Revised March 7, 2006. Revised November 5, 2006. Revised April 1, 2007, 26 July 2007, September 18, 2007 and February 5, 2010.
Copyright 1998-2010 by John W. Allen







KOH SAMUI PART TWO

June 8-9, 2008



After returning to Bangkok where we will spend the eveing, the following afternoon we will visit Kosarn Road in Banlumphu, the European district and market place. During this visit, you may street shop and treat yourself to a lunch of Thai food while I arrangements for our trip south to Koh Samui Island for our train and ferry boat excursions possibly by Hydrafoil.

In the evening, we will will travel in sleeper cars to Surat Thani province 680 kilometers south of Bangkok. Each person will have his and/or her own private sleeper. Train meals are not included in the tour. However, at every stop along the way, dozens of children hawking foods will board the train to sell you a meal. 1/4 chickens on a stick are usually about .50 cents U.S.



August 2006
We will be staying at the Samui Beach Resort in Lamai Beach on the East side of Koh Samui. In the morning, we will visit rice paddies at Ban Lipa Yai and later visit the famous Grandfather and Grandmother rocks of Hinta Hinyai. These two images below are composed of limestone and granite and are millions of years old.







After leaving Hinta Hinyai, we will motor to Na Maung water falls. Here we can freshen by going for a swim in the falls. Later on we will visit the Hin Lad falls pictured in the second image.





In the afternoon we will forage for mushrooms in some of the various rice paddies situated throughout the island. The first four images are specimens of Psilocybe cubensis which were deposited at the Herbarium in Bangkok.





The fifth and Sixth image are some specimens of one of three species of Copelandia cyanescens, indigenous to the region.



And below are four photo images of the new species which I discovered, Psilocybe samuiensis Guzmán, Bandala and Allen.




August 2006
On the next morning we will go to Ban Nathon and later visit Wat Khunorum. There is a monk entombed in a glass display in a yoga position who predicted the day he would die. And so he did, right on schedule. And he mummified himself by going into a trance.
His aura was so intense that no bacteria entered his body there by causing self preservation. He is on display in a glass tomb at this wat on Koh Samui.

In these islands, the water is so unbelievably warm and there are no man eating sharks in the Gulf of Siam. Evening swims are fantastic and the sunsets on Koh Samui and its sister companion Koh Phagnan are the most beautiful in the world. We can also swim at the poolside by the restaurant at our resort.
Just check out the images below of some of the sunsets from Koh Phanghan and Koh Samui.






We will also spend an hour or more at the coolest place on Koh Samui Island known as Ka Boehm (pronounced as boom) and known to tourists as The Tarnim Magic Gardens, situated at about 400 meters above Sea Level on the top of a mountain overlooking a Military Base. Now the name might imply a park, but this is a place of beauty and what is unique about this magic place are the millions of locust who are emiting their mating calls which revererate and echo to and fro from mountain top ridge to ridge. A most awesome cacophony of sound waves bouncing in rythm to your heart beat.


Sometimes we have attended the world famous Full Moon Festival, to get there we had travel by ferry boat and/or Hydrofoil to Koh Phangan Island (1 hour and 12 kilometers North of Koh Samui). Below is an image of our approach to East Had Rin Beach resort and the second image is Bottle Beach on the North end of Koh Phangan. The third image is a bungalow I stayed at where some tourist painted the album cover of Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon" on the front wall of the bungalow





On this day we will visit Big Buddha on the North end of Koh Samui Island. The first two images were taken 6 months apart.




Final Koh Samui Itinerary
Today we can spend the morning swimming and preparing for our trip back to Bangkok. In the afternoon, we will be provided transportation from our Resort to the ferry boat where we will sail on a hydrafoil to Surat Thani and then take a night train ride back to Bangkok.

June 16th of 2008
This is the day of Departure for some or all of our group. I thank you all for participating in this grand adventure to a world which is like another planet. We will arrive in Bangkok at approximately 7 AM in the morning and each can make their own travel arrangements to the airport or some may stay and hang with me for a while, but will have to pay their own hotel and meals.


Cambodian Itinerary

 

June 4, 2008 This morning we will depart for the Cambodian city of Xiem Riap. On this trip we will traveled most uncomfortably during the day by Mini-Van to the Cambodian border. This is actually a rather a comfortable ride of about three long to the border. This part of our excursion can last anywhere from 5 to 8 hours of by minivan on an overland and sometimes uncomfortable trip other tourists. What makes the trip uncomfortable are the millions of potholes in the road on the way to the temples at Xiem Riap. Once there, we will stay at the Jasmine Hotel owned and operated by my friend Mr. Van Kunn. June 5, 2008 What we have planned for this 3rd segment of our tour includes this five day trip into the jungle regions of Xiem Reap, Kampuchea where we will visit several of the Khemer temples built between the 8th and 12th century A.D. During this 5 day trek we will enjoy visiting these ancient ruins and hopefully collect several varieties of mushrooms for spore prints. Most likely we will be helped by various children who suddenly appear from out of nowhere to assist us for a small reward. Each participant will have his own motor cycle and English Speaking Guide for rides to the various Temples. One beautiful temple is the ancient ruins of Ta Proehm where Lara Croft: Tomb Raider was filmed. As noted above, during this trip to Cambodia, we will constantly be on the lookout for mushrooms. Although we will make prints, I am the only one allowed to bring the mushroom specimens back to Bangkok for deposit at the University. At around 8 in the morning we will began our visit of Angkor Wat, Angkor Bayon and Angkor Thom and several others. Remember to carry American dollars, at least one hundred are necessary for the trip, of which $40.00 will be used to purchase your three-day entry fee to the ancient temples of Angkor. We will all have our own personal guides to assist us and takes us to the Temples deep in the jungles of Cambodia. There are mushrooms growing in and around all of the temples and this makes for an interesting few days. At the moment the mushrooms are not illegal and very few tourists know of their existense at the temples.However, the local vendor children hawking souviniers to tourists will come and offer picking assistence to the tourists for a few rials (cambodian money). June 8, 2008 Today our group will leave early in the morning at about 7:00 AM for our return trip to Bangkok. And the next day we will on June 9, 2008 we will head to Koh Samui Island. June 9, 2008 Well today is the day some of you will be returning to Seattle and other destinations. Planes will depart at Don Muang International Airport. For those of you who are leaving I should mention that like in Jules Verne's "Around the World in Eighty Days," you too will be crossing the international dateline, thus gaining a full day when you return home. You will actually arrive in Seattle one and a half hours before you board your plane in Bangkok on the day before. airport taxi fees are covered in the tour. A word of caution. Please do not smuggle any Buddha images out of Thailand. They have to be approved of by T. A. T. (Tourist of Thailand Authority). Have a pleasant trip and thank you for your participation in this journey

 

A FEW NOTES ON PRIORITIES 1. Don't forget to obtain anti-malaria pills before your trip. You should start taking them two weeks prior to leaving the United States and for two weeks after returning home. However, I should mention that we will not be traveling or staying in areas with high rates of malaria or cerebral malaria so if you like, you can wait and purchase them in Bangkok where they are very cheap ($60.00 in the USA for 12 pills, 4 dollars in Bangkok). It will be rainy season when we arrive and we may even have a monsoon run into us during our trip. Do not worry. They can be quite interesting. Most rains, except the first one comes in daily waves of two to three hours a day, or night, depending on the time of the year. 2. Very little clothing or luggage is needed for your trip. While in Thailand you will probably purchase many items before returning home. Large cloth hand bags made from hemp fibers are available throughout Thailand at about $3.00 to $6.00 per. If you need rain-gear, purchase it in Thailand. It will only cost you about $2.00 to $4.00 there. 3. Unless you use digital cameras, bring your own film. It is cheaper to buy your film at home in the U.S or in Europe. However it is cheaper to develop your film in Thailand and they do double prints and give you photo albums free with your developing. For those of you who do bring digital cameras, I have friends on both Koh Samui Island and in Cambodia where computer use is cheaper for me and my companions than for the average tourists. 4. A visa is not required unless you plan to stay more than 30 days. Since the excursion is 17 days there is no need for a Thai visa. If you stay over thirty days there is a five dollar a day charge at the airport when you leave or at the border. Since we go to Cambodia first after the Bangkok stay, we will get a new thirty day extension free. After the 17 day excursion is over, I work with a University in Bangkok for several weeks and if anyone wants to stay and have some further travels, shroom hunting or visiting different sites or regions, you may stey but then you pay your own cost of living expenses. As noted above, there is a $20.00 U.S. fee for a Visa to Cambodia. I take care of obtaining the Visas but payment is up to the individual who is going, as is the $40.00 entrance fee to Angkor Wat for a 3-day pass. 5. Always carry your passport and travelers checks with you. Each individual is required to bring three color laser photo copies of his or her passport photo and identification page. Two are foryour Cambodian visa and one is used for motorcycle rentals. This is also good in case of emergencies or lost passports and for when I rent your motorcycles. Although the cycles are rented in my name, the person who uses each bike is responsible for any damges and/or repairs to their bikes. The extra passport laser page can be helpful. Each person should bring approximately $200.00 to $500.00 for personal expenses, gifts, etc., Try not to over tip hotel, bungalow, or taxi and tuk-tuk personal. They will inform others that you are very generous and you will be plagued by their constant offer to assist you. 6. Thai money conversion is relatively very simple. Their units are the Baht. 1 baht = 4 cents U. S.; 5 baht = 20 cents. Thai bank notes are 10 baht = .40 cents; 20 baht = .80 cents; 100 baht = $2.50; 500 baht = $12.50; and 1000 baht = $25.00. In exchange, $100.00 U.S. travelers checks will exchange for approximately 4000-4200 baht. Because of a collapse in Asian economy the Thai exchange rate is now at $100.00 U.S. dollars to 3700 to 4200 baht. So your dollars may be worth less or more. In Cambodia we will spend either Thai money or Americian Dollars. The Cambodian money is virtually worthless. I usually bring 100 - one dollar U.S. bills to Cambodia with me. There are also no ATM machines in Xiem Riap. Only at the Thai border. 7. A few Don'ts. Do not pat any Thai person with whom you are not intimate with on the head. This is considered the highest part of the body. Do not point at anyone with your feet, especially the monks. Your feet are considered the lowest part of your body. Do not shake hands with your left hand. This is the hand you wipe with and it would offend the Thai's. If anyone goes for a ride in any kind of vehicle (tuk-tuk, samlor, taxi, motorcycle, etc.), always barter the price before you get into the vehicle. You can usually get the rides for half of what the seller offers. This is true for any merchandise you might want to purchase in Thailand. Make sure the drivers of Taxi's use their meters. They are not all honest and drive long ways around. Thus demand the meter>. You can go abotu 30 mileson two to three dollars U.S. in Thailand 8. Total coast is $2450.00 for 17-18 days. A deposit of $1200.00 U.S must be received no later than March 31, 2008. This covers your round trip airfare to and from Seattle to Thailand and back. If you make your own travel arrangements to Bangkok from other locations, your cost for the 17 day tour will be $2,450.00 U. S, minus $800.00 for airfare to and from Seattle to Bangkok and back. The balance of the deposit must be paid no later than May 1, 2008. Some make their own air arrangements from frequent flyer miles, etc. Trip includes: bungalows, hotels, tours, railway and ferry services, Meals are included at Hotel and Bungalow resorts only. All transportation including motorcycle rentals are included. This includes the Cambodia run. The $20.00 Cambodian Visa is paid by the participant as is the $40.00 3-day pass entrance fee to Angkor Wat, Cambodia.

 

All travel arrangements are made with either Canadian Airlines, Korean Airlines, China Airlines and/or Bangkok Airlines, including Thai interpreters, bungalows, hotels, tours, railway and ferry services are already confirmed. Meals are included at Hotel and Bungalow resorts only. All transportation including motorcycle rentals are included. This includes the Cambodia run (the visa fee ($20.00) and the 3-day pass to the temples at Angkor Wat, Cambodia ($40.00) are extra). Thank you for your interest in Exotic Forays. Cordially yours, John W. Allen Exotic Forays P. O. Box 45164 Seattle, Washington, 98105 E-Mail: mjshroomer1@yahoo.com If you have any comments, suggestions or questions, please feel free to write or e-mail and ask.

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