Cu copilul in Koh Phangan

Cu copilul in Koh Phangan

Unde ramasesem? Eram inca in Bangkok cu povestea, parca. Ei bine dupa 3 nopti petrecute acolo am zburat direct spre Surat Thani, de unde un ferry de vreo 4 ore ne-a adus pe minunata insula Koh Phangan (sau Ko Pha Ngan). Iata cum am petrecut o parte din vacanta noastra in Thailanda, impreuna cu Vlad de 3 ani – proaspat impliniti.

 

EN: Where was I? Still in Bangkok with my story, I think. Well after 3 nights we spent there, we flew straight to Surat Thani, from where we took a ferry for 4 hours and arrived to the beautiful island of Koh Phangan (or Ko Pha Ngan). Here’s how we spent part of our vacation in Thailand, together with Vlad, who had just turned 3.

Daaa….stiu, e greu sa ma adaugi si niste cuvinte dupa aceste imagini, care exprima atat de multe: fericire, liniste, bucuria descoperirii, normalitate, dragoste. Dar o sa punctez, asa cum am promis, cateva date “tehnice”, care v-ar putea ajuta in cazul in care vreodata ne veti pasi pe urme.

Asa cum povesteam si in prima postare cu imagini din Thailanda, am ales sa ne petrecem cea mai mare parte din vacanta pe Insula Koh Phangan (se scrie si se pronunta intr-o mie de feluri). Poate ca daca nu am fi fost cu Vlad, am fi facut un tur din insula in insula, dar, sincer, dupa filmarile pentru lung-metraj si noi eram destul de obositi ca sa ne aventuram prea mult. Voiam sa ne dam mai mult timp, sa fie mai putina alergatura, sa apucam sa ne si linistim putin – chiar daca in aceasta schema era si un copil de 3 ani foarte curios si independent din fire.

Am ales aceasta insula pentru ca multa lume mi-a recomandat-o ca fiind “exact pe gustul tau, Dana”. Se pare ca prietenii astia ai mei ma cunosc foarte bine; iar aici va includ si pe voi, caci multe dintre sfaturile voastre legate de Thailanda mergeau tot catre Koh Phangan. E o insula cu multe optiuni de cazare si restaurante, dar nicidecum una super luxoasa sau super incarcata de hoteluri si restaurante sofisticate. Partea de sud a insulei este cea mai aglomerata, cu multe resorturi cu bungalow-uri pe plaja sau in apropierea ei, multe baruri si restaurante, pentru ca tot in sud este si celebra plaja Haad Rin, unde au loc petreceri o data pe luna, in fiecare noapte cand e luna plina. Sincer, din tot ce am citit pe net inainte, nici nu trebuie sa va treaca prin cap ca puteti participa la un Full Moon Party cu copilul. E o petrecere cu multa bautura, tineri liberi, liberi, liberi…. deci noi am zis pas si ne-am luat cazare taman in nordul insulei, mai precis in nord-est, unde e muuuuult mai putin aglomerat si mult mai linistita atmosfera – de familie, cum s-ar zice. Practic exista plaje in nord unde nu sunt decat 2 – 3 resorturi maxim, iar cand spun “resorturi”, nu va ganditi la ceva pompos, ci la genul de casute-bungalow-uri in care am locuit si noi, si pe care le vedeti mai sus in imagini.

Revenind la insula, e suficient de mare cat sa nu te plictisesti, dar nici prea mare cat sa nu poata fi parcursa cu masina sau cu un scuter intr-o mini-vacanta de cateva zile. Are un spital “western” privat, care se lauda ca asigura pana la 90% din interventii (inclusiv chirurgicale), fara sa fie nevoie ca pacientul sa fie transportat pe continent – asta cu spitalul chiar o iei serios in calcul cand calatoresti cu un copil, caci, Doamne Fereste. Mai bine sa nu te trezesti la 2 noaptea cu el cu febra mare, pe cine stie ce insula izolata, sa trebuiasca sa astepti sa se faca ziua sa poti lua un vapor pentru inca cine stie cate ore de calatorie.

Noi am stat in Thong Nai Pan Yai, la Longtail Beach Resort, despre care am scris si aici. Pentru ca am petrecut multe nopti acolo, am schimbat vreo 3 casute, de la cea mai mica varianta de cazare, la cea mai mare, pentru o familie de 3 persoane. Toate aveau baie proprie, aer conditionat (poti opta si doar cu ventilator) si un pat mare cu baldachin deasupra, sa te apare de tantari, cate un hamac extraordinar de relaxant pe veranda, plus maturica!!! cum as putea uita de maturica cu care Vlad a facut curat atatea dimineti la rand prin tot resortul. Locul e perfect daca vreti sa il vizitati cu copilul, mai ales ca are si piscina aceea tentanta, pe care nu multe resorturi de acest gen o au. Altfel, s-ar putea sa fiti singurul cuplu intre multi bebelusi si copii mici galagiosi. Singurul dezavantaj a fost servirea de la restaurantul lor, situat fix pe plaja, incat puteai manca satnd cu picioarele in nisip. Desi mancarea foarte foarte buna si ok la bani, pe parcursul sederii parca cei care ne serveau isi pierdusera interesul sa mai fie amabili si draguti, asa cum esti obisnuit in Thailanda. Drept urmare, am cautat variante si in oraselul in care stateam (recomand Dolphin resort chiar de langa, dar si mancarea din piata centrala a orasului – super ieftina si super buna), plus in restul insulei. Cel mai apropiat oras este Thong Nai Pan Noi, la care se poate ajunge inclusiv pe jos, ori cu un scuter sau masina inchiriate. Aveti cateva imagini din oras chiar mai sus, pe acea terasa din lemn maro inchis. Aici sunt si mai multe variante de restaurante, e drept ca mai scumpe decat in orasul vecin, in care sunt mai putini turisti si parca mai multi localnici – adica cel in care am stat noi. Si ca sa incheiem cu capitolul mancare, daca ajungeti in aceasta insula, obligatoriu trebuie sa va opriti in capitala – Thong Sala – sa mancati la Night Market. E o experienta in sine, pe langa mancarea ieftina si gustoasa. Parca nicaieri nu simti mai bine spiritul locului decat intr-un Night Market.

Legat de baldachinul care te apara de tantari, i-am simtit parca si mai tare utilitatea in a doua noapte de cazare acolo, cand pe mine si pe Radu ne-a trezit un sunet ingrozit de puternic, care suna cam asa: E-co, E-co, E-co. Era atat de puternic, incat Radu a crezut ca Vlad il scoate, care dormea intre noi. Nu am mai inchis un ochi toata noaptea pana cand nu am gasit pe net ce animal poate fi atat de galacios. Asa am descoperit ca fix pe bungalow-ul nostru (si mai mult ca sigur ca si IN bungalow-ul nostru), am primit vizita unui Tokay Gekko. Cica aduce noroc!

Legat de plaje, am avut mare noroc. Acum era sezonul secetos (desi a plouat mult), asa ca in multe zone apa marii era foarte scazuta si mult retrasa – low tide. Drept urmare cred ca plaja din Thong Nai Pan Noi era cea mai potrivita pentru noi, caci era foarte lata, cat sa alergi in voie, cu apa foarte mica buna bucata de la mal – cat sa nu fie stres cu Vlad -, dar totusi nici restrasa cativa zeci (daca nu chiar sute de metri) cum am vazut cand am vizitat nord-vestul insulei.

Poate cel mai frumos loc al insulei este in schimb Koh Maa. Fiind sezonul uscat, puteai sa treci pe o fasie de nisip de pe insula mare pe aceasta insula micuta din Nord. Vedeai apa in stanga, apa in dreapta, insula micuta in fata, la doar cativa pasi departare de tine. Multe poze de mai sus sunt de acolo, in care puteti vedea grosimea limbii de nisip care despartea cele doua mari. A fost un apus senzational.

Initial am vrut sa stam 3 saptamani doar in Thailanda, dar pentru ca depaseam perioada de visa (cu visa on arrival), am ales sa petrecem cateva nopti si in Cambodgia. Drept urmare, ma opresc aici cu povestile din Ko Phangan, dar voi reveni la ele, pastrand ordinea cronologica. Urmeaza, asadar, Surat Thani – orasul de tranzit – apoi Siem Reap – Cambodgia – si apoi inapoi in Koh Phangan, doar ca ceva mai bronzati.

Povestea continua….

 P.S.: Avem in vacanta aceasta si cateva poze facute de Vlad. Iata una dintre ele…

EN: Yes, I know, it’s hard to say something after these photos, which express so much: happiness, peace, the joy of discovery, normality, love. But I will point out, like I promised, some “technical” data, which might be helpful in case you ever think of following our footsteps.

As I said in the first post with pictures from Thailand, we chose to spend most of our time on the Island Koh Phangan (it’s spelled and pronounced in a million different ways). Maybe if we wouldn’t have taken Vlad along, we would have done a tour from one island to the other, but, honestly, after shooting for the motion picture, we were pretty tired ourselves to be too adventurous. We wanted to give ourselves more time, to run less, to get some peace and quiet- even though a 3 year old toddler, very curious and independent, was in this picture.

We chose this island because a lot of people have recommended it as “exactly as you like it, Dana”. It turns out these friends really know me; and I include you here also, because many of your advices about Thailand were towards Koh Phangan. It’s an island with a lot of options for accommodation and restaurants, but not in any way super luxurious or crowded with sophisticated hotels and restaurants. The Southern part of the island is the most crowded one, with many resorts with bungalows on the beach or close by, many bars and restaurants, because also in the South there is the famous Haad Rin beach, where they have parties once a month, every night with a full moon. Honestly, having read a lot about that on he internet, it really shouldn’t cross your mind to attend a Full Moon Party with a child. It’s party with a lot of alcohol, free young people… so we said pass and got accommodation right in the Northern part of the island, where it’s much less crowded and the atmosphere is more peaceful- for families. Basically there are beaches in the North where there are only 2-3 resorts maximum, and when I say “resorts”, don’t imagine something sumptuous, but the kind of bungalow homes which we lived in and which you can see in the pictures above.  

Back to the island, it’s large enough not to get bored, but not big enough not to be seen during a short trip on a scooter or in a car. It has a “Western” private hospital, which claims it can assure 90% of all possible interventions (including surgical), without having to transport the patient to the continent- which you really take seriously when travelling with a child, because God forbid. It’s better not to wake up at 2 am with him having high fever, on an isolated island, and you having to wait for the crack of dawn for a couple more hours of travel.

We stayed in Thong Nai Pan Yai, at the Longtail Beach Resort, which I already wrote about here. Because we have spent many nights there, we changed about 3 homes, from the smallest accommodation possible, to the largest one, for a family of 3. They all had their own baths, AC (you can opt only for a ventilator) and a king size bed with a canopy, to keep mosquitoes away, a very relaxing hammock on the porch, plus the little broom!!! How could I forget about the little broom Vlad cleaned the entire resort with, for a couple of mornings in a row. This place is perfect if you are with a child, especially since it has that tempting pool, which many other resorts of the kind don’t have. Otherwise, you might the only couple in between a pool with small and loud babies. The only disadvantage was the service at their restaurant, which is right on the beach, so you could sit standing with your feet in the sand. Although the food was very good and at an ok price, during our stay the people serving us seemed to loose interest in being nice and helpful, like you are used to in Thailand. So, we searched for other options in the little town we stayed in  (I recommend Dolphin resort right next to the beach, but also the food in the town’s main market- really cheap and tasty), plus on the rest of the island. The closest town is Thong Nai Pan Noi, which you can also reach on foot, or on scooter or in a rented car. Above you also have a couple of images from the city, on he dark brown terrace. Here you can also find many other options for restaurants, more expensive than in the neighboring town, where there are less tourists and more locals- meaning the one we stayed in. And to wrap up the chapter about food, if you get to this island, you have to stop in the capital – Thong Sala – and eat at the Night Market. It’s an experience, besides the cheap and tasty food. What better place to feel the local spirit than in a Night Market.

About the canopy which keeps the mosquitoes away, we really felt its utility on our second night here, when Radu and I were woken up by a really loud noise, which sounded something like: E-co, E-co, E-co. It was so load, that Radu thought Vlad was making it, who was sleeping between us. We couldn’t get back to sleep before finding on the internet which animal can be so loud. That’s how we discovered that right on (and most probably also IN) our bungalow, we got the visit of a Tokay Gekko. It’s supposed to bring good luck!

About the beaches, we were really lucky. It was the dry season (although it rained a lot), so in many areas the sea level was very low tide. So I think the Thong Nai Pan Noi beach was the most appropriate for us, because it was very wide, so you could run around, with low water level on the shore- so we don’t stress over Vlad-, but not that back out like we have seen on the North-Western part of the island.

On the other hand, maybe the most beautiful place on the island is Koh Maa. Since it was the dry season, you could cross over on this small island in the North on a strip of sand. You could see water on your left and on your right, the small island in front, only a few footsteps away from you. Many of the pictures above are from there, where you could see the thickness of the sand strip which divided the two seas. It was a sensational sunset.

At first we wanted to stay for 3 weeks in Thailand, but because that was longer than the visa period (with visa on arrival), we chose to spend a few nights in Cambodia. So, for now I will stop with the stories from Ko Phangan, but I’ll come back to them, keeping a chronological order. So, coming up, Surat Thani – the transit city – then Siem Reap – Cambodgia – and back to Koh Phangan, only a bit more tanned.

The story goes on…

 P.S.: In this vacation we also had Vlad take a couple of pictures of us. Above is one of them…