Ban's Diving Resort, Koh Tao, Day 1

After another sleepless night sweating in the boiling room, we are very excited to finally use our free nights in a posh hotel. We check out, saying bye to the nice family who run the place, and get a quick brunch of an enormous plate of fried rice from JT's to give us the energy to tackle the 2km walk.
Luckily, it is rather overcast as we set off and the walk is a lot more comfy then the first one on the island. It makes it all the better to know we are heading to the promised land of air conditioning and a kettle with free tea and coffee.
As we arrive we are ushered into a large reception area, and we are allowed to check in early as the room is empty and clean. We walk a small distance before we are picked up by a small golf buggy type mahine. The driver takes us up hills and around bends as we exchange worried glances about where we are going. When we finally stop we are shown into a lovely room that kind of makes us forget the last two nights! It is so nice we don't want to leave, and we spend a while relaxing in the coolness and comfort. The islands are great, but your hotel money doesn't go as far as it does inland, so it is nice to get out of dingy rooms for a night.
After chilling out for a bit we go out and enjoy a drink and some snacks on a beachside bar. We are right on Sairee beach now, which is the main area for tourists on Koh Tao. The beach is a mile long stretch of soft sand, with a lot more going on compared to the places we saw yesterday. After eating we have a wander around the town to stock up on supplies of sun cream and bug spray, and plan a few places to have some beers tonight. It doesn't seem we will be short of options!
As night comes, we have a nice meal in a lovely restaurant as we watch people getting soaked in the storm that has suddenly come on outside. By the time we have finished it is dry, and we wander to a pub where some very drunk men are playing pool.
We then head to the beach and watch a fire show. It is a rather awkward one, but the beer is cheap and we get to sit on the beach which is always nice on a night. After a few beers we head off to stop at one last bar before home. We find a small place selling bucketa of rum and coke for 150 baht (just under 4 quid) which we can't turn down. After a few of these we find ourselves at the small bar with two Irish couples. I am placed in charge of the music, and my first choice, sultans of swing (always), goes down as well as if Mark Knopfler himself has risen from the swimming pool on a stage armed with a backing band and a stratocaster. The two Irish men are clearly drunker then their female counterparts, and lead the singing and dancing very loudly. One of them nails an electric guitar like a pro!
Time and buckets fly by, and when we eventually drag ourselves away, it is already the early hours of the morning. We grab a burger (tuna for the veggie) and head back to the room. Air con plus rum means we are both in for a good nights sleep!Læs mere