Kosmos Travel Log

Indonesia to Egypt

• West Timor Island, Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia
  10° 9S by 123° 34E
  Dec 27 - 31, 2007 & Jan 2 - 9, 2008
  Traditional village tour
• Flores Island, Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia
  08° 50S by 121° 30.8E
  Jan 10 - 15, 2008
  Crater Lakes
• Rinca Island, Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia
  8°39.15S by 119° 42.9E
  Jan 16 -24, 2008
  Komodo Dragons & other native wildlife
• Labuan Bajo, Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia
  08° 29.5S by 119° 52.5E
  Jan 21 -24, 2008
  SCUBA Diving
• Bali, Indonesia
  08° 44.5S by 115° 12.7E
  Jan 25 - Feb 8, 2008
  UN conference, island tour, whitewater rafting, SCUBA Diving, Monkey Forest, traditional show
• Karimata, Indonesia
  01°40.7S by 108° 54.2E
  Feb 12 - 14, 2008
  Medical assistance to islander
• Sentosa Island, Singapore
  01°14N by 103° 50E
  Feb 12 - Mar 08, 2008
  Side trip to Hong Kong, Museums, Rides
• Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia
  02° 31N by 101° 48E
  Mar 8- 18, 2008
  Side trip to Malacca
• Langkawi Island, Kedah, Malaysia
  06° 21N by 099° 40E
  Mar 20 - Mar 28, 2008
  Sky ride, Geoforest Park, waterfall hike, extravagent gift museum
• Ko Muk Island, Trang Province, Thailand
  07°23N by 099°17E
  Mar 28 - Apr 2, 2008
  Emerald Hawng
• Phi Phi Islands, Krabi Province, Thailand
  Don: 07°43N by 098°46E
  Li: 07°40N by 098°46E
  Apr 2 - 4, 2008
• Phuket Island, Phuket Province, Thailand
  Ao Chalong: 07° 49N by 098° 21E
  Nai Harn: 07° 46N by 098° 17E
  Apr 4 - 17, 2008
  Traditional dancing, Elephant ride, Hawng tour, Fantasea show
• Port Blair, Andaman Islands, India
  11° 40N by 092° 42E
  Apr 17 - 23 & 29, 2008
  Visit to Ross Island
• Havelock Island, Andaman Islands, India
  11° 59N by 092° 56E
  Apr 23 - 29, 2008
  SCUBA diving, Elephant training camp
• Male, Maldives
  04° 13.0N by 073° 32.0E
  May 02 - 18, 2008
  SCUBA diving
• Port Salalah, Dhofar, Sultanate of Oman
  16° 56.2N by 054° 0.2E
  May 21 - Jun 02, 2008
  SCUBA diving, Guided Tour Dhofar
• Port Ghalib, Marsa Alam, Egypt
  25°31N by 34°38E
  Jun 13 - 17 & Jun 23 - Jul 05, 2008
  SCUBA diving, Trip to Luxor to see Temples & Burial Tombs

On Sunday, the moment of truth came where we realized we could no longer put off chores. Eric changed the generator oil and filter and the air filter in the main engine and on engine fuel filter while Christi cleaned and did laundry. We also both did some major re-organizing. No matter how much stuff we move around, we never can seem to put it all away. We always have something sitting out on the living room floor that has no home. And when we find a spot for it, whatever was in that spot goes to the living room floor instead. Someday we will get it all put away… Maybe… Mike went to the hospital to have his bandages changed. We are pleased to report he came back with slightly smaller bandages, which is a very good sign, indeed. In the evening we went out to dinner with a family we had met on the kayak trip.

Monday morning we took a taxi back to Ao Chalong bay to check out. We were supposed to (more…)

Today was errand day. We went to an internet café, the grocery store, and to several gas stations in search of diesel engine oil. The grocery store we went to is called Tesco and it is like a Super Target, and very clean and nice inside and outside. There was also a section where you could buy foods in bulk. We are delighted to report that there was a big selection of heat and serve foods with English labels, however, most of the canned foods were labeled in Thai, so we didn’t get many canned goods. BTW, prices for alcohol and cigarettes are much lower here with tax than in Langkawi duty free, so we should have stocked up here.

A friend of ours from home that had recently visited Thailand told us we needed to get a pancake from a street vendor. We were pretty disappointed with the pancakes we had gotten in the restaurants, but we saw a street vendor selling dessert pancakes and each got one only because we trust our friend’s judgment on food. They turned out to be paratha bread filled with the sweet(s) of your choice. They were to die for good. We all got a second one.

In the evening we went to a show called FantaSea, which is billed as a Vegas style show. A van picked us up at 1830 (6:30 pm) and took us to up the coastal road, the same road we had taken with Jennifer and Koy to Patong. Beyond Patong there are a lot of big, fancy resorts lining the road. We were let out at the entrance to the park at 1930. Park? We thought we were going to a show! The area where you buy your tickets has elephant head columns and the ceiling is painted in a way that looks like it is from a Thai Disney cartoon. There is a pond with a waterfall and with statues in it that look like Thai Disney characters, including the Thai Little Mermaid.

We entered into the park. There are (more…)

Continued from yesterday… We piled back into the trawler and in a couple minutes were at another cave on the same island called Diamond Cave. Golf made it clear this is a completely different hawng with no connection what so ever to the first cave. This cave is much narrower and lower. It was only a couple minutes before we needed to lie down again. Not only did the ceiling get ultra low, the cave also got ultra narrow, and the kayak barely squeezed through the opening. Once we got through the low, narrow stretch, we could sit up again. There is a portion of the cave covered in calcium carbonate that sparkles as if someone threw glitter all over it. It is pretty.

This hawng looks much the same inside as the bat cave hawng, which is spectacular, with clear blue water, 600 foot walls and foliage all the way to the top.

And, like the Bat Cave, it also has a bay within the bay. Here is (more…)

One of the things we were really looking forward to was seeing all the hawngs around Phuket. Several cruisers who have been to Thailand in the past on yachts just raved about how great they are. Someone gave us the coordinates of about 30 or so in Phang Nga bay at the north end of Phuket Island. And there are tons more than just the 30 up there. The consensus was (more…)