We arrived on Koh Samui on Songkran day and were greeted as we drove to our beach bungalow by people lined on the streets throwing water. It was a great sight. Some would let us pass unscathed because we were in a car but others would stop us and dump buckets of water on the car.
The day after we arrived on Samui, we were booked on a tour of Anthong National Marine Park. We booked through 100 Degrees East Dive Team because Z had read great reviews and because they limit the number of guests to maximum 12. The other boats we saw along the way were crowded with people and I nicknamed them people ferries.
Our day started with a pick up at our bungalow. We arrived at the dive shop and met the other guests before heading to the beach where we climbed aboard the speed boat which would take us around for the day. The Marine Park is about a 60 minute boat ride away.
Our first stop was at the north part of the park for snorkeling. The water was quite calm and very warm. It was the best snorkeling I've experienced so far. We got to see all sorts of colorful fish. If I were better at identifying the fish I'd mention a few types. I'm sure that I saw some needle nosed fish. There were even a couple schools of different fish swimming around and Z had fun swimming through them. Our snorkeling guide was good; he'd point out several interesting fish and he even took us through a cave which was a really cool experience. The sun was shining into the cave which made visibility great. Have I mentioned the water was crystal clear? I got to see a blue spotted stingray. We snorkeled for about an hour before heading off to the main part of the park. The scenery of the various rock islands is absolutely stunning (I'll post some pictures later).
We made our way to Emerald Lake where we climbed up some very steep stairs to reach the view point. The view from here was incredible. From here we moved on to one of the beaches in the park where we had a short rest while the guides prepared a fabulous lunch. We were treated to fried rice, a vegetable curry dish, chicken curry and fried chicken. The whole day the guides were very gracious hosts making sure we had plenty of fluids and even brought fresh fruit around.
Shortly after we finished lunch light rain drops started to fall. At first it was no big deal and we thought it refreshing on such a hot day. But not too long after the drops started, the light drops turned into a tropical downpour. There was a hut where we waited this out and it only lasted about 15 minutes before the sun was out shining again.
Next up was kayaking to a cove near the beach where we had lunch. Z and I shared a kayak and actually paddled very well together. We got some good speed going. At the cove, we were given the option to swim for awhile, but as I was walking into the water I stepped on a rock and mildly cut my big toe. I didn't feel like going back into the water after that and so the guides suggested that Z and I take the kayak out and go around to the next cove. This was a lot of fun. Because we paddled well together it didn't take us long to get there and so we decided to go a little further. We got to see some really cool rock formations and it was a pity we left the camera on the boat.
After kayaking it was back to the boat for a short trip to another beach to try and see some wild monkeys. Because of the downpour there was a good chance that we would be out of luck, but fortunately there were a couple monkeys that had come out of hiding. The monkeys were hard to see though as they much preferred to jump in the trees than stay still for pictures. This was our last stop of the day.
All in all the day was fabulous. I'd have to say this has been my second favorite highlight of the trip so far.
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