One of the comfortable departure lounges at Samui Airport

When it first opened more than 20 years ago, the Samui Airport received a lot of attention for it’s “un-airport” style architecture. The open-air terminal buildings were totally unlike anything ever seen in this part of the world. Twenty years is a long time for any commercial building, especially an airport, so it should come as no surprise that the airport has recently undergone an extensive renovation. I got to the airport early this morning to check out all the changes.

Actually, they pretty much built a whole new airport terminal complex south of the original terminal buildings. The new complex is a bit more sophisticated than the original grass-roofed huts, but many of the original design concepts are still there. The departure gates are still open-air pavilions, connected by covered walkways. You’re still whisked to and from the plane in open-sided trams. And, if you’re flying on Bangkok Airways, there’s still a complementary snack bar.

There are a few new ideas at Samui as well. They were just putting the finishing touches on the biggest change while I was there today. The old airport had almost nothing in the way of shopping or restaurants, but now they’re preparing to rectify that in a big way. “Samui Park Avenue”, as it’s being called, is a full scale shopping arcade, with several restaurants as well as name brand shops like Jim Thompson and Harnn & Thann. The arcade is sited between the check-in hall and the entrance to the departure lounges, so anyone departing Samui will get a chance to stroll through it. Even if you’re not flying out of the airport, a visit to the new shopping arcade might be interesting.

Get all the details at the updated Samui Airport Guide at Asia-Airports.com.

Having finished my initial scuba training yesterday, the instructor invited me on a day trip to Koh Taen, a small island just off the southern tip of Samui. We started out driving up to the viewpoint near the top of the highest peak in Samui, which has great views to the south, where we were heading. Then it was back down the hill and to a small fishing village near Laem Sor. The south of Samui is still mostly undeveloped, although it doesn’t look like it will be for much longer.

The almost deserted beach at Koh Taen, south of Samui.

 
We took two fishing boats out about 30 minutes to Koh Taen. We anchored at the south end of a long beach on the east side of the island, near a reef. The tide was low at this point, so the top of the reef was above water. This was a really great spot, at a pretty good time. I just let myself float on top of the water, drifting along the face of the reef, which was full of fish. It took very little effort to steer in the water. I gave my new pocket camera - which claimed to be waterproof to 10 meters - a try, and got a couple of decent pictures, which you’ll find in the gallery.

Next we hauled anchor and went to a smaller island just next to Koh Taen, called Koh Mat Sum. This island is deserted and has a long white sandy beach facing Koh Taen. Some people sun-bathed, a few went snorkeling again, while I and a few others walked down the beach, looking at the wild plants and trees, and doing a bit of shell collecting.

Lastly, we went back to Koh Taen, where we landed this time and had lunch at a tiny little resort on the beach. There aren’t many people here, and we only saw one other small boat of tourists, so this place is really off the tourist trail. The food was really good (highly recommend the curry chicken). After lunch, I walked down the beach to a small rocky island. Away from the others, I was struck by how quiet it was. There was no boom box blaring, as there almost always is everywhere in Thailand, there was no sound at all. As I was walking, it took me a while to realize that an occasional “shhhh” I kept hearing was the sound of an little wavelet of water running through the course sand on the beach. What a great day away from the crowds!

See the Koh Samui photo gallery for more pictures of this idyllic island get-away.

This is part two of my experience learning scuba. Read part one first.

Today is the big day. I get my first taste of diving beneath the waves. Am I nervous? You bet.

Adam picks me up early and drives us to the pier in Bang Rak. We’re taking the ferry that runs from Samui to Phangan and on to Koh Tao. The ferry is quite comfortable, especially if it rains on the way back, which it can do at this time of year. The ferry also doubles as a day-trip boat for snorkelers, so after it docks in Koh Tao, it moves on to Koh Nang Yuan and pulls up right next to our dive boat. While the day trippers go out the back to fishing boats, we transfer our gear to the dive boat, where a couple of other divers are already waiting. Adam gives everybody an introduction to the rules of the boat, then he and I go over the dive plan, which is pretty simple for my first dive.

We’re moored over a spot known as the Japanese Garden, for it’s many cabbage-shaped corals. We get the equipment ready, then suit up, and it’s over the side of the boat - backwards - another challenge. We swim over to the buoy that the boat is tied to, then follow it down into the water. I’m focused on trying to remember all the things I’m supposed to do to dive safely - breathe, equalize, breathe, maintain neutral buoyancy, breathe, clear the mask - remember the comparison to learning to drive a car? It really does become automatic after a while, and you do get a chance to view some of the scenery, although that too can be a distraction.

Denizens of the deep. I’m the one in back.

The first dive is finished after only 25 minutes. It’s not a complete success – I have problems with the all-important neutral buoyancy – but hey, it’s my first time. We stow the gear then climb up to the top deck, where lunch is served. After lunch, we cast off and move around to the other side of the island, to a site known as the Twin Peaks, or just the Twins. We get ready for the second dive. If anything, I’m more nervous about this one, knowing all the little things that I did wrong on the first dive.

Fortunately, this dive goes a lot better. I get my form in order and move through the water a lot easier, which is just as well, because the scenery here is fantastic. There are many more types of coral, as well as lots more fish, as well as sea slugs, urchins and many others. I’m actually disappointed when the dive ends, but my air gage is getting close to the ‘danger’ zone, so I don’t argue.

My instructor took more pictures of me and what we saw on the second dive. See his photo gallery for more.

Seeing as how I turn the big 5-0 this year, I decided I needed to set myself a challenge - learn something new, do something I’ve been too timid to do before. Since I’ve always been fascinated by television programs about underwater sights, and live in a part of the world where such things can literally be right outside your door, I decided to learn how to scuba dive.

This decision was not without a lot of trepidation. After all, strapping a big heavy tank to your back, adding another 20 pounds of lead weights around your waist, and then jumping in the water just seems so wrong. The list of things that could go haywire seemed endless.

But that was the whole idea. Challenge my fears, free myself of those ideas that keep me from experiencing everything that life has to offer. So, having decided what to do, I had to find somebody to teach me. Fortunately, scuba diving is one of the most highly organized sports in the world, with a global system of teaching people to dive, known as PADI. All I had to do was find a certified PADI instructor, and there are literally thousands of them in Thailand alone. This decision for me was easier than it might seem. I’d already heard many good things about Adam Preston, of Rainbow Scuba in Samui, so I contacted him and we arranged some dates that worked for both of us.

Now, when you try to imagine what a scuba instructor is like, whatever comes to mind is probably the exact opposite of Adam. He’s a soft-spoken Brit who came to Thailand about six years ago and hasn’t left. Adam is very patient and doesn’t mind repeating himself as much as necessary - which actually seems to be a fundamental part of PADI instruction.

For those that haven’t been through it, the PADI course is a small scale multi-media extravaganza that combines self-study, video reviews and classroom instruction to learn the basics - although for this course, the classroom is a swimming pool. You get familiar with all the equipment and fundamentals involve in scuba in the relatively safe and controlled confines of a hotel pool.

So, when I landed in Samui last night, Adam graciously picked me up from the airport, and handed me a book. "Read at least the first section before I pick you up tomorrow." He told me.

So, I did my homework and Adam picked me up this morning for the start of “class”. Actually, since it was just me, we went to Adam’s house to watch the DVD’s, which basically cover the same ground as the book, to help re-enforce the concepts. Like the book, there’s a “test” after each section. Both the book and the videos are done with a touch of humor, that makes it easy to get through. The book also has numerous little “pop quizzes” sprinkled through it, to help you check if you’ve gotten the main points. The books are meant to be written in, a point which Adam made to me several times, since many of his customers aren’t used to marking up books.

Once the videos were out of the way, we moved to a nearby resort where I got my first taste of diving with the equipment. Strangely, things I thought would give me trouble, like getting used to the mask and clearing it, proved to be relatively simple. The hard part, for me, was getting the hang of neutral buoyancy. Adam compares learning scuba to learning to drive. When you first start out, there are so many things you’re trying to remember, it seems impossible that anyone manages it, but pretty soon a lot of actions become second nature.

After a couple hours in the pool, I’ve learned everything I’m supposed to learn, so we knock off for the day and tomorrow it’s off to Koh Tao to do the real thing.

To find out how I did in the real open water dives, read part two.

The new contemporary art museum may not be opening until later this year, but it’s already the center of a new art scene. Beginning today until 28 September, the plaza in front of the museum will host an art market, complete with recent works by new artists and performance art.

The museum is located on the corner of Rama I and Phayathai Road, filling in the blank space left between MBK center, Siam Discovery Mall and Siam Square. Take the Skytrain to the National Stadium station.