Thailand: Koh Phangan

Four days spent on Koh Phangan was a much needed relaxing break. I enjoyed having a few days to do nothing but relax and spend time in the sand and under palm trees; two things that make me happy.

Getting from Laos to the islands in the south of Thailand was a long journey. It took me a day and a half just to get to the southern port town of Surat Thani. To get there I had a bus that left Vientiane, Laos at 2:00 pm on a Wednesday to get across the border back into Thailand. From there I had a three hour wait until my overnight train would arrive. Once the train arrived I was able to get on and not long after it departed, the beds were made. I was on a top bunk which wasn't very wide or long so it was a cramped ride. It was also a bright ride because my bed was right next to the fluorescent ceiling light. While it was a clean train and a smooth ride, sleep was hard in such a small bed next to a light and when I “woke up” for the day it was at 4:30 in the morning. The train arrived in Bangkok at 6:00 in the morning. Once there I had twelve hours to kill until my flight. I ended up splitting my time between a Starbucks and the airport. If I wasn’t already tired, the twelve hour wait for my flight made me even more tired. By the time my flight was about to depart I could barely stay awake and then, unfortunately, my flight was an hour delayed. Other than the delay, the flight went smoothly and I arrived at the Surat Thani airport where I was then able to get a bus into the city and walk to my hostel. By the time I finally got to my hostel, it was 9:00 pm the day after I left and I was running on very little sleep. It was a very long day and a half of travel, and I was very happy to have made it to my hostel and to be able to get some sleep.

I was in Surat Thani for one full day. I planned that time so I would not feel rushed to buy a ferry ticket and book a hostel. So, for my one full day there I rested and booked transport to and a hostel on Koh Phangan. The ferry to get to Koh Phangan went by pretty quick and was uneventful. Once on the island I went to my hostel, got checked in, and then just relaxed on the beach for the rest of the evening. The hostel I booked was really nice because the common area opened out onto the beach and the hostel had chairs, bean bags, and hammocks in the sand which made it a great place to hang out and just relax with my feet in the sand. For the next two days I spent my time relaxing at my hostel and it was so nice. I hadn’t realized how much I needed relaxation, time to do absolutely nothing, until I had it. On my third full day on Koh Phangan I decided to leave my hostel and I got a taxi to one of the famous beaches that was seven kilometers away. Unfortunately when I got to the beach I found that a lot of sea trash had washed up during the stormy waters that had been happening for the two days prior so I decided to skip that beach. Luckily there was another beach only one kilometer away so I walked there. Once there it was a more quaint beach with calmer waters. I was able to thankfully find a quiet area between some trees where I had a small stretch of sand all to myself. I spent the whole afternoon laying out in the sun and swimming in the crystal clear blue waters. It was such a nice day spent on the beach. This particular beach faced west so I was able to watch the sunset as well. Watching the sunset on the beach was a great way to end the day.

My final day on Koh Phangan was spent just like the first two, relaxing on the beach at my hostel. While uneventful, the four days I spent on Koh Phangan resting and relaxing were much needed. I felt so rejuvenated and was ready for any excitement and events to come with Christmas and New Years.

“Travel is the best investment you can make in yourself.”

- Joel Sartore