koh samui

84 km off the east coast in the gulf of thailand. their business is coconuts and cotton. coconuts and cotton. lyds and i are in the business of sleeping late and going to bed later. once known as an idyllic and secret hippie haven, koh samui has gone commercial with 20 daily flights to their thatch, open air international airport.

after the craziness of tokyo we've wonderfully wasted a week in the sun here, doing little except exploring the beaches, restaurants and markets of the island. it is 233 square km of dodging monkeys, trannys, drug dealers and indian restauranters to the cry of "taxi? taxi?"

we've had fun. the other night we went to see a thai boxing match (muay thai) at the stadium in chewang where we are situated. i drank beer while wagering baht with lyds on which 65 lbs seven year old would win the bout. mine got knocked out. today we went to a shooting sport locale in the interior of the island. you can only appreciate the power of a soviet made ak-47 after you have fired it in a tropical country. it just seems right, and makes it easier to imagine sgt. barnes being the target. the magnum was just glutonous. don't worry about the gun use, though, as it is practical. we are on mango alert here on the island.

koh pha ngan tomorrow for the full moon party. the second tour of duty has begun.