Koh Samui, Thailand

After the overwhelmingly large cities we have visited and the crush of people we experienced, it was a relief to spend a day on an island where the people are friendly and the pace is laid back. 

 Koh (the Thai word for island) Samui, population 63,000, is on the east coast of the Malay Peninsula and is Thailand's second largest island after Phuket which is located on the west coast.  With its beautiful sandy beaches and lush forests, it is a relaxing retreat for tourists and mainlanders alike.  There were no roads on the island until the early 1970s and even now, the road we drove on was a two-laner.  We anchored off the former capital city of Nathon which has two of the islands major piers. (See the gray dot.)

We were brought ashore on local tenders.  Unlike our ship's tenders, this was open-air which made for a more enjoyable 15 minute ride.  

Once ashore, we were assigned to one of the eight-passenger 4X4s.  When was the last time anyone allowed you to ride in the back of a truck?  It was a fun ride, and as our last shore excursion director said, "a free massage".

We went to the road-side edge of a rubber plantation where a demonstration of tree tapping and rubber production was set up for us.  The rubber tree seedlings are planted along with pineapple plants and left to grow for 6 years.  At that time, the pineapple plants are removed.  The trees can be tapped starting at 6-7 years old until about 18 yrs. old.  To tap the latex from the tree, a thin strip of bark is shaved off in a diagonal line at just the right depth.  The latex bleeds out of the severed vessels and flows down into the collection cup.  

Latex is added to water and acetic or formic acid in a 40:50:10 ration and allowed to coagulate.  The rubber particles are poured out onto a flat container and allowed to sit for 1-18 hours at which time the resulting sheets are put through rollers to press out the excess water.  The last roller leaves a ribbed pattern on the rubber which gives it more surface area and allows for faster drying. 

At the Namuang
Safari Park we watched a demonstration of pig-tailed macaque monkeys who have been trained to pick only ripe coconuts.  They are much more efficient at picking the coconuts than humans as they are skilled climbers and can jump from tree to tree.  They are treated as a member of the handler's family.

We saw these Asian elephants perform in a small show for us.  There are 19 elephants at the park, each with a mahout (trainer) who works with them and cares for them.  

I got to ride an elephant!  My core muscles got a good workout keeping my balance in rhythm with the slow, gentle rocking movement.  

After four days in port, we have a sea day before Singapore, then five days in port.  Before we came on this trip, I was worried about suffering from boredom on all the sea days, but now I realize that they provide a much needed rest.  I look forward to two days at sea between Phuket and India.  (I'll use them to catch up on this blog!)