Ang Thong Marine Park, Thailand

Ang Thong Marine Park was the inspiration for the book written by Alex Garland…… which lead to the movie of the same name 'The Beach'…..
the movie was actually filmed at Koh Phi Phi…… which has similar scenery…..

It was a definite on our 'to do' list so we had to visit…… this involved taking a speedboat over ….which was a little bumpy, but we did sit outside...
After about an hour we arrived at the first stop……for snorkeling for those who wished to do so….

… lots of fish were around the boat to be seen by those who didn't want to snorkel ….

….. after 30-45 mins we set off again to go by some of the other islands….

…….going uncomfortably close to some…..

There were quite a number of fishing boats….apparently they are allowed to fish within the Marine park but have to be 300m from any island……

this one looked a little closer than that!

We then arrived at a very small pristine beach where we were to stop and swim…....

Then we were essentially abandoned….. when asked if we intended walking up 150ft to a viewpoint we declined…..not knowing this meant we would be left behind. Thankfully one other couple also decided to stay……but it was rather lonely out there and we had to hope they were able to make it back for us! One couple on the boat were repeating their trip because their first boat (with a different company!) broke down for several hours and they were stranded until another boat did stop to help!

Alone……..no boat…...

However the small beach was very beautiful….

They did return for us before we got too concerned..…..

Then we had a choppy ride through many islands…….

before reaching our lunch destination…
This was on  a small island Koh Phaluai which is half state park and half owned by local fishermen known as sea gypsies…. who have found a good market for the fish they catch…..lunch for boat tours!

It was actually an excellent meal……

Then back on the boat to pass by more islands, there are 42 in total…..
and then another stop on another beautiful beach to swim or kayak…..

This time when we got back on board for the return journey….they discouraged anyone sitting outside  as they said it would be quite rough…. we knew they were serious when they advised putting away all bags, cameras etc in the hold!
….. and it was rough……large bumps going at a very fast speed….. over high waves coming quickly one after the other…...for over an hour!

We were happy to get back safely but also very happy to have done the trip. We chose to do it with Samui Boat Charter VIP tours as they do not crowd the boat, 14 maximum. Other speedboats of a similar size crowd in 20-30 persons!

And ever onwards…..to Thailand

Burma was a fantastic experience and it is a trip that we can thoroughly recommend. Best to do sooner rather than later, before mass tourism arrives…..

Unfortunately we had to move on…..
We had thought because we were flying in to Bangkok and out again on Bangkok Airways  that we would have no problem changing planes, as we had noticed that all their flights seemed to be from the same area….  Wrong!  It is such a huge airport….. and of course we arrived in a totally different area.

We were faced with this departure board when we arrived….. but couldn't work out where we were supposed to go….

 We chose East as we remembered that we had been this way before…..

 the walkways are very long…...

With some amusing stopping points…. .

 We did see an airport information desk……… but didn't stop as there was no indication of how long it might be before they returned…….

Our arrival  in Koh Samui was totally different.
For starters there was no real building…… just walkways between covered areas for baggage etc.

Our car was waiting to take us to our rented villa in Bang Po…Villa Serena… which we had rented for a month.  We chose the north side of the island because it has very little nightlife.

It is almost on the beach… which is just past the swimming pool

Our first evening we were able to take a walk along the beach to a local restaurant, mentioned in a Travel and Leisure article…..
We weren't expecting to see a buffalo en route…. and indeed we never saw it again...

 and we had another fantastic sunset….. the restaurant we were going to is where there are lights under the trees...….

The various types of food we have eaten there…..

Green shelled muscles!

The food here was so good it has become our local …..almost every other night! Average cost of a meal for 2 is less than $20!


And we have discovered that we are just along the beach from a home owned by David Beckham

A slight difference in size however..…..

It is in the opposite direction from 'our' restaurant……so will be looking for a restaurant in that direction!  You never know!

Actually don't think we will bother…it seems as though he has only visited it once since completion! Or has managed to arrive un-noticed!!