The week at Yoga Thailand has been amazing. Despite the heat my yoga practice has taken a leap forward. Paul's instructions were subtle yet poignant. Why is it that he managed to pick on all the little quirks I had acquired so far? As most of us who are flexible but not strong I am able to stretch to the full length of most of my sitting postures, but tend to collapse into them rather than keeping the thigh muscle strong and the bundhas (internal locks or seals) engaged. Well up to now I have been able to get away with it. No more, says my yogi conscience!



On Tuesday I decided to hire an air-conditioned car and driver to take me to the local sites and temples. The driver looked about 12, but insisted I view his license so he could prove he was actually 29. After the first few minutes of driving in air-conditoned comfort he began sneezing and wheezing, apparently allergic to the aircon we decided to turn it off. Hopefully there are some good karma points coming my way.



Samui has a plentitude of wonderful temples and sites to see. Just ten minutes walk up the beach (Laem Sor) from YT is an old monastery inhabited by only a couple of monks. There they will insist that you feed the fish for all of 15 baht and perform a small blessing ritual beforehand. The monks are quite pleasant and a colorful blessing-string around your wrist will give you a sense of protection on your journey.



Then high up on the hill from this monastery is another temple. The driver was surprised to see it, saying in his ten years in Samui he did not know it was there. So it was not surprising to see that there was no-one there but an old man who acted as gate keeper. The view from this temple is spectacular and well worth the hike up the steep road.



About 30 minutes drive from YT is the Elephant Safari Camp. They have 18 rideable elephants that all seem to be very docile. Asian elephants in contrast to African elephants are smaller. They also have two lobes (brain) rather than a singular as in the African animal. This makes them very easy to train and the Thai people have used elephants for  centuries to help them build their temples and dwellings.



Another fabulous site to see is the magic garden or as it is also called Buddhas Secret Garden. There statues of deities and other symbolic figures have been carved directly out of the granite rocks from the ground. The road there is quite steep and when hiring a driver let them know this is where you want to go as they might want to drive an appropriate vehicle. The road there now is fully concreted and it is much easier to get to than it used to be in the past.



Thai people do not speak very good English, even though they try. It is well worth investing in a phrase book. It has been wonderful to have spoiled myself with massages, fabulous accommodation, yoga and an abundance of smoothies and juices at Yoga Thailand and now I am going to Had Tieng on Koh Phangan. There, I am told, I will have quite a different experience. The journey there alone sounds like an adventure and I am very excited to get going. So until the next blog....