31st March, 2008

Today's weather;

A near blue sky with a current temp of 25.7C at 7 am looks like it's going to be another steaming hot day and the quicksilver will only creep up during April!

Yesterday was sunny and hot with a max temp in the lower thirties.

Camille

Goodbye to March 2008

Goodbye to March 2008

A day early, but nonetheless time to say goodbye to the March 2008 edition.

This March didn't start out nicely. It was merely continuing the bad weather patch we had during February and for March that was a very unusual weather pattern. Although the rainy season 'officially' isn't over until March, it was rather very unusual having such a bad weather patch during that time of the year.

There was a lot of rain and not so much sunshine. Half way through March things turned around for the better though and from than onwards it's been the good old sun turning up the heat and every day has seen lots of sunshine and temperature in the lower 30C zone.

Things look god for April coming up, usually the hottest month of the year on Samui!

Camille

30th March, 2008

Today's weather;

An almost perfect blue sky is out and about with a current temp at 7 am of 26C.

Yesterday was sunny and hot again with a max temp of 30.6C.

Today I'm starting an IDC Staff Instructor course, to be followed by the actual IDC, starting on Monday. Updates can be followed on my dive blog.

Camille

Swiss pharmacy in Lamai?

Located this sign in Lamai.

First impression may seem to be that everything is right with the sign, but have a good second look!

Sometimes I wonder if Thais can get anything right, this sure looks like a Swiss pharmacy to me.

Located yesterday on the ringroad in Lamai.

Camille

29th March, 2008

Today's weather;

A near blue sky is reigning this morning with an astonishing 29.5C at 7 am.

Yesterday was warm, once more with a max temp of 30.5C.

Camille

27th March, 2008

Today's weather;

Fairly cloudy but with plenty of blue spots and sunshine this morning. At 7 am it's 28.3C.

Yesterday was more of the same, sunny and hot. Max temp was 30.3C.

Camille

Meteorologist warns hot season is approaching

Meteorologist warns hot season is approaching

From today's Bangkok Post

The weather bureau has warned that temperatures could rise as high as 41 degrees Celsius, and cited global warming as a possible cause.

Weather expert Torsak Wanitkajorn said the changing weather pattern could see some parts of Thailand experiencing a heat wave in April as usual.

He further explained that tropical storms currently experienced in some provinces are the result of a cold front over parts of the country which could last until May. The northern, central and northeastern regions are at risk for season storms, and locals should be prepared.

Meanwhile, the problem of haze over Chiang Mai improved on Tuesday. Authorities said the situation is now close to normal. Dust level near Phu Ping Palace was recorded at 119 microgrammes per cubic metre, considered normal for this time of year.

26th March, 2008

Today's weather;

A fair amount of clouds are about but plenty of blue spots with lots of sunshine are gonna make this day again. Current temp at 7 am is 28.3C.

Yesterday was another sunny and warm day with a max temp of 30.2C.

Camille

Aux Amis, Bophud

Aux Amis restaurant has moved down to Bophud.

Unfortunately Aux Amis has closed it's doors and there's a new French restaurant at the same location in Fisherman's Village.

Their old location in Bang Rak has been abandoned and they're rockin' alright in Bophud.

They're located in the thickst of it in Bophud and they updated their menu a bit as well, but still, each Tuesday it's Mussels with French Fries and each Friday they still cook a big pan of Paella.

If you come from the Bophud traffic lights, keep going straight under the Fisherman's Village sign and take a left once you reach the beach road, after about 100 meters on the right hand side is their new location.

They have two floors now and the view over the bay and onto Koh Phangan is a killer! The upper floor is very nice, with dinner tables and is also supporting a lovely seating area to kick back and just have some drinks.

Still highly recommended and definitely worthwhile for just seeing Bophud at night!

Camille

25th March, 2008

Today's weather;

More of the same, some clouds with lots of blue and sunshine! Current temp at 7 am is 28.3C.

Yesterday was another hot day. Max temp reached 30.5C. Around midnight there was a shower though and things cooled off a bit.

Camille

24th March, 2008

Today's weather;

It's partly cloudy but with plenty of blue patches with a current temp at 7 am of 28.4C.

Yesterday started out fairly cloudy but by noon it was a clear blue sky. Max temp reached 31.3C.

Camille

23rd March, 2008

Today's weather;

There's a fair bit of overcast this morning but still plenty of blue spots with the sun peeking through which gives for a max temp at 7 am of

Yesterday was a nice and sunny day with a max temp of 30.3C.

Camille

22nd March, 2008

Today's weather;

Some big white clouds hang around in a further blue sky with a current temp at 7 am of 26C.

Yesterday was warm and overcast till about noon and after that warmer with more blue in the sky. Max temp reached 30.1C.

Camille

21st March, 2008

Today's weather;

There are a few big white clouds but plenty of sunshine as well with a current temp at 7 am of 27C.

Yesterday saw a lot of overcast but also lots of sunshine and it was dry and hot with a max temp of 30.2C.

Camille

20th March, 2008

Today's weather;

Am on Koh Tao this morning and it's similar to Samui, a blue sky and warm with a current temp at 7 am of 28C.
In Koh Tao I was completing Dive Instructor Specialty training with some of my students.

Yesterday was another hot day with a max temp of 30.5C.

Camille

19th March, 2008

Today's weather;

It was cloudy at 6.30 am this morning but the sun is burning it's way through the clouds by 7 am with a current temp of 24.7C.

Yesterday was a hot and sunny day. Max temp reached 29.7C.

Camille

Update on today's neighbourhood wedding

Update on today's neighbourhood wedding

The coyote dancing happened already, according to my wife, but I didn't hang out to witness it. Before the girls hit the stage, you had to sit through a couple of hours of Thai slapstick scenes by a kind of theatre group, which isn't that funny if you don't understand what they're saying. So I decided to give it a miss.

Before that though, when we went for the food, was the first time I witnessed some gun slinging and life rounds were fired along with some fire crackers by at least two wedding party guests, which nobody really found disturbing and was rather accepted as normal, it seemed.
The guns were aimed at the sky and not meant to harm anybody, just hope the slugs didn't come down too hard on anybody!
Especially at the mainland this seems to be common practice but not so much on Samui. As already mentioned, it's the first time I witnessed this and it seemed to be a rather casual thing to the people attending the party.





The food however was outstanding, with bottom left, Yam saam krob (Salad of Three crispy things; dried shrimp and squid and pork skin), under the foil is Yog Yuan, which I initially mistakenly took for Hor Mo, a very nice dish which is very rare nowadays.
On top is fresh fruit, next to is a soup, below right hand side is an excellent fish in a mild curry and below that is more soup. In the middle is a pork curry, Southern style (=spicy).
As drinks water, soda, Coke and Thai Brandy were served with plenty of steamed rice to accompany all of this.

Hope this gives you an idea how big the party was, I guess at least 800 to a 1000 could be seated.

It's past 9 pm and there doesn't seem a finish in sight for the music yet! The party is in full swing.

The interesting part about the Thai weddings is that there are two party's, one at the grooms house and one at the bride's house! Normally the two parties are separated only by a few days.

Camille

The Wedding season continues

The Wedding season continues

Today there's a wedding across our house, the fourth out of five weddings for us within two weeks and my Mum in Law had 12 invitations during the same time frame. See my post earlier this week.




A big open space across the road of our house is used for today's wedding party. This picture shows the local girls in preparing the official entrance gate by dressing it up with flowers.

It's around 1 pm and the sun is booming down searingly hot, what an excellent moment to just sit down and catch up on the latest gossip.

Whilst others are full on preparing for the food, here they're cutting up various local veggies.

Something is going to be very spicy, looking at these two bowls of freshly chopped up Thai chili peppers.

Anyone care for some Hor Mok Pla (steamed fish dish). It looks delicious and freshly made!

Oops, got corrected and although this looks like Hor Mok, it's actually a rather rare dish called Yog Yuan.

A wee bit of Thai Pork Curry being prepared. What a massive wok!

Center stage! Later tonight, around 7 pm, after the first wave of wedding guest most likely have already left, there will be a coyote girl show! Keep your eyes posted for more pics.

The entrance gate being erected and draped off with some colourful fabric.

More updates later after we come back from the wedding dinner. It looks like it's going to be a noisy night in the neighbourhood!

Camille

Chinese Temple, Maenam

The Chinese Temple in Maenam

Makes for a different Temple experience. It's a small but beautiful temple close to the beach in Maenam. At the traffic lights in Maenam, at 7-11, go down to the beach and when you're almost at the end of the road, there's a right turn, that leads you to this Chinese Temple, located at the next corner.

A frontal view of the Temple with clear differences compared to the Thai Temples.

There are many Chinese on Samui and most originate from the island of Hainan and brought their Chinese religion along with them.

Inside; the rich and colourful main altar of the temple.

Upon entering, on your left hand in the corner close to the street, there is this small table with some old black and white pictures on it. This is the stuff I really love to see and discover, a peek into the old Samui.

Inside the Temple, a sample of the intricate and colorful artwork the Temple can boost.

Outside the Temple again, across the road, where this small statue is located, which meaning I still need to find out.

On a tour around the island, this would be a nice and convenient quick stop just to experience a different kind of Temple. It's located very near to the beach and there are few places on the beach where it's nice to sit down, relax and have a drink.

What is a better way to finish this Chinese Temple blog entry with a link to the Students for a free Tibet blog.

Camille

Sunny day, dream away..............

Sunny day, dream away..............


.................At this nice beach in Maenam.

Just to show how beautiful the weather has turned the last few days, getting ready for the April heat!

Maenam beach with a bit of Koh Phangan in the background.

Maenam beach, lazing away under a palm tree.

Phuket is also going into a hot spell, see Jamie's Phuket weather blog for more news.

18th March, 2008

Today's weather;

A very blue sky is ruling this morning with a temp at 7 m of 24.5C.

Yesterday it was nice and warm with a max temp closing in on 30C.

Camille

17th March, 2008

Today's weather;

Blue, blue and blue! Lots of sunshine and warm although funnily enough the current temp at 7 am was only 24.3C.

Yesterday was sunny and warm with a max temp of 29.6C.

Camille

16th March, 2008

Today's weather;

It's an almost complete blue sky this morning with a max temp of 27.5C at 7 am.

Yesterday was another hot day with loads of sunshine and a max temp of 28.9C.

Camille

15th March, 2008

Today's weather;

It's partly cloudy but the sun is glowing strong and may burn down some cloud later on. Current temp at 7 am is 27.4C.

Yesterday was a warm day, for the first time this year it felt like a warm day the way it should be this time of the year. The forecasts all look very good as well, with sunny skies. Max temp reached 29.3C.

It looks at last that we left the rainy season behind us.

Camille

14th March, 2008

Today's weather;

It's fairly overcast with not too much sunshine this morning with a current temp at 7 am of 27.2C.
It looks like the twice yearly change of wind is about to occur, the WindGURU site has been showing new wind patterns for the second time this week.

Yesterday was a nice day with no rain. Max temp reached 28.8C.

Last week I've updated my Samui hotel recommendations blog twice, something I try to do now more frequently and I had an interesting post about Box Jelly Fish on my dive blog, enjoy the reads.

Camille

Wedding party on Chaweng lake road

It is wedding season on Samui!

This is the second wedding we attend this week with three more coming up within the next week! The stars must be right according to the various Monks.

Today was a big wedding, located at Chaweng lake road.


This to give you an idea how big the party is, with chairs and tables seemingly stretching forever.

This table dressing indicates a fairly well off wedding, with a bottle of Johnnie Walker Red label. A lot of weddings have cheap Thai whiskey, earlier this week there was Thai Brandy and today saw Johnnie Walker Red.

Here a view of what was served, some form of Moo Waan (sweet pork, a massive leg!), Plaa Jaamet or Pomfret fish and a salad, later to be completed by fried rice, a soup and mixed vegetables with a sweet sticky rice as dessert. All well organised!

Here a view of the tables and eating part of the party in full swing. The place really filled up, we arrived shortly after 5 pm and when we left around 6 pm, there were still plenty of people arriving.

On the way home, two boxes for the envelop with money and in return you get a small token as memory of the wedding, varying from plates or cups and other cutlery.

More food and weddings coming up next week!

Camille

13th March, 2008

Today's weather;

It's cloudy this morning with shots of sunshine. Current temp is 27.4C t 7 am.

Yesterday was a nice day with lots of sunshine but also with a few small showers after noon. Max temp reached 28.6C.

Camille

12th March, 2008

Today's weather;

This morning shows a blue sky with a white haze in it. There's clouds but not as many as yesterday. Current temp at 7 am is 27.2C.

Yesterday started out nice, with a cloudy but dry morning. The late afternoon saw some rain though. Max temp reached 28.9C.

Camille

11th March, 2008

Today's weather;

Although it's not as blue as yesterday morning, it's still nice and sunny all morning long with a current temp at 10 am of 27.7C.

Yesterday was a very nice warm and sunny day all day long with a max temp of 28,5C.

Camille

10t March, 2008

Today's weather;

Today is a complete break from other days, possibly since more than two weeks, I lost track by now but it's almost perfect blue all over with a current temp at 7 am of 27C. It promises to be a nice and hot day with good forecast for the rest of the week.

Yesterday was a nice day, with only one isolated shower in the early afternoon. Max temp reached 28C.

Camille

Spring is here and an update on the local temple

Spring is here and an update on the local temple, Wat Plai Laem

It's early March and also on Samui, spring roars it's head, unfortunately, not necessarily weather wise but definitely fruit wise. There's a lot of blossoming going on and our garden is no exception, fortunately.



One of the fruits that is blossoming in large quantities is a fruit called chompoo or rose apples, the red variation. Here's a picture of the very young fruit.

This is how they look when they fully blossomed. We can pick at least a kilo per day or more for over a week already.

Unfortunately the mango's or Mamuang in Thai are very rare so far.

Here's an update on the progress of the new Bot at Wat Plai Laem, the local temple, around the corner. If I stand on my balcony, I can see the temple.

The roof construction is now complete and it's really looking good. There's a few more things to complete at ground level which I'll keep you updated on.

This shows the new roof and especially the Cho Fa, the elongated and elaborately carved apex of the gable of a Buddhist temple. It is believed to represent the mythical Garuda.

More to follow in due time.

Camille

9th March, 2008

Today's weather;

Clouds with patches of sunshine are changing rapidly. Current temp at 7 am is 27.3C.

Yesterday was a very mixed bag, sunshine was swapping spots with rain all day long. Max temp reached 28.3C.

Camille

8th March, 2008

Today's weather;

It looks a lot better this morning with lots of blue patches, possibly 50% of the sky. The other 50% are loud formations ranging from nice white to very dark, Current temp at 7 am is 27.2C.

Yesterday was not a very nice day with lots of dark clouds and rain. Max temp reached 28C.

Camille

7th March, 2008

Today's weather;

It's a mixed bag with short patches of blue and sunshine and mostly parts of dark clouded skies with strong winds and rain. Current temp at 10 am is 27C.

Yesterday was a dry day with bits and pieces of sunshine and a max temp of 28.5C.

Camille

6th March, 2008

Today's weather;

It's cloudy this morning with a current temp of 25.6C at 7 am.

Yesterday started out real nice, with a blue sky after an initially cloudy sky. Once it got dark, around 7 pm it started to rain though.

Camille

5th March, 2008

Today's weather;

It's cloudy but there are some blue patches out there. Temp at 7 am is 26.3C.

Yesterday turned out to be a nice day during the day time but once come late afternoon, towards 6 pm, it started to rain on and off during the evening.
Good news for the people coming to Samui over the weekend, the big anticipated storm seems to have vanished.

Camille

4th March, 2008

Today's weather;

It's very cloudy this morning and not much sight of the sun. Current temp at 7 am is 26.6C.

Yesterday saw no rain and it was nice with bits and pieces of sun. Max temp reached 28.6C.

Camille

3rd March, 2008

Today's weather;

It's fairly cloudy with glimpses of sunshine. Current temp at 7 am is 27C.

Yesterday started out real nice with lots of sunshine to be interfered with some heavy showers during the afternoon and early evening. Max temp reached 29.5C.

Camille

2nd March, 2008

Today's weather;

It's fairly cloudy but the sun is trying hard to shine through. At 7 am it's 27.2C.

Yesterday was a nice and warm day and more importantly, no rain! Max temp reached 28.7C.

Camille

Welcome to March

Let's welcome March 2008.

In general March is a nice month with lot of sunshine and not a lot of rain. The indications are there that this March is making a slightly different start, with possibly some rain towards the end of the week.

Samui will most likely be very busy during March, since the Easter holidays are during late March, traditionally a very busy period on the island.

I'm looking forward to a nice and warm month, once the first few days are out of the way.

Camille

1st March, 2008

Today's weather;

Good news, it's sunny with scattered clouds around. A nice start for March! The current temp at 7 am is 24C,

Yesterday was a fairly nice day, no rain and no massive amounts of sun with a max temp of 29.3C.

Camille