Today we were being assessed on our rescue skills as part of our Divemaster training. Stress levels were already elevated as rescue always brings some unexpected surprises with it. We triple checked all of our gear and each others gear to make sure we are ready for the rescue scenario we would face. Matt, our friend from university in Melbourne arrived on the island today to visit us, and just as we were wading into the water, he greeted us from the restaurant. He’ll get the front row seat to watch us struggle as we drag each other onto the beach. Once we hit the water, we were split into…
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Australian Open in Thailand
Mosquitos are a big problem anywhere in South-East Asia and unfortunately Koh Tao is no different. Dengue fever is very common on the island, so the aim of the game is not to get stung at all. This is a tough mission however as they are everywhere and use our bathroom as a breeding ground. I don’t hate many things, but mosquitoes I do hate. Usually you don’t feel them on you until it’s already too late and when you slap yourself to kill it, you also get a nice patch of your own and worse someone else’s blood on you. We were losing the fight until we armed ourselves…
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Bangkok to Koh Tao by Bus and Ferry
Despite the many confusing ideas TripAdvisor might put in your head, the cheapest way to get from Bangkok to Koh Tao is using the Lomprayah service. The ticket costs 1050baht per person and includes the bus and high speed ferry.
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Weird Things to Eat in Thailand: The Edible, the Inedible, and the In between
This post is for my sister, the foodie and chef. She likes food. We like food too. And we especially like Thailand. We also like being on a budget. Everything below is food you would find in a random market off the beaten track or in a roadside hut. We tend to avoid the more Western options serving pizza, burgers, etc. because while we love pizza, burgers, etc. we kinda know the best pizzas won’t be anywhere near the border of Thailand and Myanmar. Sorry, truth. Anyway, here’s some weird things to eat in Thailand. “A Woman and her Curries” Most locals seem to buy their food from the markets,…
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Hotel California in Chiang Dao
I’m sitting on the porch of our bungalow in Chiang Dao. We are the only guests at Chiang Dao Hut. Lionel is inside reading, and our view is of a large mountain where you can find the famous Chiang Dao cave. And what can I hear echoing from the cave? ‘Hotel California’ by The Eagles. On full blast.
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My Fear of Water, and then I went Diving
I’d been apprehensive about diving ever since we had planned this trip. I knew it would be cost effective to take a course in South East Asia, but there was but one problem. I can’t swim. For months I’ve been trying to work out whether I could dive, whether I would drown, or whether I would even enjoy it (I’m certainly not a dare devil). And after hearing from others that you need to take a ‘SWIM TEST’ before you could dive, I had been dreading it. But considering we’re on this once in a lifetime adventure, and my main ambition traveling was to try new things and challenge myself,…
