Diving and beaching

Jan 18-26 Bangkok, Koh Tao, Hua Hin

Landing in Bangkok the first I need to sort out is my train ticket to Chumphon tomorrow from where I will hop on a ferry to Koh Tao. I was planning to go to Laos originally but since I only have a maximum of 8 days until I need to be in Hanoi it would be quite stressed and would involve me sitting in a bus for 50% of the time. So I opt to chill on the beach and dive instead.

Last time I was at Hualomphong train station I checked the schedule and was informed that the only train a day to Chumphon leaves around 7pm. Now that has passed. Today I find out there would have been another train at 11pm which I could have made today, instead of going tomorrow, but now I already have made some plans. So typical for here. No matter who you ask you will always get different information.

So the evening is spent catching up with Mag and Udo and we also make some plans for tomorrow, since my train only leaves at night. I also meet up with a few friends at BU and generally just enjoy the day. The Campus is so packed with people like I've seen it before. The Cafeteria is brimming, school uniforms everywhere. What happened I ask? It's not that BUIC has suddenly seen a gigantic increase in students. Many of them are from the main campus, which still suffers under effects from the floods. Especially final year students cannot wait for their campus to reopen and many classes have been relocated. The BUIC students aren't all delighted about the influx of people here.

After a lovely farewell dinner at Wine Connection it's off to the train station. The only ticket available was a A/C seat. No sleepers, no fans. The seats are very comfy so that is reassuring. But A/C also means that it is cooled down to a felt 5 degrees. And although fully clothed and blanketed I am freezing. And what else to make it less enjoyable. A chatty, and later loudly snoring, Thai next to me.

There's a connecting bus transfer from the train to the pier and all is very seamless. The speed catamaran to Koh Tao arrives timely and now the next task, find a comfy accommodation and diving spot.

Once again like on all Thai islands now, all budget accommodation is somewhat horrible. After seeing one smelly, dingy room after the other I settle on Big Blue Diving. Rooms are not nice here either but at least they are free, as long as I am diving. I had wanted to check out other beaches in the South and East of Koh Tao that are more secluded and quieter than the main beach of Sairee but by now I am just too beat and tired. Damn traveling.

The next days are spent beaching and diving so nothing too exciting to share.

Facebook knows everything so I found out that some fellow Kufsteiners are in Koh Tao at the same time and we spent a lovely evening with food and beers, catching up on news and travel tips.

With diving in Koh Tao you ought to get lucky. There is good dive spots and not so good ones and it strongly depends on visibility, which varied widely while I was there. I did have some enjoyable dives at great sites with plenty fish but others were not so fantastic. You also need to get lucky to get there before the other dozens of dive boats do. Koh Tao is simply overcrowded. Definitely can't compare to the diving in Indonesia.

My flight leaving Bangkok to Hanoi was late evening on the 26^th. And although it was a late flight there was no way of getting there leaving the same day. The ferry, bus/train connections are not that advantageous. You always need to leave a day ahead. On a whim I decided to spend the nights before the flight in Hua Hin, two hours south of Bangkok. That way I could still chill on the beach until noon that same day before catching my flight. Another long ferry and bus ride I found a nice place to stay in Hua Hin and spoiled myself a little with the nice room and comfy bed. After all those nights in shacks, I felt I deserved that.

Hua Hin is catered to tourists and retirees spending their 'Golden Years' here. Mostly Germans, Dutch, French and Russians. The beach is beautiful but overcrowded. When the tide is in there is little space for the beach chairs and everyone is sitting almost on top of each other. I did enjoy watching the volunteer police riding up and down the beach, occasionally renting their horses to tourists as well.

Hua Hin also boasts a lively night market with plenty of seafood restaurants. I rewarded myself with some take out and a movie. Sweet!

Lounging by the pool and then another bus ride to Bangkok. The bus was delayed by over an hour (I expected nothing less considering Bangkok traffic), taking almost 4 hours from Hua Hin to Victory Monument. Leaving me just enough time to head to the storage unit at my former residence, unpack half my stuff from the backpack to the trolley. I have had enough of lugging the backpack around and honestly speaking a little trolley should suffice me for the next month of traveling. The longer you are on the road the less you realize you actually need.

Set out to the airport and got spoiled by Qatar Airways on the way to Hanoi. Vietnam here I come!