Sunset Buri Resort Ko Tao

... and sirens blaring. To be honest we were both slightly embarrassed as Caroline’s illness didn’t seem to warrant this level of fuss. For the next 4 days we spent our time in hospital whilst Caroline recovered. The day before we left the blood tests revealed that Caroline had contracted Chikungunya, a mosquito derived illness similar to dengue. Fortunately with the fever in decline and blood results showing white blood cell and palette counts ...

... over and letting them know the deal on the hotel if they were interested. They said they were going to check around for something even less expensive and so we waved goodbye as our open bed truck left the port.<br><br>I looked around for the first time in delight at the island. It is covered with vegetation and the narrow roads were lined with little shops. When we got to Bahn&#8217;s we dropped our luggage at the front room and then made our way towards the ocean ...

... swimming blind aided by a buddy, throwing off our regulator (where the air comes through!) and using an arm sweep to relocate it, having our air switched off under water! performing a controlled emergency swimming ascent (i was the only one to get this first time, c'mon guys, try to keep up!), taking off our scuba gear and riding the tank like a horse on the surface (no ****), eh i managed to drop my weight belt at this point, laughed at and forfeited ...

... For our final day in Koh Tao we arranged a boat taxi to the small Island of Nang Yuan. With my foot in a plastic bag, I managed to hop through the sea to the boat and clambered in. People on the shore must have had a good laugh, but it was definitely worth it as the island was stunning.<br><br>Emma tested out the snorkel masks and underwater camera as she swam within schools of tropical fish. I watched perched in a deck chair on the beach, wishing I could join in.

... my hand at the next best thing: snorkelling. I booked into a tour and was picked up bright and early on my penultimate morning to join two honeymooning couples (told you so) on a trip around the island. <br><br>Now, if you&#8217;ve been reading this blog, you&#8217;ll be familiar with my lack of water wings, but I&#8217;d been assured that you could snorkel whilst wearing a life jacket and decided that losing a little dignity was a more appealing option ...

... that we still have all our diving stuff with us) and this struggle got worse as we headed up the island through several series of tortuous and staggeringly steep steps (both up and down), ramps, pathways and wooden bridges through the jungle to get to our bungalow. We knew that we were bungalow F9 and when, after a considerable period, we were still only just passing F4, I decided that we needed to intervene and managed to get the boys to stop. I explained that they were carrying our ...

... a little, and after a few seconds it was POUNDING rain. I don't know if it felt like pounding just because I was sunburned, but each raindrop on my back-- even through the poncho-- felt like hail hitting me. Other people's boats came and went, and still we waited. 15 minutes of this went by. The sea had white caps on it and we couldn't even see Ko Tao through the rain. Finally, someone decided we should try to go find shelter since our boat ...

... the sun overhead my Farang head will build up a nice suntan on my still white European skin. No doubt it will be a sweaty skin today considering I wanna go out there under my own force, rent an one-person kayak, paddle and paddle with a soft refreshing sea breeze in my face blowing away that d*rned endless narrative in my head, that smart bomb that is programmed to go off inside my skull every time I set food on Thai soil.