sOleiLian

From coast to coast. A mere 10 minutes’ walk. And two beach scenes that are worlds apart.

This pretty much sums up Railay. While West Railay’s beautiful shore is defined by its fine golden sand and luxury resorts, East Railay’s coastline is shaped by thriving mangrove swamps that make swimming in this part of the peninsula rather impractical. Yet for all its shortcomings, East Railay is where the backpackers and budget travellers converge and play.

Calm waters and mangroves in East Railay

Pedestrian-friendly path along the coast

Lovely bamboo decks with soft cushions!

We stayed at Railay Viewpoint Resort, a mid-range accommodation

Don’t think you’d want to sunbathe on this muddy beach! But I gotta agree that the view was undeniably beautiful.

Boats coming from Krabi town dock here. East Railay can be pretty peaceful and quiet during the day as there’s not much activity going on here. Most of the bar scene only comes alive after the sun goes down.

I just love the wonderful colours of tropical fruits!

Cocoa powder

A book in hand, a view in front, and a shady beach cabana. Now that’s life!

Liquors to spice up everything!

Fancy a quick Muay Thai lesson? ;)

Thai pancake

Coconut palms or normal palms? I’m not sure!

A resort pool against a stunning backdrop

Lovely…

Compilation of KRABI & KO PHI PHI TRIP 2010

• PART I : Crossing borders: En route to paradise
• PART II: Sunshine Krabi

c a t e g o r y | passport to nowhere . yummylicious
f l u f f e r p u f f | beaches . food . southern thailand . thailand . travels

18 sOleiLians

Gorgeous Krabi.

A magical place that spells sun, sea, and sand. In my dictionary, this combination almost always conjures up the picture-perfect image of paradise.

Right there just in front of me, vanishing into the horizon and stretching from one end to the other, were the shimmering turquoise blue waters of the Andaman Sea. How fabulous! And berthing on Ao Nang’s crowded strip of sand were the long-tail boats that helped to transport passengers to the outlying coves and secluded beaches inaccessible by land. At 80 baht per pax, we hopped on one.

Leaving Ao Nang in one of these long-tails

Look at the big blue sky! And the soaring coconut palms too!

Blue, purple, red, white, yellow. What’s your colour?

Oh yes, that was our destination ~ Railay!

Limestone cliffs here and there

Almost there! (and many thanks to this boatman for gracing my pics throughout this short boat trip :P)

Railay (also spelled Rai Leh) is a peninsula with beautiful beaches and incredible limestone cliffs, attracting beach-goers and rock climbers the world over. Its land route is cut off from the rest of Krabi by these rocks and therefore the only access available is by boat.

The trip to Railay was pretty short, and it took about 15 minutes to reach. As soon as our boat docked on the golden shore of West Railay, we couldn’t wait to sink our feet into the soft velvety sand that made this beach famous. Ah… It was pure bliss!

Great atmosphere and great views!

You can see why people keep thronging to West Railay!

Railay can be divided into 4 primary areas: West Railay, East Railay, Phra Nang, and Ton Sai. West Railay’s sand was definitely one of the finest I’d ever stepped on. And with a panoramic view like that, I could just bask in the sun whole day long and watch the day go by. Damn… I’m missin’ it like crazy!

One of a handful of restaurants in West Railay

A vendor selling Thai pancakes, a famous dessert quite similar to Malaysia’s roti canai

Compilation of KRABI & KO PHI PHI TRIP 2010

• PART I: Crossing borders: En route to paradise

c a t e g o r y | passport to nowhere
f l u f f e r p u f f | beaches . southern thailand . thailand . travels

22 sOleiLians

It was back in February, right after Chinese New Year celebrations. Rather reluctantly (I was still very much in CNY mood), I rushed back to Penang from my hometown in order to meet up with my friends for the trip that we’d been lookin’ forward to ~ Krabi, Thailand! And nope, we didn’t go by air as many would expect us to do so. Instead, we opted for a land route via a van service from one of the many travel agents in George Town that offered daily transits to-and-fro between Penang and various Thai destinations at a relatively low price ~ only RM59 one way! I’m sure we could’ve got a lower price somewhere if we were to hunt harder around town.

February 23rd, 5 a.m. The 5 of us waited in front of a McDonald’s outlet near our university for the Thai-registered van to come and fetch us. As soon as we hopped on our van, I couldn’t seem to contain my excitement. I knew I was gonna have a wonderful journey ahead. And I was right.

Break of dawn in Changlun, Kedah

We reached Changlun by 7, a major border town at the northern end of the North-South Expressway before one ventures into Thai territory. Home to a significant Malaysian Siamese population, the town’s name reflects this heritage and was derived from the Thai language itself. While waiting for our driver to process some procedures required to make the border crossing, we took the time to have some light breakfast and to observe the goings-on in this bustling town. With us there were some foreigners waiting to cross the border too.

Goodbye, Malaysia!

Sawadee krap, Thailand!

Ah… Thailand. The very mention of the Land of Smiles never fails to evoke some fond childhood memories of mine. I used to join my parents to Hat Yai for holiday when I was young. And now I’m all grown up, I still never quite fathom how time could possibly fly so fast without leaving a trace!

Buddhist monks at the Thai immigration checkpoint in Ban Dan Nok, Songkhla Province

Thai flags stood tall with grace and dignity

Commuters rushed in from both sides of the border

A further 90-minute ride from the border had us landed in the city of Hat Yai, the largest metropolitan area in Southern Thailand and the country’s 4th biggest city. We were to change vans here and thus there was an hour to spare while we waited for the van to come. Though not a principal holiday destination among Westerners, Hat Yai has always enjoyed the fair reputation as a shopping haven for many Malaysians. Tourists of other nationalities usually make Hat Yai a transit point to the more renowned beach destinations of Phuket and Krabi on the Andaman coast or Ko Samui and Hua Hin in the Gulf of Thailand.

Wire madness! Do we have this in Malaysia?

A bak kut teh 肉骨茶 restaurant spotted!

Dim sum, anyone?

Hmm… Can you smell it?

Muslim food stalls

Look what we have here… A restaurant selling all-time Malaysian favourites! Perhaps the owner originated from Malaysia.

Besides the mainly ethnic Thai inhabitants, Hat Yai also boasts large populations of Chinese and Muslims. As with other major Thai urban areas, the Chinese have a significant presence and yield a considerably strong influence in the city.

Due to its economic prominence in the South and its proximity to the turbulent neighbouring Muslim-majority provinces of Yala, Narathiwat, and Pattani, Hat Yai suffered from a series of terrorist attacks orchestrated by the Malay Muslim separatists in the still ongoing South Thailand insurgency a few years back. A relative happened to visit the city during one of the attacks and he was just a few hundred metres away from the spot when several bombs went off simultaneously and unexpectedly in a bustling commercial area. Had he gone anywhere closer, I wouldn’t have dared to think of the consequences!

Chinese lanterns adorned the streets for the Chinese New Year celebrations

Pork-flavoured cup noodles and congee at 7-Eleven! You won’t get to see these in sweet ol’ Malaysia, ever.

A songthaew or baht bus

Having endured an 11-hour journey (including a few stopovers in between) all the way from where we began our trip, we finally saw paradise.

A promenade filled with cafés and stores at Ao Nang Beach, Krabi

A beach bar. Gotta love its warm colours!

A giant star!

Ao Nang Beach, the most developed strip of sand on Krabi’s coast

And nope, we didn’t stay on this beach as we’d reserved it for our last night. Instead, we were going to stay somewhere else… Somewhere more beautiful and paradise-like…

c a t e g o r y | passport to nowhere
f l u f f e r p u f f | beaches . border crossings . chinese . southern thailand . thailand . travels

19 sOleiLians