Day 26 – Chumporn to Koh Tao – Sunday March 27th 2011
Our bus arrived in Chumporn at 5am, but we had to wait on the pontoon until 7am. It had rained all night, and was still raining. We were all huddled under a tarpaulin shelter.
The sea didn’t look too rough, but when the catamaran arrived it nearly smashed the jetty to pieces before they managed to get it secured. They loaded and unloaded supplies before letting us board. We were a bit late setting off.
Welcome to the Vomit Comet
After a minute of intense seas, the staff came round handing out sick bags. Nic and I both took one as a precaution. I wasn’t too worried, as I’ve been on boats before and never been sick.
After twenty to thirty minutes of being thrown from side to side I couldn’t take it any more. Along with most of the boat I was soon throwing up. Frank somehow survived the whole trip without being sick and Chick lasted until right near the end. Frank was almost overcome when he made a brave dash for the toilets, which were located outside, but somehow regained his composure. He’s pure man that fella.
I could barely stand by the time we reached the dock, but almost ran off the boat. I couldn’t get on solid land quick enough. Nic was even worse than me, and I felt bad that I couldn’t help her more. I was in no state to help anyone.
We ignored the row of taxi hawkers outside the building, and walked into Mae Haad. We asked a travel agent about accommodation and she advised us to head towards Sairee. She flagged down a Songthaew and within a couple of minutes we were there.
Lotus Everything
We were dropped at the top of Soi Lotus (Lotus Road). We soon realised where it got its name. Everything was named lotus, from restaurants, guesthouses, massage places and tour offices it was all lotus. Naturally we checked in to Lotus apartments. We paid £3 each for double rooms, which was really good, considering we had been told the whole island was fully booked. We had also been told that rooms start at £8 per person, so even better.
We slept for a while to recover from the trip and then went out to explore. Since Vietnam we had got quite attached to our rain Macs and would be using them a lot.
Ignoring the torrential rain for a minute, this island looks really nice. There are beachside bungalows, restaurants and shops, and it all feels welcoming and laid back. If only this rain would stop.
One negative is the beach nearest to our rooms was strewn with beer bottles. It also seems like everyones sewage runs into the sea. If the weather gets better we will try to find a better beach.
Full English
I had a big breakfast to help regain my strength. Washed down with a sugary coke, it was just what I needed. We went back to our rooms to get changed before going for dinner later.
We were aiming for a big restaurant on the main road called Hippo, but the main road was now a river which we didn’t fancy swimming across. Instead we turned back and went to Porto Bello, a really good Italian restaurant with a lovely atmosphere.
We walked to a bar on the waterfront for a few Changs before trudging back through the knee high water to our rooms.
News from back home is that there is a mini heatwave and everyone is already getting a suntan. We are as white as ghosts.
