In the middle of our Krabi trip, we went to the famous Maya Bay by boat. We were awestruck by the beauty of the beach, surrounded by natural limestone cliffs. But we had to share the enjoyment of Maya Bay with hundreds of tourists! Most of them westerners. Thanks to the film, Maya Bay will never be quiet anymore, as locals continue to generate millions out of the place for tourism, year after year. Oh, I was told when the Tsunami hit the Phi Phi islands, it "cleansed" the place, and restored its natural-ness. But only for a while.
Our other great moments in Krabi were scaling up the majestic, natural limestone rocks and kayaking deep into the mangrove forests and ancient caves. Activities that only 5% of the tourists would do, at least during our time of travel.
We had a great time chatting with many people: our masseurs whose lives were forever changed by the Tsunami, a waitress dreaming of opening her own business, our German-Thai rock climbing instructors couple (with an adorable toddler boy) who use the vigorous activity as a form of escapism, a soft-spoken travel booth attendant with a permanent smile and fellow travellers from different countries. Talk about holidays, working in Krabi, the Tsunami, food and life. One common thing I observed was this: People were escaping where they came from to find the ideal peaceful life, hoping to find a piece of paradise of their own. And there were many who just wanted to sample a piece of it to bring it back to where they're from. But many stayed.
Here are only a few of the pictures I captured using my old compact Lumix.
I was so fascinated by this vehicle which could move both on water and land.
Hmmm....maybe it came from the distant island.
Days later, we met a tourist who had the same sightings. He nicknamed it "The Amphibian".
Didn't have time for it. Too much outdoor stuffs.
If only I had a DSLR with a superwide lens!
We snorkelled in the clear waters near the islands.
Look at the climber's legs almost 180 degrees!
Probably the most challenging physical activity I've ever done!
Only for the filthy rich! Later I found out it is one of the highest rated resorts at Krabi.
I wasted no time in making myself feel at home. I was enjoying myself in the pool with the rich and good-looking people for about 20 minutes and was abruptly asked to get out....
Exclusively "members only" pool. But what a wonderful 20 minutes it was!
I joined wife at the beach and walked at least 0.5km on this floating jetty.
It's a private transport vehicle from the Centara Grand Resort. Mystery solved!
I wonder as tourism hits full-swing into Krabi, whether is it still the same lovely place as we knew and tasted back then.
Come this Thursday, we're off for another adventure to a relatively unknown place...the "Ancient Realm" found at Koh Lanta. We just can't wait! :)
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