Originally we had planned to spend our Millennium celebration in the USA but the crazy prices there stopped us however from a journey there, and we decided instead for a vacation in Thailand, more exactly, on the island lain in the south gulf of Thailand Koh Samui.

From our local airport we went to Frankfurt and from there to Copenhagen. In the Boeing 747 of Thai Airways we needed then still approx. 11 hours to the chaotic Bangkok airport. There we had then to change to the domestic terminal - a tremendous procedure! Bangkok welcomed us with unbelievably cool 16° C, many Thais wrapped themselves into thick scarfes due to these unusual cold temperatures. Finally we went with the relatively small aircraft of Bangkok Airways to Koh Samui, where we landed after further 1.5 hours on an adventurous "bush airport". Our booked taxi waited already and brought us to the hotel Poppies at Chaweng beach. All in all we were travelling 24 hours.

During the the travel to the hotel we got a first impression of the island: a rurally shaped area with many small huts and houses along the main street. Chaweng seemed chaotically: a main street with numerous typically Thai open businesses, wildly strained wires, unbelievable traffic, above all small motorcycles. Besides it had rained straight and the roads stood highly under water.

At the small hotel reception of the "Poppies" we were received by the general manager personally and extremely friendly and let to our own bungalow, in which we should spend the next 14 days. The speciality of the Poppies is the renouncement of a large hotel complex in the conventional style. Each guest inhabits its own bungalow, extremely established wonderfully in traditional Thai style. All bungalows are in a tropical sumptuous garden, which is flowed through by small brooks. To the hotel belongs only the lobby, an open restaurant and a spa as well as a pool. The restaurant of the hotel was excellent, the menue contained a "Western" and a Thai section, whose excellent meals we tested in the course of the vacation extensively. Our judgement: not all Thai meals are hot!

All in all the hotel obtained the impression of a very much maintained, family exclusivity, in which everyone of the few guests can live completely unimpaired. Not to the hotel belonged the broad white and fine sanded beach - all beaches in Thailand are common property. Directly in front of the hotel area were however some beach chairs and parasols , so that one could lie down there also unimpaired.

Like already in Bangkok, the weather on Koh Samui with approx.. 22° C was much too coolly for the season. We used the cool weather for extensive beach walks at the unbelievably long and beautiful Chaweng beach. The beach was surrounded by many small, max. one-story hotels and restaurants, which had put their tables and chairs often directly on the beach. To our astonishment - despite the high season - only relatively few people were to see. Later we should experience that many had already booked their journey around midyear 1999, but had again cancelled from fear of technical or other problems at the Millennium. We were said that never it was so empty at Christmas on Samui!

Chaweng presented itself us as typical Thai tourist place: many roads and streets were packed with innumerable souvenir shops, restaurant, open bars etc.. During our stay along the main street sidewalks were built, frequently enough 30 cm high. The height was also necessary, because after the cloud-break-like rainfalls the roads now and then were completely flooded. Interesting was also the attendance of the market taking place during the day or the typically Thai night market.

Due to lack of evening entertainment in our hotel we went often to the nearby beautiful Central hotel, in central position on Chaweng beacht. In the evening good Philippine bands played in the open lobby regularly, to whose music one could dance well. Within the middle and northern range from Chaweng there were also open bars with the mandatory prostitutes, unfortunately inevitable for Thailand. Because of the few tourists these suffered during our stay however from acute lack of customers, which I felt naturally as very pleasant.

During the day I did body boarding. Fortunately I had bring along my own board, because there was no rental business. Due to the unusual weather there were rather high waves directly in front of the hotel, which were fantastic to body board. Due to the sand beach this was also completely harmless.

On one day we rented a taxi - not driving is recommendable at the left-hand traffic in Thailand and the chaotic style of driving of the locals - and drove to the direction north toward Choeng Mon. The road was in a catastrophic condition, driven out and washed out and let through dense tropical forest. On the left and on the right of the road we saw the typical Thai houses in open building method. The mandatory spirit little house very often was also in front of the house. After long driving we reached finally again the paved main street, and visited the enormously large statue of the "Big Buddah" and decided then to drive in the opposite direction toward the south to the likewise well-known resort Lamai.

Lamai reminded in its structure with main street, innumerable businesses, restaurants and hotels of Chaweng, was however probably somewhat less good. As we were surprised by the sunset taking place fast in the Tropics we too were surprised by: as on order at once many people emerged on the road, both tourists and locals ones. Women offered Thai meals on their little 3-weheeled carts, many business opened only now. Back it went in an adventurous open pickup the hilly road to Chaweng.

After this trip we undertook a further trip with driver the next days around the southern part of the island. First stop was Hin Ta & Hin Yai (grandfather and grandmother), a stone formation in the form of male and female sex parts. The attraction was surrounded by the inevitable souvenir shops on the right of and on the left of the way. We continued to the main street and bent on a side street, which led through palm plantations, on which trained monkeys harvested the coconuts . On the right and left of the road typical Thai houses stood next to the road, now and then one saw also a water buffalo, which is used still today still for the cultivation of the fields.

Our way led us further to the Samui Aquarium, in which one gets a good impression of the underwater flora and fauna around the island. Back on the main street we stopped at Wat (= temple) Khunaram, whose main attraction is a mummified monk. Our driver drove only little later right from the main street toward the famous waterfalls. At the parking lot we were invited immediately to ride to the waterfalls with an elephant which we rejected thanking. The way to the Namuang waterfall was indeed cumbersome with the enormously stifling heat in the mountains. Nevertheless we were remunerated with a beautiful sight! Unfortunately the time was just enough to a stop at the Royal Meridien hotel which was located at the east coast highly over the sea, where we had a refreshment. Our rather unfriendly driver had promised to drive us around the whole island but now refused. Thus it went back to the hotel to Chaweng.

The culmination of our stay was the Millenniumscelebration on Dec. 31. After an excellent European and Thai buffet with dance presentation at the pool we celebrated with music at the beach - and in the water! Typically Thai is the traditon of letting paper lamps fly into the air over the sea - an incomparable sight!

Conclusion of the journey: Koh Samui is particularly worth a journey for friends of water sports. One can lodge in the outstanding Poppies. Night life is for all tastes and on the island some points for sightseeing. The journey is recommendable in the winter because of the climate, which is however also main travel time. The far journey from Europe, which makes an airplane change in Bangkok necessary, is unfortunately long.