Remembering the Tsunami

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We left Krabi on the 4th and took a mini bus journey to Khao Lak (one of the worst hit areas when the tsunami struck). On arrival, we booked into a guesthouse along the main road, so a little way from the beach. We had planned to meet up with Jay and Eva so we sat around having a few drinks. After they had arrived, we all went out for a meal. Plan of action was to see the tsunami museum and volunteer centre the next day.

In order to get around, we decided to rent mopeds for the day - cost was around 250 Baht which is about 4 pounds. Off we set, with James driving and me hanging on behind (the roads are quiet around here so a good place to start if you have never done it before!)! After a while I got used to the jerky gear changes (!) and enjoyed the view. First stop was the Tsunami museum, a small little shop space. Although small, it detailed the impact of the tsunami and had pictures of the land before and after the tsunami - it was very sobering. We then went to visit the police ship, which had been swept around 2 km upshore when the tsunami hit - it would have been such a ridiculous sight seeing this ship on a piece of land so far from the shore but due to the reasons for it being there, it was a strong reminder on how strong nature can be sometimes.

Khao Lak, however, has rebuilt itself very quickly. I don't know what it was like before, but hotels have been rebuilt very quickly. And there are loads of signs saying whether you are in the danger zone or where you need to go in case of evacuation. I am not sure whether progress has been so quick for the locals though, as we visited a volunteer centre to hear they were still building houses etc (one of the volunteers said he had just finished painting a new school). They were currently having a holiday when we were there and wouldn't start with volunteer programs until the next week so we decided to move on, with the option of maybe returning there if we have time (maybe from Bangkok).

The final day was spent lazing around on a beach near the volunteer centre - very secluded and part of the national park (I forget the name)....life is such a beach holiday for us at the moment!!

Next stop was Koh Phangan, and island on the east side (and famous for its full moon parties at Haad Rin). We had decided to follow Jay and Eva to a place called The Sanctuary, where the do yoga.

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Photos

Moped Posers
Don't we look cool...not!

The Ship in the middle of nowhere
Still can't believe how far it travelled!

Eva & I
Half the American couple we met at Krabi

Our place
..where we stayed at Khao Lak

Jay and Eva
..the American couple

Beach
The secluded beach we visited