And then the waiting began. The bus which should have picked us up at 9.50 didn't show up for quite some time. But we were used to that as Slovenian buses never arrive on time. An hour later, we were ready to enquire about the bus, but Jon suggested to wait until the next bus that drives by. And indeed, at around 10.50, our bus stopped at the stop. It was an old, but quite comfortable bus with seats which could lean back almost all the way. Our journey was progressing fast until 6 km before Kaho Sok the bus engine suddenly stopped working. We were just 6 kilometres away, but with a steep hill in front of us ... Yet everyone remained calm, as though the breakdown were supposed to happen. The driver left the bus, did some tricks at the rear, restarted the engine and continued to drive normally. We guessed we ran out of fuel and he needed to change the reservoair to the resreve. Soon, we reached our destination.

Finding our accommodation was simple: there were taxi drivers at the Khao Sok Minivan/Bus Stop waiting for us; they drove us directly to our bunaglows.

The Khao Sok rainforest is one of the oldest natural habitats in the world. The biodiversity there is extreme: from plants, trees, bamboos to animals you can only dream of. It is also the biggest national park in Thailand, spanning over 740 square metres. Most of it being the pristine jungle and with an idyllic man-made lake in between. But more on that later.

So naturally we had two main objectives for our 2-day stay in Khao Sok. Visit the jungle and the lake. To enter the park, you will be asked to pay the admitance fee of 200 Baht, which is valid for 24 h since purchase. Then you will be constantly reminded that you are only allowed to visit a few spots on your own, but for anyting else the guide would be required. If you set your foot into the visit centre after the entrance gate, you will be presented with a detailed map of the route so there is virtually no possibility for you to miss any of the attractions. Or is it? We followed the route for a kilometre or so, then our interest diminished. So we diverged from the main road on to the path not taken. We wanted to experience jungle in its pristine form.

When we had enough of wandering throughout total wilderness, the paths met again and we found ourselves at the glade. First thing, we flew the drone. When trying to proceed further into the forest, we were again kindly reminded that only one point ahead could be viewed without a guide. Not only that - we were asked to scribble our names into a book and ckeck-out upon our return. Now, this is where the fun began.

Once upon a time, there was a forest with a river winding through it. One lovely day, humans realised they could use its force to generate electricity, by which they could also prevent floods. They built a dam and a beautiful lake Ratchaprapha emerged in the heart of the forest.

Nowdays the lake serves as the main tourist attraction in Khao Sok. Be ready to be presented all different tour options upon arrival to your accommodation. This is what they live off. Do not get us wrong - the tour is the easiest and the most convenient option for man to visit the lake. But it is neither the only nor the cheapest one. Tour prices per person start at 1200 Baht + 200 Baht entrance fee + 20 Baht pier fee. And this is the most basic one, others getting more expensive pretty quick.

This might already be familiar with you, but we ate mostly at the same place. Why? The common tourist trap: cheap accommodation, expensive facilities (except our restaurant). The food was tasty and portions were good.