Today I checked out of my hotel in Ko Samui.  While checking out they handed me a bill of 450 Baht ($15).  I asked what it was for and they said it was for the tour I took the other day.  Problem was I had already paid for it.  So when I tell the guy I already paid for it he asked around and surprise, surprise no one admitted to me paying the bill.  In fact they even acted like they had never seen me before.  On top of that all of a sudden no one spoke English anymore.  So as I tried to expla...
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Yesterday I spent the day at Chaweng Beach which is the big tourist beach and area on Ko Samui.  I relaxed in a lounge chair on the beach for a few hours occassionally getting up to refresh myself in the clear, warm waters of the Gulf of Thailand.



I then just into a pickup taxi (a pickup truck where the bed is converted to hold passengers) for a cheap ride back to the hotel.  Once at the hotel I decided to hang out at the pool for awhile.  I ended up running into a group of Americans and spent...
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Today I took a 6 hour island tour.  It wasn't the greatest tour, but it was cheaper than the rest of the tours.  I did enjoy it though because I got to see a lot of the island.  I have a much better feel for the island now and I would live here under the right circumstances.  It kind of feels like Hawaii, but not Americanized.  Give it an Asian influence instead.  It is tropical, relaxed, but at the same time it is fast paced.  I know what I just said is an oxymoron, but I don't know how to s...
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I made it.  Finally after 29 straight hours of traveling I have made it to my destination.  I am on Ko Samui.  Ko means island in Thai.  So I am on an island of the east coast of southern Thailand.  The plan was to go to Bangkok for a few days and then up north to Chiang Mai.  Back to Bangkok for a few more days and then down south to the beaches and islands to relax.  So how did I end up here?  Well it is easy.  I was only givena 15 visa and not a 30 visa like I thought (because I came by la...

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