Island Time in Koh Chang
February 19th, 2023 It took us about 14 hours to get from Tuy Hoa to Koh Chang, and we arrived at our homestay at 630 PM on a Sunday night. This was my first trip to Thailand since my childhood (I only remember the plane ride), and I was so excited to visit the country, especially as two of the ladies I admire so much – Cindy and Pat- are Thai American. Our family also loves Thai food and was ready to try it in its authentic form. We stayed in a small community on the beach, comprised of about 18 homes, half of which are full-time vacation rentals. The community had traditional Thai architecture, and the house's interior had a modern but rustic feel. We had two large king bedrooms and a twin room upstairs that the kids used for a play/party planning place. The house also had a pool, a sandy area, and two large decks for outdoor dining. We felt as if we were on the North Shore in Hawaii as the community was nestled on the quiet side of the island between the sea and mountains. Since we were remote, there was only one restaurant within walking distance. It was run by a family; the son had taken over as head chef from his mom one year ago. She has operated the restaurant for 10 years. On our first morning, I walked there and brought home breakfast for the family. We had cappuccinos, squid and rice (my mom and I), fried eggs and rice (Abby), and omelets with rice (Drew and Lincoln). Jum, who lived in the neighborhood, was the property manager for our and several other residences. She came by the first morning, and we chatted about her recent trip to Vietnam, my mom's town of Tuy Hoa, and the island. She was so kind and getting to know her was terrific. She is already planning a trip to Tuy Hoa, as she researched the city after our conversation. Between Abby's injury and the fantastic house, we saw little reason to venture out too much with the entire family. So Drew rented a scooter from Jum, and we made food and grocery runs throughout the week. We brought home Thai street food (grilled fish, meat, rice), restaurant dishes (more grilled fish, squid, shrimp, curries, fried rice, and pad thai), and street gyros (some of the best Drew’s ever had). Jum informed us there was going to be a planned halt to electricity during working hours Thursday. We spent the afternoon outside swimming, so it wasn't too big of an issue. However, when at 5 PM the electricity and water were still out, we were curious if something unexpected had happened. Sure enough, Jum informed us that the cable supply power to our community was accidentally affected when the city was performing routine maintenance on trees by the power lines.
Jum and her staff quickly showed us where to get non-potable water (which was easy since we had the pool) to get through the night until the cable was repaired. They also brought in solar lights from outside and candles. We glamped that night in the house, and when, in the morning, the city could not provide a definitive time for repair, we decided to move to a hotel for our last night. Jum fully understood and expressed her appreciation for our kindness throughout the situation. Many other tenants were upset about a problem out of her control. She helped us arrange a taxi to our new location, and the owner of our Airbnb refunded our last night and paid for the cab. Jum also arranged our taxi for the following morning back to the mainland, as we had one night in Bangkok before flying back to Vietnam. Jum and all of the Thai people we encountered were so kind, and as my friend Pat taught me, we were sure to hold our hands together as if praying and bow whenever we entered or left a store or restaurant, saying “Sawasdee Ka” (hello) and “Khob Khun Ka" (thank you). Thailand, for us, was like being in Hawaii but more laid back and rural, and we enjoyed the food just as much or better for a fraction of the price. It was fun to tour around the island with Drew and see the more touristy sides, but it was hard to beat the tranquility of our homestay. Drew loved the scooter so much that he said we are getting one when we return home!
Our first home in Koh Chang
We found a LEO bottle cap in the bushes and had to have a few more in honor of my Dad and Abigail Leona's namesake!
Top Resort, where we spent our last night on the island. Lincoln swam on his own for the first time at the pool here! The kids decorated in short time as is there M.O.
Our journey back to the mainland