Wanderlust: Expat Life & Style in Thailand December 2014 / January 2015 | Page 41

Life & Travel
We were ready to venture off into
the unknown— maybe to Bali,
India, or Laos— until my employer
presented us with the opportunity
to live on Koh Samui for three
months. Get paid to live on Koh Samui.
Whilst this idea was appealing
at first, the image people
had painted of Samui was of an overpopulated, extremely touristic island
that had long lost its original Thai
charm. We wanted to leave Bangkok
to be surrounded by mountains
and beaches; however, we were
not interested in overcrowded,
touristy areas.
After weighting up both sides
of the argument, my partner
and I opted to give Samui
the benefit of the doubt.
It couldn’t be that bad, could
it? As long as we were close
to the beach, it had to be better
than being suffocated by concrete.
Upon arriving, I couldn’t believe
our good luck when we quickly
managed to secure a two-bedroom

beach house via Airbnb. After living
in a 32 sqm condo in Bangkok,
with our only view a pink neon
sign advertising the apartment
block rather hopefully called
“Hopeland,”we now had a twobedroom beach house nestled
amongst the trees with ocean
views to die for. My partner
laughed as I spent the first few days
running from room to room,
up and down stairs, and embracing
every ounce of space and natural
light. I could barely stop
myself from shouting“Yippee!”
at the top of my lungs!
Next we rented a moped
and began to explore the island.
We bypassed the usual touristy
spots, such as Chaewang, Lamai,
and Bophut. These places,
whilst touristy, were nowhere
near as bad as the picture
we had painted in our heads.
We continued searching and found
our way to the beautiful beaches
down the southern point

of the island, tucked around
the sleepy fishing village of Thong
Krut. As we drove around the island,
I was surprised to see a variety
of healthy restaurants, yoga salas,
and beautiful beaches. As a yogafood-beach-loving individual,
it was like all my Christmases
had come at once.
We were pleasantly surprised
to find Samui actually has many
hidden charms. The “problem” areas
we were warned of are concentrated
to a small part of Thailand’s second
largest island. Returning home
to our beach house after our first
day of exploring, we couldn’t stop
smiling. We sat on our balcony,
watching the sun dip below
the horizon—while sipping on fresh
coconuts, of course—and I felt
an inner calmness I had not felt
in Bangkok. I realized then and there
that I had fallen in love with Samui
and couldn’t be happier to call this
place home.

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