Thailand Day 15 A Day In Paradise

Thursday May 20^th

Today was everything at a day in the tropics should be. The weather was sunny and hot, and I was picked up at 7:30 for a boat excursion to another island. After the van was full we were driven across the island to the port where I saw the fishing boats the other day. We boarded a large doubledecker boat and set sail. This boat was much better than the speedboat that I took to Phi Phi. This one you could enjoy the view and walk around. The trip across to the Angthong National Marine Park took about one and a half hours. When we got to the first island we went kayaking for the morning. We kayaked along the coast to a beach, where we got out and did a short hike/climb to a viewpoint of the beach. Then we got back in the kayaks and continued to the next beach. We had a half hour there, before we loaded up into one of those longtail boats, which took us back to the big boat for lunch, which was quite good. Then we went to another beach, where we had three hours to spend. We could swim, snorkel or climb to another lookout. Of course I did all three! The climb was ridiculously hard! It was 500m up over lots of rocks. They weren't loose rocks, but they were hard to climb over. There was a long rope all the way up to guide you along the route, and I used it for hauling myself up. It didn't help that I wasn't using my daypack, because I had opted for bringing a waterproof bag to protect my camera. So I had to carry that and only had one hand to climb with. Plus, they really should warn people not to climb in sandals (people were doing it in flip flops!) as they twist too easily on your foot. This was the perfect place to slip and hurt yourself or sprain an ankle or worse. The last 100m was very steep, over very sharp rocks in the blazing sun. I had soaked myself in the sea before climbing in an attempt to stay cool, but by the time I got up there I was drenched in sweat. The climb down was equally as hard. By the time I got down I was exhausted.

Back at the beach I spent the rest of the time swimming and snorkeling. Great way to spend some time and relax.

Then we got back on the boat for the return trip. I talked to several people, including a woman who had heard me talking about the 4 over 5 plan that allows me to take this year off. She was fascinated and wants to suggest it to her department of the civil service in England, because they are trying to get people to take time off as a cost cutting measure. She would really like to be able to do it. So, there you go, I inspired someone.

The van dropped me off at the airport, to save me the trouble of going back to my hotel and then having to call a cab. This is an interesting airport, no security screening coming in (domestic flight), no baggage check and after checking in, you walk out of the building into an outside 'mall' of shops and restaurants. I had dinner here and am now waiting for my flight back to Bangkok. When I left the restaurant, they were playing Travis' Greatest Hits over the outside speaker system and I walked along to 'Sing' on the way to Gate 1. When I got there they did scan my carry on and make we walk through a scan as well. So, there is security. Really nice modern little airport. The waiting rooms are all open air and very comfortable with a tropical decor. They even have a room for kids to play in with lots of equipment.

The flight was a seventy minutes. I hired a cab for the ride to the hotel I had already booked through Wii in Bangkok. Checked in and got ready for bed pretty much straight away as I have to get up early for another flight in the morning.