Krabi, Thailand
We arrived in Krabi Town and went to scope out the area since we were only there for one night. We ran into another street market, and a few pubs and restaurants. There was also a pretty view of the river you could walk along. In the morning, we woke up early, and took a tuk-tuk to Tiger Cave Temple. There was a temple and very cool buildings, along with a waterfall and signs indicating that you could buy monkey food. Then there were 1,260 stairs we climbed to get to the top of the mountain to see a few statues and one amazing view. Not one person that climbed those stairs was not out of breath and exhausted by the time they made it up. And most everyone seemed to be in great shape. It was definitely a struggle, and I can't even imagine doing it in the afternoon heat! But it was very much worth it. We enjoyed the landscape, took the 1,260 stairs back down, and then headed back to our hotel to check out. There was just enough to see and do there for 24 hours but I wasn’t too sad to leave it behind - I mean, we were headed to the beach!
Tonsai Beach, Krabi
Not only was the boat ride to the beach gorgeous, but the beach was unreal! The beaches (because there are many right next to each other) are divided by limestone mountains which means it created cool little beach pockets and awesome hiking paths! We stayed on Tonsai Beach which is mostly full with young adults as it is cheaper and a bit grosser sand, but has loads of rock climbers, hikers, and bars. Right next to it is Railay Beach (divided into Railay East and Railay West) which was a bit nicer but much more expensive. Our first day there, we got settled in and just grabbed a beer on the beach front - it was entertaining to people watch but we also had an awesome view of the sunset.
Our next day, we woke up early, went for breakfast and went off to hike to the Viewpoint and the Princess Lagoon! It was a fairly vigourous hike-climb. I use the term “hike-climb” because if that wasn’t a real thing before, I know it is now. As much as I wanted to bring my nice camera, Luke had done the research and knew it was going to be fairly intense, so I left it back in the room - good thing! Luke had his GoPro and the hike-climb definitely required two hands. There were enough ropes along the way to help you up and down the large rocks but overall it wasn’t bad… just a good workout! We made it to the viewpoint covered in sweat and clay and man was it impressive. We could see pretty much the entire island as well as islands that were nearby. Afterwards, we ventured about 150 meters further and climbed down about 3 tiers of not large but massive clay rocks that went straight down about 15-30 feet each. I had a few moments of hesitation. Maybe it was that we weren’t hooked to anything and I really haven’t had much climbing experience, or maybe it was due to a tiny little back injury I’ve had recently (ha!) but with a little motivation from Luke and the mysterious lagoon awaiting me, I went for it and am so thankful I did! It was honestly one of the most rewarding experiences as it was tough to get there, but very secluded and peaceful and just awe-inspiring. When we got there, there were already a few people there that left as we arrived, and a handful of people showed up as we were leaving. But we got there just at the right time. We went swimming in the lagoon, took a few pics, and enjoyed the miraculous place we ventured into before heading back. We thoroughly enjoy tough hikes with such rewarding views! If you want more detailed information on this hike, see my other post here.
Afterwards, we spent some time on Railay Beach cooling and rinsing off in the sea, and then enjoyed a fruit smoothie and some Pad Thai! It started raining later in the evening so we passed on trying to see the sunset, went to clean off and relax and then went to dinner. Chicken sandwich, Tom Yum soup and ice thai teas haha, delicious! We packed up that night in preparation for heading to Ko Phi Phi (“Ko Pee Pee”...hehe) which was our party beach for the week!
Ko Phi Phi, Krabi
Ohhh Ko Phi Phi, where do I start with you. Luke and I both felt like we had the worst hangovers anyone has ever had, but not from drinking...from food poisoning. Oh yes. I will spare you the smelly, chunky, appetizing details but just know we didn’t get to enjoy as much of the island as we had hoped. We weren't feeling very hungry, energetic or confident in our ability to stay away from a bathroom for longer than 15 minutes. However, due to us being lethargic and spending all our time in our very tiny room with no AC, we had the fan on high and the door cracked (FYI we were very high up near the trees). We were watching a show on my iPad when all of a sudden I heard a noise on the porch. Then I looked near the door and saw TWO MONKEYS STANDING IN OUR ROOM AT THE FOOT OF THE BED!!! I didn’t want to make any noises since I wasn’t sure how they would react, but I tapped Luke like a maniac, “Luke! Luke! Oh my gosh, Luke!!” until he saw them and we both freaked out. I wish I could have filmed the whole fiasco, with my constant, “Luke! Luke!” And his attempt to shoo them out of the room with a pillow, “Nnnooo! NO!” The monkeys didn't even seem phased, just scanned the room for some food and figured some humans were causing a ruckus so they turned around and headed to the porch. Luke immediately shut the door and we grabbed our phones to take pictures. Ahh it was definitely a story for the books!
The last night there we walked around the beach to see all the hype, which was mostly fire dancers which are pretty sweet and loud party music, and that was the end of our two days in Ko Phi Phi.
Ko Lanta, Thailand
Transitioning from a fairly rough two days, we headed to Ko Lanta as we were on the uphill battle of our sickness. We were grateful to finally be staying at a higher quality resort - AC, sheets and a comforter both, more than one pillow for each of us, and a pool and the beach so close we could see them from our room! The weather was decent the first day so we spent some time at the pool and soaked up a bit of the sun then took a walk down the beach to check out the restaurants and shops. When we eventually ate dinner, we both went with the safest foods we could and opted for a beer. It was such a calm, chill, long beach with no limestone mountains so although a bit cloudy, it was still gorgeous since the sea and sky seemed endless.
Friday was rainy and we had been non stop going or non stop pooing so we ate breakfast and went for a small walk in the morning, but spent most of the day just relaxing (and me writing this post). It was very much needed!
We depart in the morning for Bangkok for three days, then Siem Reap, Cambodia for three more before heading back home to Korea. We’ve already experienced so many things in just two weeks (good, bad or otherwise) but I can’t wait to see what the last week of our vacation has in store for us!
