We took another drive south to check the progress of the condo. This time we stayed right in Hua Hin, one of Thailand's oldest beach resort towns.
This is a Café Amazon at a PTT filling station in Pak Chong. We stopped for cappuccino.
Rim Khuen restaurant in Samut Songkhram. We stopped for lunch. Good food. Good price. Very typical of roadside restaurants along Thai highways.
Baan Thew Talay
The condo. Work started in April. They are now up to the eighth floor. Our unit is on the 7th floor.
Abandoned boat on the beach.
The beach pool and club at Baan Thew Talay.
I've always wanted to stay in the old Railway Hotel in Hua Hin. It first opened in the 1920s, but fell into disrepair in the 60s. It was completely restored in the 80s and 90s and is now known as the Centara Grand. The hotel appears in the film, The Killing Fields.
The rooms are beautiful.
Great gardens.
Interesting topiary.
Including this giant topiary elephant.
Happy Hour at the beach.
The buffet breakfast is huge.
This is The Museum restaurant. The hotel lobby was originally here. It is now a tea and coffee shop decorated with mementos of the hotel's past.
I did a few days of diving at Losin and Koh Kra and then met up with Mam on Koh Samui for a few days of fun and relaxation.
Good Morning Losin!
Losin is the name of the rock with the lighthouse on top. It doesn't look like much from the surface, but the dive site is huge, with several submerged sea mounts that offer great diving. Almost no one comes here. We had the site all to oursleves.
This Thai fishing boat came to trade fuel for fish.
We had some lovely sashimi.
Koh Kra on the left, Hin Sung on the right with Hin Rue the small rock in front. This is also a rarely-visited, but very nice dive site.
Koh Kra has a nice beach which is a turtle nesting site.
The boat I was on is the Scuba Explorer run by Samui Diving Services. This is the lounge with tour leader Marcie in the blue t-shirt. This is a mainly Japanese operation. I've been out with them three times now. I'm usually the only Western customer.
Panorama of our approach to Koh Samui. This trip departed from Songkhla in Thailand's south and ended at Koh Samui, an island that is very popular with tourists.
Dive Trip Video
Losin and Koh Kra - July 2013
This is a brief (7 minute) video of the dive trip.
After the dive trip I met Mam on Koh Samui. We stayed at the Crystal Bay Beach Resort. This is the view from the room.
The hotel is right on the beach at Ao Thong Takien, one of the nicest beaches on Koh Samui. The sand is soft and clean. The water is clear. There are enough corals and fishes to make snorkeling interesting.
The beach is dotted with big boulders like this. The snorkeling is quite nice around these huge rocks.
Panorama of Ao Thong Takien.
That's our hotel, on the right.
Mam
Snorkeling Samui and Ang Thong
Short (3 minute) video of snorkeling on Koh Samui and at Mu Ko Ang Thong National Marine Park.
Well, we bought a condo in Cha Am, which is about 200K south of Bangkok. We drove down to sign the sales contract. It should be done in about a year....
We stopped for lunch along the way at ข้าวแกงบ้านต้นสน แม่กลอง. This was a pretty funky place with good food.
This is the beach at south Cha Am. The condo site is about 2K up the beach.
Always lots of fresh seafood to enjoy. Squid on the left, stir fried crab on the right.
This is the "Beach Club" part of the condo. Lots of progress since out last visit.
Mam on the beach at Ao Takiab, a few kilometers south of Hua Hin.
Chao Lay Seafood in Hua Hin is a popular seaside dining spot that has been there forever.
Shrimp and squid
Yes, Cha Am is getting a Venice-themed shopping center...
Breakfast at Beach Garden Hotel.
On the way home Mam bought some mackerel.
They also sold sea salt which is harvested nearby.
Lucky me. Hua Hin Ham & Bacon sells imported British beer.
