Where in the World is Pat?

I really enjoyed my first trip to Thailand! On our final morning here we went to try breakfast at this spot, down the road, we had been hearing rave reviews on, King Of Bread . The hype was correct, the breakfast was delicious and they had some unique choices. I had eggs benedict on a croissant, in lieu of the standard english muffin and Bosco had it on Milk Bread, which was equally tasty.

We love having authentic experiences with locals to really get a chance to see how they live and thrive in the Ports we visit. So when I found a cooking class, by a local woman offered in her home, we were excited to book. Um ( our teacher) picked us and brought us back to our hotel along with the family of 4 from Sydney, Australia, that had also signed up for this afternoon class. Um's house, which has a lovely open air kitchen, garden and dining area, was about a 30 minute drive and turned out to be on the beach, right next to the Grandparent Rocks.

The nightlife scene doesn't really get going till after 11pm and goes till 5 am in the Chaweng section of Koh Samui . We made our way over to the club district, and one of the hot spots called the ArkBar a little past 10pm to have some dinner, while watching the beach fire shows.

We covered a lot of the Island on this tour. Spot #3 was a scenic overlook of the coastline looking out at some of their pristine beaches and #4 was further along the coastline, at a rock outcropping known for it's phallic formations.

Sherrie, Sarah, Bob and I took a 1/2 day tour of Island to take in the major cultural spots. They picked us up at the Hotel and we had 7 stops.

Thailand! For the longest time I have associated it with the land of yummy Pad Thai and Chicken Satay with peanut sauce ! Now, I can add a nation who embrace color - their Temples & Shrines that dot the landscape are stunning. They are influenced and have welcomed many traditions from China and India along with their own SE Asia native culture. Buddhism is practiced by over 90% of the country. Social Harmony around respect, self control and consideration of others feeling is their mantra. All we met were so pleasant and truly thankful for any kindness you extend to them.

Today, I braved the heat ( it's a blazing 84) to walk around a little bit and get the feel for life on Tioman Island, Malaysia . The Village of Tekek is where we tender to and this is where the Ferry , the Island's National Secondary School, Health Clinic and Airport (really just a strip) are located. The most notable feature is the Rainbow Bridge over the inlet.

Fun day in the waters of Tioman Island, Malaysia snorkeling with friends. Life is good! It was nothing fancy, a boat & captain, who spoke minimal English and barely interacted with us, for roughly 7 hours. We started the outing spotting a group of dolphins and was quickly at anchor drop 1 of 6. The distances between the 6 snorkel spots was minimal, which gave us lots of time in the water (at least 45 minutes, at each spot) with an added stop for a lunch break at local restaurants. Even the restaurants were fast and efficient, definitely used to catering to the boat crowd.

Wishing everyone a Happy 4th of July! Here on the Odyssey we celebrated in the SE Asia Sea on our way to Tioman Island, Malaysia . We have such a talented and dedicated group of residents here, they put together a fun hour of things to celebrate and embrace a lot of what we collectively love about the USA. Even our residents from other countries - Canada, England, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Germany , etc. joined in the fun! ( I lent my flag below for decorations)

Vihara Avalokiteshvara Graha or Guan Yin Temple is near 500 Lohan, so we also toured the grounds of this large Temple complex. It's dedicated to the Goddess of Mercy and is one the tallest brass statues of her in SE Asia. She is just over 55' tall, coated in 22 carat gold and is surrounded by scenic dragon fruit plantations. The tile work is intricate and textured with great details. The whole place is very tranquil and calming for meditation and prayer.

500 Lohan Temple or Vihara Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva was the most interesting place we visited on Bintan Island . It features 500 hand sculpted, life sized, distinctively expressive statues of Buddhist disciplines (Lohans) surrounding a tranquil courtyard. They are arranged symetrical, in an arc and it's interesting how some pop out, as you look down the rows. The statues were crafted by artist in China from 2010 to 2017 when the temple was inaugurated; no two are alike.

As part of our Global Harmony Mission , eighteen of us, including 7 crew members, went on an excursion into the Mangrove Forest and planted 100 new mangrove trees. It was a fun, informative afternoon and nice to have some of our hard working crew, be our guest and enjoy the time too!

Bintan Island is our last stop in Indonesia. We have seen alot of this vast country, spread across soo many islands. Again our greetings in the port are so nice and friendly! The stand out of Indonesia is truly the people.

I am generally a cautious traveler. I don't want an accident or fall to take me out of this adventure, I am enjoying so much! On the Island of Siantan , motorbikes are primarily the mode of transport, it is rare to see a car or truck. All ages, males and females motor around the roads at such a civilized pace, I decided if ever a place was safe to try, it was here! My buddy Terri agreed and we decided to start simple and hire rides for each of us, to go up the hilltop, to a restaurant called Bayview . We saw others get drivers at end of dock and we found a local merchant who spoke english, and she went across the street to a group of men playing dominoes and found 2 who agreed to drive us, after they finished their game. The merchant helped us explain where we wanted to go and we agreed on 50,000 IDR each for the rides, or $2.78 USD !

Today was just pure relaxation! We arranged with Tourism lady from yesterday, to have Penyali Resort send a boat to Tarempa port to pick 10 of us up and take us to the Resort, for the day. The speed boat ride took about an hour. Some of us just floated about with cocktails, others snorkled but all had a great time. They prepared a yummy lunch for us, with a fresh grouper fish, we literally picked up, on our way there.

Today we arranged to see Siantan Island by hiring a local Captain & boat owner to take us, along with 2 lovely young ladies, we met at the Tourism office, who spoke great English. The ladies found the Captain and we negotiated a price of 1,200,000 IDR or $67 USD to take four of us out and about, for 2 hours. Since the forestry on the island and the soil is gigantic hard boulders, almost all the villages are on the water on stilts or the edge of the coast. Excavation cost would be a huge premium and best done with equipment, they don't possess.

The ANAMBAS ISLANDS REGENCY, is a remote Indonesian archipelago in the South China Sea, part of the Riau Islands Province known for its stunning clear waters, pristine reefs and rich biodiversity. It is located between Singapore and Borneo and consist of over 200 islands of which only 26 are inhabited. Tarempa is the administrative center of the Islands and is located on Siantan Island. We are anchored, about a 15 minute tender ride, from the Tarempa Wharf . Our first day here, was all about celebrating our friend Terri's Birthday!

Bosco and I went back to the Marina Bay Sands, Marquee Night Club for Dancing on Friday night. We got to the club around 11pm and they stayed open till 5 a.m! There was a little bit of a cue to get into the club, but I had bought our entry tickets online prior, so we went through quickly.

What a gorgeous night this turned out to be. Great company and amazing views with yummy food. Life is Good!