We were still unsure when our boatman cut the engine of the longtail as it glided up onto Sukorn's northern beach. One of the island's four vehicles was there to greet us and we piled on to the back of the pickup truck for the five-minutes drive across the island to its southern shores and our accommodation at Sukorn Beach Bungalows. Any remaining doubts soon disappeared.

A small bridge led over lily ponds and through a coconut plantation to our bungalows, each with large cold water bathroom, patio overlooking the sea, and decorated with furniture crafted from the island's timber. A small office and thatch-roofed restaurant fronted the ocean. Fans provided relief on rare occasions when there was no nightly sea breeze.

More importantly, from our bungalow it was eleven paces to the beach, twenty-three to the water (depending on the tide), and seven to the restaurant. This would do nicely. The AUS$15,= a night price tag included a traditional orange sunset, with discount for longer stays of course.

2,500 Thai Muslims live in four villages spread across the eight-by-four kilometer island. Koh Sukorn's local name is actually Koh Muu, which translates as 'pig island', a curious fact given the persuasion of its inhabitants. Fishing and rubber farming are the principal industries, and the island is famous for growing Thailand's beat watermelons

Offshore, there are many small islands accessible on a day-trip by longtail boat. These ocean jewels see few foreign visits, their deserted shores overdosing bug-eyed beachcombers and providing snorkellers with an endless parade of rainbow-coloured marine life.

It was on one of these islands, Koh Takieng, that my wife coined the phrase 'like walking on cake mix', as she threw herself on the sand, giggling like a two year-old. Apparently the abundant (and very hungry) parrotfish are responsible for the incredibly fine, white sand. It's a by-product of the coral they eat. So, if you've never walked on cake mix, and chances are you haven't,  mark it down as one of the reasons for visiting the area - I guarantee you will want to roll about in the sand too!

Our days on Koh Sukorn were spent exploring the villages and beaches, being careful to leave plenty of time for swimming. The people are very friendly, and the island's landscape of contrasting colours and textures matches their relaxed lifestyle. Expanses of vivid green rice fields fringed by forested hills of rubber-farms give way to coastal coconut plantations and the occasional haphazard collection of fisherman's houses. Curious buffalo and a myriad of seabirds looked on wherever we went.

Electricity is rare on the island and the village 'supermarket' stock items essential only to the local population. Nothing is refrigerated. We sat here one day relaxing in the shade after a hot two-hour walk, watching one of the street-sellers cooking delicious pancakes with the deft touch of a skilled tradesman. We marveled at the contrast between koh Sukorn and Phuket, our last destination.

We had just paid six bath for two handfuls of bananas (sixteen in all), two baht for a bottle of water and four baht for a bottle of coke. No haggling required. That's about 0 cents in total - about a quarter of Phuket's prices. The bananas were sweet and delicious, and we didn't care that the water and coke was not cold. It's funny how unimportant some of the things we take for granted really are.

Back at the bungalows we had the beach to ourselves and therefore our 600-metre stretch of sandy cove bears few footprints.

We discussed the merits of traditional noodles and fresh garlic and pepper squid in the bungalow restaurant and, undecided, opted for another mango shake as the sea mirrored the sun's last gasp. Tomorrow? May be a walk to shell beach where a beachcomber's bounty of treasures is discarded daily by fishermen keen to get their catch to the market. And there would need to be time for a swim.

Dick te Brake, co-owner of paradise, stopped for a chat and we ask him his plans.

        "We are in no hurry." He motions to the left and right, "There are no plans to develop either side of this (coconut-)plantation, so we will have the place to ourselves for a while."
        "Will you expand?", I ask.

        "We might build a few more bungalows in a couple of years but we don't want anything too big", explains Dick. "We have our own slice of paradise here. It's fragile. We don't want to loose that feeling."

          'A resting-place of beauty and delight'. That's how the dictionary defines paradise. And that's a good description of Koh Sukorn. .