Good morning from Ko Tao, a small lush island that is home to 5500 inhabitants, and a part of Samui archipelago in the Gulf of Thailand.

We have just woken to the peaceful sounds of the water gently lapping against the shore, intermingled by cheerful bird songs. We lay in bed for a short while taking it all in as we slowly rouse into our morning. What a stark contrast to the screaming traffic of Thailand's cosmopolitan capital Bangkok, where we first set foot after Taiwan.


Nature's symphony invites us outdoors. Paul dons his swimsuit and heads straight for the water. The tide is still low, so the sand caresses his feet for the 6 or so steps between our bungalow and the sea before he dives straight into the shallow, crystal clear water, letting his body float to the surface.

After a while, he emerges looking relaxed and ready to embark in another productive day working on his web site: iTools. After changing out of his swimsuit, with laptop in hand, he strolls slowly towards the cafe where his dreams and visions of recreating iTools are turning into reality.

This is all observed as I sit in a bamboo chair on the balcony of our beach bungalow just a few feet away. The bungalow sits on stilts 2 feet above the sand. The balcony is made of slats of wood that are an inch or so apart from each other. The singing birds come to visit under foot in search of crumbs that have fallen. It is not uncommon to be visited by the occasional rooster or stray dog as well.

The sights to be appreciated from our balcony don't stop there:

Off in the distance there are a dozen or so boats anchored in the tranquil bay. Most are long boats (over sized canoes with small gas engines mounted on the back, attached to a propeller by a 20 foot shaft). The other boats are for diving as Ko Tao is the mecca where people come to get scuba certified.

Also visible, just 1 kilometer off the northwestern coast is Ko Nang Yuan, three very rustic, undeveloped islands that are joined together by a sand bar.

We had the pleasure of knowing these islands up close and personal after swimming to them one day - much to our surprise - through jellyfish inhabited waters. We could not see them, but the intermittent stream of little stingers kissing our bodies made their presence undeniable.



A few dozen other unassuming bungalows can be seen in the hills at the end of the curving bay blending into the landscape of a tropical forest broken by enormous boulders.

As I sit peacefully on our balcony taking it all in, I suddenly realize: the waters are calling me too. What a beautiful way to wake up.