Thailand Take Two

Hi Guys,

We left Siem Riep on a flight to Bangkok, followed the next day with another flight, then bus and finally a ferry ride before we reached Koh Tao. We decided to only do one island on that side of the country as Koh Pangyan and Koh Samui were  not quite the scene we were after.  

Koh Tao is the smalletst of the three islands on the north and is well known for its beautiful beaches. There are lots of scuba diving and snorkelling excursions on the island so we knew that it was a must once we got there. The only method of transport on the island are scooters, so we cautiously hired one and explored the incredible island. We booked ourselves on a taster day of diving, slightly apprehensive to do our full certification without trying it out first, and we are so glad we did.

We went with 'Scuba Club Koh Tao' and had a great instructor called Bart (would recommend if you are ever in the area). We started the day with a Wet Suit fitting (cringe) and then a safety briefing. Our first dive was great as we started standing in the sea and slowly made our way deeper. It was great as we hardly realised we were 10 meters deep and breathing under water! We saw a load of beautiful fish and two sting rays but unfortunately a lot of the coral was bleached, dying or dead. This was  which is such a shame for such a beautiful ecosystem as with a lot of other beautiful places on the trip tourism is killing the areas close to it. Nevertheless and especially for Lily it was a great 1st time experience and something we will do again maybe in Indonesia.

Day 3 in Koh Tao and after Luke had a quick scooter lesson in the local supermarket carpark we went on the explore to some of the beaches and snorkeling hotspots. My first time on a scooter and there are plenty of grazes, bandages and crutches around the island to make you feel slightly wary of pretending to be Valentino Rossi. Saying that we thought it was a brilliant day some of the best days on the trip are based around exploring places and finding little nooks and crannies dotted away. We found freedom beach which was stunning a picture postcard of a beach, white sand, beautiful clear water and loads of wildlife to have a butchers at. The second bay was a testing drive for the novice scooter-er but we got there in the end and once again it was breath taking.  It was one of the best snorkelling experiences ever, spotted a massive parrot fish must have been 2ft long it was so close  you could have reached out and touched it, amazing creature in such shallow water.

Must give a quick mention to Arron and Seana from Dublin who we bumped into while we were bumbling around, we met up in the evening for drinks and had a cracking evening reminiscing about curry chips and spice bags classic Irish fast food.

Next stop Ao Nang near Krabi and to be honest there wasn't much to say about it. A nice spot a bit touristy and not masses to do. We stayed in a really nice bamboo hut which was cool and we went to Railay which was a gorgeous beach full of instagramer's who are becoming a slightly irritating. Must doff my cap to the jungle kitchen in Ao Nang really good Thai food nice people and way better than most of the overpriced shite that most of the restaurants do.

We left Krabi on another boat and headed of to Koh Phi Phi, we read that the area is great for snorkelling and Luke was on the hunt for a shark snorkelling experience, this island promised a few good spots. Sadly the area was obliterated by the Tsunami in 2004 and unfortunately they have turned what was once paradise island into a party island with zero character, no local heritage and just one big massive tourist trap. There are no roads or transport to get around the island your left with just spending your time in the dirty smelly harbour which just isn't pleasant. 

We did however get out for a day trip on a speedboat and there was some beautiful spots like Maya Bay (the film The Beach was filmed there), bamboo beach and a really nice snorkelling spot near shark point. Finally after diving and snorkelling all over Thailand we spotted a little baby Black tip shark about a metre length, it was great - another amazing animal to add to the list on the trip. We got back into the harbour and we both looked at ourselves and said how much of a shame it is that the Thai authorities have decided to completely ruin the island with bad restaurants, dodgy hotels and tacky Irish bars.

Our last night was back in Krabi and we went out for a bite to eat and talked over the last 10 days around the islands. Sadly we left with a bit of a sour taste in the mouth Koh Tao was stunning, Ao  Nang was average and Phi Phi was disappointing. We were both buzzing to get to Malaysia the food in this country is immense and its such a mash up of cultures. Tres excited.

Next stop, Langkawi. 

Luke and Lily x