Today's weather;
Not time yet to give up checking in here, since last night it rained again (not extremely hard) and thunder and lightning was going on in the near vicinity. Momentarily it's dry and it seems that the sun is trying hard to peek through, despite some grey clouds overhead. Current temp at 7am is 23.5C.
Yesterday was a lovely day with sunshine all day long, except in the early evening, when it started to become greyish again. Max temp reached the low 3tees.
Camille
Monday, 12 November 2007
Sunday, 11 November 2007
Beautiful Samui pictures........
This is an amazing website with stunning pictures of Samui.
Besides having joined the Thron Tree forum and stumbling over Tezza's website, I also recently stumbled over Monique's Land of Smiles website. She's Dutch and lives on Samui and took photography on as a hobby, the results are just stunning.
Especially after the recent stretch of rain and bad weather, I thought it to be a pleasant change to view some of Monique's pix.
Enjoy.
Camille
Besides having joined the Thron Tree forum and stumbling over Tezza's website, I also recently stumbled over Monique's Land of Smiles website. She's Dutch and lives on Samui and took photography on as a hobby, the results are just stunning.
Especially after the recent stretch of rain and bad weather, I thought it to be a pleasant change to view some of Monique's pix.
Enjoy.
Camille
Don't drown during your Thai holiday!
Required reading for holiday makers during the rainy season on Samui.
Before I start off with restaurant reviews or other posts, here's some well meant warning for all your beach lovers during the rainy season, roughly from November through to February, if it boils down to this topic. This was posted before at my dive blog.
You may think, what is all this about and it won't concern me, but have a look and read up on it, he talks about rip tides and undertows and this should be required reading for everybody visiting Thailand, especially during the rainy season, when the likelihood of these rip tides is greatest!
Before I start off with restaurant reviews or other posts, here's some well meant warning for all your beach lovers during the rainy season, roughly from November through to February, if it boils down to this topic. This was posted before at my dive blog.
Having just joined the Thorn Tree forum, the official Lonely Planet travel forum, where lots of good travel advise and information can be found, I stumbled over a prolific poster there, Tezza, who runs a couple of blogs, one about beaches and islands in Thailand and on this specific blog, he has a great post about not drowning during your Thai holiday.
You may think, what is all this about and it won't concern me, but have a look and read up on it, he talks about rip tides and undertows and this should be required reading for everybody visiting Thailand, especially during the rainy season, when the likelihood of these rip tides is greatest!
It's a subject I was about to write about somewhere in the near future, since the rainy season is about to start, or should I rather say, started already with a vengeance, and a few weeks ago I already took this picture in front of Centara Samui hotel in Chaweng, a big warning sign on the beach, warning you about potential rip currents. There are various similar signs and explanations along the beach, on big sign posts.
Each year, more people than you can imagine drown on Samui beaches, mainly Chaweng and Lamai beach, due to these rip currents and they don't make the international headlines!
Main victims are elderly people who get caught up in rip currents and who either don't have the strength or knowledge or both to get out of them rips.
So, Tezza, thanks for the informative post and I hope that plenty of people will read it.
Camille
11th November, 2007
Today's weather;
It looks most promising, as the picture beneath shows, taken at sunrise between 6.30 and 6.45am this morning.
It looks most promising, as the picture beneath shows, taken at sunrise between 6.30 and 6.45am this morning.
The sun is out again, early in the morning, despite some (white) clouds being in the sky. The view is great, I can see the Koh Phangan hills from our balcony, a good few clicks away.
It will take a few days or possibly weeks to clear all away from the recent flooding and hopefully the local and national Government learned some lessons and are willing to do something with those lessons learned, so in the future, Samui isn't that vulnerable for flash flooding.
Current temp at 7am is 25.5C
Yesterday saw a lovely day, smiles all around and people hanging their damp and wet clothes etc out to dry in the sun. Max temp reached 29.5C, we're on the way back!
Thanks to every watching my simple weather blog over the last few days and the support received, the amount of visitors was sky high, in my little blog world, sometimes up to 300 per day! I do hope that once you found me now, that you keep coming back. Don't be shy to post comments and ask questions, I appreciate that a lot.
Now it's time to post a couple of non weather related items again, probably will start with some restaurant reviews soon.
Camille
Saturday, 10 November 2007
Samui has sunshine again
It's official, Samui has sunshine again.
And it feels sooooo good.
And it feels sooooo good.
Although not taken from a beach or such but just from the front porch of our house, a sunny view on Wat Plai Laem. The lush green must've come from plenty of water, duh!
Camille
10th November, 2007
Today's weather;
It looks promising, there's a white cloud layer but the sun is working hard to burst through. Very early this morning, the sun was actually out! I almost thought I could beat Jamie's Phuket weather blog with pix of sunshine, but he beat me to it! When the sun will come out today, I will make a picture though!
Things are definitely on the up again and I do hope it stays like this for a while.
Current temp at 7am is 23.3C and it's been dry for almost 24 hours now.
Yesterday was a very dry day, except for some drizzle in the morning. Total rainfall yesterday measured only 1.9mm and the max temp reached 26.5C. Last night there were starts in the sky to be seen again!
Camille
It looks promising, there's a white cloud layer but the sun is working hard to burst through. Very early this morning, the sun was actually out! I almost thought I could beat Jamie's Phuket weather blog with pix of sunshine, but he beat me to it! When the sun will come out today, I will make a picture though!
Things are definitely on the up again and I do hope it stays like this for a while.
Current temp at 7am is 23.3C and it's been dry for almost 24 hours now.
Yesterday was a very dry day, except for some drizzle in the morning. Total rainfall yesterday measured only 1.9mm and the max temp reached 26.5C. Last night there were starts in the sky to be seen again!
Camille
Friday, 9 November 2007
The pressure is momentarily off......
Just come back from a trip to Lamai and it seems that pressure is momentarily off.....
Especially considering that for the next coming days no hard rain is predicted. It hasn't rained hard since yesterday afternoon. The water on the roads seems to be easing up.
This is a picture taken in Bophud, which shows a classical Samui problem, Construction is/has been going on and no thought has been put into how the excess monsoon water can go away. The natural openings to the beach have been closed down by construction (houses, walls. etc) and the water has no way to escape, especially a big problem in certain parts of Chaweng.
Especially considering that for the next coming days no hard rain is predicted. It hasn't rained hard since yesterday afternoon. The water on the roads seems to be easing up.
This is a picture taken in Bophud, which shows a classical Samui problem, Construction is/has been going on and no thought has been put into how the excess monsoon water can go away. The natural openings to the beach have been closed down by construction (houses, walls. etc) and the water has no way to escape, especially a big problem in certain parts of Chaweng.
In Lamai, this road sign is still in the middle of the road, warning about blocked roads. This part of the ring road was blocked off indeed and as you can see below, Lamai is currently the proud owner of the worst flooded part of the ring road today!
This picture shows how bad it still is at a small stretch of road, just before the first turn off into Lamai. It must've been really bad here yesterday, looking at the height of the water.
In general it seems that water has receded off the roads, except for a few isolated spots around the island.
We took the opportunity to eat in our fave Kao Man Gai restaurant in Lamai.
Here's a funny side effect of the flooding. It seems that a lot of cars lost their license plate at this previously flooded red light crossing in Bophud, come and have a look if yours is in there! TIT (This is Thailand!)
Next to plates is one of the pumps that are working non stop around the island.
Relax folks, things are going back to normal. There's no wind, the beach is flat like a mirror and the sun tried to come through for a second, but isn't strong enough yet!
Camille
Todays' papers
The reports about Samui in 'The Nation' and 'The Bangkok Post';
KOH SAMUI FLOODS
Crisis may end if no more rain: governor
Tourist resort racked by two days of heavy downpours
Published on November 9, 2007
The flood crisis on Koh Samui lessened yesterday evening, according to the latest update from Surat Thani Governor Winai Buapradit.
"If there is no more rain, the situation might return to normal tomorrow [Friday]," Winai said.
Residents and tourists in Koh Samui district have been battling heavy floods for the past two days.
Several flights between Bangkok and Koh Samui were delayed or cancelled on Wednesday and yesterday, as flooding and heavy downpours wreaked havoc on the island.
An official at Bangkok Airways' headquarters said the flight schedule was disrupted because the airline gave priority to passenger safety.
"Takeoffs and landings can take place only when the weather conditions are deemed safe," the official said.
Some parts of the runway at Samui Airport were reported to be flooded.
Koh Samui district chief Adisorn Kamnerdsiri declared the island a disaster zone yesterday due to the scale of flooding. "I have instructed Tambon Samui Municipality to release floodwater into the sea as quickly as possible. If any construction is obstructing the water flow, it can be removed to minimise the impact on people," Adisorn said.
Volunteers were fanning out to help residents move belongings to higher ground, he said.
"No casualty has been reported. We are surveying the damage now," Adisorn said.
Koh Samui municipality mayor Warakorn Rattanarak said Taweeratpakdee Road was partially flooded. "The water is up to one metre deep at some spots and we closed certain portions of the road."
He said rescue workers and officials had to reach flood victims by boat because the main roads were impassable.
Fast rising floodwater had vendors at Dao Market scrambling to move their wares to higher ground. The Koh Samui District Office, Koh Samui police station, local hotels and golf courses were also inundated.
The flooding damaged eight water pumps from the Irrigation Department.
Koh Samui highways chief Parinya Veerajit sent a backhoe to remove a section of road to let water flow out of the town.
Koh Samui Tourism Asso-ciation chairman Senee Puwa-setthavorn described the situation as a crisis. "The damage is beyond estimation," he said.
Senee said national-level agencies should step in to help, otherwise the problem would hurt tourism on the island.
Surat Thani provincial councillor Ramnet Jaikwang, who represents Koh Samui district, said the flooding problem arose because many people had selfishly built buildings that obstructed water flow.
The Meteorological Bureau yesterday warned of possible flash floods in Surat Thani, Chumphon, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phang Nga, Phu-ket and Krabi.
"A low-pressure ridge is hovering over the lower South and will send frequent rain or heavy downpours to the region," it said.
In Nakhon Si Thammarat, floods have already affected 31,769 people in Phra Phrome, Sichon, Ron Phibun, Khanom, Muang Nakhon Si Tham-marat, Nopphitam and Cha-lerm Phrakiat districts.
"Fishermen have refrained from going out to the sea for three or four days already due to the rough weather," said Rayuth Thanawattana, kamnan of Tambon Laem Talumpuk.
The Nation
Samui declared disaster zone after heavy rain
(BangkokPost.com) - Samui island is declared disaster zone on Thursday after it was hit by heavy rain the night before.
The rain caused flood in several locations. Water level on the main road is at 30 centimetre high.
Hundreds of tourists are left stranded as weather condition prevented aircrafts from taking off since late Wednesday.
Authorities are trying to pump water into river to alleviate the problem and prevent further flooding if rain comes again.
Surat Thani provincial office sent 170 soldiers into the island to assist locals and tourists.
Bangkok Post
KOH SAMUI FLOODS
Crisis may end if no more rain: governor
Tourist resort racked by two days of heavy downpours
Published on November 9, 2007
The flood crisis on Koh Samui lessened yesterday evening, according to the latest update from Surat Thani Governor Winai Buapradit.
"If there is no more rain, the situation might return to normal tomorrow [Friday]," Winai said.
Residents and tourists in Koh Samui district have been battling heavy floods for the past two days.
Several flights between Bangkok and Koh Samui were delayed or cancelled on Wednesday and yesterday, as flooding and heavy downpours wreaked havoc on the island.
An official at Bangkok Airways' headquarters said the flight schedule was disrupted because the airline gave priority to passenger safety.
"Takeoffs and landings can take place only when the weather conditions are deemed safe," the official said.
Some parts of the runway at Samui Airport were reported to be flooded.
Koh Samui district chief Adisorn Kamnerdsiri declared the island a disaster zone yesterday due to the scale of flooding. "I have instructed Tambon Samui Municipality to release floodwater into the sea as quickly as possible. If any construction is obstructing the water flow, it can be removed to minimise the impact on people," Adisorn said.
Volunteers were fanning out to help residents move belongings to higher ground, he said.
"No casualty has been reported. We are surveying the damage now," Adisorn said.
Koh Samui municipality mayor Warakorn Rattanarak said Taweeratpakdee Road was partially flooded. "The water is up to one metre deep at some spots and we closed certain portions of the road."
He said rescue workers and officials had to reach flood victims by boat because the main roads were impassable.
Fast rising floodwater had vendors at Dao Market scrambling to move their wares to higher ground. The Koh Samui District Office, Koh Samui police station, local hotels and golf courses were also inundated.
The flooding damaged eight water pumps from the Irrigation Department.
Koh Samui highways chief Parinya Veerajit sent a backhoe to remove a section of road to let water flow out of the town.
Koh Samui Tourism Asso-ciation chairman Senee Puwa-setthavorn described the situation as a crisis. "The damage is beyond estimation," he said.
Senee said national-level agencies should step in to help, otherwise the problem would hurt tourism on the island.
Surat Thani provincial councillor Ramnet Jaikwang, who represents Koh Samui district, said the flooding problem arose because many people had selfishly built buildings that obstructed water flow.
The Meteorological Bureau yesterday warned of possible flash floods in Surat Thani, Chumphon, Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phang Nga, Phu-ket and Krabi.
"A low-pressure ridge is hovering over the lower South and will send frequent rain or heavy downpours to the region," it said.
In Nakhon Si Thammarat, floods have already affected 31,769 people in Phra Phrome, Sichon, Ron Phibun, Khanom, Muang Nakhon Si Tham-marat, Nopphitam and Cha-lerm Phrakiat districts.
"Fishermen have refrained from going out to the sea for three or four days already due to the rough weather," said Rayuth Thanawattana, kamnan of Tambon Laem Talumpuk.
The Nation
Samui declared disaster zone after heavy rain
(BangkokPost.com) - Samui island is declared disaster zone on Thursday after it was hit by heavy rain the night before.
The rain caused flood in several locations. Water level on the main road is at 30 centimetre high.
Hundreds of tourists are left stranded as weather condition prevented aircrafts from taking off since late Wednesday.
Authorities are trying to pump water into river to alleviate the problem and prevent further flooding if rain comes again.
Surat Thani provincial office sent 170 soldiers into the island to assist locals and tourists.
Bangkok Post
9th November, 2007
Today's weather;
It's drizzling outside but not as bad as it was yesterday. Still the familiar grey overcast is there. This morning planes were taking off, so the pressure on the airport must ease a bit. Current temp at 7am is only 23.2C
Yesterday was mad, although in the afternoon the rain ceased for prolonged periods and our neighbourhood recovered fairly quickly, still flooded roads but not the mad scenes anymore.
Max temp reached 25.6C and only 71.2mm water came down.
Where we live, at the foot of a mountain, it'll take traditionally weeks for the water to stop flowing. It can be dry all over and there will still be water coming off the mountain on to the road next to our house.
The forecasts announce the rain to ease up, so let's see and wait how things develop.
Thanks for all the feedback and interest in my blog these days!
Camille
It's drizzling outside but not as bad as it was yesterday. Still the familiar grey overcast is there. This morning planes were taking off, so the pressure on the airport must ease a bit. Current temp at 7am is only 23.2C
Yesterday was mad, although in the afternoon the rain ceased for prolonged periods and our neighbourhood recovered fairly quickly, still flooded roads but not the mad scenes anymore.
Max temp reached 25.6C and only 71.2mm water came down.
Where we live, at the foot of a mountain, it'll take traditionally weeks for the water to stop flowing. It can be dry all over and there will still be water coming off the mountain on to the road next to our house.
The forecasts announce the rain to ease up, so let's see and wait how things develop.
Thanks for all the feedback and interest in my blog these days!
Camille
Thursday, 8 November 2007
Samui declared disaster zone after heavy rain
Samui declared disaster zone after heavy rain
It's all over the Thai TV news and in the local papers;
SURAT THANI: -- Heavy rain and flooding on the popular Gulf of Thailand tourist destination of Samui island are still severe and the island's airport has suspended operations.
Heavy downpours are continuing in the province for the third consecutive day.
Flood levels in some parts of the commercial centre and tourist sites on Samui are as high as one metre. Some roads have been cut off.
Samui airport suspended service Thursday morning due to heavy rain, and more than 1,000 travellers have been left stranded.
Meanwhile, ferry services to Samui island still operate as usual but the numberof cars being carried has dropped by half due to the bad weather conditions, according to an official at the waterfront.
--TNA 2007-11-08
KOH SAMUI: -- Samui island is declared disaster zone on Thursday after it was hit by heavy rain the night before.
The rain caused flood in several locations.
Water level on the main road is at 30 centimetre high.
Hundreds of tourists are left stranded as weather condition prevented aircrafts from taking off since late Wednesday.
Authorities are trying to pump water into river to alleviate the problem and prevent further flooding if rain comes again.
Surat Thani provincial office sent 170 soldiers into the island to assist locals and tourists.
-- Bangkok Post 2007-11-08
It's all over the Thai TV news and in the local papers;
SURAT THANI: -- Heavy rain and flooding on the popular Gulf of Thailand tourist destination of Samui island are still severe and the island's airport has suspended operations.
Heavy downpours are continuing in the province for the third consecutive day.
Flood levels in some parts of the commercial centre and tourist sites on Samui are as high as one metre. Some roads have been cut off.
Samui airport suspended service Thursday morning due to heavy rain, and more than 1,000 travellers have been left stranded.
Meanwhile, ferry services to Samui island still operate as usual but the numberof cars being carried has dropped by half due to the bad weather conditions, according to an official at the waterfront.
--TNA 2007-11-08
KOH SAMUI: -- Samui island is declared disaster zone on Thursday after it was hit by heavy rain the night before.
The rain caused flood in several locations.
Water level on the main road is at 30 centimetre high.
Hundreds of tourists are left stranded as weather condition prevented aircrafts from taking off since late Wednesday.
Authorities are trying to pump water into river to alleviate the problem and prevent further flooding if rain comes again.
Surat Thani provincial office sent 170 soldiers into the island to assist locals and tourists.
-- Bangkok Post 2007-11-08
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