by Regin Reyno
Blinding white-sand beaches, towering limestone cliffs,
emerald green waters, lush-foliage islands, clear blue sky; these were the
sights I behold aboard a long-tail boat on the Andaman Sea in Krabi. As the
warm summer sea breeze caressed my face while the boat sped off leaving a white
stream and the port of Nopparathara, Aonang became less visible, my excitement
grew stronger as I knew we were heading to paradise.
The 38-degree summer heat in Bangkok, coupled with a 3-day
Songkran holiday prompted us to leave Bangkok’s cemented pavements and busy
lifestyle to experience white-powdery beaches, refreshing waters, solitary
islands and a laid-back atmosphere of Krabi.
Located approximately
800 km south of Bangkok, Thailand, Krabi is one of the top tourist destinations
in the country. It is a province along the Andaman Sea blessed with lush forests,
world-class beaches, glorious mountains and hills, stunning islands, scenic
rivers, and magnificent karsts. Enough reasons to attract tons of tourists each
year.
We were on a “4 island tour” that day, taken care of by one
of the countless tour agencies located in Aonang, one of the towns in Krabi
where the beaches are located. It is the jump-off of tours and boat rides to the
islands. Laden with restaurants, bars, hotels, hostels, bungalows, tour
agencies, souvenir shops and dive shops-it is a typical touristy town.
About 25 tourists coming from countries such as Russia, UK,
Australia, India, Finland, China, Malaysia, and of course we, Filipinos, plus 4
Thai crews including our guide were
aboard that big long-tail boat during that time-all excited for the day’s
activities, and to experience a slice of paradise on earth.
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Passing by limestone cliffs
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