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Published: November 17th 2010
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Well we decided to stay another week and no sooner had we paid our money to the guesthouse the heavens opened for the next four days - so much for relaxing on the beach!! So after four days sitting in the guesthouse and only venturing out in the evenings for food we were ready for the beach when the sun finally came out! So we headed off early to Ao Nang as we decided to do a bit of shopping for some new shorts before heading to the beach. We found the quietist spot we could as after four days of rain it seemed the whole of Krabi had come to the beach for the day - still wasn’t too crowded though and definitely didn’t feel like you were intruding on anyone else. Its high season now so a few more sellers on the beach but definitely no hassle. A swim in the sea was on the cards almost straight away as it was a very hot day despite being partly cloudy. 2 hours later we decided it was probably time to get out the sun so we retreated to a nearby bar for some refreshments!
Back in Krabi we
Ao Nang Beach
Still quiet despite it being high season went to the weekend night market which has some great (and very cheap) food stalls where we were able to perfect the use of chopsticks. Well I say perfect….There is also a stage in the square where the market is where local people come to perform their skills. There seems to be no real process to this you just turn up and tell the organisers what you are going to do, then get up on stage introduce yourself and away you go. There is no compare, no program, no real organisation! We stopped to watch the fire dancer who was very good. The following night there was someone doing it on a tightrope!! What you will notice from the video though is that there is no health and safety and that the kids get on the stage and as close to the fire as they wish - at the end of the show there was a small (about 3 years old at most) boy who went and helped put out the flames!!
At the weekend there was a festival to mark the start of the festive season and high season. There was a large street market on the main
road into town and other activities going on at Ao Nang beach, The street was closed off to traffic every night for the safety of those going to the market. There were two stages with different bands on each stage each night. We got quite a few things from the market including more shorts! Even this market has sections to it with areas of food, then clothes, a fairground type stalls and then random stalls selling plants, furniture and even cars!
Another look at the weather forecast told us we had a guaranteed day of sun on Sunday so we booked the four island tour we wanted to do. Now we hadn’t wanted to do any organised tours, much preferring to do things ourselves, however for the cost of getting to one place we could go on the tour to all four- so we swallowed our pride and booked on it. Once again it was an 8 AM pick up so up and out waiting without breakfast - our guesthouse kitchen doesn’t open until 8 AM so no chance of breakfast! The minibus picked us and others up before transferring over to the beach to get on the long
tail boat. A short walk across the sand and a quick explanation of where we were going from our guide and we were off. We decided to sit under the shaded part of the boat as we thought we’d get enough sun on the islands! 20 minutes later across beautifully clear seas and gorgeous scenery we arrived at our first island - Tup island for some swimming and snorkelling. We got straight into the sea with snorkels and spent the next 30 minutes by the rocks in the shallows. I stood up at one point to clear my mask and obviously looked tasty to the fishes who decided to bite me!! A quick ( 3 minute) walk around the island for some photo ops we put the bag back in the boat and went back in the water to cool off. Back on the boat we headed cross to the next island which took all of two minutes so we could snorkel in the deep waters at the reef drop off. This was amazing! The amount of fish around the boat was amazing and as Mark found out - if you stay still long enough the shoal of blue and
yellow fish think you are food and start to bite! I was slightly luckier though they did surround me! There were also a large population of dangerous sea urchins - the one the guide is holding! However they live on the rocks and in the sand so we were safe snorkelling on the surface. This island was called Chicken island - after the rock formation at one end. So back on the boat and off we went to the third island - Poda Island - for lunch and sunbathing. Lunch was once again rice in a box but this time with green curry. We walked along the beach after a short downpour of rain and sat on some driftwood. I took another dip in the sea to cool off and did some more snorkelling - Mark stayed on shore as his ear was starting to hurt because of all the sea water in it. Back on board and we headed to the last place - Railey beach. This one is not actually an island but the only way to reach it is by boat. There is a small cave one end of the beach which the locals believe holds a
spirit of the sea which they make offerings to. We didn’t go back in the water - mainly because of all the long tail boats along the shore! We did get some drinks from the long tail restaurant boat though! Then just sat on the beautifully soft and white sand before heading back to Ao Nang and home. Freshly cut pineapple and watermelon were offered around the boat on our way back which was a lovely refreshing end to the a wonderful day. What can we say - white sands, crystal clear waters, abundant marine life and sunshine - life couldn’t get much better!!
Since then its been a bit more rain but should be able to get out to the beach again tomorrow. Again have decided to stay another week as still want to go visit Tiger Cave temple though need to find the energy as its over 1000 steps to the top!!
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Dad and Sandra
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A great show!
Hi Keely and Mark thanks for sending the picture show, you are making us feel quite jealous. Nice to see that you are both having a great time. Love to you both Dad and Sandra.