8/11/09
Up early again this morning. Got picked up from our hotel and taken back to Kiwi Orchid for breakfast and a brew, then it was off to catch the ferry, oh I forgot to mention it's pissing it down! As I'm sitting here now rocking up and down, up and down, up and down I'm thinking maybe I shouldn't have bothered with the omelette and just had my brew! Only a short hour and a half boat ride and I'll be in paradise!
Short boat ride later - yep, I was right, it's paradise! Got to the port of Koh Payam and it looks every part the island getaway, lots of green in the middle with a line of white sand that runs around the edge sloping into bright blue ocean, looks pretty good so far and i've only just stepped off the boat! We had a short scooter taxi ride across the island to 'Bamboo Bungalows' which is where we'll spend our first night. There are no cars on Koh Payam as it's only about 12km by 4km so scooters are the only way to travel, I'm just really glad I had chance to get used to them with Simon before coming here 'cause some of the road is a little bumpy to say the least and with a big rucksack on your back it's not the easiest way to get aboutl! Anyway, we get to the bungalows which are scattered about near the beach with pathways linking them up and a main pathway down to the restaurant. Ours is a very basic bungalow, no fan and a 'rustic' bathroom as I like to call it, no roof, no sink, cold water shower, hole in the floor for the toilet I'm sure you can get the picture! The bungalow itself allows you to be at one with nature thats for sure, you can see the sand beneath you through the wooden slats that serve as the floor and there are two bamboo 'hatches' that resemble windows! It's an amazing place and I'm really happy I'm here I'm just trying to do it justice in the description ha ha! For 250B a night it's perfect for us. On the front is a cute restaurant/cafe with nothing in front but a few trees, white sand and the ocean. There's loads of seats and chill out areas, hammocks and swings and good tunes, perfect!
9/11/09
The first night in the bungalow was o.k, it's weird sleepin under a mosquito net, I've never done it before but I have to say I felt better knowing that nothing could 'get me' in the night! It's bloody hot with no fan though! Spent the day chillin out on the beach, after dinner Simon wanted to go check out the island by taking a '20 minute' walk, we set out at 21.00 and finally arrived back at midnight, 20 minutes my arse! We walked approx 6 miles (I was wearing my flip flops!) and saw all the sights of the island after dark which weren't many apart from the vast selection of bugs they have and all the dogs that wander around! We were completely knackered, good job we took our torch with us!
10/11/09
After a little lie in (we needed it!) we decided to move to a different beach on the island, Bamboo Bungalows was on Aow Yai and we moved north a bit to the next bay Aow Kao Kwai where Simon surprised me with a treat, we booked into Payam Cottage Resort which is really swanky, we had a big bungalow right by the ocean, a swimming pool (the only one on the island) and best of all a western toilet, what more could a girl ask for on her birthday! We were the only people staying there at first which was good but weird, all the staff trip over themselves to serve you but everyone seems pleasant enough. (At least we couldn't hear German or American 'travellers' reliving their tales over dinner ha ha!) The bonus of moving here was when we arrived we realised they were doing a November promotion of 'buy one get one free', bloody brilliant! We paid 1400B for one night and got the next night free, still expensive for our budget but it made it soooo much sweeter ha ha! I went for a swim in the pool, it was so nice to jump into a clean, refreshing, non salty body of water but to still have the view as if I was actually on the beach, amazing! After my swim I had to go and have a little lie down as all this relaxing was making me tired ha ha! We had dinner at the hotel but it was a bit pricey so we might have to wander along the beach to look for other cheaper places tomorrow.
11/11/09
Went and hired a scooter today, still not sure about riding one myself but Simon is really good so I don't mind going on the back of him, he can do the work and all I have to do is hang on! Took a look down by the pier, Oscars bar is the only pub on the island and is a small place run by Richard, a strange (but very nice) little English man. There's a few more shops and restaurants that weren't open yet along the front and thats basically it! On that side of the island there is the small monk community and there are two temples a little further round the island with golden buddha's that look very impressive as you drive past them. We went for a ride about the island, went back to Aow Yai beach and rode along there, had a watermelon shake which was delicious at one of the rasta bars at the end of the bay and headed back to the bungalow. We had a little snooze and a swim then we decided to go back to the other beach for dinner. We ended up at 'My BBQ Bar' which is basically a tiny bar with driftwood tables on little raised up driftwood islands with cushions (axe cushions is the correct term I found out later) for seats, a very informal affair! We sat right on the edge of the beach and relaxed, you could lie down and look at the stars and listen to some reggae in the background, very relaxing! I decided it was time to get my fish so I ordered BBQ King Mackerel, it was AMAZING! I was a very happy girl, finally had my fish! We had a little walk along the beach and then scooted back accross the island to the bungalow.
12/11/09
Feel a bit sick when I think about tomorrow ha ha! We needed some more money 'cause there's no ATM on the island so whilst I stayed at he bungalow Simon had to scoot over to the pier and catch a speedboat to Ranong to go get some. While he was out pretending to be James Bond I spent most of the afternoon just chilling out sending e-mails replying to the messages I had recieved, something from Jenna and Eleanor on about me being 30, I'm not sure what they were on about ha ha! And to think they are supposed to be my closest friends!
Last night at My BBQ Bar they were advertising a big bonfire party on the beach with a DIY BBQ tonight so we decided to head over and check it out. When we got there there was a big BBQ with different fish and squid on it, a big bonfire on the beach and tunes a plenty! We wondered over to the bar to find out how much the food was gonna cost and the girl behind the bar told us the food was free, we just had to buy the beer to go with it, excellent! After a couple of Changs (the beer of choice for Thais) we attempted to eat some of the fish, it was delicious if a little bony but we persevered (it was a DIY BBQ 'cause when you took a fish off you had to replace it with another fish)! As the night progressed we got chatting to a few different people, all travelling through on their way to weird and wonderful places, one lad was on his way to India after christmas, we said nothing and just wished him good luck ha ha!
After trying all that the locals had to offer we set off on the short journey back to the bungalow, by this time I was desperate for a wee (I wasn't gonna use the toilet at the bar, it was rough!) so I was feeling every bump in the road so I focused my attention onto hanging onto Simon for dear life! Don't know if it was the Chang but I was finding it all very hilarious, I just couldn't stop laughing, bugs were flying at us from all angles and the road home was having work done on it so it was really bumpy in parts, it's a good job Simon's good at riding a bike 'cause there's no way I would've made it! We had such a laugh and I'm not sure if it was relief but we were still laughing when we made it back to the bungalow! I thought I'd still got it, I was still 'down with the kids' until we realised it was only half eleven, rock and roll ha ha!! Managed to see my birthday in though before I collapsed!!
13/11/09
Woke up, it's boiling! Birds are singing, the sea's crashing against the shore, the sky is blue, what a way to spend my 30th! We went and had breakfast and I tried to bring myself round with a couple of coffee's! Had a look at my e-mails, had a few singing e-cards off Mum and Dad, Steve and Kate, Aunty Gill and John, Jenny and Shaun and Jenna and Josh so that was really nice. Simon made a fuss of me, he apologised for not getting me a present but I reminded him of the ticket he bought me to even go on this trip and the fact he'd splashed out on staying at this place for a few days so that was plenty for me!! He said he'd treat me to some shampoo later so that was a bonus, honestly the best present he could get me! It was so hot today that we didn't do much, had a swim, read a lot, just chilled out basically! A bit later on we scooted over to the BBQ bar and had an orange shake (OJ and crushed ice). Chris and Rik were there so we chatted to them for a bit then went over to Oscars for a couple of Changs and a chat with Richard who told us he'd make cottage pie for us tomorrow night, excellent! After that we came back to the bungalow and Simon treated me to carbonara and banana fritters, yum! Back in the bungalow I managed to get a good internet connection so I was able to speak to Mum and Dad, that topped the day off, one of my best birthdays ever!!
14/11/09
Pretty much chillin out again today, getting used to it now! Went to Oscars for tea, the cottage pie was AMAZING! Proper mince with carrots, sweetcorn, peas, brocolli and GRAVY(!) topped with proper mashed potatoes and cheese, perfect!
(Is it obvious we're craving good old English food, especially gravy?!!!)
15-18/11/09
More of the same, lazing around generally not doing much and loving it! Simon's Birthday today (18th Nov) so we spent the day relaxing, he can't exert himself now he's getting on ha ha! We went on the beach and had a swim in the pool and then had the obligatory birthday banana pancakes, it was a good day and I think he enjoyed himself, I felt bad 'cause I couldn't get him a present but he said he didn't mind, bless him!
19-20/11/09

Well all good things must come to an end! After chillin out for a couple more days we decided we'd better get off Koh Payam otherwise we'd never leave! We got on the 14:00 boat back to Ranong, We're sad to leave as it really was amazing but we're heading to Khao Sok National Park so can't complain too much! We had an amazing time on the island and I had a brilliant 30th so I don't think we'll be forgetting Koh Payam anytime soon!

20-21/11/09

Arrived in Ranong and got a scooter taxi to the hotel (well, when I say scooter taxi I mean a scooter with a metal and wood sidecar thingy that both of us and our bags rode in!) which was different. We had a walk to the bus station to get tickets to Takua Pa and onto Khao Sok and we stopped by the Kiwi Orchid to say hi and have lunch. We wandered back to the hotel and that was about it! Next day we went to Ranong Springs which is a small park with natural hot springs, it was good but lots of people around as it was Sunday. We saw what looked like a giant cauldron with boiling water bubbling out of it and then 3 other pools of different temperatures where you could sit around the outside and dip your feet in.