Thailand: Good Luck for You. - Day 13 (New Year's Eve)

Dolce far niente

… On New Year’s eve we arrived at Bayoke Sky Hotel. Fireworks have always fascinated me, but it was something different seeing them light up below around Bangkok from floor 42.

Happy New Year!

Last day on the islands was spent in self-pampering, sun-bathing, palm-watching, indulging in (soft & strong) fruit shakes and dining right on the beach digging our feet into the sand.

Thailand: Good Luck for You. - Day 12 (across Koh Samui Island)

There are some moments in life, remembering which may not have any practical use whatsoever, but even so, for some mysterious reason they get hooked on your memory.
This morning on the way to the interior of the island, time froze for me for a moment, when I saw a big buffalo sleeping peacefully among the graceful palm trees in the morning mist. This is one of the moments when you think ‘I wish I could stop time (or the car) and paint it!’

Today my other dream was to come true: jungle safari in a jeep. With all the ups and downs and a mountain river extreme crossover on top of a jeep the trip was was a blast!

Big Buddha in Koh Samui

Magic Garden

a island of millions of coconut palm trees

Jungle Safari on top of a jeep. My other dream came true.

real Thai selva

Thailand: Good Luck for You. - Day 10 (Crossing the peninsula)

Was longer than we suspected. We were promised to be in Koh Samui at 5.30 pm.
Waiting for a bus to take us to the Krabi bus station a tuk-tuk driver approached me to offer service and, seeing my ticket saying’ Krabi-Surat Thani – Koh Samui: bus + boat’, he grinned, ‘Good luck for you’ and walked away.
In a short while we were brought somewhere near krabi. One has to possess a certain amount of imagination to complete the picture of a lonely hut with 2 tables, several beach-style plastic chairs and a woman selling rice and sandwiches to realize that the shack was the bus station!
To our even greater surprise a modern double decker (with girly pink draped curtains!) appeared from the woods.

We arrived at Surat Thani at 3 pm unable to believe that the feared bus torture lasted so little even with pitiful Thai roads!
Ironically, we didn’t know the torture waited ahead in the boat.
Once we finally got in (after 2-hours wait!) we joked, ‘ Can you imagine to see in the news: A boat crashed and sunk without leaving the pier!’ It screeched so bad and bent inward banging against the pier, I could imagine it to be true!
Banging and screeching went on for more than 2 hours. At 8 pm we were finally in the hotel. Luckily, alive!