Is This Underwater Love?

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It's been a long time since my post, but that's mainly due to the hectic schedule of diving, drinking, sleeping and working my Divemaster internship for Ban's Diving Resort. Oh, and also because the internet is so slow here as it's through satellite rather than cable! Takes me ages to upload photos (about 30 minutes for 10!).
As some of you know, it's my second time here. Koh Tao is a nice little island just north of Koh Phangan (the island famous for the Full Moon parties). It's much cheaper than Phangan and Samui for everything, and it's more laid back and less developed. It's a perfect get away. There are the occasional beach parties but those are confined to the area just in front of the bar involved, so it's generally very quiet around. The one problem is that all the ravers and partiers from the Full Moon party on Phangan descend upon Koh Tao as a recovery trip to do some diving courses (usually beginners doing their Open Water course), and they bring a lot of noise and drinking with them. It happened last week (the day after Valentine's Day), and the population almost doubles when they arrive the couple of days after the Full Moon party.
The last two weeks I've been doing my Divemaster course here, although I haven't done any of the practical stuff. I have all the reading material which I'll peruse during my 3 months in India before returning after Burma in June or July. Then I'll do my Divermaster course properly. I've done quite a lot of dives now, mostly two a day for about a week, followed by a day's break, followed by more. I'm really enjoying all the diving. I'm still not sure if I want to do my Instructor's course yet though. As much as diving is one of my great loves in life, I don't know if I could really do it every day as a job. I guess I'll know better when I'm back in summer to complete my course over a month or two.
Life is pretty easy here. My usual schedule consists of getting up at around 11am to get ready for the 12:45pm afternoon dives. Most of the time I help dive leaders look after students by bringing up the rear. We get back to shore at about 5:30pm, where we clean our diving kit in fresh water, then I go back to my room for a shower, then down to the Ban's bar to chat with the people who work here, have dinner and watch the fabulous sunsets. Sometimes I go for a massage next door to Ban's. They do the best Thai massages I've ever had, and it's only 3 pounds for one hour!
The guys here are pretty good fun. I know almost all of them now. Most I met last year and get on very well with. We've had some mad nights, dancing on the bar, and talking through to the early hours usually whilst very drunk! Diving is actually the best hangover cure! You feel right as rain after coming up after your first dive! Most instructors and divemasters swear by it. I've only done it a couple of times as I don't really like diving after a night of drinking!
Kosh arrived the other day, and it was fantastic seeing him again (well, for the first few hours :P). It's kind of weird seeing him here in Thailand, it's the first time I've been on holiday with him in the 10 years I've known him! I led the dives on Saturday and Sunday when we dived with Arden (a Canadian guy I met here), Mandeep (another Canadian, although he's Indian), and Freddy (a Swedish guy). It was my first time leading a group and looking after them, but at least we didn't get lost (unlike a dive last week when 5 of us divemasters got lost and had to swim 25 minutes on the surface to get back to the boat!). Had some good dives with them. Spotted plenty of Titan Triggerfish, Moray eels, Blue-Spotted Rays, huge garoupas (my mum would love to eat those... *sigh*), the most beautiful Angel and Butterfly fish, but no whale sharks yet! It was amusing when Arden threw up through his regulator half way through a dive due to nausea! Mmmmm, fish food.
Tomorrow I'm off to meet up with Ling, Dodgy, Ed, Adam, Lucy and the others (don't really know who else has turned up!). We'll be diving in Koh Tao for a day trip before heading to Samui where we'll stay till the end of the week. Then we're off to Bangkok where I'll stay for one night as the others head home. Then off to India for 3 months! Can't wait.....

Bang Saphan Yai, Chumphon and Koh Tao

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Had a nice final two days in Bang Saphan Yai. Went to the Sai Ku waterfalls which were beautiful. A 15 minute drive from our resort into the hills, followed by a 5 minute walk brings you through some bamboo forests to the foot of the waterfall.
When we arrived, we heard from 3 Thai kids who were just ahead of us that there was a 'slide' at the top. We climbed up some steep slopes and rested there whilst the 3 Thai kids and I slid down the natural chute in the rocks that ended in a little ppol that was just a bit too close to the edge fo the waterfall for my liking!
Climbed back down and relaxed round the main pool before heading back the resort for a final night's dinner and chat with Liam and Claire.
The next morning, I got up bright and early to take a mini bus the 2 hours down to my next stop. Chumphon is nothing to speak much of. There's a couple of typical markets, some bars (for foreigners) and that's about it. I only stayed one night in the dingy 'Farang Bar', where I also booked my ferry the following day to Koh Tao. One thing I did accomplish in Chumphon was purchasing a very handle little piece of kit, the electric tennis racket of mosquito death. Fantastic thing. I sorely needed it after counting about 20 mosquitos in my dingy room. Hey, it cost me 100 baht each for the room and for the racket! So bargain deal for both.
Arrived in Koh Tao, at Mae Haad beach and took the free pick up to Ban's Diving Resort. It's weird coming abck to the same place as last year, but it's great fun here. Fortunately, all the staff here from last year are still around, and I also bumped into Rikke, who was on the Rescue Diver course with me! She ended up doing her Divemaster and staying here to work for the last year. Good to see so many familiar faces.
Found out when I arrived that there was a two day Underwater Festival, where there are parties, stalls, TV station camera crews, the lot! Yesterday morning we all took part in the breaking a world record for the most divers diving simultaneously, 800 in total! Unfortunately, I missed out, as my alarm clock failed to go off at 6am (note to self: Always check phone battery level before going to bed).
Today, I've signed up for my Divemaster course, which I will start tomorrow, and finish in June when I come back. I'll only do about 10 days of the theory and some diving exercises whilst I'm here before Kosh arrives. The reason I signed up for it now, instead of June, when I come back, is so that all my dives (fun dives, rather than part of my course) are all FREE! So I save a bunch of money.
So for the next weeks and a half, I'll be relaxing, drinking, diving and having some fun here with people I know until Kosh comes over for a couple of days. We'll then head down to Koh Samui to meet up with Ling, Dodgy, Ed, Adam, Lucy et al for the birthday party!
Not many photos from Koh Tao. I've already been here before, so haven't been inclined to take any! You can see my last year's photos if you really want!

Oh, I noticed that some people have said they couldn't comment on my last post. I don't know why, but for some reason Blogger messed up and my post actually ended disappearing. I think something weird happened. I've fixed that now!

Prachuap Kiri Khan to Bang Saphan

It's been a while since I did my last update, so instead of reprisingeverything by memory, I'm going to publish my last 3 entries from myhand written travel diary.

Prachuap Kiri Khan - 30th Jan '06

I guess this is where my trip really starts, in Prachuap Kiri Khan. This is the first night I'm truly on my own, away from family and friends. I've been away from London now for little over a month,spending time in Hong Kong, Bangkok and Hua Hin. I've been to all these places before (Hong Kong most obviously!) so I don't really constitute them as part of my trip.
It's not really the most glamourous starts to a year out. Prachuap Kiri Khan seem to be quite a calm chilled town, with not much to do,although I've only been here for one evening so far. I checked into the Yuttichai Hotel not 50m from the train station. It seems pleasant enough, with ample room, though facing a noisy road, with double bed, dresser and a fan. There's a communal bathroom area with no hot water,and a place to gather downstairs. The staff seem nice and friendly here.
The train journey from Hua Hin was good, despite the open windows delivering a seesaw of smells from burnt wood to fields fertilised with what must have been bovine diahorrea. I had to frantically stick my head out of the side of the train everytime we pulled into a station so that I could spot the dimly lit single signs announcing the stops so that I wouldn't miss my destination.
I was expecting a mad rush of taxi drivers to approach me when I arrived here, but none came forward. It's so different to the well worn tourist towns and cities like Bangkok and Hua Hin. It's a breath of fresh air and great to realise I'm getting away somewhere different.
The town, for a provincial capital, is very relaxed, with no signs of other backpackers so far. A 20 minute walk by the seafront in the nice seafood restaurant which cost me 200 baht (3 quid) for a large bottle of beer and 3 dishes. Must say that "Burnt Cock, Iridescant" does not sound the most appealing of menu choices. Sounds like something a man gets from staying in the sun too long on a nudist beach. No thanks.
I'll try to get up early tomorrow and explore the town properly. There's supposed to be a nice temple atop a hill at the north end of town. Off to bed now.

Prachuap Kiri Khan - 31st Jan '06

Got up fairly early this morning in no small part due to the lack ofsleep last night from a goddamn squealing monkey outside my window and loud motorbikes going who knows where in the wee hours.
Made my way to Khao Chong Krachok (Mirror Tunnel mountain) a few hundred meters north, on the edge of town. There's a hole in the side of it through which you can see the sky (thus the name) although I never saw it. I think you have to walk a fair distance into the shrimp farms to see it from another angle. On approach to the base, a huge horde of stump-tailed monkeys made their way to a generous local feeding them small bunches of bananas. The climb up the hill (it's barely a mountain) was fairly arduous, especially for someone as unfit as I am. Monkeys lined the staircaseall the way up to Wat Thammikaram at the summit. Most were either asleep, grooming or looking for a feed. The temple at the top afforded some fantastic views of Prachuap Kiri Khan and the surrounding areas, including Ao Noi to the north and the Thai Airforce Base (Wing 53) to the south, protecting Ao Manao, where Japanese forces landed back in 1941.
Had a spot to eat by the seafront from some street stalls, then walked the 6km to Ao Manao through the military base. Strange walking acrossa runway to get to a beach! Ao Manao is nice, not the best beach I've been to, plus it was high tide so the beach was mostly submerged. Walked the length and spotted a nice cove with a deserted beach. Couldn't get to it though as I was foiled by growth along what was a very unused path. I wonder if anyone has gone that way in the last few years!
Took a motorbike taxi back to the hotel (I'd been walking for nigh on 5 hours by then in hot weather!), where I had a shower to freshen up and a couple of drinks downstairs to relax after all the walking. Spent some time on the internet then went out for dinner in the nightmarket.
Came back to the hotel and spotted some backpackers sitting having a drink although the table was kind of full. I annoy myself sometimes. I'm pretty shy when it comes to introducing myself when I'm alone. All my friends know how loud, talkative and outgoing I am and may balk at such claims, but it's true. I'm only outgoing once I know someone, but I can never instigate. I prefer being introduced or someone introducing themselves. I'm sure I'll change over this trip. I will need social interaction sooner or later! I think it's symptomatic of a bigger problem I have with myself. I've never felt like I've belonged anywhere before. My mum keeps telling me I'm not Chinese, which hurts. But that's because I've been brought up in an English orientated family and education. Neither do I feel English, as when I'm in England, people always see I'm Asian and will ask where I'm from. Invariably, I'll tell them from Hong Kong, which means they think I'm Chinese. I've had Chinese people unable to look at my face when I speak Cantonese as they think it's too weird someone who isn't fully Chinese speaking such. When I'm in Hong Kong, they always comment on how good I speak Cantonese, thinking I'm a foreigner. So you see, neither place I 'originate' from accepts who I am. The only people who do, are my friends and Sev. That's what made it so difficult to leave London. Not because of London itself, but because of them. It was tough. Many of my close friends and Sev will attest to the many times I cried about leaving them.
That's why I don't approach new people. I guess I think I won't belong. So anyway, those backpackers walked off somewhere with a cursory nod as they passed me and I weakly acknowledged. I should have spoken to them earlier.
Tomorrow, I'm off to Bang Saphan Yai. It's hopefully a more lively place than here. I get on better in a more social atmosphere when it comes to meeting people. I've just got to get into being alone and meeting others. But isn't that part of the reason I'm undertaking this trip? To be alone and become friends with myself again?
Oh, word of advice. Don't walk 5 hours in the sun wearing a tight necklace. You'll look like you're still wearing one when you take it off afterwards...

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Bang Saphan Yai - 3rd Feb '06

After finding out my train would be delayed by 2 hours, I made the executive decision to take the bus down to Bang Saphan Yai. Believing that the bus terminates in a single town there (as I was told), and that the crew would tell me when I arrived (I asked them), I was rudely dumped on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere after overshooting my stop (by 20 minutes I found out later!). Luckily, a kind lady at a road side cafe 2 minutes down the road called Suan Luang Resort at which I planned to stay and they sent a driver out to pick me up.
Bang Saphan is a little town with not much to it. Suan Luang Resort is situated 10 minutes from the town towards the beach, Bang Saphan Yai (Yai meaning big). A collection of modest bungalows and a thatched roof restaurant that mainly caters for guests, it is quaint, quiet and nicely isolated amongst a large coconut plantation 700m from the sea. There's not a shop, internet cafe, computer or bar to be seen anywhere.
I met a Dutch couple, Tom and Crystal, in their twenties, the evening I checked in. They gave me some nice pointers to the surrounding areas and attractions. That evening, I ate at the resort's restaurant, that has an extensive Thai and French menu, although Crystal told me the French food left much to ask for. I wasn't going to try it anyway. Why travel half way round the world to eat French food?
The following day, I booked a scuba diving trip to Koh Thalu, a 15 minute speed boat ride from Bang Saphan Yai. I met Liam and Clare, an English couple also in their twenties, from Morecombe, just north of Manchester. They were also staying at the Suan Luang resort. They had booked a snorkelling trip to the island.
Koh Thalu was beautiful, something you see in movies or brochures,although dampened by the overcast weather and occasional light showers. I was the only diver on the boat, which was exactly what I wanted, although another diver boat with 4 divers shadowed us.
On the first dive, the visibility was rather poor, but improved as we retreated to shallower depths. The coral wasn't fantastic, but our encounter with a curious snorkeller diving down to swim with us, and later, a 2m stingray brightened the dive. The stingray was the largest I had ever seen in my life. It continuously swam off to return every few minutes to buzz past us towards the end of our dive. I had lunch with Liam and Clare on a platform over the sea on the private resort on Koh Thalu. My second dive was short and unspectacular, but the sun did come out to highlight some of the largest brain and star coral formations I have ever witnessed. Each colony was 3m high by 4m wide.
That evening was relaxed, spent getting to know Liam and Clare better over dinner and some drinks. I also went into town beforehand to get a replacement memory card, for my digital camera, which decided to pack in. Thus no photos from Koh Thalu!
Before dinner at the resort (a rather extravagant designation for the accommodation) I visited the night market in town where I was privy to the first stall I've seen selling fried insects.
Today I slept in, then rented a motorbike to head into town to use the internet (couldn't do my blog as some sites where unreachable due to bad connections). Taxis are non-existent here, and the only way to get around is either to walk or ride a rented bike. Luckily, the resort has a couple of bikes for hire.
Again, I spent dinner talking to Liam and Clare. There are few people staying here. Now that Tom and Crystal have gone, the only people here are us 3 and an older Dutch couple I spoke to briefly on the way back from the night market (the resort took us in their truck). At 10pm,the staff retired, leaving Liam, Clare and I candlelit at our table as all lights were extinguished, plunging us into darkness. The couple retired fairly soon after, leaving me and my remaining beer to witness the beautiful orchestra of grasshoppers surrounding me, with the odd crescendo of crickets and the sporadic, unmistakeable 'chirp' of geckos, lulling one into a sense of peace and oneness with nature.
Tomorrow, I'll be heading 40 km out of town with Liam, Clare and the older Dutch couple (didn't catch their names!) to visit the Sai Ku waterfalls.