Tuesday, April 1
Today the ship anchored off the coast of Koh Samui because it is too large to dock and this means the dreaded "tender routine" - the bugbear of cruising. We decided not to rush as the tendering process always moves those on pre-booked ship's excursions first so, after a leisurely breakfast, we made our way to the mustering point, got our tender ticket and were told the wait would be about 45 minutes - ugh! Thankfully, local vessels were being used as well as our own tenders so the wait wasn't too long.
On a local "tender" vessel
As there was also a Princess cruise ship in port, Nathon was buzzing. It is a typical Asian port town full of clothing shops all selling the same shirts, pants, handbags, etc. and restaurants touting "free wifi" that turned out to be even slower than the ship's - something we thought to be impossible. One tailor shop tickled our fancy with the sample suit in the window - a more ill-fitting garment would be difficult to find. The town also sported more of the amazingly bad overhead wiring that we have seen in other Asian ports. How anyone can ever work out where each wire goes is beyond us - it all seems like a huge tangle with great rolls of wire wound up at the end and left hanging from the lampposts. We bemoan some of the stringent rules governing electrical installations in Australia, but how thankful we should be.
The welcome mat!
You too could be the proud owner of a suit made to measure!
Some of the overhead wiring
We spent an hour or so mooching around the town looking in shops and at a temple/shrine, etc. then ordered coffee in a restaurant so we could use their wifi, only to find the signal too weak. We moved to another bar and had a little more success there but the signal was not strong enough to post the blogs from the last couple of days. Technology is great but it can be very tiresome when you are travelling. As we had to be back on board by 2.30pm ready for sailing at 3.00pm, we decided to head back to queue for tenders at the dock.
A temple in Koh Samui
When we first arrived in Koh Samui the island was shrouded in mist and as we got off the tender, it started to pour but by the time we returned to the dock, the sun was out and it was really hot. The local vessels were certainly not air-conditioned and they also crammed more people in than we felt comfortable about (with visions of ferries overturning in our minds) so we were very glad to return to our nice cool ship safe and sound. We would both like to return to Koh Samui for a holiday but go to the other side of the island where all the lovely beaches, etc. are located. Today with the tender constraints there just wasn't the time to do it justice. We love the Thai people who are always so polite and welcoming so know we would like to see more of this place.
Tomorrow is our 33rd Wedding Anniversary so we have booked into the specialty restaurant on board - "The Pinnacle Grill" - for a celebratory dinner tonight. We have two days from tomorrow in Laem Chabang - the port for both Bangkok and Pattaya - so may not be back on board for dinner on our actual anniversary. We love The Pinnacle Grill and always do at least one dinner and lunch there per cruise. The food is excellent and, as the name implies, the emphasis is on grills. We also love their lobster bisque and they do the lightest soufflés so we almost don't need to read the menu! The service is always impeccable and they make us feel very special so who could ask for more!
Dinner in The Pinnacle Grill
Posted with Blogsy
No comments:
Post a Comment