Krabi Day 2

Woke up super early at 6am to pack our luggage, have breakfast and then board the minivan at 7.30am. The minivan was packed, so Slug and I had the privilege of sitting at the front and enjoying the scenery. Off we were on a 3-hour ride to Krabi.

Up steep inclines ...

Zigzagging our way through the mountains

Hills shrouded by clouds

Small classic Thai houses

We passed by rolling hills and large rubber and oil palm plantations, and we saw old and simple-looking schools, roadside stalls, large Chinese tombstones, wild cows grazing by the roadside and even a strolling elephant. In general, a slice of Thai rural life. When we started seeing tall and massive karst (limestone) towers, we knew we were nearing Krabi.

Rust-hued limestone cliffs topped with lush tropical greenery

Karst landscape characteristic of Krabi

At about 10am, the driver let us down for a 20-minute toilet break at a small roadside coffeehouse. Greedy Slug wolfed down a bowl of noodles while I only had appetite for Coke. The journey was making us weary and we were still 60+km away from Krabi town.

We resumed our journey after the break, and we finally reached Krabi town about half an hour later. The minivan stopped to let us off at a tour agency, where we were separated from the other passengers in our van as they boarded another minivan bound for Penang and Satun. So poor Slug and I lazed around at that agency waiting for our minivan bound for Ao Nang beach to come. We noticed that the agency arranges coaches and vans not only from Krabi to other parts of Thailand, but also to Malaysia and Singapore. One-way to Singapore costs only SGD$50 (cheap!), but it is a butt-heating 24-hour journey. Definitely not for one with piles.

We finally got on the van to Ao Nang, and it dropped us off at the Buri Tara Resort. We were kind of disappointed to see that it was a pretty small hotel and was not anywhere near the beach, but when we stepped in, we were whammed by the posh and beautifully-furnished lobby, as well as the warm hospitality of the receptionists, who served us welcome drinks.

Buri Tara Resort

The bellboy brought us to our room on the top floor, and it was a pleasant surprise because our room had been made cool for us (we were sweating like mad) and it had a marble floor (unlike the typical carpeted or tiled floors in other hotels). And I must say, our room looked decent and comfortable with its wooden furnishings and neutral earth tones.

View of the hotel compound

View of the sea (erm, sort of)

We washed up and decided to rent their in-house scooters as this hotel was at quite a distance away from the beach and the centre of activity. We still shuddered at the recollection of our biking mishap in Kanchanaburi, but from what I could see, a bike or car seemed quite essential to get around.

We rode to Ao Nang beach for a simple lunch at Jinda's Guesthouse. It was mid-afternoon and the sun was blazing hot, unlike the gloomy weather over at Phuket. Slug was shaky with the bike initially, but he soon got the hang of it (auto and no clutch!). Luckily, traffic was not heavy. Best thing is, you can just park anywhere along the side of the road and parking is free! You are not required to wear a helmet too!

Ao Nang beach

Me and Slug at Ao Nang beach

Slug in front of a KamaSutra-ese painting

Check out the farang reading newspapers diligently

Fried squid with garlic and pepper with rice

After lunch, we stopped by a small minimart (there isn't any shopping mall in Ao Nang!) to get some necessities, and then to McDee's for some familiar food.

A road at Ao Nang beach

Trying out McDee's jelly sundae

The ever-courteous Ronald in Thailand

We walked around the beachfront shops as well as Ao Nang beach. Ao Nang seemed a quieter and less touristy place as compared to Phuket. Or maybe it was due to the low season. There were still farangs around sunbathing on the beach and walking around aimlessly (and yucks, do I see Singaporeans too?). On one hand, you may say that Krabi is truly a serene and hidden location for a serious escapade from city life, the commercial world and even pesky beach chair vendors (there aren't any beach chairs provided at Ao Nang, you have to bring your own mat), but on the other hand, you can say that it is quiet to the extent of boring. No shimmying trannies, no late-night partying or shopping, no hardcore nighttime entertainment found in Phuket. Slug and I could not decide whether to like this place for being peaceful or to hate it for being drab.

At Ao Nang beach

As evening came, we rode from Ao Nang beach to Noppharat Thara beach, which was just 5 minutes away. These two beaches are separated by a forested hill, but the latter was nearer to our hotel. The beach was experiencing low tide, exposing large shallow areas of mudflats.

Noppharat Thara beach

We took a leisurely stroll along the mudflats, keeping an eye on the miniscule sea creatures that prowl the puddles of seawater collected on the mudflats. We saw beautiful flawless seashells, sea snails, clams, tiny mudskippers and gazillions of hermit crabs no bigger than the size of a fingernail. But our favourite: crabs. On sensing our looming presence, the crabs (of species we have never ever seen before), which were feeding off the nutrient-rich mud, would scuttle away or bury themselves into the soft sand. But I would happily dig them out from their hiding places. They are so easy to catch.

Camouflage is no use to a keen human eye

The mudflats pockmarked by the crabs' constant burrowing

The tide was so low that it revealed a sandy path to two little knolls further away, and we walked towards them. During high tide, it was impossible to reach them by foot. There, we discovered more crab species and an apprehensive heron.

The two knolls

Reaching one of the knolls

As dusk fell, we witnessed one glorious sunset (without the sun, because it set behind the trees). For a moment, the mudflats glowed with a golden brilliance and we were speechless at the beautiful sight.

The beach got darker and more desolate with every minute, and we left reluctantly. We returned to our room to wash up, and later booked two excursions at the lobby. The prices offered by our hotel were even lower than those offered by the roadside tour agencies (and they were not even open to negotiation!), because according to the kind receptionist, the hotel had fought for lower prices solely for its guests. Sweet!

In the blissful comfort of our room

We rode out to Ao Nang beach for dinner, and on the way, we stopped by a gasoline shop to top up on petrol. A full tank costs only SGD$2.20!

We had dinner at a roadside stall which sold wonton mee. I cannot say the standard of the wonton mee is comparable to that of Singapore, but well, it was cheap.

After dinner, we cruised along the relatively empty road that lines Noppharat Thara beach, taking in the breeze and the obsidian sea. We then retreated to our room for an early night.

We are going on the 4 Islands tour tomorrow!

Krabi Day 1

Went to the airport with Slug the night before to await our morning flight to Phuket. Had a late night supper at the 24-hour Breeks there.

Then was so sleepy that we took a short nap on the cold hard floor of the airport, before getting up at 4am to have breakfast at McDee's. After that, we took a shuttle bus to the Budget Terminal for our flight, and boy, was it an eye-opener when we saw the Budget Terminal. It seriously lacks the comfort and prestige found in T1 and 2. It looks like an air-conditioned warehouse. Budget indeed!

We browsed through the bare DFS shops before boarding the plane at 7am. I could not believe we had to amble across the tarmac floor instead of using the travelator to get into the plane. It really spoilt our flight experience.

After an 1-hour-and-40-minute flight, we arrived at Phuket, a place that we have visited for the third time now. We hopped on a minivan bound for Patong beach, and we checked into our ever-favourite Patong Villa.

We visited the shopping arcade of our hotel because we wanted to visit Mai. When we saw that her shop was closed, we checked with the shopkeeper of a neighbouring shop and we were dismayed to find out from her that Mai had returned to Vietnam for two months. We had made a stop at Phuket with an intention to surprise her with a visit and to pass her some photos we had taken with her the last time we came. Oh well, there's always Speedpost.

After throwing down our bags and luggage, we dived into our bed for a short nap. When we woke, I was dismayed to see that it was raining heavily. Yes, it was not really a good time to visit Thailand after May because that is when the rainy season starts. And rain is definitely the last thing we would want to spoil our beach vacation.

Nevertheless, we braved the rain and made our way to Bangla Road for lunch. And as usual, it is my favourite Pizza Company! The pizza puff (not shown here) and spicy wings were great.

Pizza and wings

Me in front of the salad bar

The rain stopped after lunch and we proceeded to Jungceylon for some shopping. The weather was so grey and gloomy to the extent that we could see thick clouds lying low and shrouding the hills that back Patong.

Low-lying thick clouds

A community between the hilly terrain and tall grasses

We had a relaxing time flitting from shop to shop, munching on snacks like soon kueh and ice-cream, and grabbing Lay's (Thai version) potato chips and candy off the shelves inside Carrefour.

As evening came, we headed back to our hotel to wash up. Along the way, we stopped at Ocean Shopping Centre to get water supplies.

We stopped at Loppy's booth to hire a minivan to take us to Krabi the next morning. He was surprised to see us back again and started to complain about lack of business due to the low season. Indeed, Slug and I both noticed fewer farangs around (but more Singaporeans, yuck).

After a bath and another short nap, we walked with anticipation towards our ever-favourite Sabai Beach Restaurant for dinner. We thought we had gone to the correct location, but after walking around and searching for that restaurant for 5 minutes, we finally saw its dark exterior hidden behind other restaurants and blended into the night. Then it dawned to us that it had closed (probably due to the low season) and we were extremely disappointed. It was a place that we had to come whenever we visit Phuket.

We had no choice but to seek other dinner venues. As we walked towards Bangla Road, we passed by the beer garden with the interesting aquarium, and we could not help but sneak in to pay a visit to the sea creatures again. Upon entering, we bumped into a blonde and handsome farang who surprised us by greeting us a warm 'Good evening'. We were taken aback as he was not a waiter at that beer garden, so why did he have to greet us? We must have been real rude to stare back at him blankly.

It was still the same sharks, moray eels (they seemed to have grown fatter since the last time we saw them), stonefishes and the what-nots, but we were still mesmerized by them. Just then, a farang couple stepped up to the tank and started admiring the sea creatures too. The female farang started cooing, "Ooooh, sharks! Are they reeeeeal?", to which, the guy replied, "Why, do they look electronic to you?" Slug and I tried to stifle our giggles, and just when we thought the guy seemed intelligent enough, he suddenly said, "Look, these are the piranhas". We quickly ran away because we were about to burst out laughing.

(If there were piranhas in that tank, there would not have been sharks, moray eels, stonefishes and the what-nots anymore.)

We came across this Six Restaurant and we had a filling dinner of fried squid in batter, stir-fried pork with ginger, stir-fried prawns with garlic and pepper, and seafood kway tiao soup.

After dinner, we walked along Bangla Road and we could see that the throngs of crowd there were visibly fewer. The trannies (and Joker) were still dancing away, but we were not really in the mood to admire them. It was straight to our hotel to catch up on last night's sleep.

Shopping with Ah Sir and Wee

Went shopping with Ah Sir and Wee at Vivocity. It was unbearably crowded but we still had to do our shopping!

Wee took a long time to find working pants at G2000 and I spent a bomb at Shiseido. Then we had dinner at this Kim and Gary which serves Hong Kong-styled food. Ah Sir insisted that I must show the world how I suck lemon slices (from my Lemon Honey) dry.

Tattered lemon slices

When I am old, I am going to spend my retirement years sucking on lemon slices all day, and Wee said that I could save on air fresheners for my home because I could delight the atmosphere with my lemony burps.

Both Ah Sir and I snagged a decent skirt from my favourite brand, Joop, at only $19.90 (considering that its original price was $59.90)!

As Ah Sir and I were craving for deep-fried and greasy food (we luuurrve Long John's!), we had supper at Carl's Junior, snacking on their sinful criss-cut fries and more lemon slices.

Don't know why Ah Sir took this photo, but I will just post it anyway. I was actually calculating to Wee the costs of my Krabi trip.

We topped off the night with a sweet picture of us.

Night Out at Marina Mandarin (2)

Had a good sleep and we woke up at 11+am. Miss Carebear and DHL hated me for taking up the most bed space and DHL complained that I elbowed her boob and that jolted her awake. Ha!

After washing up, packing and some watching of the Animal Planet (which Miss Carebear does not appreciate), we checked out at 2pm. We then walked over to Marina Square to have a sumptuous lunch at Spaggedies and then some shopping at Orchard.

Sigh, what a great way to spend the public holiday ...

Night Out at Marina Mandarin

Miss Carebear was nice to invite me and DHL for a night's stay at Marina Mandarin, woo!

I arrived at the posh hotel first and while waiting for Miss Carebear and DHL, I watched cable TV and took some great pictures from the balcony.

Bright lights of the city

Cosy-looking room and toilet

When DHL arrived, we had supper at Xin Wang cafe where DHL's iced milk tea tasted blander than water and my hot Horlicks was practically concentrated condensed milk. We even contemplated stealing Miss Carebear's car, much to her horror. It was just a fantasy and she actually took us for real.

After supper, DHL and I retreated to the room for a bath and HBO. Miss Carebear soon returned from her late-night merry-making at Zouk, appearing tipsy and abnormally happy. She was stinking of smoke and alcohol and we were disgusted when we flopped onto the bed. DHL hastily chased her away.

When Miss Carebear finished her bath, DHL and I had finished watching Skeleton Key. We were flabbergasted when Miss Carebear climbed onto bed in a bathrobe. Sleeping in a wet bathrobe??? While we were all lying on the bed and exchanging some girl talk (with DHL still glued to HBO), we realised that Miss Carebear was still in an intoxicated state and her incoherent ramblings did not really fit the topic of discussion. Halfway, Miss Carebear's mumbling trailed off and I gave up talking to her and proceeded to sleep (with DHL still glued to HBO).

Lovely breakfast

It feels so great not having to work.

I even had the time to enjoy a simple kopitiam breakfast with Slug!

Night Out with Bong and Mo (3)

Finally returned to the bosom of dbl 0 after a loooong break. Can't remember much about that night except that I got allergic to some over-enthused dancer's sweat and rashes broke out on my arm.

Otherwise, it was a lovely night.