Hangover city has been left behind and it was time to travel to our first island of this trip: Koh Pha Ngan. Also known as party island.

During this stay we had two nights at a hostel which at first seemed like a really cool, relaxed vibe and friendly place.

Which it was but us girls got to have a sleepover in 1 room, I was looking forward to this until we actually got into the room. It was tiny, crammed, the bathroom didn’t seem hygienic and the beds… there were no bed bugs (thank Buddha for that!) but they were rock hard and I swear I had ringlet marks from the springs in my back and legs when I woke up… shudder.

Even though the room wasn’t a major success, the hostel was sat right on the beach which was something I think everyone on this trip really needed.

They had swings and lots of hammocks so time to chill was definitely on the books.

We were offered an island tour but because of all the travelling and non-stop tours of the past week we decided to chill and maybe the next day later on in the afternoon visit a viewtop and that was it.

The first day was slow and everyone was really groggy cos of all the travelling so we all showered and got ready for some food.

We were all a little tired of Thai food too (shocking I know) and just fancied something else so we then went out exploring and ate at a Mexican restaurant which Lonely Planet recommended.

The best part of this was that our tour-guide never had Mexican food before so he was slightly terrified at first but after eating nacho’s he had a pretty good feeling that what we choose for him would be good, which of course was.

I had tortilla’s with chilli con carne and fresh guac and salsa dip and sour cream and let me tell you in one word how good it was: Amazeballs. I gobbled up as much as i possibly could and called my food baby: Lil’ Mexicano.

When we got back we had a few drinks but shortly after tucked ourselves into bed. 

After a terrible first night, the mozzies are seriously out to get me and the hard mattress nearly broke my back, we had breakkie at the Fat Cat. It was amazing. Good food, good smoothies and just in general a really good meal. 

Stuffed like a fat cat we made our way back to the hostel for a day on the beach. 

And so as we all put on our bikini’s we checked the weather and it was cloudy. Doing a double check on our weather apps (never trust the Iphone ones guys, just an advice) it said it was gonna pour down and thunder and lightening were gonna give is a little show.

Well… we didn’t get any rain, let alone any storm. It was cloudy but the sun broke through enough to burn us all very badly.

My face was a red as a lobster (trying & rocking a new look guys). Smothering on lotion after lotion we then got ready for the 360bar.

We hopped on pick-up truck and made our way up. Once arrived we walked up to (as the name suggests) a beautiful 360 view. 

We looked over the sea and a small island which was covered in more forest and only had a small sandy pathway which the sea covered like a blanket.

The sun started to set and painted the sky with soft oranges and pinks. 

We had one drink and then made our way to the night market ‘Pantip’ and got food.

What I love most about Thailand is that everywhere they had night markets which are basically just food markets but the smell alone is enough to fill your tum. So yummy! 

Even though i’m small and can’t eat a full plate, I am a foodie 🤤

They had a vegan place which a friend and I really wanted to try but unfortunately our burger fell a little flat on taste but we made up for it by getting Banana & Chocolate roti. Nom nom nom!

We had drinks afterwards and played a few rounds of beerpong. Our lovely Canadian traveller tried to explain the rules but I was continuously struggling to understand how anyone (especially drunk) could remember any of the rules….. or it might just be me having the memory of a sieve and struggling on my own haha.

When losing by just the last round (got very competitive…) it was then off to bed as a party just wasn’t in the books for me, nor was it for the others. To be fair there was only one big party which was called the jungle party and a few other hostel guests had said that the previous one fell a bit flat and was mostly techno which I can’t dance to. I look like a very uncomfortable ironing board even though i’m known to being able to dance to everything… 

Oh well, after another hideous night at the hostel we again had breakkie at the Fat Cat (our new fav breakfast place 😍) and then got the ferry to Koh Tao.

The ferry wasn’t very big but the waves definitely were so all of us started turning slightly green and I started to look a little dead. The whole Frankenstein look does not suit me, I can tell ya haha

The fabulous Koh Tao awaited us after a little more than an hour.

The resort is on a boulevard and straight away the carefree and relaxed vibe of this island hits me – in a good way.

The little shops, all very beachlike. Bikini’s, tanktops, flipflops everywhere aswell as diving school and snorkeling tours.

This island is known for the amazing places to snorkel or dive. The beaches and bays have so much to offer, which we will experience ourselves too.

Our first day we relaxed for a bit, my friend and I even ran on the beach – big mistake cos one: f**king killed my legs (and nearly broke my ankles haha) and two: it was still 30 degrees and mega humid. Stars were circling my head after a while just like in the Tom & Jerry cartoons. 

We decided to have dinner along the beach while watching a man spin fire around the place.

This sounds a little weird and dangerous but it was pretty cool.

After having the most delicious pasta (don’t judge) my bed was calling to me.

The next day was our snorkelling trip. The knots in my stomach due to nerves were untrue but still I got through it.

We stopped at five different beaches. All of them had their own uniqueness.

The first one was shark bay, which the name entails is where you can spot white tipped sharks. Now George failed at seeing one cos my mask kept leaking and panic was settling in my bones as the water was mega choppy and my fear of water in general was pretty high.

After swallowing half of the sea I decided to get a life jacket and just swam around seeing lots of fish instead.

Life jackets may not be the most fashionable items out there but they do ensure a good time.

I bobbed in the sea at the second bay with a friend from the group instead of snorkelling cos this bay again was really choppy and couldn’t see much. I just wasn’t that bothered anymore after everyone being sea-sick and the water still rough.

We then went to our third stop which was smooth water which was lurvely. Cold but good.

Swam and snorkelled for quite a bit before heading back on the boat.

I saw this time even more fish and (unfortunately) a lot of dead coral.

When we headed to our fourth stop we heard there might be turtles but alas… none wanted to chill with us so after losing sight of the group my friend and I just went back to the boat. Every time something happened we kept laughing so her and mine snorkel kept letting water in so it took quite a while before we made it back to the boat. None the less it was a good laugh!

Our fifth and final stop was at these small islands which only had a resort on one and beaches all over.

We could climb one of the small islands to a viewpoint which gave us the opportunity to see all three islands bundled together.

It was a gorgeous view but the run from the day before made the trek upwards PAINFUL!Learning my lesson: never do a work-out while on holiday ha!

Once getting down we chilled and have shakes before setting off back to our hotel.

Because it was our last night we decided to have dinner at another viewpoint and it was sublime.

I choose a curry which one of my mates on the group trip said it was less spicy than a green one so I was naturally thinking “result!”. Turns out we were both wrong.

My mouth and lips were on fire and I had made a stupid mistake of trying a little bit first, so knowing it was spicy as hell, still decided to lob on all the sauce over my rice and chicken…

It is safe to say I was dying. It was gorgeous though.

After dinner we headed down to the fishbowl club. This is were a live band plays your favourite sing-a-long songs and then afterwards its beer-pong championships. I feel like beer-pong is the new 30-seconds or ring of fire… just as rubbish at it but still enjoy it.

After ordering buckets we made our way to the beer-pong table and had a game.

That is my friends played a game whilst I watched and danced along with the music. Cos I mean every team needs a cheerleader right?

A little later it was time for proper dancing on the dance floor. Our feet danced until they couldn’t no more and off to bed we went. 

The next couple of days were for relaxation only. Plus I was feeling poorly due to lack of sleep, everytime a new place, past couple of weeks were full on so my body just needed a reset I guess. With these beaches and pools i really did not mind doing nothing and just chilling! 

To sum up our last days on the island, they were filled with paddle boarding (my favourite new workout. It is so relaxing & really hardcore at the same time, plus i mastered the whole standing on it straight away 😏) and then yoga, played some pool, went swimming, out for dinners and lunch. Just overall zen time. 

Tomorrow it’s early rising as we will head down to Krabi. Can’t wait!

After Krabi it is down to Phuket for a few days before we officially split up and go on solo again. Eek… slightly nervous but so excited at the same time!

Looking forward to whats ahead!

Talk soon.

Love, G.