We have now stayed at 4 different places on this island trek, and each jump has come with a new set of priorities. When we first imagined what we would want, it didnt stop far beyond a simple beach hut in an idyllic setting, with nothing other than a Robinson Crusoe existence to keep us happy.
Location 1 on Koh Tao taught us that the staff and management need to be pleasant enough to make you feel welcome so you can relax in your idyllic setting, so a new priority needed to be at least a bit of customer service, actually not even service, just not a scowl and a huff when you approach.
Location 2 was both idyllic and had pleasant staff, but the beach hut was 25 minutes drive down a muddy hillside track, and without the forethought to do some shopping, life was a little too Robinson Crusoe! so a new priority came in that we would need some facilities within a 10 minute walk
Location 3 was just a way of reconnecting with civilisation for a few days, so we had a couple of interconnecting rooms set back from the beach in the middle of the busiest town on Koh Samui. Good fun but not part of the vision. Although with the flexibility to change our mind on a daily basis being the driver, maybe exactly what the vision was
By the time location 4 was picked, we felt that we knew what we wanted, and we have pretty much succeeded in getting everything right, leading to idyllic but not isolated, with pleasant staff and a few amenities, but how long would this be the 'right' setting!! Well it turned out to be 2 days before the kids had a little brush with some stray jellyfish tenticles in the sea, which has left them a little nervous about getting in. Suddenly a swimming pool is a big priority, and with the lunchtime vote continuing to dictate our location, it appears we are now back on the move, in search of everything we have found to date... plus a pool!
I think the joy in this 'day by day' adventure is not so much just adding to the list of priorities, but keeping the priorities very fluid, so you can counter the lack of one priority by completely contradicting one location with the next, like we did in picking a mid town location straight after our deserted beach . We look forward to seeing where we find ourselves next.
So we head south tomorrow, and to Koh Lanta on the western side of Thailand on the Andaman sea.
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