NO REFUNDS

This morning we were treated to a little exhibitionism again. The two European couples, who I now suspect might be a mother, father, daughter and son-in-law, were displaying themselves around the pool. The ladies snapped pictures of each other in exotic (almost erotic) poses and the elder of the two had her saggy boobs dangling around as she moved from one part of the pool to the other. The kids don't seem to notice or care about the nudity. Ryan is more concerned that there are people swimming in our pool. Tonight, after we got back to the hotel to see four new people using it, he called me over and pointed at them while going on about "these guys" swimming here. I explained to them that the last place we stayed at was a house with a private pool and he thought this was the same idea. They were friendly and just laughed.

We thought today would be a good one to check out some waterfalls and perhaps go on an elephant trek. We tried to get the same driver we had yestedsay but he was busy so we ended up with Kob. He was just as friendly and a very good driver.

Our first stop was to see Big Buddha and the other end of the beach. This statue is so big you can actually see it as you are landing on the island. To get up close you must take off your shoes and climb some steps and had the kids not been with us, we would have done it. Instead we got a few quick photos then looked around the market in front of the temple. The boys got some ice cream then we moved on to the waterfalls.

After reading a little about the waterfall hike what I pictured in my mind was something like a provincial park in Canada. We would hike down a quiet path a little ways into the woods, or in his case the jungle, and see some picturesque waterfalls cascading down a mountainside. Then, if we felt like it, we would hike the extra half hour to a second, even prettier set. Of course, this was not how it turned out.

We arrived at the waterfall site to find a bit of a circus. The driver drove us directly up to this little park area that he had described on the way as having different animals shows. They half explained what it was but hurried us in because the show had already started. We paid 2400 baht, or about $75 for the four of us to get in. I noticed later, on the way out, a huge sign specifying NO REFUNDS. Let this be a lesson, when you see a sign like that, question very much if what you are paying will be worth what you might get to see.

Not all the shows were horrible. What we saw of the elephants was good, the monkey was okay, the crocodile show was alright but scared the bejeezes out of Ryan, and the bird show was bad enough that we left early. I'm not sure what the fifth show was since we decided it was time to move on and left to go see the waterfalls. We had already decided we didn't want to make the walk to the second waterfall since it was way too hot and we didn't think the boys would enjoy the 4x4 vehicles they were using to tote people back and forth. Add to that the fact that we had just paid a lot of money for some not-so-great shows and we really didn't want to hand any more cash over to these people. The taxi driver that took us to the airport in Bangkok said he didn't like Koh Samui because it was too expensive and I'm starting to believe him. Our money isn't going as far as we thought it would.

Anyway, we saw lots of elephants as we made our way back to find the path to the first waterfall but, like I said, it was a circus and we never actually got to see them. I wanted to go on an elephant ride but no one would go with me and I didn't want to make the guys wait in the heat while I went. I will go next time! Ryan had said that he would get on but, not surprisingly, he changed his mind as soon as we got within fifty feet of the first elephant. They are huge. The nice thing is that the animals are healthy looking and seem to be treated very well. There were even two elephant babies. They certainly are a fascinating animal that I had never really paid a lot of attention to. They are usually very gentle, agile and sure footed.

We decided it was a good time to get some lunch and on the way to a seafood restaurant we stopped at what they call 'Grandfather and Grandmother' rocks. I can't label the photos so just watch for the picture of rocks that look like human sex organs. You will know it when you see it. At least I think you will.

On the way back to the hotel we had lunch at a delicious Thai seafood restaurant overlooking the gulf. This was the first time we've had seafood here and it was our best meal yet. We had crab with curry, two kind of rice (one with chicken and one with seafood), crispy rice noodles and grouper, a whole fish that was breaded and deep fried. The kids had milkshakes and Tim tried a Thai beer.

We came back to the hotel and I lounged in the pool while Tim and the boys played in the sand and swam in the ocean. I met a really nice couple from Australia who also had a weird experience with trying to see some waterfalls. We talked a lot about travelling and I think they are as addicted as we are. They took a boat to another island nearby with nicer beaches and went snorkelling. They said it was white sand and clear water with lots of colorful fish so I think we will do that in a couple of days as well. Tomorrow we aren't going to drag the kids anywhere but instead let them hangout around the pool and beach. I think I will walk down to the Fisherman's Village and check out the market.

Enjoy the scrambled pics!