
Ronald Smit with “B is for … Botswana”
Erie Astin with “Roman Ceilings: Rivers of Gold”
Erika Burkhalter with “Where the Buddha Sleeps”
You can find the full series of the “A to Z of my favorite travel destinations” in the reading list here. And these are my latest ones:
Q — “I Haven’t Been to Q…”
R — “Raw and Refreshing Romania”
S — “The Ultimate Safari Destination in Africa”
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