BEAUTIFUL SUNSETS, BEACH TIME, BEDROOMS ABOVE NIGHTCLUBS, DIVING AND CONJUNCTIVITIS
ARRIVING IN KOH TAO
Leaving Ko Pha Ngan, we got another ferry to the island of Koh Tao and checked in to the Goodtime hostel. The sister hostel of the one we’d stayed in on Ko Pha Ngan.
I’d been so spoilt by the other Goodtime hostel, that I expected a similar level of paradise, but sadly it didn’t quite live up to expectations.
The beach side setting was incredible though and treated us to sunset views, such as this:
The hostel was located above a nightclub and trying to sleep here was impossible before 2 am. In the dorm room it literally sounded like we were in the club. Not ideal. We’d booked in to the hostel for 4 nights, but I ended up moving after 2 and heading to the Taco Shack 2, which was far better overall, although it was 10 minutes walk from the beach.
DIVING IN KOH TAO
The island of Koh Tao is all about diving.
You couldn’t walk for more than two minutes without seeing a diving school.
I was keen to get involved, but I was suffering with conjunctivitis. I laid off the contact lenses for a few days and took some eye drops, but avoided diving until it had cleared up.
On my last day here, my eye was finally feeling better and I booked on, with my friend Johan, to give diving a go.
I’d never tried scuba diving and I was a little apprehensive about the idea, but I couldn’t let myself pass it up.
I paid 2,700 Bhat with Goodtime for training for a try dive and then a follow-up fun dive at another location.
Breathing underwater at first was such an alien experience. It took me a few minutes to get the hang of it and not freak out, but pretty quickly I was diving down to 15 metres and swimming amongst shoals of fish.
Strangely, breathing underwater soon felt totally natural and I felt completely at peace. It was a very surreal experience and one I would recommend to anyone who has a chance to do it.
Here’s a few pics from the dives:
I’ve also pulled together a video edit of the whole experience. Hope you enjoy!
LEAVING KOH TAO
After four days in Koh Tao, I was heading back to Krabi, before flying off to the next destination – Vietnam!
I hopped on the back of a pick up to head to the ferry port and waited for my boat, while chatting and jamming with this legend.
Leaving my travel buddies behind again was a shame, but it was time for pastures new.
I’d had an incredible time down on the Thai islands and had really enjoyed the beach life. There would be plenty more of this in store for me in Vietnam though.
