Ko Lanta - Day 1

We couldn't exit Phuket fast enough. We'd been awakened by blood curdling screams in the middle of the night-twice. When we arrived downstairs, there was a group from the night before, still drinking & smoking-at 6:45am. Our guesthouse could not provide us with breakfast at that early hour, yet was still serving alcohol. 

We did get a chance to see a lady-boy which are famous in Phuket. These famous men are gorgeous women, dressed head to toe for a night out. They're quite a big attraction as well as can be a scam in Phuket. I'd been intrigued when we first heard about them-but the reviews of their show said they're unchoreographed & pictures are $6 each. This came off our agenda after the oppression & solicitation we were feeling on the streets. But I'm glad I got a free glimpse, in action. 

We went to 7 Eleven for another breakfast of champions and waited for the bus to pick us up to take us to Koh Lanta-our island destination that we hoped would be an oasis. 

The bus was late to pick us up & just about the time I was wondering if we'd been forgotten, a van showed up. The van tore across town. Thankfully I'd learned my lesson at the waterfalls & took motion sickness medicine in advance. It was interesting to see all the cars trying to get into Patong-there were motorbikes, mini vans, and cars all trying to make their way on one main road. 

The van arrived at a bus station & 3 passengers got off but we were told to stay. Then we pull into a gas station & wait for 20 minutes. Two more passengers leave & get inside another mini bus. Only us left now...This was yet another situation where we had no idea what was going on & had to trust that we would be delivered where we needed to go. We eventually were connected with a significantly worse van on which I could read the words Phuket-Ko Lanta. They strapped our bags horizontally by the sliding can door & we were off. We were the only foreigners on board. 

We'd read about problems with looting of bags on buses in Thailand, so even though rows 3 & 4 were completely empty, Chris had us move up to row 2 to keep an eye on our bags. The good news about this seat, I could put my legs in the "aisle" & sleep. 

Thanks to Dramamine, I had a lovely ride & slept. I woke up for bathroom stops-but got a good 4-5 hours of sleep as it rained outside & our driver sped along the roads. I swear we didn't take a single major road. There were times we were on dirt roads full of pot holes. 

I did manage to capture a couple photos of the scenery. 

We bought a ticket for a bus-boat combo. We thought we'd be on a big ferry boat for 2 hours from Krabi to the island of Ko Lanta. I do quite well on boats-and time on a boat would make me feel better about our expensive transportation. We were on a barge-didn't even get out of the van as we crossed from the main land to Ko Lanta.

We arrived in Ko Lanta town. Being monsoon season, much of the island is closed & there aren't many tourists. There weren't many transportation options to get us the 7km to our bungalow. I'm pretty sure we paid more in transportation to actually get to our bungalow than the amount we paid for 3 nights staying at it. 

We arrived to a desolate building with no one in sight. The tuktuk driver thought the place was closed-it looked abandoned. We checked the reservation & he started inquiring with neighbor's. The main entrance was closed-but he found our host and she showed us to our magnificent bungalow. 

This is our room. 

Which has a lovely porch. 

From which we walk to our own private beach chairs & cabana (we said no need for the cabana).

And down those steps to the beach Hat Khlong Nin, on the west side of Ko Lanta. 

This is our view from the ocean of our place, to give you perspective. 

The rain had stopped & we quickly changed into swimming suits to go & play in the ocean. Although we hadn't eaten since 7 Eleven breakfast, the prospect of playing in the ocean was more exciting. The Indian Ocean-our first time in the Indian Ocean. 

The waves were great for jumping. Chris laughed like he only does when he's on school vacation. It was like being a child again-wave jumping, being tossed around in the waves and sucked back in the under current. I had to ease myself into the water as the waves were so powerful. At times the waves would be cresting over my head, and when I stood up the water wasn't even to my waist. Chris just let the waves pour over his head as the flailed around & laughed with delight. For as much fun as I was having pretending to be a mermaid & singing tunes from the little Mermaid, I had equally as much fun watching Chris. 

We played in the waves for about an hour. We got bathing suites full of sand-this is a sandy beach. Not fine white sand, more like large sand granules that you find EVERYWHERE. This bungalow even has an outdoor shower. Have I mentioned we're the only ones here?

We headed up the street to where there were many restaurants, to find only one place open. They were expensive and on the beach-our hunger won out & we had an $8 meal. I had Pad Thai and Chris had  chicken fried rice. We're not going to take a picture of every plate of Pad Thai-but this one has the ocean in the background. 

The only downside of our bungalow-no breakfast. But this place does have a hot pot & fridge. We got some noodles from 7 Eleven for lunch & stocked up on breakfast items. We decided on two meals at the bungalow, one meal out. Bless 7 Eleven. 

This place reminds us of our honeymoon.  Nothing to do except enjoy each others company (except this time we have smart phones). We played cribbage & drank coffee on the porch, listening to the waves roll in. 

The sunset was spectacular. 

Chris had an evening swim as the tide went out. He seemed so far away from the shore, but would stand up & the water was to his waist. We went to bed thankful to have arrived at our oasis after a long month of traveling. We've decided no plans to make, excursions to take, just 3 days of doing nothing except enjoying the beach-Chris' kind of vacation. 

Good night from Ko Lanta.