"We live in the flicker -- may it last as long as the old earth keeps rolling!"

Life here in Ko Samui is certainly flickering. It's there one minute and gone the next with the spiceness of the food, the sea and sand crashing in the gulf, locals mixed with Germans and Russians whizzing around on motor scooters, and the muy thai boxers practicing their craft as cars blare word of the upcoming fights.

This is a place where one comes to and just disappears from their previous life. People from all over Europe, we've yet to see anyone from the US anywhere in our ten days or so here, politely bow out of the old life of Europe and cash in their Euros for fistfuls of baht, a chair at a local bar, a motor bike, and a beach chair. And if you're a man there's plenty of Thai women to take care of your every need. You see it everywhere - elderly European man at the beach with young attractive Thai woman, or zipping around with one on the back of a motor bike or sitting at bar ordering drinks.

Chen, our very kind young waiter here at the Varinda, disappeared from Burma to come here with his brother. He knows more about American pop music than most kids in HS, which he would have just graduated from. He's offered to take us on a tour of the island and it's waterfalls. The only issue is it requires me driving, which to him doesn't seem like much, but even after being in London before here I still can't get used to driving on different sides of the road than back home.

Then there's a pizzeria where the owners left Venice and Avellino to come here. Their reasoning - there's nothing going on for them in Europe. Here's they are popular stop right on the beach with their brick oven fare and cold beer.

Of course there's the mother of all disappearance acts. Those who flock to a full-moon party. We thought the party was on Ko Samui, but it was actually on one of the outlying islands. People head to the island on speed boats and don't return to the following morning. Yindee, the owner of the Varinda told us, "If you go be sure not to drink anything on the beach." A friend of ours went to this party back in the day and she immediately alerted us not to go near there with the kids. Point taken. Flicker.

Then there's the guests who come in and aren't quite ready for the Ko Samui flickering. Like the woman from Germany who while we were returning from a day boating and beaching clutched the seat of the minivan so tightly I thought she'd rip right through the seat. Of course she had good reason to be somewhat concerned as our driver zipped through the video-game like array of headlights from oncoming motor bikes on both sides, cars, pedestrians and dogs. I don't think she got a decent rest that night after the drive home. But hey, not everyone can appreciate muy thai.

We're enjoying our time here Ko Samui soaking in it all. There's activity on the surface of things that are going on, but sometimes underneath, flickering, you're not always quite sure what it is. Maybe it's "all that mysterious life of the wilderness that stirs in the forest, in the jungles, in the hearts of wild men."

AG