Off On Our Next Adventure

Koh Samet is an island that holds fond memories for Shaun and I, as we stayed there for a week on our return from our last big trip around Europe in 2006, on our way back to NZ for good. It was an idyllic stay on a gorgeous tropical island with crystal clear turquoise water, white sand beaches, basic bungalows, amazing fresh seafood. We spent every day chilling on the beach, and our evenings watching the fire show performances. We were curious to see how it had changed, and we wanted to show the kids this beautiful place with its chilled vibe. Shaun had also told Leo about the incredible rock lobsters he ate there all those years ago, and Leo, who is a huge kaimoana fan, was very keen to sample one.

We booked our journey to Koh Samet using 12GO, which is a very useful app for booking buses, boats, and trains throughout SEA. It was our first time using this platform, so I was a little nervous, especially at the start of the journey when I walked into the Mochit New Van Terminal in Bangkok and was greeted by a cacophony of Thai voices shrieking (yes, really, they were shrieking…I felt like they were bidding for my attention in an auction!). I was a bit ahead of Shaun and the kids because our Bolt driver (like Grab but cheaper and a little more chaotic with longer wait times) had dropped us off on the wrong side of the busy road and we had to cross a pedestrian bridge to get to the correct terminal. With kids and bags in tow, this took a wee while, so I went ahead and managed to show someone our voucher, who directed me to the right counter.

As I was finishing up with the guy at the counter, the shrieking started up again when Shaun and the kids walked through the door. Shaun couldn’t resist filming the scene. There’s something simultaneously disconcerting and liberating about not understanding a single word of what is being shouted at you. We found our way to our minivan for our journey to Ban Phe Pier.

Fortunately, the van wasn’t completely full, so all our bags and fellow passengers’ bags fitted in fine around us all. The three hour journey passed quickly, and when we got to the pier, we were greeted by the lovely PN Group rep who had organized our speedboat over to the island. We waited at their office before they took our bags down the pier on one motorbike with a side car, and the passengers were driven in another cart down to where our boat was to depart from.

The speedboat ride over was very fast, windy and a little bumpy at times…it took about 15 minutes to get to Na Dan Pier at Koh Samet, where a statue of a female giant rises up out of the water.

Once we had taken photos of the statue, we made our way up the pier and paid our National Park fee: 200 baht per adult and 100 baht per child.

Then we made our way to our accommodation at Blue Moon Samet, a very clean, comfortable and reasonably priced place, where the room included a free scooter. All for about $75 per night for the four of us in a family room. It was cosy, but we were fine with that as we planned to be out and about a lot.

A Rainy Start

At this point, the rainy season decided to make itself known to us, having not experienced a single drop of rain since we arrived a week earlier. It poured with rain for the rest of the afternoon, with a slight break in the early evening so we could have a quick explore, before continuing to rain all night, and throughout the following morning. We managed to pop out briefly and went for a wander along Sai Kaew Beach, where we found this cool mermaid statue.

The beach itself was every bit as beautiful as we remembered it, although the buildings along it had changed quite a bit, with the introduction of much more commercial-looking resorts. All the menus at beachfront restaurants were mostly in Thai and Chinese and it seems that Koh Samet now attracts a lot of Chinese tourists as well as the usual Thai weekenders, along with a few Western tourists. It was interesting observing Chinese swimwear, which included covering up from head to toe for women, wearing wide brimmed hats, capes to cover shoulders, and even umbrellas! Clearly, this is the secret to maintaining a youthful complexion.

We asked our sister-in law-Alice, who is a Kiwi of Cambodian Chinese descent, about this phenomenon and she told us that the reason for the umbrella is probably because Chinese people believe that you can get sick if raindrops touch your head. It’s so fascinating learning about different cultures’ beliefs.

After our walk, we stopped for a mocktail at the Lima bar, one of the more old school establishments along the beach, and the kids got soft drinks.

When it started to rain again, we found a nearby Thai place with a decent roof for dinner.

A Quiet Rainy Day

The next day, we went and found breakfast, including mango sticky rice which was delicious! We had a lazy morning back at the Blue Moon, making ourselves comfortable in our room with a movie to wait out the torrential rain. At this point, after looking at the weather forecasts and seeing that there were storms across Thailand for the next few days, we were seriously considering shortening our stay on the island. Later in the day, when the rain finally eased, we went for our first swim, so we decided to wait until the following day to make a decision on departing early.

While Anna and I were in the water, Leo got a scorpion henna tatto…although it was a bit of a rip-off compared with Anna’s henna tatto in Bali, which only cost about NZ$10. Koh Samet prices are pretty steep compared to Bangkok when it comes to food and entertainment, but I guess that it is to be expected from an island location. And Leo was very pleased with the result!

That evening, we ate just down the road at a rotisserie chicken place, run by an English guy and his Thai wife, ordering a whole chicken between us, which was juicy, tender and cooked to perfection. Although Leo took the opportunity to order a steak and kidney pie when he saw this on the menu because he misses pies so much…I’m pretty sure the first thing he’ll want to eat when we return to NZ will be a mince and cheese pie from the Trentham Pie Shop!

Exploring the Island

The next morning, the weather was much improved, and we ventured out to a place near the top of the island for breakfast, which was pretty average in terms of the food but had a great view. However, while we were there, a guy gave Anna a boogie board he was finished with to use for the rest of our stay.

After our breakfast, we headed out on scooters to explore the island. On our way out of the main beach at Sai Keow, we came across these statues of the mermaid and the flute player. Along with the female giant at the pier, these are characters from famous Thai epic poem called Phra Aphai Mani written in the 19th Century. It was nice to see them again – I had been looking out for them, having remembered them from our previous visit.

We drove south, taking one of the turnoffs along the way and discovered another beautiful beach called Ao Cho. It was a bit of a rough path to get down there, but once we arrived, we found a few reggae bars along the beachfront and decided to stop there for a pizza for lunch and a swim.

The kids really enjoyed this beach and played in the warm, shallow sea for ages…we ended up spending about two hours there, before we got dressed and continued exploring more of the island, finding a very nice viewpoint about halfway down the island.

We returned to get showered and changed before going out to Shaun’s choice of place for dinner. He was very excited as he had visited the establishment earlier in the day when we went past on the scooters, and just about lost it when he discovered that they were selling his long sought-after rock lobsters for way cheaper than the beachfront places.

It wasn’t a fancy place, but it was a family run restaurant that was popular with locals, so that was a good sign. It also appeared that they supplied the beachfront places with seafood. Anna and I popped into a shop on our way there and spent a wee while trying on sunglasses for fun, leaving Shaun and Leo waiting outside for us. Shaun got rather hangry whilst we were inside, and Anna and I arrived back to a growling from him…clearly we needed to get this guy to his seafood feast, and fast!

Shaun and Leo chose a selection of seafood, including scallops, rock lobsters and king prawns. Shaun speaking Thai involves a lot of gesturing and pointing! The man looking at him actually understood quite a lot of English, so he took our order and was very helpful.

Anna and I chose a whole seabass with some chicken fried rice and morning glory (Thai greens) with garlic.

The owner and chef scaled the fish and scored it, before frying it whole and getting it super crispy on the outside and melt-in-your-mouth delicious on the inside. The scoring technique meant that you could scoop off squares of fish without getting a single bone with it, then you flip it over and do the same on the other side…so clever! It arrived at our table with a heaped coating of crispy shallots and garlic.

The owner cooked the rest of the seafood to perfection over hot coals on a grill…it was pretty awesome to watch. It was served with a garlicky, buttery sauce, and a delicious crumb over the scallops. We all had to eat the scallops because there was about half a kilo of them!

The total bill came to about NZ$65 for a ridiculously decadent seafood extravaganza, cooked with real love, a sense of pride in the food and close attention to detail and flavour. I’d hate to think how much we would pay for the same meal back home in Wellington!

Another Lazy Island Day

The following morning, we awoke to thunder and heavy rain, so we just stayed in bed watching a movie, waiting for it to pass. When there was a break in the weather, Leo and I went out to get 7/11 ham and cheese toasties for breakfast for all of us.

These are our new discovery, thanks to a Thailand Travel Advice FB group, and they’re unexpectedly delicious! They also only cost about 30 baht each, so they are a cheap, tasty, and filling snack.

We stayed indoors until mid-afternoon when the rain finally stopped, and we went out to a nearby coffee shop to have some afternoon tea. Hot chocolates and pain au chocolate for me and Anna. French fries for Leo and a cold drink for Shaun. It was a sweet little place, and the owner was lovely. The kids were also able to pick up some postcards.

On our way home, Shaun saw a roadside stall selling a variety of meat skewers, as well as deep-fried chicken feet. Naturally, he and Leo had to try them!

Getting Lost on the Beach by Anna

We went to get dinner down at the beach, but then it started raining so we made our way to the bridge. I thought I saw something in the stream that runs down to the sea, but it was actually just someone's sandal. I looked up again and saw Leo, Mum and Dad walking towards the bridge, so I started running up to them. My sandal got caught in the sand, so I stopped to sort it out, and when I looked up, Mum, Dad, and Leo were already crossing the bridge. I ran to catch up, following Mum's blue dress, but then Mum, Dad, and Leo ducked into a shelter when it started to pour down. All the people sitting on the beach rushed to go inside, and I lost sight of Mum, Dad, and Leo. So I started walking towards where we were going, shouting out for Dad. Dad said that he heard someone shout 'Dad' but couldn't see me. I started shouting out for Mum, feeling worried and sad, and a woman with a baby heard me calling and crying. She started to help me find Mum, but then as we were searching the beach, I heard someone shout 'Anna'. I turned around and saw Mum running towards me. I was so happy. Mum said thank you to the lady who helped me, and I felt better after big hugs.

After comforting Anna, who was a little shaken from momentarily losing sight of us, we gave up on the beach for dinner and walked through the rain to a little streetside Pad Thai place around the corner from the Blue Moon. It was the bargain meal of the island at 50 baht (NZ$2.50) per person, and it was lovingly prepared for us by the owner.

Growing like a Weed

Since our last visit to Thailand many years ago, marijuana has been decriminalized, and it is available everywhere! Especially on the islands.

It seems so weird after hearing about Thailand’s harsh drug penalties for so many years. There was even a restaurant on Koh Samet that put it on the food!

Last Day on Koh Samet

The next morning, I was craving waffles, so we found a place on the beach to get some. They were ok…not the best (or worst) waffles we’ve had. The funniest part was when I ordered a side of bacon for 30 baht, and one shriveled, undercooked, cold bacon rasher appeared on its own plate! It was a salient reminder that I’m better off ordering local dishes if I want impressive food. After breakfast, it began to rain again so we retired to our room to sort out our washing, which I took to the laundromat while Shaun took Leo and Anna for an ice block.

When the washing was all done, Anna and I went to the beach for a last swim and Shaun and Leo went to check out the viewpoint at the southernmost point of Koh Samet.

That evening, of course, we had to go back for a little more of the delicious seafood. This time, the boys tried blue crab and the local oysters, as well as more rock lobster, which we all shared. Anna and I had the fish again…it was so good!

Leo thoroughly enjoyed the crab and was determined not to waste a morsel!

The Fire Show

Every evening, we had attempted to go down to the beach at 8pm to watch the famous fire show, but every evening it rained. We thought we might not get to show it to the kids, but fortunately, the weather gods were on our side for our last night. Sai Kaew comes alive on a fine evening, with a completely different vibe to its sedate daytime atmosphere. The restaurants all erect temporary lanterns every evening that shine a welcoming glow all the way down the beach.

We found a comfy spot on the beach and Leo and Anna were blown away by the athleticism and daring of the performers in the fire show.

Our Reflection

With it being the wet season, our experience of Koh Samet this time around was very different from the high season weather that we enjoyed there 17 years ago. We had a lot more time indoors than we had planned for an island experience, but it probably did us good to have a bit of a rest. It is still a beautiful place, and I’m glad we went searching a quiet beach like Ao Cho, where we got to enjoy the white sand, turquoise water in the sunshine away from the busyness of Sai Kaew, which was more reminiscent of our first holiday there. It was so cool that we also ate the infamous rock lobsters and that Leo and Anna got to see the fire show.