Faux Rustic in Ko Lipe

After a week or two of being on the move, we put down roots on Ko Lipe, a tiny island in the Ko Tarutao Marine National Park in Thailand's Andaman sea. We've been lying around the beach for a week and a half, staring at emerad green water and working on forgetting what day it is.  Here are a few of the highlights:

Top 8 Best Things About Our Stay on Ko Lipe

1. Bungalow living...going faux rustic in a Swiss Family Robinson-style bungalow at Castaway Resort. Mosquito nets and flashights included. Shenanigans ensue.

2. Learning that you don't actually want to be a "castaway"... after one long day dropped off on the banks of uninhabited national park island Ko Adang. Let's just say it was low on the "faux", high on the "rustic." Take home point: the best kind of "castaway" to be is the kind that is served crispy spring rolls and frosty gin and tonics on the resort deck at the end of a hard day bonding with nature.

3. Live entertainment... at the local bar ("Pooh's") by Mr. Chet, who does not speak English but sings eerily convincing renditions of our favorite easy-listening classics ("Puff the Magic Dragon", "Horse With No Name")

4. Cold showers...wait, is this a "best of" list?

5. Waking with the birds...turns out this is more "woken by the birds," who seem to be nesting in our roof, and least of one of whom sounds to be in heat...or maybe was that a cat? Monkey?

6. The night sky...we hear we have this back home but find we're staring at it a lot here. Note to self: purchase Kindle book on origins of the cosmos. Contemplate.

7. Trying to use credit card...at the local pharmacy. Mr. Pharmacy is gone in the blink of an eye then screeches up to curb in his scooter. Gestures, smiling, at the bike's sidecar. Says encouragingly "tuk tuk!" We climb in, mildly alarmed, and are taken for a wild, Space-Mountain-esque ride under a full moon, across the island. Run Amex at Mr. Pharmacy's friend's restauarant (improbably named "Riccis")  while he checks his Facebook profile on his cell phone. He cheerfully drops us off at our hotel.

8. Rice...it's what's for dessert. Who knew rice had a whole secret dessert life beyond the Puritanical confines of rice pudding? Mango Sticky Rice = almondy rice plus sliced mango plus sweetened condensed milk = perfect symphony of sweet, salty and fruity goodness. A dessert revolution.