Oh. My. Goodness. Where is the time going? Honestly, it seems like yesterday I was booking my flights and getting all excited about finally embarking on this incredible trip of a lifetime before realising I've got a lot to do and see beforehand... Now it feels like it's around the corner and I feel no closer to getting those little tasks on the to-do list crossed off. I want to say I'm as calm as a cucumber, that those important things will be done and I'll be on my way in about 31 days (WHAT? Counting that out did just instigate a little bit of panic inside me, just a little bit). So, just under a month ago I said I was hunting for insurance - yep that's still not been sorted out but hopefully will be by the time today is done. I'm still well and truly engaged in ostrich-mode (it's a pretty comfy down here if I'm honest - if I close my eyes everything goes away) but I'm slowly but surely making SOME progress.
I've not been too well which is always a massive hindrance when it comes to the laborious task of researching the best method of getting from A to B, often having to bypass every other letter in the alphabet to get there. I've been juggling the pros and cons of getting from A to B by land or air (or sometimes sea, I have islands to go to remember), weighing up whether spending an extra £20 is worth it to cut off a good 8 hours of travelling (um… that kind of goes without saying) but sometimes that isn't always the best route. For example, I was originally looking at staying in Koh Tao then ferrying over to Koh Samui to have a little mooch around before grabbing a ferry to Surat Thani and then flying from there to Bangkok so I could catch a flight to Singapore (the latter is all booked by the way, I was a little peeved that they’d gone up by £20 and that the taxes were ridiculous but c’est la vie – you live, you learn) but when you consider that airports are often out of the main cities it gets a little less tempting. For example, Don Sak pier (where my ferry would come into from Koh Samui to Surat Thani) is nearly 100km away from the airport. Yes I could get a taxi or a bus or a train but I really don’t want to start faffing with that when just get a simple ferry/bus package from Lomprayah for 1000 baht which takes me from Koh Tao (and go to either Samui or Phangan on a little two day trip maybe) up to Bangkok in one simple trip. Yes!
I'm sure any of you well-seasoned travellers will be having a good giggle at all of my panicking but I really need to make this clear (and those who know me will understand me when I say this) – I am a self-confessed control freak, I just can’t simply let go and let whatever happens happen. I like to plan for every eventuality (just because) and spontaneity scares me even though I do enjoy it when it happens. I'm just not very good at loosening the strings and going with the flow which is where this trip will be a huge test of my character. I know that this is a journey I'm going to end up growing with not just alongside, I’ll have to do things I'm not used to doing, put a sensible head on (which I do have 99% of the time, granted), and enjoy this incredible chance I've got. I just need to trust myself, trust my instincts, and put my trust in others; I need to grab my passport, spread my wings a little, catch the trade winds, and soar as far as I can…
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