Koh Samet

On Friday, we took a long van ride and a short speed boat ride in order to arrive at our weekend destination of Koh Samet. Koh Samet is a small island located in the Gulf of Thailand where we will spend our final days of the trip. The island is only about 4 miles long, north to south, and only about 5 square miles in size. We are staying at Sai Kaew Beach Resort which is right on on the water. Everyone at our resort is so excited we are here and whenever we walk past any employee they ask if we are from the UNE/WNE group.

View from the speed boat ride to the island

The view from the restaurant area is stunning and there's lots to do a long the beach. Today, several of us went parasailing (sorry no pictures allowed on the boats) and tomorrow we plan on taking a boat to tour the island and beaches on the other side. As you walk down the beach you can eat, shop, or get Thai massages almost everywhere.

The restaurant area at our resort. 

While this part of the trip isn't part of the didactic portion, it is still a great opportunity for us to learn even more about Thai people and their culture. We have primarily been in cities throughout the trip so it is nice to see the difference between city life and island life in Thailand.