The Krabi Airport Story

by TJG



OK - no photos with this one - just the story. This is one of those stories that happen every oncee and a while when one travels and gets themselves into a little pinch. A story about how good people really are out there.

So here it is:
On August 10, I caught the 18:30 flight from Florence to Frankfurt, then flew 11.5 hours from Frankfort to Singapore, then caught a flight from Singapore to Krabi, arriving at the Krabi airport at 18:45 on Saturday, August 11. Needless to say, I was tired. I was through immigration with no problems - the officer made some quip about me liking Thailand this time of year. (I was in Thailand from mid-August through mid-September last year too.) Luggage came out in a reasonable time and I picked up my bags and made my way to the bank machine to get some cash so I could take a taxi the hotel I was planning to stay at and crash.

Problem - the machine didn't like my bank card. Apparently the information was incomplete. OK - strange - it was working fine in Europe and I knew I had cash in there - so maybe it was just the machine. So, I walked over to a machine provided by another bank. Same problem.

Well - luckily I still had travellers cheques that I never used from the first time I went travelling on my own two years ago. I had been thinking of just cashing them in since I never use them - luckily I hadn't. I headed to the foreign exchange desk to cash some of them in. Unfortunately, they closed at 7pm. It was now 7:15pm - and the girl behind that glass was not going to help me out. There were closed - too bad.

Krabi airport is a small airport - there were no other options for getting cash. However, there was a hotel accomodation and tour desk open. Maybe I could book my hotel on my credit card and somehow arrange transport through them. So I walked over to the desk and asked about the hotel I was thinking about - Krabi City Seaview - and yes they did bookings for that. "Oh, and I can pay by credit card?", I asked. "No, only cash." was the response
Sh!t. It was now 7:30pm. I had 60 baht (from my last trip to Thailand) and that wasn't going to get me anywhere - the only way out of the airport at this time of night is by taxi and costs 350 baht. I explained my situation to the girl at the accomdation desk. I had 60 baht, $250 US in travellers cheques, 210 swiss francs, $85 CAN and $100 BDA, a credit card and a bank card, which wasn't working - and the exchange desk was closed. The girl came with me back the the exchange desk to see if she could convince them to open up - no luck. She then asked me to sit down and she wandered off for a bit.

By this point I'm kind of freaking out because I am really tired and have no baht. I tried to calm myself down by explaining to myself that the worst that could happen is that I would sleep in the airport and the exchange desk would be open in the morning and I could catch a taxi out of here then. But I was really tired and really wanted a decent bed tonight.

The girl came back and started talking on her mobile and then went over to the taxi desk and came back to me. "OK" she said, "my sister can change your money. She can give you 1500 baht for $50 US and will charge a 33 baht commission for travellers cheques. I will pay for your taxi to get to my sister's place, which will be $350 baht. So my sister will give you 1500 baht, less 33 baht for commission, less 350 baht for the taxi and less 400 baht for the deposit on the hotel."

I have never heard better news in my life. This complete stranger was going to pay for my taxi and get me to a place where I could have my money changed. She didn't know me from anybody, but she went out of her way to help me out and I will never forget it.

KRABI TOWN

by leon oz



One night in Krabi Town

I arrived at Krabi Airport at 7pm - the window seat gave a great view of the labrynth of rivers around Krabi Town to the Andaman Sea. To avoid the usually expensive taxis there is an excellent bus from the airport to Krabi Town at 90 baht for the twenty minute trip. The bus passes the centre of town which alarmed a few people before we changed over to a truck to take us back into Krabi Town and dropped us at Chaofa road which is close to the old pier and the many guesthouses and hotels.

Near Krabi Town

Great view from the sky at sunset

I had not booked any accomodation and if you read my previous blog my mind was on other matters at this time. Most tourist go straight to other destinations instead of staying in Krabi Town but i thought it would be worth a look for one night before catching the 10.00 am morning ferry to the Phi Phi islands. Not wanting to waste any time I stayed at the Grand Tower Hotel for 500 baht. Nothing too fancy here but I did have a good nights sleep. If you want a high quality hotel or guesthouse book
Carnival in Krabi Town
ahead as there are many tourists going through Krabi Town.

Krabi Town is on the Krabi River and the first thing you notice here is the heat and high humidity of the south - Bangkok is just hot and very hot and sweaty, in the south you swelter in Northern Australia type conditions at this time of year. It was the last night of Sonkran with the water wars over there was a live concert near the impressive night market and food stalls. It was a carnival like atmosphere but the market was closed by 9.30 pm although the food stalls near the river stayed open. I walked the streets for a couple of hours, purchased a ticket for the ferry for the following morning. Krabi Town is very quiet compared to Bangkok but I was tired and ready to sleep by midnite.

Krabi Town can be a base for most tours of the islands or jungle but most tourist prefer to stay at Aonang Beach or Railay Bay. Tomorrow I will be going to Koh Phi Phi Don for two nights before returning to Bangkok.

Carnival in Krabi Town

Krabi (Songkran Sunday 13th April 2008)

by The Special One



Guess what, up early for a change! However for once in a long time i had a half decent sleep.

Had a just about edible breakfast from my guest house. I had to put heaps of tomato ketchup on the ham and sausages so i could eat them.. The only reason i ate them was i was soooo hungry. What i'd give for some proper bacon and sausages. Mum & Dad hope you are taking note - make sure you have some in for when i return!

Did another monster session on the internet and travel blog.

Today it is thai new year (Songkran). I had heard and read that a big part of the festival is the big continuous water and power (like talc) fights that take place on the streets. It wasn't long before i was dragged out of the internet cafe by a young thai woman for a water fight. She had a small tub of water a threw it over me. I noticed a full big bucket of water on the pavement so i grabbed that and poured it over her head and drenched her lol. Pointless
Krabi and Songkran Festival
Outside the jam bar. Veevee next to me with blue sunhat on and Vee Vee's friend Oi directly next to memessing about and only doing half a job. it was a good laugh!

After i finished my internet session we had a bit of another water fight on the street outside the cafe with a few kids and then i hit the road - my goal to get back to the guest house without getting drenched and breaking yet another camera that was in my day pack! Only after walking 10 or so meter I could see a big group of locals on the other side of the street with masses of water i manage to avade them. However after a few more diversions to avoid a soaking i kind of realised it was going to be impossible to get back dry. I simply had to walk down a street as there was no alternative and they were several groups of locals waiting for me or whoever else walked down the street. I accepted the inevitable and walked forward. I was soon drenched head to toe. I just had to make sure my daypack and camera didnt get wet. As i walked further down the road i got attacked a few more times by people in cars / vans.
Krabi and Songkran Festival
Jane from France and Me with nmy new funky hair styleEventually i came to bar called "the jam club' Once again i got totally drenched by some thai girls, kids and even there were some western people in the group. I got talking to this group and decided to have a drink with them and stay here for a bit. The bar was run by 2 sisters, they had invited all their friends and their children for the Songkran festival. We had a big bucket of water outside the bar, lots of smaller bckets and a hose pipe with constant water flowing. Every person that walked, drove, cycled past (thai or whatever) got attacked & drenched. A lot of people who we attacked like myself stopped off or hung about for a drink or 2 or 3 or 4 or 5..........On the opposite side of the street there was a bar / cafe that were doing exactly the same and also soon had a big gathering. During the day the 2 sisters of the jam club ordered a load of thai food and put on a bit of a buffet which was really nice and really good of them. Throughout the day and evening there were water battle after water
Krabi and Songkran Festival
Evening time - Jude and Veeveebattle going off on the street and people driving around in motorbikes, cars with water pistols or big open back vans with about 8 or so people stood on the back with big buckets of water. We managed to get a constant supply of ice cubes which obviously was a hell off a shock to the system when you got a bucket of that water over you...i think the F word came out a few times that day....you just cant help it! The day was such good fun, the beer was pretty much flowing i think & I got to know lots of people, thai and western. Much later in the day a group of the people who were mostly english went clubbing but i decided to stay at the jam club and have a few quiet...ish beers. From the group that stayed there was a nice friendly french girl called Jane (i don't think she's french, too friendly for a french person), the thai sisters (Veevee, cant remember the name of the other) who own the bar, their friends (gwan & her boyfriend, Oi), the ladyboy (sara), a cool thai guy (Jude). We had a really cool night, nothing
Krabi and Songkran Festival
Gwan, amazingly with same hair do as me!tooo crazy, just chilling out talking and laughing over a vast amounts of alcohol. There was one big concern i had during the night......the lady boy had obviously taken a shine to me, everyone found it really amusing obviously apart from me. I just tried to laugh along and see the funny side of it. I wouldnt have mined half as much if she could actually pass as a she but she still has the meat and 2 veg and actually looks like a man lol.

It was a late night, apart from Jude i was the last person to stay, i got home at 3.15am and shit i am up early tomorrow to go on a tour!

Krabi and Songkran Festival

Krabi - El viaje interminable

by arincon



Lo que parecia un viaje sencillo de unas pocas horas de ferry mas bus, se acabo convirtiendo en una viaje inacabable.

Un taxi vino a recogernos a la guesthouse, nos llevo hasta un embarcadero, donde cambiamos a un bus, el bus nos llevo a otro embarcadero donde subimos al ferry, al salir llegar a la peninsula, nos volvimos a subir en un bus que nos llevo a la agencia de viaje, nos recogio una minivan que nos llevo hasta un segundo bus, y este por fin fue hasta krabi.

Al dia siguiente fui hasta Relay, una playa a la que solo se puede llegar en bote, la provincia de krabi, tiene un landscape espectacular, hay acantilados casi verticales cubiertos de vegetacion, las islas cercadas a la costa tambien se levantan en vertical desde el agua, espectacular, es un sitio al que vienen escaladores de todo el mundo para practicar escalada. No pude resistirme a si que contrate una sesion de principio, que panico! Despues de aprecer a hacer un nudo de seguridad y unos pocos ejemplos ya me estaba subiendo por las paredes, lo mejor es no pensar demasiado y continuar hacia arriba, bajar es muy sencillo solo hay que dejarse caer y tener confianza en los companeros que aguantan el otro extremo.

La dos primeras me salieron bien, en la tercera quede completamente bloqueado, despues de varios intentos decidi abandonar, tendre que continuan probando en barcelona.

Manana de nuevo en ruta hcia Ko Pi Pi, tengo ganas de practicar alguna inmersion de nuevo.

Sunny Krabi

by Chris and Alex

We headed to Krabi with two goals in mind. Diving and relaxation.

Alex learned how to dive from a Hong Kong national named Klins at the Blue Juice dive shop in Krabi town. Krabi itself isn't a beach-covered paradise, it's more of a base of operations out of which you organize trips to beach-covered paradises, jungles and the likes. Klins was a patient teacher and in no time we were out in the water diving. Visibility wasn't great, but we did get to see quite a few neat things including a moray eel, a bunch of sea horses, lion fish, clown fish, and my personal favorite, nudibranches. We also got a bonus on our second day when we saw a group of dolphins on the way out to the dive site.
Our time was split between the beaches and the jungle. Honestly, there's not too much to be said about the beaches. We sat. We walked. We played in the beautiful blue ocean. Awesome.

We spent a couple of days in the jungle. First, we decided to climb all 1237 stairs to the Tiger Mountain Cave Temple. 1237's not that many, right? I think we would have been
Flower
Here is a nice white flower with the blue water in the background.fine if we could have skipped steps 200-300. They were about 6 inches wide and a foot and a half tall. We never recovered after that. We almost resorted to shouting slogans at each other after we were passed by a Thai lady who must have been in her 70s. The view from the top was well worth the effort (so I keep telling myself). Sadly, it was overcast, so landscape pictures didn't turn out, but that didn't make the scenery any less breathtaking. Jungle greenery cascaded off of peak after peak of towering cliffs. It was reminiscent of Guilin, but without all the development. Golden Buddhas towered above us as we admired the scene below us. That older woman who sprang past us on the way up prayed at every single statue, large or small and tried to persuade Chris to do the same with gentle pushing and prodding.

The next day we woke up with sore legs, and so decided on an arm workout. We opted for the kayak/elephant trekking combo tour and were not disappointed. We kayaked through mangrove forests, lagoons, and canyons with a pair of Danes, an Englishman and his young French daughter, and
Limestone Cliffs
Cliffs and rocks like these are all over southern Thailand. Made from limestone, they shoot up out of the seas.our talkative Thai guide. In addition to some stunning scenery we also got to see a monitor lizard, a meter and a half long water snake, and many well behaved monkeys. I especially enjoyed all our variations on Bob Marley's No Woman No Cry. Among the best had to be--"No rain, plants die,"--Chris, "Monkey pee, monkey die."--our guide.

Zoe, the eight year old French girl that kayaked with us, was nearly beside herself with anticipation for our elephant trekking. This was certainly one of those times when catching the excitement of a child makes an experience worlds better. So after drying off we headed to Nosey Parker's, the elephant trekking company.

Elephants are not small.

Chris got to ride the hundred year old bull solo (well, save the guide), and Alex got the chance to ride on the elephant's head instead of on the harness and wouldn't be denied. The trek was short, but fun, especially since Zoe was around. The elephants marched around at a leisurely pace, stopping to uproot a tasty snack or to decorously scratch their backsides up against trees.

So after all this excitement we decided it was the time for some
Islands for Diving
Here is one of the first small islands that Alex learned to dive near.good, old fashioned beach bumming. So it was off to Koh Jum for us, an island that lauds the fact that upon it there is nothing to do.

Giant Buddha

This giant Buddha statue sits atop a brutal 1237 stair climb up a steep mountain. We made it, but it was torture.

Giant Buddha Cont..

Here is a close up of the giant Buddha statue.

Dolphins!

These guys came and said hello one morning as we were headed off to dive.

Klins and Alex

Alex's dive instructor Klins and Alex pose in the dive shop one evening.

Jungle Kayak

We spent a day kayaking around the Mangrove trees with some wonderful people.

Kayak Guide

Here is a shot of our guide on our kayak trip.

Jungle Alex

Alex swings from some vines on a small island in the sea.

Monkeys Everywhere

We saw hundreds of monkeys on our journey through Thailand. Some were nice, some not so much.

Elephant Trekking

We rode elephants through the jungle near Krabi. It was a great experience. These Asian elephants where massive.

Posing Elephant

This guy posed for us and blew his trumpet as we took his picture.

A Short Stop In Krabi

by Leezy



15th - 17th March - Krabi

Travelling over from Ko Phangan we caught a ship then transferred to a bus which dropped us off in Krabi. The first coincidence was that at the bus depot we met the Oxford lads from Ko Tao...more evidence to show that it really is a small world! We also found out that they had rented mopeds and that Tom had fallen off and had to have 8 stitches. I don't think we'll be hiring out mopeds again in a hurry!

Waking up early after arriving last night we had to make full use of the day as we had very little time in Krabi. We decided to book ourselves onto a Kayaking tour around the surrounding islands. We were picked up by a large open backed bus and taken to the harbour where we jumped on a longtail boat and set off for the islands. After about an hours journey we floated into the secluded bay of one of the islands and were left to roam around. It was beautiful! The sand was white and it felt very isolated. After our tour guide collected about 10 sandcrabs by digging deep into the sand,

The beach
we set sail again for another of the islands. It was Paradise Beach where we stopped and again it was very secluded. I took the short walk round to another beach and relaxed before heading back over for lunch.

After lunch we set off for Hong Island, the focal point of the trip where we would be able to Kayak. We immediately switched to the Kayaks and began our trip around the island. Fortunately, I had the guide with me in my Kayak and he made light work of the paddling, allowing me to sit back and enjoy the ride! We made our way into a lagoon where we saw lots of wildlife and starfish. Paddling on we also saw the caves where Thai men use ropes to climb up and collect small birds which are then eaten as a delicacy in China. Finally, after a pretty relaxing paddle...while the others struggled to keep up, we hit the beach.

The rest of the group claimed they were tired out and lay in the sand...I don't know what they were talking about! The beach was amazing and has to be up there with the best I have seen so far.
Paradise Beach
The second island where we ate lunch

Thailand Travel Krabi - Tonsai

by Juan Pablo De Wes



Now to bring things slightly more up to date it's now time for my thoughts and musings on the 2 fun-filled weeks i spent in a little stretch of paradise called Tonsai. Tonsai is currently riding the crest of the wave and winning the race for the much sought after Wes' Most Wonderful Place in the World award. Previous front-runners Vang Vieng and Ko Chang are still highly commended but Tonsai offers that little bit more. It's strange actually. You move round, fall in love with a place, leave, and realise that as great as it was, you may well never see it again. Tonsai though i think has found it's way into my affections and i definitely see myself returning one day... eventually... so what makes it soo great?

Well, as a beach Tonsai is not much to write home about. So let me tell you about it anyway. It's pretty, but unremarkable. The water is warm but shallow. The seabed muddy and rock filled. Railay next door fairs much nicer in the beach stakes if you're in search of some serious sunbathing action. This said Tonsai look goods as you come in. It's not over-developed and a lot of what is there is set back under the palm trees. As you chug in on a longboat you see a tree-lined beach surrounded by large limestone caves with little specks of human existence.

But anyway Tonsai isn't a place for lazing around and improving your already impressive tan. Though some do. It is a place to come and take on the Rock. Tonsai's location, snuggly situated between the headland containing the twin beach resorts of Railay East and West, and the more secluded Phra Nang on one side and the busier, more town like Ao Nang on t'other, sees around 80 climbing walls virtually all within walking distance. Talk of places such as the Fire Wall, Wee's Present Wall, Thaiwand Wall, Monkey Wall and so on and so forth soon becomes as familiar as the usual Thai traveler talk of Ko Pha Nagn, Ko Lanta, Chang Mai and Pai. Walls contain varying numbers of sports routes (i.e. bolts and an anchor already placed on the wall) and all have their own characteristics. Some cater for nervous beginners. Others for psuedo-superman climbing some of the most demanding routes in the world. Some are on nice gentle rock. Others are sharp and nasty and rip your hands apart. Some go straight up. Others involve the most ridiculously steep overhangs. Some start from the beach. Others start 30m above sea level giving rise to spectactular views (and frustration about my continued lack of camera).

This time round i started doing some lead climbing, whereas i had always seconded routes previously. When you get to a wall there is simply rock, with a series of bolts and an anchor at the top. You bring your own rope. And someone has to put it up. That person is the lead climber. Lead climbing isn't quite the extreme of solo climbing (i.e. no rope). Instead as you climb you clip the rope into the bolts that mark out the route. However once passed a bolt, a slip would see you fall as far below the last bolt you clipped in at as you have climbed above it. Additional slack in the rope may see you fall further still. This makes lead climbing tougher and much more of a mental battle. If you're seconding a route and are 90% of the way to the next clip and get stuck you can sit in your harness, let the rope hold you, relax and think about how to move on. If you're lead climbing you need to work it out, move on and clip in before you can relax. Or take a big fall. Route planning and technique become much more important. Keeping calm becomes much important. The tenser you become the quicker you tire. The more your muscles begin to burn. And making those last moves becomes a lot harder still.

Needless to say this lead to some hairy, scary moments for yours truly. But it also lead to some real feeling of accomplishment. Of pushing myself to my limit, and then pushing through it. My confidence increased rapidly, one day i climbed my first 6a+ route, the next i lead my first 6a, the next i flew up a route i'd struggled with before. Then i took a rest day. And my confidence disappeared. Then it slowly came back again. I climbed my first 6b and lead a 6a+ (very badly). Some days are good, others are bad. Some days i wondered why was i was doing this at all, and other days i remembered exactly why.

But anyway, enough about the climbing. Apart from a quick recollection about DWS. DWS? Deep Water Soloing! You go out on a boat, swim or kayak over to the rock, climb up without a rope and jump/fall off when you've had enough!! A great day out. The second route was a bit tough, with few people (myself included) able to climb it. Rich impressed the most out of group getting a good 30m or so before realising he actually had to jump back down! Initially i thought climbing above water would be less nerve wracking. And at low heights it is. But you get higher and you become more aware of having no rope. And more aware of how inelegant, and painful, your entry could be if you slip while swinging out from the wall.

One guy did take a bad fall. A bit of rock broke off under his foot. He wasn't particularly high but he slid down the wall opening a massive gash in his leg. To his credit he was remarkably calm about it. Luckily there were nurses on the boat to seal the world, and after a trip to the doctors, and 18 stitches he was out drinking that evening!

But now, enough about the climbing. What else was good about Tonsai? What will i remember?

A lot of good times and crazy banter with Rich and Jay. Getting addicted to learning the firestaff (so far, no fire, just staff). The boat boys constantly shouting "Ao Nang, Ao Nang, Ao Nang" at anyone who wanders past. Our amusement at shouting "Ao Nang, Ao Nang, Ao Nang" at them before they had a chance to reel off their catchphrase. Our even greater amusement when this started being returned with a good humoured "F%^k you". Yow (sp?), one of the waiters at the Andaman permenently struggling with having to work while being incredibly stoned. The lovely Tonsai t-shirt i bought, and then left in Tonsai (perhaps where it belongs). The lovely Tali Leaf Indian Restaurant where i seemed to amuse the staff by turning up with different dining partners. The wonderful Masaman Curry at the little restaurant next to the Freedom Bar (possibly the best curry in Asia soo far). Meeting a Canadian girl who had wrestled crocodiles. Being amazed at people on the slackline (i.e. a kind of low tightrope on the beach). Running to kick a sandcastle and instead hitting rock much to others amusement. The nice people at the Viking Bar. Interesting conversatons with Ele, the nurse at a gender reassignment clinic. Films at the Andaman. The nice relaxed friendly atmosphere and easy camaderie between climbers where anyone you meet at the wall is willing to chat with you. Rascal the Frenchman. The journey over to Railay, a choice of a hike over the headland, or wading round over the slippery rocks. The wildlife. Waking up to 10 monkeys outside a bungalow, all misbehaving as monkeys should. I could go on and on but you probably get the point, i loved Tonsai.

This said though after 4 weeks i was ready to leave and begin, you know, travelling again. You can get too settled in a place. And leaving has resulted in 2 of the most random, bizarre, and in one case scary stories so far of my travels. But it is not for me to talk about these here.

Tonsai is great, that's the point and and i don't need to say anymore.

thailand travel krabi - the beach

by genevievez



hey everyone

so now i've gotten to the relaxing part of the trip...today i've had to make such descisions as to whether i should get a pedicure, massage or go shopping first...hahaha life is good i must say!
the other day we came down to the islands and visited james bond island where they fillmed the man with the golden gun and then we stayed in a muslim fishing village for the night...the entire village is on stilts! it was um...kind of slummy but it was still a cool experience....you had to be really careful to not drop anything cuz it would plumet down about 20 feet before hitting the water which was also the raw sewage disposal...but experience it was! then yesterday we went to koh phi phi island (where they filmed the movie the beahc!) it was beautiful..... butr very touristy....as with krabi...the beachy part i'm staying in now....very touristy....which i'm not a huge fan of....i guess i've been spoiled tho on thos secluded fijian and australian beaches...soo many europeans here...and children galore..i dont understand why people bring their kids on vacations when they're too young to remember it and they ruin everyone elses time (including the parents!)...ew! hahaha anyways so now i'm on krabi...a nice part with beauitful limestone cliffs...but god i've become such a stingy jerk....i hate buying anything down here cuz its twice as expensive as up north (even though it really translates to spending 3 dollars on a meal instead of 30 cents).. but ya...anyways internet is also double down here so i best be offf now...
im' having a great time and i'm heading to phucket from here tomorrow.....dont worry i did hear about the tourist who got murdered but she was camping on a secluded beach by herself....which i will not be doing....

anyways lots of love
gen
xoxooxoxox

Thailand Part 1 - Krabi to Kanchanaburi

Thailand is a very diverse country, from manic cities to tranquil towns and beaches. It's a beautiful place with the nicest of people. We have been quite a few places since we last updated you, but will try and keep it short and sweet so you don't get too bored!!

Our first stop was Krabi, famous for rock climbing (apparently), although we didn't see much. We decided on our first day too do an island hopping tour, we wished we hadn't............... On a nice day I'm sure it would be a beautiful experience although we managed to get a freak day in the middle of summer and had torrential rain all afternoon ha ha. The place had 4 beautiful beaches, 1 being Railey beach where we spent a day climbing up to a view point and down to a lagoon, down a sheer rock face using ropes in our flip flops and half way down it started raining, Clever Hey!!!! British Health and safety would have had a heart attack. It was worth the view once down there though. Also they had a strange but amazing penis shrine, we weren't really sure what it was for
Ko Phi Phi
Lagoon Climb - Railey Beach, Krabi
Don't look down dan!!was the next island, which was made out to be paradise. Although we thought it was too touristy for that. The island was totally wiped out by the Tsunami in '04, but it has now been fully rebuilt and thriving once more. You can walk out in the sea for about a quarter of a mile and it's still only up to your thighs. It was like bath water. The surrounding cliffs were beautiful and the view from the top of them was amazing. In one of the bars at night they had a muay thai competition where you could literally fight anyone in the pub for a free drink. Pure comedy value, we think they should get one in Borrowash......

Then we took a ferry to the island of Phuket to meet our families for my brother Andrew's wedding. I was brilliant seeing everyone and catching up with the in and out's of the UK. We chilled out alot by their 5* pools, it was a real luxury after 8 weeks of slumming it. We even went to Alison's (Dans mum's) hotel most mornings and skanked a free breakfast ha ha! It was really sad leaving everyone after
Reached the Lagoon
such a good time.

Dan and Dave (Jen's stepdad) escaped from the women and went off to a fishing lake for a few days, the place was set in a stunning national forest near Krabi and had not fully opened yet so they were quite lucky to catch the monsters that they did. Dave caught an arapaima catfish weighing around 150 kilo which took him about 50 mins to land and Dan caught a minnow of a mere 80 kilo. You can imagine how happy they were. Dan did just want to point out however that he caught the most fish!!! Sorry Dave.

We spent a few days in Ranong a small town on the Thai-Burma (Myanmar) border which is where we had to go to get an extension of our Thai visa. You only get 30 days on entry so we heard about a loop hole in the law where you can leave the country and return in the same day and get an extra 30 days, instead of paying a fortune to immigration. What an experience!! We had to hire our own long boat which took us to the immigration office in the middle of the
Penis Shrine - Krabi
What she is used too?????? HA HAriver where a boy would run off our boat with our passports, get them stamped and we'd carry on to Burma. There we had to pay 10 usd each but this would depend on the quality and condition of the American dollar note, (it had to be perfect) to how much we pay, the Burmese officer seemed quite impressed with ours. Thank God! It was so easy, it was unbelievable!

Then to Bangkok, capital of Thailand. What a interesting city, we loved it. Hawker stalls and tuk-tuk's everywhere from morning till night, this city never seems to sleep. It didn't seem as sleazy as the first time we came, either it has been cleaned up alot or we have just learned to ignore it. Our first night however wasn't so restful. We checked into a 'budget' guesthouse (Dan's choice may I add) with free internet and laundry, a pool, bar restaurant and pool table etc it seemed great. Although when we went to bed in the small hours after a few beers our room was crawling with bed bugs, they were everywhere and big too, it was disgusting, we spent hours killing them, blood splats everywhere, hopefully not ours!
Lap dancing in Patong, Phuket
New lady boy in town, How much did you make????Needless to say we were straight out of there the next morning, we told reception why we were leaving and she just replied OK!!! We moved around the corner to a non tourist guest house which we soon realised was a hoar house and possibly mafia run (we know how to pick them) the hourly room rate gave it away.
We met up with one of our friends Alan from the village and spent a night on crazy Khao San road with him and his friends, we had a wicked time. We went to the worlds biggest outdoor market, Chatachuk, Dan was disappointed though as he had heard they sell tigers, snakes and other endangered species but all they had was pups kittens and squirrels!!!!!!

And finally onto Kanchanaburi, which is famous for the Bridge over the river Kwai (Death Railway). Having never seen the film we headed for the visitor centre to learn more about the history. It was very moving to see the pictures and videos of the POW's, and learning that over 100,000 people died during the building of the railway and seeing all the graves in the cemeterys, which were kept immaculate by the Thai
Dave's Arapaima Catfish, Krabi
That's a whole lot of fish!!!government. The town itself was lovely and the accommodation was great it even had a pool, one of Dan's better picks at only 5 quid a night. We went on an elephant trek it was brill then Dan steered us down a stream on a bamboo raft, he needed L plates though we had a fair few collisions. Last but not least was a visit to the Tiger Temple! The monks there took tigers in from cubs and they are now pretty much domesticated (?) Here you could go and stroke them and get your pictures taken with them, it was scary but something we will probably never get to do again. We were a little concerned about the disclaimer they made you sign and we are not sure whether our insurance would cover us in a fatality!!
We are currently on our way to Ayutthaya, Thailands old ancient capital, then north to Chaing Mai and Laos. So til the next time, hope every body is well and hope the weather is picking up. We won't leave it as long next time. TTFN.....................

Krabi, Thailand - a short stop-over on the way to paradise

by ElizabethR

Day 22-March 27th: I wrote in my last entry about our arrival into Krabi. I was up at 9 AM the next day, as per usual, and wanted to check out the place.

I went for a walk at 10 AM-ish and got info on the ferry to Ko Phi Phi and where the beaches are in Krabi, since the town was not very interesting.

I went to the bungalow to get Jessie and we took the local taxi/bus/songthaew service to Ao Nang, a beautiful stretch of beach on the coast. It was very scenic/picturesque along the way and once we got there.

We had about 15 minutes and then had to head back to Krabi to catch the ferry to Ko Phi Phi. If we had more time, I would've stayed in Ao Nang for the day/night. But Ko Phi Phi was calling us! We were on the 3 PM ferry to Ko Phi Phi and ready for more beautiful beaches. It was a scenic ride to the island.

Jessie and I are still traveling together, so we shared a room at Ban Thai Guesthouse for 600 baht/night, a good price for this tropical paradise. More news on Ko Phi Phi in my next entry....

Leaving Thailand: Or are we!?

by hingus2000

Sun Setting on our time in Thailand. As we cross into Malaysia at the border.

Thailand is an absolutely stunning country. The cities, the landscapes, and the people - all amazing. It is with great sadness that we have to leave. However, it appears it doesn't want us to go!

We were up at the crack of dawn this morning as our minibus to the Thai border town of Sungai Kolok was due to pick us up at 6.45am. Even accounting for the relaxed nature of Thai timekeeping it was apparant by 8am that it wasn't going to show up. A couple of hurried phone calls later results in us being transferred onto a bus to Penang - save hanging around for another 24 hours. Alternatively we could have taken the later bus to Sungai Kolok, however that would mean us not arriving until after the border closes. As the deep south of Thailand has been subject to some violent troubles over recent years (1500 people killed in the last 12 months, although not directly targetting tourists) we though it was probably not the best place to be hanging around in. Speaking to most people (tourists & locals) suggests that it isn't really unsafe for travellers, but still, better safe than sorry.

As they say, as one door closes, another one opens, so going to Penang gives us the chance to see a part of Malaysia we may not have visited otherwise. We will still go to the Perhentian islands (the reason for choosing the Sungai Kolok border crossing originally), so we are really only gaining a destination, and losing nothing.

I'd love to have some epic final thoughts about Thailand. But to be honest, reading the brilliant adventures we have had over our 7 weeks in the country should leave no final justification necessary. I'll be back and I'm sure Paul feels the same, and that should say it all really. Although having just thought of a killer line, I will give it a public airing: Thailand may not have loads of money, but it is rich beyond means.

Ok anyway, what better way to finish talking about this amazing country than highlight some of its more quirky factors? In no particular order, and no doubt I have forgotten several, here are a few things that I have noticed over the weeks:

Thai Rastafarians: Seen particularly in the south, eg on Koh Pha Ngan, Krabi etc. Not just Thai guys with dreadlocks, these guys look completely authentic and if you saw them elsewhere you would assume instantly they were Jamaican.

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Bangkok Taxi Drivers: Never have I known taxi drivers so openly refuse fairs. Even laugh at you for having the cheek to suggest locations! You usualyl have to flag down 3/4/5 taxis before one will consider putting a fair on a meter!

Bangkok Taxis: Whats with the colours? Is there an explination why the brightest pinks, greens, yellows and purples are needed? Probably not, but it looks class, as does the way they all seem to compete to see who has the biggest spoiler and exhaust.

VIP Buses: Painted like fairground rides and covered in a stupid amount of neon LEDs. Who needs red break lights when a mini strobe and disco lights will do!?

Minibus travel: Never assume the minibus you are on currently is the last until you reach your destination. After a few weeks you learn that you will inevitably do a relay from travel agent to travel agent, swapping buses constantly!

Coach/Lorry/All Drivers wearing flip flops: Surely would never be allowed elsewhere, virtually everyone on the road drives with flip flops on.

Traffic Light Countdowns: To be fair elsewhere in the world too, but still a curious sight coming from the Uk. Digital signs that countdown how long is left until the light turns green or red. So with 3 seconds left of red everyone starts creeping forward, and 3 seconds left of green everyone starts gunning it through the lights. Safer or not, its a really interesting thought.

Nerd section in shopping malls: Yes, the top floor is always reserved completely for comic/figurine shops and arcades and populated by hundreds of spotty kids trading pokemon cards or playing warhammer.

Fake DVDs: Everywhere has them, Thailand doesn't care about showing them! Didnt see a legit DVD the whole time I was there, but every, even respectable outlet seems to sell and show the latest pirate films.

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There are so many more I just can't think of right now, but perhaps most noticeable from all our time in Thailand is the friendliness of the people. Therefore, as we crossed the border a few minutes ago, it is the people as much as the places I remembered, and will continue remember.

Thailand Travel Krabi - Full Moon Madness

by sophie1

Hello,

It's been a busy week so to catch you up.... After spending last sunday trying to use up our 24hour internet card (and only managing bout 7hours between us) and lying by the pool for literally as long as possible we decided to take advantage one more time by using the pool showers etc before heading sadly to cheaper accomodation.

Since it was our last night as 4people, with lot and molly headed to vietnam at 6 the next morning and us to thailand at a nicer hour of 7 we went to 'Le Bistro de Paris' for dinner- not an experince to be repeated!!

it was mainly chosen for its easy location etc as me and libby still had to book bus tickets etc but still......the other 3 decided to brave it with the steak, i choose goats cheese salad which was edible unlike the meat that appeared before them!!

i'm holding out till australia before i tuck into steak! they did however have lovely freshly baked bread with oil..... We went back to our rooms to watch a film before bedtime- we decided to swap partners for the night as lib and mol seem to like to sleep in the million degree heat while i'd prefer air con anyday!

However as i have an extreme tiredness problem i had to chuck lot out to their room to watch tv at midnight!!

Monday morning brought an early start and an emotional goodbye! As we headed to the border with no inital plan as to if we were going to head straight for Bangkok or stay a night on the border....Our bus was more basic than usual but also a lot cheaper so we happily set out with the courtesy stops to restaurants nobody wants to eat in!

Crossing the cahotic but at least real( as opposed to laos) border was a sweaty and confusing experience but once safely back in thailand we decided just to jump on the next air con non stop bus to Bangkok as there didnt seem to be much appeal in staying there, luckily this also worked in our favour re:costs as the whole thing was cheaper than booking straight from Siem Reap to Bangkok!

We've also developed a competitive streak about seats on buses so now take turns in runnning on with handbags to grab seats or carrying BOTH bags to the luggage compartment- it's a must do or else u'll be sitting in a crazy place!

After an uneventful (thank god!) trip to Bangkok we went straight to the guesthouse we stayed in last time at dinner and headed to bed to rest for the next day of strenous activity.... Tuesday was crazy shopping day!!

After a quick change of rooms since the cheap ones don't come with plugs we headed out to scout of presents for others and also a lot for ourselves having decided once we leave south east asia its going to be too expensive and since we were already planning to send a box of stuff home.....We managed to buy an immense amount in particular i'm a sucker for dresses although sadly my attemt to get a bikini failed, the one item i might use here!! ]

As the day wore on our bargining improved and we must of marched the Khao san road a million times!!

We went back to evaluate our shopping before heading back for a last few pieces (this has cheered me up to no end love the retail therapy!) We went out to trail the sex show area as libby wanted a few trashy pics of bangkok's main attraction!

However we accidentally ended up inside and paying.......under the false illusion we could go in take one photo of these women in bikini's on a stage and then go out the next thing we no we are being offered a drink, i choose the soft drinks, and then being charged for a show we didnt even no was going on!! needless to say we stayed for 10mins, too scared to drink our drinks in case they'd been spiked and libby never got her photo as all the signs said NO PHOTO despite her trying as we ran out!

It was definatley an experience but cant say im jumping to do it again! Wednesday morning began with cramming our purchases into our boxes, all but one of my tops made the cut after much pushing and squeezing!

After breakfast we dragged them along to the post office to discover they weighed a whole 4kilos each!! Fingers crossed they dont get lost on the way home, it cost about 30pounds but thats priceless when it comes to carrying our rucksacks!!

We spent most of the day kind of waiting to leave as the options of stuff to do once you've been in bangkok for a total of 5/6 days (including last time) so we treated ourselves (again) at starbucks to scones and jam!!

Later when eating dinner early before catching the bus i suddenly saw people i recognised and to my shock and delight saw 3 people from school who i thought were in Oz walking around! We then headed to the bus which was our best ever yet and luckily i was tired enough to get a bit of sleep on the almost fully reclining seats!!

We arrived at the pier at 5am and had to wait till 7 to get the ferry which took everyone to one of the three island, the amount of people headed to the full moon party was unreal, like a real pilgrimage!

Despite a little bit of sleep i was pretty shattered throughout the ferry journey and happy to finally arrive at Ko Samui, which like most of the nicest island i fear, was quite expensive!

However in this case it was totally worth the money to be by the beach and secure and its stil only 8pounds....We then went out to grab lunch at this nice place where i finally had the tuna salad i've been waiting for with grilled tuna steak not out of the can!!

I've taken an amazing photo which i'll put up next time so you can experience my salad joy!! We spent most the day on the beach before i had to have an incredibly early (8:30) night in preparation for the full moon party on the next day (friday). Awoke excited at about the party but not too late as the heat just makes it unbearable to sleep past 9. We ate a large breakfast, already in preparation of lining our stomachs for the night ahead. The day passed on the beach where i finally managed to finish my book!

A quick burst on the internet and to seven eleven to buy 6litres of water each we started preparing for the full moon party. The night before while i'd been lying asleep libby had spoken to this girl called Kelly from Kent- classic- so she ended up tagging along with us to dinner and had booked herself on the same party boat as us etc.

We quickly hid our bags with passports, cameras, phones etc in as they were probably safer there than at the party itself and headed to the pier. We had to fight our way onto the first boat that appeared, me vigilantly counting how many people got on as i'd heard stories of these boats being so full they capsize and people die! Luckily we made it across and followed the literal millions of people to the beach, with the road their lined with neon paint and buckets after buckets of alcohol.

Sadly i'd been burnt badly by the strong sun so had a headache and sore legs so water was my main tipple although did indulge in a bucket, which is pretty much a medium size bottle of pure spirit with a mixer and redbull!

I choose Vodka, Libby choose the cheaper rum while Kelly also choose Vodka which was her biggest mistake as she proclaimed not to be a vodka drinker.......After a little drink we went to get some paint and decorate ourselves- photos will follow with the next blog entry!

Taking the bucket slow was a necessity but made dancing hard, everyone was really friendly and great chatting to people. We had a little break on the beach drinking water for my headache before kelly was sick......needless to say we werent impressed as we'd stayed clear of that second bucket when she hadnt as it was enough to make you tipsy!

We agreed to leave at 3ish so me and libby left her in a safe bar a little up from the street so we coulde enjoy another crazy sweaty dance which made me miss dancing but when we came back she was gone.......we looked but to no avail so started to head towards the pier to get a boat back which was cahos as everyone was doing the same and getting pretty nasty about it, im guessing those who had been waiting a while just wanted to go home.

there was then an offical shouting to get back and they then brought a man lyin on a stretcher unconcious with stab wounds to his leg, stomach and neck through, which was horrible and a stark sober reminder of how dangerous it can be which was a shame because until then i had felt safer than i'd thought.

This then prompted a fight as people were a bit disresectful about getting out the way and another man had had someone else die in his arms up the road so was understandable tense....we then managed to get home within 45mins which was brilliant but slightly disturbed at what we'd seen.....still the party itself was amazing, really enjoyed it and it's definatley a must do!!

saturday we didnt manage to sleep beyond 10 due to the heat so rested a bit then ate a breakfast which included some of the weirdest hash browns ever, unexplainable but more like hard noodles......Libby spent the day on the beach reading while i stayed in the hut/balcony with my sunburnt legs covered in a wet towel! Saturday has become our treat day, as its always an anniversary around leaving home so we treated ourselves to a brownie! I'm really enjoyingh being by the beach so we can eat fish etc although Libbys sticking to green curry.

We aimed for an earlyish night but ended up chatting for ages! Today we've been on the move again, minibus, coach, ferry, coach but finally arrived in Krabi where we just spending the night to break the journey, so tomorrow we're off to Koh Phi Phi to relax a bit more for about 5days then onwards to malaysia which conincides with engligh clocks changing to suddenly will be 9hours ahead!! Till next time.......

Thailand Travel Krabi - Full Moon Party!

By Libby1

Hey all!

Unfortunately we had to leave the Tara Ankor hotel, which Sophie's parents kindly put us up in and hit the real world with a smack, staying in grimy "guesthouses" again! Last sunday was our last night with Lot and Mol, so we celebrated by going out for dinner and watching films late into the night - in our overly hot rooms! Sayign goodbye was particularly hard on them as they had only been away for 2 weeks and so it felt a bit like leaving home all over again - however we too were sad to see them go as it had been a really good week! We travelled on a very small bus with very little leg room back to the boarder and crossed into Thailand returning to Bangkok.

We both really like Bangkok (unlike most travellers) so enjoyed returning to familiar ground! We stayed back at Baan Sabai, where we had stayed before, and trying to cut costs only got a fan room!

This room was a literal cell with two beds squashed together and NO electricity - which was a big problem as both our phones, cameras and ipods had all run out!

That night was a particularly HOT night! The next day was shopped till we dropped... no joke!

Our aim was to buy presents, but we saw so many goodies for ourselves we just couldnt resist! Although we spent alot of money we feel it was worth it and we had both previously decided to buy a box in Bangkok and send stuff home, so it seemed an ideal time to go a bit crazy!

That night we returned to Pat Pong (the red light district). We wandered around and had a drink, laughing at the amount of Thaibrides we saw. As we were walking down the mainstreet, we were ambushed by people trying to get us into their "bar" or so we thought!

The big signs stating "NO PHOTO'S" should have been a clue - but what can i say - we're naive!

Soon we were witnessing a live show - with no escape! We were swamped by women in very little clothing forcing us to buy a drink - which were so overpriced we realised this included the price of the show! After about 10minutes we legged it pushing our way through the half naked women, racing for the door!

It's funny now but it wasnt at the time! That night we changed rooms to aircon and electricity... and ironically i was then too cold!

The next day we continued to shop for our last bits and bobs before heading to the postoffice to collect a box each. Packing these was tense as there was no where near enough room as we needed, but finally queezing the sides between our knees and pushing the lid shut we magaged it!

it cost us over 30pounds to send the box home but getting rid of the laundry bag meant it was soooo worth it!

The rest of the day was then a bit of a non day with a novelty trip to Starbucks! Sophie randomly bumped into three people she used to go to school with on the Khao San Road - random!

That night we got an overnight bus to Koh Samui. It was probably the best overnight bus we've done, as they provided blankets, a film and the lights went out completely (and obviously we didnt have to sleep in the aisle or get wet from the airconditioning!) However, saying that we arrived at 5am at the port, where we had to wait for 2hours for the boat! Aparently this is normal, but it was a big shock to be worken from sleep by blinding lights and look out of the window to see your bags tossed at the side of the road!

I slept for most of the boat trip to Koh Samui, waking now and then to take pictures of the amazing view! We stayed in a guesthouse called "Lucky Mother" which were basically bungalows on the beach. The beach was lush, but as you walked further up it became littered with cigarette butts and rubbish!

We succumbed to lunch at a nice restaurant which was too expensive for us but we hadnt eaten all day and were shattered so felt we deserved it!

The food was pretty good too! Each day was spent on the beach, dipping in and out of the sea!

Sophie got really burnt on our second day (the day of the Full Moon Party) so had to spend alot of time tending to her legs in the room! On our first night I met a girl called "Kelly" who was a bit of a chav and most of her friends (we discovered) were either pregnant or had kids already!

She had done Drama at uni and seemed to think we had alot in common - which we did not! She had failed her A Levels and got in to do drama through clearing as a last resort! However saying this she was sweet and we ended up all having dinner together and then heading to the Full Moon partaaaay!

The Full Moon Party was a great experience! We got a party boat across - slightly nervous as we had heard many MANY horror stories about them sinking and the passengers drowning! We were glad we had stayed on Koh Samui and not Koh Pha Ngan as the island wasnt as nice and the beach in the morning must have been so disgusting, where as ours was inviting!

We got our first buckets (large buckets mixed with different alcoholic beverages!) of the evening and headed down to the beach. We decided to buy some neon paint and after completely covering ourselves in it we danced along the beach heading for the podiums. (This was not my brighest idea) I was haulled up onto a podium, full to the max with people, and as I was dancing I wasnt paying attention to how close I got to the edge!

I fell head first into the sand, scraping my leg on wood as i fell. A really nice guy picked me up and brushed all the sand off my and away from my eyes, and I had soon forgotten about the crick in my neck and joined the others to continue dancing!

By this time Kelly was on her second bucket so it was no surprise that as the night went on she was really sick! Neither of us particularly wanted to look after her and didnt want to go home so we took her to a bar where we left her saying we'd be back for her later! After much more dancing and drinks, we retreated to find her. We searched the bar and there was no sign of Kelly, she had disappeared... Hyped up on the atmosphere we decided not to worry and head back to the port for a party boat back, stopping off for food on the way!

At the port we found huge crowds of people waiting. Whilst we were waiting a two ambulance men carrying a stretcher pushed their way through the crowd. A man with severe stab wounds to his head,leg and stomach lay unconscious on it. We hadnt encountered any violence so this was extremely shocking, however it only got worse as then the man next to Sophie confessed that a man on the beach had just died in his arms!

Thankfully we got home safely. As we tiredly stumbled into our room we found a note from kelly had been pushed under our door, exlaining she had been to drunk to stay and had continued to throw up in the bar and the manager had thrown her out!

After a quick shower to try and get rid of all the sand we crashed out! The next day I lay on the beach (joined by Kelly and her hangover!) whilst Sophie tended to her burnt legs in the cabin.

At around 3pm we went for a brownie at the nie restaurant which we were planning to return to for dinner but they were having a stupid "Thai Night" so returned to the norm of noodles! We have decided that Saturday is now our treat day where we are allowed junk food!

Today (sunday) we got up early for breakfast at our guesthouse only to find it was closed!

We went to 7/11 for yoghurt and then boarded our minibus to the port on our way to Krabi. It was a pretty boring day getting on and off coaches and cramped minibuses!

However the most interesting part of the day has to be the monsoon type rainstorm we encountered whilst travelling - thankfully we were on the bus! Also many of the views were breathtaking!

Upon arrival in Krabi we found cheap accomodation and headed out to book tickets to Phi Phi, then eat, as we were both starving!

I confess we both broke our 'Saturday treat' rule and gave in to cake! Heading to Phi Phi tomorrow which should be beautiful! However we have heard it can be quite expensive! Happy Easter!