Ao Nang to Koh Yao Noi……..first steps on our second Thai island

November 12th, 2018

It looks like the weather has turned >>>  bright and sunny, promising to be a hot one. Today we depart for Koh Yao Noi (our second island)…..free pick-up from the hotel, as we head for Nopparat Thara Pier where our speed boat is scheduled to leave at 11:00 > 1,300 THB (52 CAD) for us both. Pick-up by songthaew (pick-up truck with 2 bench seats) get checked in and told to wait…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the stroke of 11:00, the triple Honda 250 hp engines howl, and we are off. The seas are calm, and the captain actually an adult this time is constantly fiddling with a bunch of wires > clearly some of the instrument panel is malfunctioning, but the engines seem happy and if they are happy, so am I…………..we drop off some folks at Koh Yao Yoi  around 11:30,

…..and 10 minutes later arrive at Manoh Pier, in the southwest of Koh Yao Noi. Offload and immediately are directed to a waiting songthaew …packed to the gills (12 passengers + driver) and 20 minutes later we are at Seaview Bungalows > 200 THB (8CAD) for us both …pretty straightforward, other than yours truly having to save our luggage, which was in the process of falling off the proverbial truck.

The owner of Seaview Bungalows meets us with a welcome drink (water), a smooth check-in and we are “home” for the next five nights… a nice cottage, with no view but A/C and next to the pool. Certainly not a resort, more like a homestay but in your own, quite decent cottage. Moosie seems pleased with the arrangements…

Dinner at Seaview …went for the squid again, yum! There is no dessert, just some whiskey + branch and some blogging, listening to cicadas and whomever else. Internet in the resto is excellent, although in the room it sucks …well we are in the boonies.

November 13th, 2018

Good night’s sleep, breakfast here is not inclusive but ok, for a change muesli, yogurt & fruits …the mango & papaya were the best of the trip. The plan today is to work on my knee: Celebrex/rest/swimming pool I think the meniscus is rubbing and causing pain when walking > hopefully an off day will put this genie back in the bottle.

Hanging around, talking, reading and not doing much of anything is not so bad…..early cocktails, have run out of my friend Johnnie Walker, but the Thai whiskey does the trick as well.

Dinner is nice, fried rice with shrimp, a multinational group in the open-air dining room with strategically placed oscillating fans moving the humid air, cats running around and several kids: Thai, Brit and German playing with toys on the ground…..btw although we can have beer and wine, there is no pork/red meat on the menu. Pretty chill atmosphere!

November 13th,2018

This hopefully should be a fun day…..signed up for a longtail cruise of some 5 hours to several islands with snorkelling as one of the attractions. We are joining another couple from Germany to share the boat …a small group and more economical  > 1,250 THB (50 CAD) for our share.

Good breakfast, sunny skies and the owner’s father drives us to the pier where we are handed off to the longtail captain….a local guy/boat which looks a tad rough but the captain looks like he has been around and the engine sounds good……

The Karst topography (formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum) is stunning. The next five hours are spent travelling from island to island, landing on some, and snorkelling in a few spots. The last is only marginal as there are no reefs where we stop, but the water is very pleasant and bathtub warm so even baby Lala (moi) is ok with going in.

…we come across some super-sized jellyfish, but definitely a case of do not touch …

…… the following pics provide the answer to: “What is that animal in the water ? “……

…..and going in and out of a lagoon through an opening in the cliffs…

A lovely day out on the water with views to die for and once again we lucked out and got back to Seaview as the skies darkened and the heavens opened up. There was no lunch other than the fruit onboard so after a well-deserved siesta (it is amazing how the sun and heat tire one out) we headed out to a true hole in the wall (Pan Restaurant) about a 12-minute walk from the hotel, nice meal… amazing how the vegetables taste here. The “piece de resistance” was a smoked coconut with rum…. they charcoal smoke the coconuts and then infuse them with rum which I quite enjoyed (I think)…

Afterward, we walked back in the dark along the road, listening to the night sounds and enjoying the tropical air as it embraced us…read for only a few minutes before falling asleep.