Krabi — Pause on the way to Chiang Mai

Krabi became my first stop in Thailand (Satun doesn't count) after having missed my boat to Koh Lipe.

Both Yohanna and Valentina entered Thailand with me. Yohanna also came to Krabi for one night whilst Valentina left us in Satun to take on the brave task of crossing Thailand in bus towards Chiang Mai.

Both me and Yohanna felt destroyed from our days in Langkawi. Turns out that a great hostel atmosphere and cheap drinks is a killer combination.

We booked accommodation in Ao Nang, a small town by the beach recommend by Rita Oliveira. To get to the hostel we shared a grab with Laura, a German dancer that told us about her love for dance hall, a Jamaican hip-hop-inspired dance style. Her Instagram was fire!

I finished the day with my first delicious pad thai, in the company of both Yohanna and Rita.

The next day Rita left Ao Nang and me and Yohanna did the monkey trail to a nice little beach where we relaxed for the rest of the afternoon.

I had a strange incident while randomly walking down the street. A ladyboy approached me and tried to hold my hands while asking in a raspy voice "do you wanna come with me?" My instinct reaction was to abruptly take a side step while exclaiming "no way!" The ladyboy was not amused and as I walked away they gave me a very non lady-like slap on my shoulder. It was so sudden that left me a little shook and thinking about the whole Thai ladyboy culture. On one hand it's very cool that the Thai society is so accepting, but on the other it's also sad how much ladyboys are associated to prostitution and maybe even human trafficking. I hope I get a better understanding of it by the end of my time in Thailand.

Yohanna left in the afternoon and I just relaxed until the next morning when I went climbing at Railay beach.

Railay beach is beautiful! A very inaccessible beach walled by sharp cliffs and lush vegetation. The rocks offer thousands of routes for daring climbers of all levels, attracting from the most clueless tourist to the most experienced climbers. I'm afraid I fit in the former rather than the latter.

I had never done rock climbing before and I loved it. The guides were extremely good, kept a very close eye on us, never giving much slack on the rope. I fell a few times, but barely lost any hight. Besides keeping the climbers safe they would continuously shout suggestions for how to climb the wall. Very useful when you don't know how to approach a route.

While climbing I met an Italian guy who took photos and a video of me climbing and promised to send them later. And a German girl who was training to become a police woman.

At lunch time I said goodbye to my new friends and the beautiful Railay beach. While walking by the village behind the beach, with its hippie cafés and restaurants, I promised myself I would return there one day.

Once back in Ao Nang, and having a few hours to kill until my flight, I decided to go for a thai massage at a parlor recommended by Laura. It was called "the blue" and it was very clean an professional looking. I paid 360 THB and got one hour of deep and intense Thai massage. Perfect for recovering from the climbing in the morning.

After my massage I made my way to the airport where I was going to take a flight to Chiang Mai.Read more