Day One Koh Chang! - 2nd Wk in Thailand Nov '06

Koh Chang is an island in the Gulf of Thailand 6-8 hours (depending on the bus) from Bangkok, close to Cambodia. After a week of interviews and rushing around BKK it was great to head off to an island paradise.

My travelmate and I (a fellow Rotary Fellow) trekked down to Koh Chang with a bus from BKK around 11 am. After 5 hours on the bus we got to Trat bus station, then shared a songteaw (pick-up truck taxi) with a bunch of holiday backpackers to the pier, then the ferry to the island, and finally the last songteaw to our "cozy bungalow" at Bailan Family Bungalows, arriving around 7pm.















The experience at the bungalow started off with great dinner and conversation, as well as entertainment by two puppies that seemed to own the place. The bamboo hut was replete with mosquito net and a fan, fancy! Soon after settling into bed I realized I am not the jungle adventurer that I'd like to be. The combination of the chattering cicadas, loud dance music from nearby Lonely Beach (not so lonely that night), the comical frog who seemingly guarded the hut, and then around 5 am the sound of some-thing digging under and around our bungalow meant I got about 20 minutes of nerve-wracked sleep. In hindsight I think a tent might have been better, at least it is sealed! Honestly all I wanted to do was get out of there but it was still early yet and I was too scared to see what I might find outside the mosquito net - so easy to dream up ridiculous ideas in the strange noise filled dark...

Here is me looking non-too-chipper around 6 am, and the beach we sought refuge at for a morning stroll before breakfast and high tailing it to an internet cafe to find a new place to stay! The base line requirement - must have electrical outlets :-)