We Were Up Early,

and away,

 in the mini bus and out of Pattaya,

 we were on our way to Koh Chang,

 we booked the mini bus and ferry tickets through Malibu Travel, click here if you want to see where it is in case you might want to go to Koh Chang as well,

 so headphones on,

 as we all settled down for the trip,

 we travelled in a mini bus that ran on LPG,

the downside being that whilst the journey could easily be completed on one tank of petrol or diesel,

 we had to make two stops to refuel, the good news was that there were always a good coffee shop or two at each LPG station we refuelled at,

 but the coffee did not keep me awake!

 a little bit of drama on the way, we had to cross over to the other side of the road  as this tanker had tipped over, another tanker was loading up the contents of the overturned tanker before it could be righted, hopefully no one was injured,

 next stop another Cafe Amazon, we had stopped at this one before on previous visits,

 in front and at the side if it,

 there was a nice fish pond,

 stocked with fish,

 Mum and Diana take a break,

 I had always thought that Cafe Amazon was expensive, but compared to some other coffee chains it is very reasonably priced,

 this was the sign we were looking for, 

 the harbour for the ferry to the island,

 we stayed in the mini bus and waited till we had boarded before disembarking,

 then upstairs for the crossing,

 all loaded,

 and like the boat beside us ready for the off,

 and it is farewell to the mainland,

 as we all settled down for the 40 minuet or so crossing,

 the ferry in front of us left as the same time as we did,

but soon started to pull away from us,

 meanwhile another full ferry was making its way back to the mainland,

 accompanied by a smaller boat,

  it was all a real adventure for Daisy May who had not been here before,

 on the upper deck the boat was quiet full, but there were a few spaces for some more cars on the car deck,

 rather ominously rain clouds were on the horizon as we neared the island,

 soon we were near the island,

 and made our way to our minivan on the car deck,

 just as the previous ferry got underway,

 we decided to walk off of the ferry, the minivans ground clear needed a bit of help when we boarded,

 and here we are or first steps on Koh Chang,

 back in the minivan and we are on our way,

 I know I have mentioned this on previous trips, but the roads out here are so steep it is almost unbelievable,

 10 minuets time and we were at Paddy's Palms, the reception area is at the back of the building,

 so unload the cases and check in,

 then round to the front of the building,

 for a beer, a few snacks,

 and what Sandio and Dioshane had been looking forward to,

 a few games of table football,

 which Lyn and Daisy May had never seen before,

 I went for another beer at the well stocked bar,

 snacks finished,

 it was my turn to take on the champion,

 we were both concentrating so hard, 

 the last time we were here work had just started on the cladding on the front wall, now all finished,

 and this is our room,the Billingham with us as usual,

 fridge, television and wi-fi,

and a small balcony as well,

 everyone spent the rest of the day,

 in the pool,

 which was nice as it looked so much like it was going to rain,

we then made a move from Paddy's Palms,

which was conveniently opposite Foodland to make our way to the travel booth to book our trips for the next few days,

then shower and change and we were out for our evening meal,

we walked past some of the roadside stalls,

which smelled delicious, it was now past 7 o'clock in the evening and apart from 2 ice coffees I had not eaten a thing since 6.30 in the morning,

and this was where we were heading, the Sea Bar,

we made our way through the restaurant,

to the beach where food that could be bar-b-qued was kept,

so much to chose from, 

and so many fish,

I took the easy way out and let Diana chose for us all,

two huge bar-b-q's

a view of the bar from the sea,

we also ordered a few things from the menu,

we were all so happy to be here,

here's a small tip, the service whilst good can sometimes be a little slow in the busy season, so order 2 drinks and keep one in reserve! 

Dad was a slow drinker so only 1 for him,

 back to the food Diana and Mum take a walk back to make the final selection,

the bar itself,

there is of course inside seating, but we preferred to be on the beach,

 so a helping of salad,

and the meal begins, seafood fried rice,

followed by tempura prawns and onion rings

garlic prawns,

and fried pork ribs,

'Cheers!',

steamed mussels,

 with garlic bread,

 plus a huge fish,

eyes down and tuck in,

did I mention a couple of chicken kebabs?

well there was two,

 a forkful of garlic and a garlic prawn,

 a great and filling meal the bill came to 2,800 baht, but would have been less if not for copious amounts of red wine,

next a show,

 as two of the locals,

 performed on the beach,

 for a small gratuity after the performance,

 then it was the families turn,

on the count of one jump!

again, on the count of one jump!

 once again, on the count of one jump!

 Dad had still not quite got the hang of this,

nearly there,

well almost,

Dad like me who had already seen the folly of this idea joined me back at the table for another wine,

then the dessert arrived,

and another wine,

we made a move back to Paddy's for a cocktail or two,

then Diana's favourite dessert, a sticky toffee pudding,

I know we all have favourites, but this is the one for Diana, so we all helper her eat it,

another glass or three of wine for me, we have a busy day on the beach tomorrow and with that we were all off to bed.