Lanta Old Town

Today I gathered up my courage and agreed with Brenda that renting a scooter to tour the island would be a good idea. It costs less than $8.00/day, including helmets, which is much less expensive than local taxis. The fact that I had not driven a scooter since the late 80's and have never driven on the left side of the road gave me pause, but I gritted my teeth and soldiered on.

It turned out to be an excellent decision.

After a detailed briefing on its operation, I took the bike out for a couple of laps outside our hotel. When I felt well enough at ease to invite my favorite biker chick, Brenda, to climb on behind me and we set off on our adventure. Slowly at first, but faster and faster as I gained confidence. Despite my bravado, I didn't let my "Hardly" Davidson run any faster than 60 km/h.

We crossed the mountains to the other side of the island to explore Koh Lanta's Old Town, one of it's original fishing villages. Comprised entirely of clapboard houses with corrugated tin roofs and built on stilts, it is a fully functioning town that offers a glimpse into the islands past.

We stopped for lunch at the Shine Talay Restaurant where we dined on Fried morning glory, spicy tofu, glass noodles and fried rice. Yum. All for the price of one dish back home.

The two Easy Riders then left Old Town thinking we'd tour some of the beaches on the southwest coast. Unfortunately, at 2:00 PM the sun was so strong and the temperature so high, we had to abandon our exploration and leave it for another day.

Who knew I had to travel to Koh Lanta to find out I was born to be wild?Read more