Krabi, Thailand Feb 4 to Feb 13

At a lookout point on Railay Beach in Thailand giving a sense of the striking combination of beach, cliffs, and trees. (And my camera doesn't do it justice.)

Well it has been so long since I last wrote that I hardly know where to begin. So, I guess I left off that I was flying to Malaysia having no idea where I would go from there. Yes, with a heavy heart I abruptly left Cambodia to meet up with Ana and Jesse, (A & J), in Malaysia. Air Asia flights are so incredibly cheap that it is cheaper to fly to Malaysia and then to Bangkok, than to fly there directly from Cambodia. (If you look at a map it seems ridiculous, but that's money honey.) So it was an emotional journey to meet up with A&J at the McDonald's in Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur airport. As familiar as always despite 3 years of living on opposite sides of the globe, there stood my childhood friend that I know and love. I had that one night to figure out what I would do from that point on since the next day they had a flight to Trichy, India, and I had a flight to nowhere. And I didnt want to stay in Malaysia because it was monsoon season there. I needed A & J's 10 months of world travel experience to help me figure out what to do. I knew somehow that I just couldn't go directly to India; that I needed a beautiful, peaceful, easy, mindless week to myself. And so they recommended I go to Railay Beach in Krabi, Thailand, which Jesse ensured me is the most beautiful beach in the world; a seemingly ridiculous claim, but I only had a few hours to book a flight so I went for it. I literally booked the flight to Krabi before I looked on a map to see where it was in Thailand. Since A & J had spent so much time in Krabi they were able to draw me a map of exactly where to go and how to get there.



Going to Thailand was exactly what I needed; I have been thinking for so long about every move I make for years and planning and organizing; I cant tell you how liberating it was to just take the advice of people I trust and not care what happens and NOT THINK.

Railay Beach. No matter where you go you cant escape the sunshine, towering cliffs and crystal clear water.

Railay was indeed the most striking beauty in the form of a beach that I had ever seen in person. I literally just arrived at the airport and effortlessly via bus and longboat (Railay Beach is only accessible by boat) and I was escorted to Railay Beach in complete mindless bliss. I had no guidebook, no reservations and no preparation, yet I was in a comfortable bungalow in Railay Beach within 2 hours of arriving at Krabi airport. The complete sense of EASE that everything happens there is second only to its beauty, and coming from NJ/NY, that ease was appreciated every second. And the prices, although expensive for Thailand, were sooo cheap; room for $20 a night, meals for under $4, and again, some of the most beautiful beach views in the world. I will let the pictures do most of the talking since the beauty is so evident. As for my own personal experience, that is something just for me. All I will say is that striking natural beauty sometimes is enough to shake people out of the depths of their minds, and sometimes its not. In the ten days I spent in Thailand I did little more than read, eat, think and accept whatever happened each day. Well I did a bit more than that; I guess as a true New Jersian / New Yorker I cant help but keep busy. I got my Open Water certification for scuba diving which came with 5 dives on local islands, I did an island tour including the world famous Ko Pee Pee Beach, I did a bit of rock climbing to reach a gorgeous lagoon (and almost died in the process), and I rented a motor bike back on the main land in Ao Nang and explored the island for a few hours which was SUCH a liberating thrill although I was only comfortable driving straight; turning, stopping and starting the motorbike scared me to death. I made mostly left turns since when driving on the other side of the road left turns are easier! I survived one day of motorbiking, but that was enough. I could totally get into the motorbike thing. It was just what I needed.

Me on Ko Pee Pee Island... the longboats behind me are the main mode of transport between the different islands and the mainland. The visibility of the water there was incredible, at least 20 feet. Breathtaking. ( I took most photos myself so they are close ups!)

So I had a flight to Trichy, India and I was ready for whatever would come. I left Krabi on Feb 13th and got to Trichy by Feb 14th. ( I had an over night layover in Malaysia again, and this time I went into Kulua Lumpur for the evening. I cant form an opinion of a country based on one night, but I definitely want to see more of Malaysia some day).. but for now... its on to India! (Its weird writing this when Im already in India, but oh well! Im probably going to stay a few weeks behind!)