Having admitted that, I also have to say that I have recently been 'wowed' by one of mother natures secluded paradisiacal treasures. I've just spent a long weekend in perhaps one of the coolest places on earth, a place that can only be described as ‘sublime’. I had people tell me how beautiful and stunning this place was, I had seen and downloaded images and videos of it from the internet, and I had read reviews and articles about this coastal province of Thailand, but, after being there, I have to say that all things said, read, or seen of this paradise on earth pales in comparison to actually discovering, feeling, seeing with your own eyes, and living the reality of this place. I am talking about a land called Krabi.They say that in Krabi, there’s an island for every month, a beach for every week, and a new palm tree to lie under for every day of the year. Located on southern Thailand's east coast, 800 kilometres south of Bangkok, Krabi province is an area of awesome natural beauty that is blessed with classic palm fringed virgin beaches surrounded by a backdrop of towering limestone cliffs and formations, waterfalls, caves, and strange rugged rock crags jutting out of the sea of emerald green waters. It’s got it all. Krabi is where the film The Beach was filmed. Although the main character was played by none other than Leo Decaprio, arguably the biggest movie star back in the early 2000, the location of the movie stole the show. At least I thought so, even though I am a big fan of Leo.
As well as beautiful and relaxing scenery, Krabi offers an adventure playground for those who like to get "out and about." Kayaking, sailing, birdwatching, snorkelling, island hopping, rock climbing, and just plain beach bummin’. We chose extreme beach bummin’ as our main activity for the weekend. Just off the second reporting period whirlwind, both Madeleine and I were in dire need of a place to intensely veg, relax and get our minds off report cards and anything else related to school. Krabi’s unhurried pace and calm and relaxing vibe was just what we needed. The place lends itself well to people like us who have to work hard at not doing anything, both victims of that nasty culture of workaholism so entrenched in our profession as teachers. I suppose one could describe the atmosphere in Krabi as 'hippy chic'. The long haired, bead wearing, more often than not stoned tourists who first discovered and popularized this small section of Thailand have all but disappeared, leaving a pleasant legacy of slow-paced, shoeless and unpretentious lifestyle, in a little supernatural wonderland patronized by trendy yet grounded young-ish people who have a bit of money to spend but don’t want to stray too far from the ethos of their student backpacker days. Even younger older-ish farts like myself feel at home and well catered to here.
When people talk about Krabi, they usually refer to a region or province, with three main towns; Krabi town, Ao Nang, and Railay. We chose to settle into a small new hotel that had just opened up in AoNang. We had a 4 star hotel that felt like a 5 star with its super good breakfast spread and fantastic pool (fantastic = no kids), with the price of a 3 star. Cheap food and comfortable accommodations, how can anyone not be a happy camper? In any case, we weren't there just to eat breakfast and swim in the hotel pool, we were there to explore as much of Krabi as we could in a very limited time, as well as float in those emerald coloured waters and lay like two beached whales in that fine white sand. Not that I want to blow my own horn, but I do a rather convincing impersonation of a beached whale, while Madeleine, well, she has really perfected to a T her floating amoeba imitation. We're a real blast at parties.
Krabi's beautiful coastline is definitely one of the province's most attractive assets. Each patch of sand seems to outdo the last, with the crowning glory being fabulous Railay Beach, with its otherworldly feel - a sort of coastal Jurassic Park - accessible only by sea. Railay Beach is, in fact, a small peninsula which counts four beaches. Three sides are surrounded by the sea and it is backed by a arange of spectacular limestone cliffs that cuts it off from all roads, it has the feel of a real island. There are no roads; only footpaths. No buses, no cars, just longtail boats.
As I said before, there is no other way to get to Railey other than by boat, and due to that, the beach has a very islandish feel to it. Riding a longtail boat is a bit of an adventure in itself; the distinct narrow crafted wooden hull is powered by the famous longtail engine, basically a car engine with a propeller shaft attached. Control is achieved by moving the engine with a lever stick attached to the inboard side. The whole engine block and propeller shaft can be spun around 360 degrees to enable steering by, get this, holding the steering lever stick between your legs. First time I ever go sailing on a boat that is steered by someone’s crotch. A definite first for me. |
| On our way to Railey |
Next entry : Phallic Frenzy
Wish we were there!
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