Having just quit my job to enjoy more time in Thailand (and being far away from a wretched boss), we decided to explore some of the beaches in the south. Last time we made it to the islands was Phuket in October 2006 so it was about time that we made it down to see more of Thailand’s lovely beaches and islands.
September is not supposed to be the best time to visit the beaches. We’re in the worst month of the rainy season, the jelly fish are fond of popping up for a visit, and most of the resorts are closed. Or so we heard. We’re not overly fond of beaches and figured the low season sales would make up for rainy days indoors. The result was not what we expected: five perfect days of sunshine and calm waters, no jelly fish and the resorts welcomed us with open arms as their first customers of the season. Besides the fact that I’m now burnt to a crisp, it was an amazing trip!
We flew Nok Air which I have been trying to do since we arrived. All of the airplanes are painted like birds (nok is bird in Thai) and the flight attendants all wear bright yellow 1960’s style dresses. This is another low cost airline in Thailand, and again, you get what you pay for. Water and peanuts aren’t free and the planes aren’t young. But we were very impressed with both the service and the timeliness of the flights. Their in-flight magazine had some amusing editing mistakes, though. Also, check out their promotional items! I bought some very cute “arm sleeves” with Nok Air’s friendly beak just above the wrists. I was a sucker for their advertising- particularly when it told me that they would control my arm muscles and protect me from harmful UV rays.
We flew from Chiang Mai to the old airport of Don Mueang. Don Mueang is now a freezing ghost town because most of the flights come and go out of Suvarnabhumi. But if you cross the pedestrian bridge, you can reach a nice market with noodle stands and tasty drinks, which is much better than Suvarnabhumi which is locked in the middle of nowhere! We then flew on to the shiny new Krabi airport. Caught the shuttle bus for 250 Baht a person to Napphara Thara Beach near Ao Nang. Our logic was that Ko Lanta would be too hard to reach so late in the evening and we wanted to take our first scuba diving class. I have a sneaky suspicion than our shuttle was actually a public bus- mainly because that’s what it said on the outside of the bus- and that Thais were paying less than half what we were- but this public bus brought us to the door of our resort, so it was worth it.
We opted to say at the Sabai Resort which was nice but rather sterile. The owner (who is Italian) serves very nice Italian food in his restaurant and some of the cheapest wine I’ve seen in Thailand. We were up early and out for a “Discover Scuba Diving” course with the Sea Fa diving company. I have to say that, as this was my first dive, I can’t compare this company to others. However, I was very impressed with their professionalism and their patience. Particularly with someone (like me) who panicked the first time a little water got in her mask. Our instructor, Richard, was fantastic, calm, clear and fun. The owner, Peter, was also very helpful in recommending accommodations and seemed ready to sit down and have a chat with us (except that he had a business to run).
We dove down to about 12 meters and Richard kept a close eye on me as I calmed down and enjoyed the beauty of being underwater. We saw puffer fish, sergeant major fish, corals, brilliant anemones, clown fish, rays and barracuda. I swallowed a lot of sea water when I freaked out and decided against the second dive so that I could amuse the fish by throwing the water back up into the water. Despite this minor problem, I really enjoyed my first experience at diving and most importantly- I know I can do it. My husband is totally hooked and ready to go for his PADI certification as soon as we have the time and money.
Back on dry land we walked around the area a bit and hit some of the noodle stands in town. I’ll try to post another blog about the food of Thailand but, let me just say, for goodness sake- please don’t order off the menu when you go to an outdoor restaurant. Once you find a few dishes you like and learn a little bit of Thai you can generally get what you want where ever you want. Ordering off the menu is generally more expensive and not as tasty. Our noodle stand had all sorts of curries and rice dishes on the menu but when you walk up and see a giant pot of bowling water, a chicken hanging inside the glass case and three different kinds of noodles on the counter...order noodles...not rice! We had a good chat with the waiter half in Thai, half in English and enjoyed a nice meal that cost less than $3 (including drinks). We also stopped in a restaurant for a sunset drink but I didn’t catch the name and the place wasn’t particularly tasty.
The next day we moved on to Ko Lanta. As the crow flies this isn’t a far distance. In fact, when the boats are running full services it’s easy to get from Krabi to Ko Lanta. But this time of year your only option is really to take a minibus from Ao Nang to Krabi then to Ko Lanta over two very slow and crowded ferries. Please don’t think (like a very irate couple did on our minibus ride back into Krabi early in the morning) that this ride takes exactly two hours. It can take two hours, or it can take four. Everything depends on the tides, the crowds, the weather and the luck of the draw.
We arrived rather late in the afternoon to the island and were picked up by a truck from Baan Phu Lae. I simply cannot say enough wonderful things about this resort. I should caution that if you are looking for AC, screens on the windows, hot water showers, internet access and staff in uniforms this is not the place for you. If you are looking for sheer bliss without frills, this is the place for you. The food was amazing and full of vegetarian options (I don’t like meat but will eat it when I have to) as well as fresh fruit shakes without all the added sugar. The beach is right out the front door of your bungalow. The staff twiddles around with guitars late into the evening under the stars. Two cats and a puppy named CoCo frolic under, around and (if you’re eating something fragrant) on your table until being led away by the staff. A nearby walk (down dirt roads) takes you to light houses, a national park, a water fall, and monkeys eating coconuts. We were the first customers of the season and so we were asked to give our opinion on the latest decorations, the new recipe for apple cobbler and whether the roof leaked in our bungalow. Oh such hard work!
I better head off and put more aloe on my sunburn. Tell the folks at Baan Phu Lae hello if see them!
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