Koh Samui Sunset

Tempted by the Koh Samui tailor? Maybe not.

admin — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 00:31:22 +0000

“Hello boss, nice to meet you.”

Another day at the office? No, this is a street in Koh Samui and an Indian tailor has just identified you as a potential customer. He’s eager to get you looking your very best in one of his creations.

A familiar approach, “Armani suit for you, my friend?”, occurs all over and ranges from affable to obseqious, at various levels of tenacity.

With dozens of tailors around Samui, you’re bound to encounter one during your stay. Their shop-fronts (found on the beach, along high streets and in towns) suggest direct access to designs and fabrics from the big names in fashion, at very low prices.

Should you do it? We don’t have strong feelings, just a general distaste for persistent salesmen who get in the way and want to shake hands to celebrate our blossoming friendship.

Ever students of science, we undertook a trial transaction. Here we’ll relate our single experience of such enterprise.

Our date with the Indian tailor

We were on holiday in Phuket, our first trip to Thailand. The prices and catalogues impressed us, so we ordered a suit in Armani fabric and a dress in blue silk. We confirmed that both could be completed before our departure date, paid a substantial deposit and went back to the pool.

That was the plan – it actually became a series of fittings and re-fittings, corrections and re-makes, missed deadlines and phone calls leading to a last-minute delivery by motorcycle on the morning of our departure.

Not the stress-free holiday we had in mind.

Were we finally satisfied, when the dust settled?

Not at all.

In the rush, the suit was somehow transformed from Armani fabric to a very cheap material that wouldn’t have looked good even if it fitted correctly. Which it didn’t.

The dress emerged from the bag as badly made as the first attempt.

Back home, we gave these experiments away without ever wearing them, and classified the whole thing as a learning experience.

Understand the rules and risks

Do we classify all Samui tailors as incompetents and crooks? No, but if you’re going to deal with them you need to understand the rules and the risks.

After you’ve paid the deposit and told the tailor your departure date, they hold all the cards.
You must accept that, no matter what happens, you are not going to get any money back – ever!
If you’re not satisfied, they’ll keep trying until you run out of patience or time.
The best outcome will be that you go home well satisfied, with well-made clothes that fit like a dream.
Or, like us, you could get nothing usable in return for your investment.
Probably most transactions fall somewhere between these extremes.

What’s your holiday worth?

Our conclusion was that, factoring in the risk and the amount of precious holiday time spent hanging around for fitting, re-fitting, deliveries, more fitting…we would not do it again. You, as a responsible consumer, should make your own judgment.

(Flickr Creative Commons photo: Kevin N. Murphy)

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Koh Samui – in print

admin — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 09:26:52 +0000

Flickr: jonrawlinson

A round-up of what’s been said or suggested about Koh Samui by the worldwide media in 2010 – it’s not all beaches and palm trees.

Sydney Morning Herald: Solitude, with a side dish of style
The Telegraph: ‘guilty pleasures in Koh Samui’
Condé Nast Traveler: Readers’ spa awards 2010
Fah Thai magazine: Sunday brunch options on Samui

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Mobile Me?

admin — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 18:28:10 +0000

Flickr: Gonzalo Baeza Hernández

Lonely Planet says that 80% of you bring your mobile phones on holiday.

On arrival, easily get connected with a local Samui phone number and pay-as-you-go SIM card. Mobile carriers have SIM cards available at local shops, including convenience stores like 7-11.

So forget roaming rates. Check out our Koh Samui packing list for other ideas about what to safely leave at home.

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Koh Samui restaurant review | “Garland Restaurant” in Choeng Mon

admin — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 09:22:57 +0000

Flickr: jonrawlinson

It’s not hard to see – a holiday in Koh Samui is truly the good life.

While six meals a day would barely get you through the best of a Thai menu, one visit to Garland Restaurant gets you well on your way.

Arrive hungry – and stay awhile.

What makes Choeng Mon’s Garland so special is not the amazing food, but perhaps Samui’s best host. Owner and manager Anun believes his restaurant’s success relies largely on word of mouth, a form of advertising that doesn’t lie.

Samui locals, expats and tourists alike flock to the restaurant each night for Thai food and Anun’s speciality dishes that – pardon our cliché – are quite simply to die for.

Anun is the kind of host who will offer up his own umbrella to patrons leaving in the rain. He cares – and it shows.

Garland is a family affair

Its warm and attentive service rounds out a totally tasty picture.

Located just next to the White House Hotel in Choeng Mon high street.

Perfect for couples, families and big groups.

Read more praise for Garland, featured in our Koh Samui restaurants: top 5 review.

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Need a beach book (or 100) for Koh Samui?

admin — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 09:21:58 +0000

Flickr: Randy Son Of Robert

Are you packing for Koh Samui and find yourself stuck for a good book?

Last summer, NPR compiled a list of the 200 best beach books of all time – which the voting public then whittled to a tidy list of a hundred.

Here are the top 10:

1. The Harry Potter series, by J.K. Rowling
2. To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
3. The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini
4. Bridget Jones’s Diary, by Helen Fielding
5. Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen
6. Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, by Rebecca Wells
7. The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald
8. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, by Douglas Adams
9. Fried Green Tomatoes, by Fannie Flagg
10. The Poisonwood Bible, by Barbara Kingsolver

Read the rest of the list at the NPR.

Second-hand bookshops abound in Koh Samui and we’ve got plenty of our own beach books with which to stock the shelves of our not-quite-finished villa.

Might that irritating boy wizard be less so when read poolside, in our cushioned, shady sala? Quite possibly.

As for the rest of your suitcase

Check out our recommended books about Thailand.
Our Thailand packing checklist is helpful, too.

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Koh Samui islands | Introducing our island neighbour, Koh Som

admin — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 10:44:32 +0000

Flickr: jurvetson

Sitting just across the water from our Samui villa are the little islands of Koh Som and Koh Lum Mu Noi. In the sunset photo atop the page, Koh Som is the larger island on the far right and Lum Mu Noi is slightly to the left.

Koh Som

‘Koh’ – as in ‘Koh Samui’, ‘Koh Phangan’ – means ‘island’. So Koh Som means “Orange Island” (or “Orange Tree Island”). Though uninhabitated, its big stretches of white sand beach are very tempting.

Just 700m from shore to shore, it looks close enough to swim to. Scary, strong undercurrents mean the journey is better made by boat.

Som is just 1 square kilometre in total and is just a few minutes’ boat ride from Samui’s Plai Laem Pier. So it’s a perfect destination if you want to explore another island but haven’t much time – or get seasick. Longboat rides can be arranged to make a visit to the island. The snorkelling is said to be fantastic.

Koh Lum Mu Noi

This is the smaller of the two islands and both are often referred to, collectively, as Koh Som. While Som has a few basic beach bungalows and a small restaurant, Lum Mu Noi is uninhabited. Dense mangroves and rocky cliffs ring the island’s perimetre and, within, live all sorts of native tropical birds.

Sound good?

Visit Plai Laem Pier just a few minutes’ walk from our villa, or Fishermen’s Village to arrange a boat trip.

Want more good ideas for days out? See things to do on Koh Samui
.

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Photography tips for Thailand – how to take better vacation pictures

admin — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 10:21:41 +0000

Flickr: kwanz

Your holiday on Koh Samui will present some of the best photography opportunities imaginable. Food photography, elephants, orchids and maybe even your family, too.

All over Samui, but particularly at sunset, are bright sights you’ll want to remember, to show off on Flickr – to keep forever.

Consider our series of sunset photos, used above and throughout our site. We took them ourselves after lots of practice and – we think – it was absolutely worth the effort.

While Koh Samui sunsets are a subject worthy of lengthy study – a few quick photography tips will make a big difference between mediocre snapshots (that disappoint) and the money shots (the ones that get enlarged and framed).

To help bridge the gap – a few useful links to the wonderful, perpetually helpful Darren Rowse at Digital Photography School:

And, of course, a subject to which we’re rather partial:

12 Tips for Photographing Stunning Sunsets

Subscribe to his blog and find yourself, magically, a better photographer in no time. (And while you’re at it, why not subscribe to ours as well?)

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Choeng Mon beach… ice cream vendors (and a healthy dose of sanuk)

admin — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 10:07:47 +0000

Flickr: jonrawlinson

We saw an endearing and very Thai ploy the other day on Choeng Mon beach.

Beach vendors often patrol the shore with all sorts of yummy things: fresh corn on the cob, ice cream, meat sticks….

As a tourist family – a mum, dad and small toddler – played in the waves together, Ice Cream Man walked right up to the toddler and began his transaction – totally ignoring the parents.

Very cheeky, very funny – very Thai.

No wasted time with “would you like an ice cream?” The parents would have said no.

Instead?

“We all agree that she wants it, we all know she’s going to get it, so let’s get on with it.”

Can’t say no to that.

Cheers to the man who truly knows his target audience.

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How do Samui geckos walk on walls?

admin — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 06:59:18 +0000

Flickr: belgianchocolate

Sit outside for an evening meal or cocktail in Thailand and you’ll quickly spot geckos darting across the walls. They eat mosquitos and other small insects, so they’re very welcome company.

Are geckos’ feet sticky?

No!

Pure magic or straight science? Here’s what to tell the kids.

The bottom of a gecko’s foot has millions of tiny fibres – they’re microscopic – that, together, create a very small electrical charge. This force helps a gecko adhere to any surface they choose, even when upside down.

This discovery is relatively recent – read more and see photos of gecko feet under a microscope on BBC’s Science & Tech.

3 more gecko facts

Worldwide, there are more than 2,000 types of gecko
Almost all types of geckos lack eyelids
Geckos can stick to any surface except Teflon

We think you’ll enjoy watching geckos’ antics during your visit to Koh Samui. If you have a reptile fascination and a strong stomach, the Samui Snake Farm might pique your interest. Read more on our Koh Samui things to do page, under Samui excursions (“Things That Bite”).

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Will we compost? You betcha.

admin — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 20:38:01 +0000

Flickr: Brooke Anderson

Check it out! A fantastic video from lovely Esme in Singapore teaches all you (and we!) need to know to get started composting in the tropics.

We can’t wait for our baby trees to start producing – mangos, papayas & bananas are coming, as are our dragon fruits!