Waterfalls and elephants....

There aren't that many tourist attractions on Koh Samui. People visit this island mostly to hang out on the beach and there are plenty and really beautiful ones!

But we read about a waterfall, so since we were making a road trip and would pass it anyway, we headed for Na Muang II Waterfall. The highest point is 80 mtr, so not that impressive. What is nice about is, that it is in a shady area and it has a nice natural pool underneath where you can swim and cool off. But by all means; I have seen more impressive waterfalls in my life... even the girls have seen better. So if you are visiting Koh Samui, go if you have some spare time, but don't despair if you miss it! Maybe an interesting fact: This waterfall has been visited by several Thai kings such as Rama V and his queen, Queen Saovapa Pongsi and later by King Rama VII. King Rama IX and his queen visited in 1962.

When we arrived we were told that you can only go by elephant to the water fall, or you have to walk/climb 4 km.... well, in this heat we didn't feel like walking and climbing, so we opted to do the elephant ride. Since my dad never had been on an elephant back it was a nice thing to do.

Juliet went with my dad and Jasmine came with me, it is quite the bumpy ride, but fun! We made a trek from about 1 hour through the beautiful forest around the waterfall.



View from on top, Bang Bang's huge head, with its stiff hair on top, feels very funny!



We even saw some durian growing in the wild. This is a very large fruit, with a bumpy scale and it smells very foul!



Grandpa and Juliet on Jumbo



The girls first wanted to go and swim in the pool at the base of the waterfall but had decided against it... it was a bit chilly!



At the beginning of the waterfall was also a Holy Tree, a new pair of women's shoes was donated and I was wondering why? But reading this info below I got it! Even a woman's spirit needs shoes!!



A very big and very tall tree of the kind which the people believe to be the abode of the spirit will not be felled at any cost. The Takian tree in the particular is a very well-known one where a female spirit has her habitation. She is known as "Nang Takian" or Lady Takian. In the imagination of the people, Lady Takian usually takes the form of a beauty maiden who sometimes makes a wailing and piercing sound when the tree, her abode, is felled. Unforeseen and mysterious calamities will befall the person or persons who destroy her abode. A Takian tree growing near the bank of a river with its root protruding above ground is to be avoided, for the Lady Takian of that tree is a fierce one. Whoever relieves himself near the base of her tree will suffer from ulcers. To add to the belief, both kinds of trees, Takian and Yang are usually found in a Wat where all sorts of ghost stories emanate.

Thailand; the land of smiles, but also many mysteries and superstitious!!

Sawasdee Kha!
Mireille