Where Else? Do you go to die.

Ko Lanta = ULTIMATE Struggle Cityyy experience!!

Our ONLY photo of Ko Lanta

Saturday morning we woke up and caught the bus to Ko Lanta, which is only supposed to take about 2 hours. However, it ended up being about 4. We were supposed to leave at 11am.. but we left at 1140 - jammed into a completely full (and very hot) van. We drove about an hour, then (still in the car) took a ferry (for about 20 mins) then sat in about 45 mins of traffic, to take another 20 minute ferry. Finalllllly arriving at our destination. Mind you, poor Laura is feeling very ill - and can barely swallow (sadly her Malaysian hospital experience did not kick the sickness the way we were hoping). 

One of the coolest parts about traveling is meeting new people and swapping travel tips (where to stay, what to do, what not to do). Overall, most people tell stories about how they just show up places, book somewhere and things work out. The three of us have agreed that in our own personal lives, this mentality very infrequently (if ever) turns out in a positive way. Our arrival in Koh Lanta and the subsequent aftermath further solidifies this opinion.

Having done some research on where we want to stay, as well as having a recommendation from our new friends, we figured we'd just "go with it." Well, arriving hot and hungry... the first three places we had researched were booked. We took a tuk tuk further south on the island where our next stop was also fully booked, but thankfully let us put down our packs (mind you, Alexis still needs to be taking it easy because of her back and Laura can't really swallow) and directed us to walk along the beach to find another option.

On our fourth try, we stumbled upon Where Else? (never stay here) bungalows with hippie/reggae themed decor right on the beach. We paid more than we were hoping, but were ready to be where we needed to be, and above all else were very hungry. We got some lunch, unremarkable (at the moment) pad thai. We then took a tuk tuk to the pharmacy (which was closed) to go to the international clinic (which was expensive) to get Laura some medicine. Cringing from money spent, we arrived back to our bungalow, Laura climbed into her mosquito-netted bed, feeling truly awful. Kerri and Alexis had a beer and explored the beach, enjoying a nice walk and a beautiful sunset in paradise. Prior to going to dinner they went to check on Laura who reported that she had thrown up and was concerned she had the stomach flu, as she was not feeling any better. Alexis and Kerri brought her some soup, then went next door to have a lovely dinner. 

After dinner, Kerri said she started to feel ill, and was pretty sure she was going to vomit. Well she did. And then Laura did. And then Alexis did. In our small, poorly lit, only one working fan, mosquito filled room. The highlight, is while feeling her worse, laying on the floor of the bathroom (which really is just a toilet outside), a large hermit crab (who apparently lives there) crawled towards Laura. In summary, it was a long, long night.

Further, we booked Where Else? with the knowledge that our room was booked the next night, but they had another room (at a cheaper price) that could work for us. Sadly, as Alexis stumbled to the reception desk the next morning, that room was not available. After calling about 10 places, we found a place further south that would pick us up this afternoon - thank goodness! 

We spent the night in our aircon room, watching TV and eating soup and crackers and Gatorade. Earlier, Alexis and Laura stumbling to 7-11, trying to figure out which soup was best, had to ask the cashier which one was "No Spicy" as everything was written in Thai. After a long sleep, Laura and Alexis got up to scope out the beach and went for a walk. We write from the internet cafe down the block from our hotel, which is across the road from the ocean. Poor Kerri Lee got the worst of it, and is still not feeling grand. We have decided to stay in Koh Lanta until we are all 100% better before moving on to Phi Phi island, which rest assured, we have already properly booked. 

Lesson learned,

K.Lee, LaLa, Lex