Ao Nang Beach, Krabi and Ko Phi Phi Don, Thailand

After spending a week in Chiang Mai and returning back to Pattaya for Christmas, we felt the next part of our winter break needed some relaxation.  As a result we split our time with three full days at Ao Nang Beach in Krabi and then three full days at Ko Phi Phi Don.

Krabi is well known for its amazing limestone cliffs and neighboring islands that provides bountiful exploring opportunities.  We stayed at the Holiday Inn within Ao Nang Beach.  The hotel was situated just across the street from the beach like many of the resorts, restaurants and local shops.  The town itself is small only taking about 30 minutes to walk from one end to the other.  All along the beach are the ever present long-tail boats awaiting to take you to the many islands and beaches for enjoyment.

While staying at Krabi we took a long-tail boat excursion to do some snorkeling in the clear waters of Paradise Island, Pakbia Island and Hong Island. We also had a great lunch right on Hong Beach!

In addition to this we spent two of our days at Railay Beach and also Phra Nang Beach. First let me explain Railay Beach.  The beach is only accessible by boat due to the high limestone cliffs.  The cliffs attract rock climbers from all over the world and the beach is consistently rated in the top beaches of the world. The water is crystal clear blue and such a relaxing place to visit, a true slice of paradise.

Phra Nang Beach is also only accessible by boat and is located just around some limestone cliffs from Railway Beach.  Accordingly it is also rated one of the top beaches in the world.  Both beaches are a broad strip of white sand completely surrounded by the cliffs, very relaxing places to spend our days in the sun.

Next we headed to Ko Phi Phi Don ("Ko" means island in Thai language).  The island lies between Phuket (one of our first trips as an expat family) and Krabi, accessible by a one hour speed boat ride from each of these resort towns.  The island was absolutely breathtaking.  The white sandy beach and beautiful sunsets made for the ultimate getaway we needed.

We took several excursions from the island.  First we took a four hour trip to Nui Bay and Lanah Bay for some spectacular snorkeling.

While an expat we have been able to "ring in the New Year" at some amazing places!

Another morning we hired a private speedboat to take us to Ko Phi Phi Lee Island located about a 30 minute ride away from our resort.  It is the second largest island following Ko Phi Phi Don.  The island consists of many steep limestone cliffs and has two shallow Bays, Maya and Loh Samah.  Maya Bay became most popular after the 2000 movie "The Beach" was filmed there.  We arrived to Maya Bay very early morning intentionally to avoid all the tour boats from Phuket and Krabi.  As a result we were only one of a handful of people on the beach.  This is one of my favorite beaches to visit due to the amazing scenery and shades of clear blue water.  Next we headed to Loh Samah Bay to do some snorkeling and enjoy the rest of our morning.

Lastly we visited Tonsai Village/Bay for an afternoon, also only accessible by a 20 minute long-tail boat ride.  I would consider this as the bustling heart of Phi Phi Island in contrast to the relaxation our resort part of the island offered.  The area consists of many tourist shops and restaurants just steps away from the beach.  This is a very popular destination for young backpackers looking to explore the neighboring islands during the day and party late into the evenings.

In conclusion, we had an amazing time on this part of our trip.  Much time had passed since we did a pure relaxing beach vacation and we found the perfect spot!

Chiang Mai, Thailand

For part of our December vacation we have decided to visit the city of Chiang Mai, it is the largest and most culturally significant city in Northern Thailand.  We find the city to be a bit more calm and laid back in comparison to Bangkok in the south.  The city is know for it beautiful rain forest and also elephant sanctuaries.

Day One
During our first day we decided to mix in a little fun and also do some exploring.  Our first stop was the Elephant Parade house.  The house is comprised of elephant statues of all shapes, colorfully painted by local artist.  However it is more than a store where you can buy some artwork (which we did), you can actually paint your own elephant in the workshop.  Cooper had a wonderful time doing this activity!  Also the proceeds go towards the Asian Elephant Foundation to help battle the threat of extinction.

Now it was time to explore some of the temples in the city.  Our first stop was Wat Lok Molee.  Just outside the city wall and center, it was built during the 14th century.

Next visit was to Wat Chiang Man.  This is the oldest temple in Chiang Mai going back to 1296.  Like most Wats it's most important structure is the Chedi (also called a stupa or pagoda).  The temple holds some very old and imprtant Buddha images.

Our next stop was Wat Phra Singh, Chiang Mai's most revered temple.  This is due to it's lavish buildings and immaculate grounds.

Our last Wat was Chedi Luang.  While not as grand as Wat Phra Singh it has a towering Chedi  built in 1441.  All of the Buddhist Temples we have seen are so beautiful to explore and see the practicing monks.

Concluding our day we went to Wualai Walking Street, also known as the Saturday Market.  Walking through the crowds of people there are plenty of handicraft items and locally made products.

Day Two
Today we devoted all of our time and visited the Elephant Nature Park.  This was not a place to ride an elephant, in fact it is the exact opposite!  The Nature Park is an elephant sanctuary and rescue center for distressed elephants all over Thailand.  The park is set in a natural valley, bordered by a river and surrounded by lush mountains.  We learned so much about elephants and saw first hand some of the struggles many have faced resulting from tourism, logging, and abuse of many forms.  However here they have found a safe haven and it is a wonderful place to become educated on elephants and see first hand how they are meant to be cared for with love and compassion.  We were able to interact first hand with the elephants by feeding them, walking among them, seeing the babies and even providing them with a splash bath in the river.  We had such a wonderful day with these giant animals which are often misunderstood and abused.

We concluded our day by visiting this time the Sunday Market or otherwise known as walking street.  It is located right in the center of the old walled city and for 1km you can see all the art work/crafts of the local Thai people.

Day Three
Today we started with a visit to the Hmong Hill Tribe. Hill Tribes are ethnic minorities in Northern Thailand who prefer to live 1,000m above sea level in upland areas and tend to shy away from the outside world.  There are seven Hill Tribe groupings and each has it's own customs and languages.  The Hill Tribes are distinctively known for their colorful and unique costumes which they continue to wear daily.  We were able to get some spectacular views of the surrounding forest and also of the beautiful gardens in the area.

Next we stay up in the highlands and visited Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep.  From it's throne on top of the mountain, this temple is one of Thailand's most sacred.

After some early morning exploring in the afternoon we stopped to look at some teak furniture which is well know in Northern Thailand.  After a little shopping we decided to end the day with the Chiang Mai Night Safari.  We took several rides on an open air tram at night and got to see some nice animals.

Day Four

This morning we set out for Tiger Kingdom.  We took the opportunity within our visit to interact with baby tigers, adolescent tigers and even the big full grown ones.  I was great being so close to Tigers but a little nerve racking around the big cat! We go some great photos and memories for a lifetime.

Next we visited Baan Tong Luang.  This is a Hill Tribe preservation area where you can see some of the old traditional ways of five tribes all in one location.  The most interesting tribe was the Keran Long Neck Tribe where the woman wear the brass rings around their necks dating back into their ancestry.

Our final stop of the day was the Chang Mai Celadon Factory.  Here we learned how Celadon is manufactured by the local workers and we took home some beautiful pieces to display in our future home some day.

In the evening after dinner we strolled through the daily night market to purchase some local handicrafts.  It was a fantastic day filled with many memorable activities.

Day Five
On our last full day we spent a leisurely day at Ban Tawai handicraft market.  With so many wood handicrafts we found the perfect Thai Miniature Traditional House to remind us one day of our travels in Northern Thailand.

In conclusion we loved our visit to Northern Thailand, providing the perfect opportunity to explore some more of the country we have called home for the last year.