About 20 years ago, I made a trip to Vancouver, Canada, in February. It was cold, rainy, dark, and miserable.
I remember thinking, “No wonder they chose this place to film ‘The X-Files!’” I couldn’t think of a bleaker and more foreboding backdrop.
Not long after, I made my first visit to Koh Samui in Thailand, and it reminded me of every movie I’d ever seen that takes place on a tropical island. “The Beach,” “Dr. No,” “Castaway,” and every single one of the “Pirates of the Caribbean” movies could have been
filmed on Koh Samui.
White sand beaches with coconut trees? Check.
Mountains, jungles, and waterfalls? Check.
Monkeys, mosquitos, and tree snakes? Triple check!
Koh Samui doesn’t even have to try.
Sun, sand, seafood, and boatloads of Thai charm make Thailand’s second-largest island a cartoonishly tropical paradise. For a honeymoon, a two-week holiday, or a month in a detox resort, it’s hard to beat Koh Samui.
But what’s it like to live here? Do people live here? Is it a good idea to live here?
That’s what we’re going to explore in this month’s feature. Trust me, there’s more to this little chunk of paradise than meets the casual tourist’s eye.
