Just 12 month passed by since my last visit.but Mea Had, "the market" doubled in size. All the way up to
Tee Yadong they are building bars, one as boring as the other. Its just a question of time, when you will find the first girls sitting ouside, begging for your attention.
Exceptions are the releaxed "Safty Stop", a divers hangout, two doors left of Ko Taos main pier, and the whitening bar at the very end ( 200 meters) on the other side of Mae Had.
Exi, manager of Safty Stop, plays an inspired selection of music, which truly fits into the landscape. A visit for your sundowner during happy hour at Safty Stop is highly recommended.
whitening bar is very lively and very Thai, specially at later hours. Run by two Bangkok artist, its a perfect place to make new friends and/or to sink the night away. Extremely friendly, helpfull, funny
Ko Tao now has a Burger and Sandwich Bar, Mexican Food, a Pizzeria, German Food, a Swiss Bakery and so on. To find good Thai Food, you must have a close look.
Exeption: Mae Had Seafood, maybe 100 metres down the so far only "street" on the other side of the pier than Safty Stop. There are many other Restaurants which look quite inviting. No suitors so far, but go until you see the Mea Had Seafood sign.
Chalok Ban Kao
Also highly recommended is OY ( OY-shop) direct at the road 2 km south of Mae Had, at Chalok Ban Kao
First class curries go for 20! Baht from 7 h in the morning.
All local taxidriver get their ahan chao ( breakfast) at OY's. Even the resort owners, who can't stand their own food eat at Oy's.
In the evening you can hang out with local Thais, improve your Thai, eat wonderful spicy fishcakes ( tod man pla), and chase them down with large! Changs for just 50 baht. A large Mekong goes for 175 Baht, ice extra. Read what Tommy writes about Dawii
one of the lads
hanging at Oy.
Who wants to live even on holidays in a rowhouse should stay at Bungalow/Supermarket cluster of Sunshine Bungalow 1 and 2 and Budddha View). Its built for divers who don't need much more than a pillow.Cheap and friendly plus abeachbar.
Almost at the very end of the beach you find Tommy's favorite hangout, AUD'S Barread more about it
Further on,Tatoo bungalow offers nicely located, somehow remote bungalows. Food is not recomended there ( owner eats at Oy-shop), and beer is expensive, some people of the stuff are friendly,though. But just one hill behind Tatoo you find "Freedom Beach", a nice, shady, relaxed beach strip. ( hang your hammmock between the mangroves and play Robinson Crusoe). The Restaurant on top of the hill offers what you need to survive.( same owner as Tatoo)
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The next bay, the locals call it Had (beach) Thian or Ao (bay) Thian, you find the "super cream beach", maybe the most beautiful bay on the island.It's a private property and the owner, Weela, and his wife Lek, are doing nothing until now to cash in. Next to there beautiful. perfectly located, traditional, private house, they run a small hut, where you can rent snorkling gear for 50 baht or grab some cold drinks. Big hearted Weela, but do not mess with him!
He is friendly but not stupid and very powerful.
Overlooking the whole scene is NEW HEAVEN Restaurant, run by New Heaven Divers.
New Heaven features particulary deicious Thai seafood in a beautiful setting overlooking the whole bay. If you can get off your shoes , a visit is in order.
At the end of Ao Thian, you find "Rocky Resort which I don't recommend anymore, since Mama and Papa ( he greated everybody in the morning with:"good money" ) have retired. Though the staff is still friendly, these greedy suckers dared to build a super ugly supermarket!, for all theese munchies and crunchies and softdrinks, which travellers like so much, when they are the first time so far from mum and dad, right in front of this paradiese bay. Another case of TiT ( This is Thailand).
Also Sairi Beach 2 km north of Mae Had goes upmarket. It seams to copy the development of Had Rin on Ko Pha Ngan. The shore is already cramped with bungalows and beachbars, from which two are somehow outstanding. It's the Venus Bar, with a truely psycodelic interior and the more basic Asia Bar , run by Asia Divers, which also sells Yaa Dong,the traditional Thai whiskey. A large Chang goes for 60 bees.
I didn't find the time to explore the other side of the island, but it's more remote. Kiet has a new name and management, in the old days it used to be a pothead hideout.
Anyway, when it comes to this subject, don't try to be smarter than the locals, there isn't more to say.
Comming to the end I want to recommend the resort I spent most of the time this year while on Ko Tao.
It's called Sensi- Paradise. Sensi seams to be some kind of abbreviation, while paradisee everybody understands. They are not cheap, but at the end of the season I could grab a very beautiful wooden bungalow, with a truly clean bath, which usually goes for 850 bees just for 500, also not cheap, but very good value. They change the blankets and towels almost every day. Beautiful garden,birds, nice beach view and so on.
If you follow the foopath out of Sensi you come to Coral Beach, also very nice and something cheaper.
If you still continue and climb a little up and down you, you pass a garbage pile and come to a rowhous-resort on the beach, which name I forgot, but when you still continue, you come to Jansom Bay, a small, but beautiful and impressing beach, with just one bar, run by Chao Leh, ( sea gipsies). Friendly, funny, paradiese. They also have some bungalows for rent. Had a good time there.
(all the distance from Mea had to Jansom Bay are shurly less than 2 km)
Even the most beautiful paradise will become sad if you don't find friends.I have friends on Koh Tao.
As long I have my friends here I always will come back, whatever will happen.
truly your's
chang noi
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