first day in krabi, 27 nov

krabi: the pearl of the andaman sea. population of about 300,000. the locals called it 'krab bi'. it is one of the smaller provinces in thailand. krabi town is where the port and airport is. but most tourists do not linger here, instead they head to ao nang. well, we were there at the end of the wet season, the dry season was just beginning...so i was keeping my fingers crossed for good weather.

there were more scandinavians than locals. everywhere you go, blondes and brunettes. beautiful features with blue eyes and high noses. most came with their families and middle-aged couples (a lot). young travellers were quite rare but you do see a few groups scattered here and there. asians? well, there were some singaporean, malaysian of course and a few japanese.

those who have been to phuket, you will find a lot of similarities, but phuket has more activities to offer. it is more crowded in phuket too. so if you want a quieter and more relaxed holiday where you can spend a lot of time at the pool side reading and sleeping, krabi is the place for you.

and now my story:

upon arrival at krabi international airport (which is a new and small one), we were met by 'chai' a local tourguide. our package included lodging, transfer to and fro the airport and 1/2 day tour. besides us, he also picked up 7 other malaysians.
our first destination: lunch.

the bus drove us to a place, quite secluded from the main road, nestled among trees and dropped us for 30 mins quick lunch. you can choose between duck noodles and seafood fried rice.

this was the place we were at. the bowl of duck noodles was a bit sweet and sourish at the same time. well, the fried rice was normal lah. i choose the fried rice because they fried it when you ordered. the noodles were all pre-prepared and they only added the soup and duck meat....but it was still good. the meat was thick and tender.

the bus next stopped at a shop selling local products. i din buy anything. hmhh...should have just to appease dad. haha...he asked mom, if i bought anything back to eat. they had coconut sweets, fried anchovies, grated coconut, etc...nothing interests me.

then it was to tiger cave temple...no... you don't go there to see tiger. instead, there are monkeys.

the monkeys were all fed by the tourists and they were not scared of humans...so watch out for your belongings.

right inside the compound is a pagoda housing a giant kuan yin statue.

for those who want some exercise, you can go up the steps to the tiger cave temple on the mountain. we didn't mind going, but we were short of time because of the flight delay. so we could only take photos at the bottom. i am sure we can get a good view at the top. it was such a clear day and naturally it was hot.

last destination before the hotel: krabi fisheries research centre where they breed the fishes before releasing them into the sea. fishing is one of the main occupations for the locals who live by the sea. so this is a good effort huh. guess these are the 'sea gypsies' who are mostly muslims. there is a chinese population too but in krabi town. the muslims live at the outskirts.

yeah....finally the hotel at 5+. everyone was getting hotter and stickier.

from krabi town to ao nang beach, which is where most tourists are, it takes about 20 mins by car. most ppl stay here because this stretch provides easy access to the sea and islands. our hotel is just across the road from the beach. however, this stretch of beach is not suitable for water activities as it is the docking place for long tail boats. if you want a swim, you have the pool or go out to one of the islands nearby to swim in the clear water. our rooms were one of those facing the pool.

our spacious room. we got a good deal for the room, bought 2 nights and free 1 night.
kien and i decided to go for a swim while sammie went for an aromatherapy massage. hua just lazed around on the lounge chairs with her psp. at the bottom right, you can see the fire escape route and also tsunami escape route pasted behind the door of the room. everywhere you go on the street, you can see signboards of tsunami evacuation route pointing inland. according to the tour guide, ao nang was not affected during the tsunami because all the smaller islands (about 80) blocked the impact of the waves. that was a relief.

see those books there? non in english. provided by the hotel for their scandinavian guests. luckily i brought my own- testimony by anita shreeve. ;P good choice because it comes in short chapters. i finished the book and now it is with cousin en who will bring it to koh samui. hehe...that book can really travel.

the sky turned dark at around 6p.m. and we went out looking for dinner at 7p.m.

all along the road in ao nang, you have shops selling souvenir items and clothes, restaurants, pubs, and travel agencies. ao nang road is in the shape of a 'U'. our hotel is right at the bottom of the 'U' and across that is the sea. so if you wanna walk, you walk from one end from the top, to the bottom, and then up the other end.

7-11 convenient stores are everywhere, and that is the place where everyone goes for snacks and water. it is cheaper than the local convenient stores. they increased the prices themselves.

so dinner was western. we saw one which was crowded called aning restaurant. you won't regret going there. food was good but the service did not come with a smile. the locals here are not as developed as those in phuket and their english is quite limited. just dun try any complicated requests or conversation.

we had nachos, pork chop, beef burger, bacon and cheese with chicken and chicken tortilla. everyone pronounced satisfaction with their meal....except me. i ordered pork chop and it came a bit dry. there is no service tax in the bill, so please give some. also, they won't understand if you request for the bill, instead go for your cheque.

so after makan, we jalan a bit. bought bottled alcoholic drinks like smirnoff ice and bacardi breezer.

another flavour for me to try- rasberry and this is the worst. taste like f&n grape and it made my tongue purple. the lime is still the best i think.

then we called it a night.