Sunday, March 21, 2010

Koh Samui

After several days on the relatively more remote Koh Tao (which has only a few kilometers of road on the island)- we headed to Koh Samui and spent a few days in style at a pseudo-resort (you would be amazed at what $20 a night can get you here). Koh Samui is much larger and we rented motorbikes and explored the island. Overall a splendid time- although we learned alittle bit about the perils of renting motorbikes.

On our second day my girlfriend and I were riding along the coast and saw a large Buddha on a little island connected to Samui by a causeway. We started taking pictures on the causeway and were having a grand time when my gfs bike had a malfunction that cause it to rocket off the causeway down a 10 foot rocky cliff/hill and into the ocean with her dragging behind. (CAVEAT: don’t worry she is fine now– read on) I had been about 20 feet up the road at that point but was quickly alerted to the situation by some passing german tourists. My girlfriend was in pretty good shape all things considered, but still had a number of scrapes and a few deeper cuts on her legs. Several Thai people helped me retrieve the bike from the ocean while my girlfriend got attended to by an ambulance truck that showed up. Luckily we were able to start the moto and some local shop up the street helped me wash it off so that it looked less damaged. I spent the afternoon with my ladybird in a hospital getting her wounds sanitized- again nothing too dramatic in terms of injuries- although she did scream a bit when they doused her wounds in alcohol and definitely scared away a few potential clients from the hospital we were in.

Perhaps the highlight of the whole affair was that evening, when we arrived at the airport and the woman at check in asked if we would like a wheelchair (my girlfriend had a few bandages on her right leg, but was walking around just fine)- we both laughed at such a silly proposition and then accepted the offer. Bangkok airways has a monopoly on flights in and out of Koh Samui, which explains why we paid an exorbitant fee for the one hour flight to Bangkok. It also explains why the airport is absurdly nice. From the aquariums in the mens room to the full childrens playground and the lounge with complementary newspapers, food and beverages, we had it all. A young gentlemen from Bangkok airways came and tapped me on the shoulder to inform me that it was time to board. I said rather loudly “no one else is boarding” to which he shrugged in the direction of my girlfriend, who was enjoying a complementary magazine, lemonade and Danish. Thus, with VIP fanfare we were escorted to a private van to drive us to the aircraft before anyone else was allowed to board using the larger buses. I felt a bit guilty sneaking in this way as I was clearly in good health (the other 90+ year old couple that boarded regarded me skeptically as I hopped out of the van)- so I made it seem as if I were a crutch for my girlfriend. On arrival in Bangkok we received even better service, with a wheelchair awaiting us with an employee prepared to push us anywhere we wished to go. As of now my gfs wounds are healing without much trace of a “Samui Tatoo” (aka what resident expats have dubbed the motorbike induced scars they have accumulated in their days on Samui).

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