Edith and Stephan have just completed a real adventure trip: From Cologne to Australia without a single flight! Koh Phangan was both stopover and last stay before it went back to Germany.
We wanted to know more about the journey Bumblebees in the ass Bloggers know why and why she moved to Koh Phangan twice!
How did you come up with the idea of traveling to Australia on this adventurous way?
When we started planning our trip, we had different ideas as to what kind of framework we would like to give our trip. That is, on the one hand, the question arose which countries and continents we want to travel. On the other hand, we also wanted to get involved Destination for our journey that goes beyond the actual choice of destination.
We have played through the various modes of transport or, for example, have flirted with the idea of devoting ourselves to a specific task in each of the individual countries. What ultimately remained was our desire to shape the journey in terms of our focus on our previous vacations and trips: slowness! And what is closer than step by step from country to country to go and to experience first hand the smooth transition of cultures?
So we decided the way of our journey without a plane to deny. But, of course, we also wanted to create a certain incentive for ourselves. The challenge was finally to reach the other side of the world only by land and sea. In the beginning, Australia was always just a synonym for that "other side of the world".
You also spent a lot of time in Thailand. Away from Koh Phangan, where did you like it best?
We have been to Thailand many times but still do not know the whole country for a long time. Above all, the north of the country impressed us. And that, even though we have the worst possible travel time between Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai were on the way. In the dry season, almost everything was withered and the beautiful green of the landscapes was denied us. Nevertheless, we have the scooter on the so-called Mae Hong Son Loop very much enjoyed by the mountains.
Completely unexpected then the place has us Father Drawn into his spell. Have we previously been very skeptical about this overcrowded hippie place Looking forward, we really liked the unbelievably relaxed atmosphere in the small town
Was it planned from the outset to head for Koh Phangan 2x?
No, not a bit. Stephan always wanted to go back, but it was not fixed on our trip "Smart Down Under" will happen. After delaying for several months, when our destination Australia finally reached 2018 by land and sea in February, we realized that the Red Continent was starting to get us started.
In the end, we stayed forever, even after we allowed ourselves to fly to New Zealand for a short time. At the end, we had almost two months left on the way back. We have discussed for a long time, played through the pros and cons of certain goals and then decided at some point that we just do not want any new input before we return to Germany after more than two years.
It was only logical for us to choose the place that is very familiar to us on the one hand and on the other offers all the advantages of being able to enjoy the last travel weeks in Asia to the fullest.
Tell a little about your "everyday life" on the island. There are always tourists who do not know what to do with their time here 😉
Koh Phangan offers the visitor unbelievably many, varied facets. The special thing about this island is that on the one hand it is visited by numerous tourists, but the (thank goodness!) Still missing airport leads to the fact that almost no hotel castles and huge concrete blocks have spread here.
Koh Phangan still has many hundreds of square meters of green and pristine jungle, hiking and small dream bays. Sometimes we just got on our scooter and set off without a goal to marvel at the surroundings. Maybe cheesy in some eyes - we loved watching the sun go down regularly on our favorite beach in Haad Yao to enjoy.
There we also stayed in the first year and the walking distance to the free live music session in the Rasta Home used. On the west side of the island are various alternative live music places as well as the Jam bar or reggae bars.
Until the south of the island there is no lack of infrastructure. Restaurants and bars can be found everywhere in the larger towns or on the beaches. And if you prefer to live on a secluded beach, you will also discover this for you. Especially the very small bays in the east are very quiet. In addition, Koh Phangan's Yoga Mecca is par excellence. Detox and meditation centers and restaurants with healthy food sprout up in the air. So if you are on your self-discovery trip, you will meet many like-minded people here.
Koh Phangan also has a very diverse food scene and not just classic tourist restaurants. A plus for a holiday island are the small, simple restaurants that also visit the locals. We also love food markets and accordingly, we have steadily improved our daily offer on the Panthip Foodmarket or the Walking Street delicacies on Saturday in Thong Sala feasted. Wonderful again and again is the Thai BBQ in the Big Mountain between Sri Thanu and Haad Yao.
The reason for our long stay on the island was Stephan's Training as a divemaster, As a result, our daily routine has been astonishingly structured and also, to a certain extent, routine. We rented a small house, met people, closed new, sometimes close contacts, invited friends. I went to yoga almost every morning and incidentally helped out at the diving school office on a regular basis.
However, what kept us on Koh Phangan was also a big part of our local life: diving. Of course we went on the boat as often as possible and were able to do so many times Sail Rock, the best spot in the Gulf of Thailand. The encounters with tremendously many Whale Sharks never became common. The gliding between thousands of big and small fish in huge schools of barracudas, trevallys, batfish etc. - we were downright intoxicated.
With so much travel experience: Why are you referring to Phangan as your adopted home? In your opinion, what makes the island different from other places in Thailand or from other islands that you visited during your travels?
Maybe it's just the right mix of foreign culture and western influence, paired with still untouched nature. And that makes Koh Phangan so unique. There are so many tourists here, but as we have already described, this island is still not overrun and blocked, In addition, I also have the opportunity to live cheap and "normal".
You can rent houses here, have big supermarkets and fresh street markets, good hospitals and dentists. The island is not too big and not too small and is simply diverse.
Where is it going next?
That's still in the stars ... 🙂
You can find more of Edith and Stephans Reisen on her blog Bumblebees in the ass!
