Today we are going to the other side of the island: The western side with the long stretch of beach and the town. Before doing so, we want to enjoy the morning in Tanote Bay and therefore book the taxi for 1PM. At breakfast we ate fruit salads with yoghurt, mine came with honey too. Once our plates were empty it was on to the beach. After some morning relaxing, we hire snorkeling masks to see what fish occupy the corals. They turned out to be the best corals either of us have ever seen.
There was a lot more coral than we had first thought, and not only that, but a lot more fish. All sorts of fish, all sorts of colours and sizes. Rachelle saw an eel and a school of big fish that scared her. She said they looked like they had teeth. They probably didn't. I regret not doing this all yesterday when we had the whole day. It was like visiting an aquarium and being allowed into the pools, only it wasn't artificial. It was seeing another world. Wanting a break from snorkeling, I went towards the boulders that are out on the bay. When I stepped foot on them, many iridescently coloured crabs scuttled away to hide from me. They didn't hide very well and I could see them under the rocks. I decided that I must get Rachelle to come and look, so I did. We hung out on the rocks and then time was getting on. I looked at the biggest of the boulders, the one that you can climb up and jump off, and realised that it was now or never.
The climb to the top was harder than I imagined. After climbing up the bottom part, you have to use a rope to pull yourself to the top, up the steep surface. My feet were getting small cuts. I walked to where you could jump off, the height must have been around 8 metres, maybe more, and Rachelle was swimming, waiting to watch me jump. I know now, and I knew at the time, that what I did next was lame. I decided to pretend I was in The Beach, jumping off of the big rock just before Richard, Etienne and Francoise find the secret beach. The jump was exhilarating. Then it was a rushed swim back to get the taxi to Sairee Beach.
Our luck had us arrive on the other side of the island just as a storm began. We had to walk up the long street that runs parallel with the beach, looking for a place to stay. Nowhere seemed to have room, at least not in our budget. It was worrying when a guy at a diving resort told Rachelle that most places were full and we'd need to find somewhere soon, before the next ferries of new arrivals snatch up the last of what's left. We swiftly picked up our game and plodded through the rain.
Our luck changed for the better; thanks to Rachelle's suggestion to walk down a street I didn't like the look of, we ended up being taken to a beach side resort with pool. They had a bungalow available for an agreeable 700 Baht per night (around 14 pounds). Relieved and very happy with the accommodation, we take a breather before heading out in the rain to find somewhere to eat. We chose Thai food.
The weather didn't improve very much. It stopped raining, but the skies remained dull and a cooling breeze never ceased. It was a nice temperature, but not tropical. After a walk along the beach, we rested in the room, watching television, getting ready for the evening. For dinner I had enchiladas and Rachelle a salad at a restaurant playing the movie Hangover 2. It was the same pirated quality we had watched in Sihanoukville. Down at the beach were fires shows and bars where we had a couple of drinks. The fire shows were substandard and I feel I have seen enough of them now to make a qualified judgement.
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