Koh Phangan

The lengthy gap between our posts is the result of a serious case of island inertia.

The journey from Bangkok to Koh Phangan was a tremendously trying experience. First, the VIP bus we had payed for was over-booked meaning that we had to board a 'regular' bus. This bus - which chose to play the oscar calibre film "Stargate Continuum" - travelled for 8 hours before we were asked to get off at 3am and wait on the side of the road for another bus. The next bus arrived at 4am and took us another 2 hours to Chumpon, even though our ticket was supposed to take us to Surat Thani. From Chumpon we were told to sleep on the ground in a parking lot outside the pier until the first ferry departed. At 7am we boarded a ferry which took us 4 hours over very rough seas to Koh Tao. After a 45 minute passenger transfer, the ferry set off for Koh Phangan. At this point the boat was so overloaded that passengers had filled every seat above and below deck as well as all available deck space, forcing many to hang their feet over the edge of the boat. This made for a very unstable ship, made worse of course by the aforementioned choppy conditions. During this 2 hour leg of the journey, we witnessed no fewer than a six passengers below deck vomiting uncontrollably into whatever they could find. Upon arriving on Koh Phangan we had only to sit in the back of a pick-up truck as it carried us the remaining 45 minutes to Tree House over roads that a tank would have difficulty negotiating.

Tree House, however, is fantastic. It rests in the jungle nestled around a private cove which has the perfect mix of powdery white sand, turquoise water, and large cliffs. The bungalows themselves are perched on the cliffs, affording them amazing views of the ocean. The place has a similar vibe to Jungle Beach, however we were surprised to find that nearly everyone at the guesthouse is German. For the first few days we were the only two people whose first language was English but everyone was quite friendly and made efforts to include us in conversation.

Nicole spent her mornings running in the jungle while the rest of our days were spent laying in the sun getting drunk before 11am, snorkeling and participating in the highly-competitive Germany v. Austria beach soccer games. Nights were occupied with lounging in hammocks or on beds surrounding low lying tables up at the tree house. Here, we spent our time talking with fellow travellers, listening to the ambient/funk/house/jazz blend that was supplied by DJ Glyn, or watching "The Fifth Element" as it was projected onto a screen made from a stretched out bed sheet. The vibe at Tree House is very relaxed in part due to the abundance of locally grown herbal and and fungal 'medicines'.

On a side note, our stay on the island also happened to coincide with on of the legendary full-moon parties (FMP) for which Koh Phangan is known. Nicole had intended to participate in the festivities but was unfortunately afflicted with a serious stomach condition. For a detailed account of the night you will have to speak to Joe. But rest assured that he - and the couple with whom he attended the party - fully immersed themselves in the experience. Highlights include but are not limited to: questionable milkshakes, neon body paint, The Reggae House Bar, naked farang vomiting in the streets, the freak out of a Iranian/Trinidadian couple, and several hours spent on a secluded beach arranging and taking pictures of three water bottles.

Our last few days have been spent in Haad Rin (scene of the FMP) at the CoCo Hut Village enjoying some luxury. We now head to Koh Tao for some more seclusion. Again we may have difficulty updating the blog but we will try our best.

Bye for Now,

Joe and Nicole


Terraced tree house at night.


Bungalows right off the beach.


Joe in his sarong on the hammock outside our cabana.

Daytime view of the tree house.

Nicole in one of her common reading positions.