Exploring beautiful Phang Nga Bay

I was pretty excited to explore Phang Nga bay as it was one of the top things I wanted to see while in Thailand. I learned about it after watching someone's trip to Thailand on YouTube where they were on a kayak approaching a lime stone formation and leaned back and went underneath the rock! After some darkness, it opened up to this oasis of nature in the middle of this mountain of limestone as it appeared from outside. With the sun shining down and the vivid greenery surrounding, I knew I had to visit this beautiful nature spot.

We hadn't booked our excursion ahead of time until the day before when we arrived in Phuket. I had wanted to do a self-kayaking tour, as the majority of the tours had a guide do all the paddling, which didn't seem that fun and Richard and I wanted to do some kayaking. I emailed a couple of companies the day before that had good reviews on Trip Advisor for self-kayaking, or the only companies that offered it, and only Sea Canoe replied to me. However, it so happens that the US Navy and their air craft carrier was in Phuket and had fully booked their self-kayaking tour. Nice, thanks US Navy.

Anyway, we had booked a tour through a tour company that our taxi dropped us off to. Or apparently where all the taxis drop tourist off as there seems to be some sort of arrangement with the Aldaman company. We got picked up from our hotel in this van along with other people from nearby hotels and had a 45 minute drive up north to the Ao Por pier which was below Phang Nga bay. We then boarded our boat for the day and there were "only" 39 people participating in today's excursion as the boat was pretty empty, which we preferred. It was unfortunate that the weather was cloudy today which didn't bring out the vivid colours of the islands.

The first island we visited was Panak Island which we had to kayak through a small cave opening. Our guide was a young guy named Nang, who was great as he took us around to some areas outside the island that others didnt go to. With my GoPro and GoPole ready, and Rebecca wearing the headlamp, I was excited to record our first cave entrance to the lagoon in the middle. After seeing how tight and the extruding (stalagmite?) rock from above, it is clear why they have guides paddling for you as the majority would have difficulty getting through. With so many people, and other tour groups there at the same time, it would be a huge traffic jam inside the cave. In the dark. Nonetheless, it would be more fun to kayak yourself through this darkness and just come to the end of the cave which opens up to this beautiful peaceful lagoon (or it would be more beautiful if it was sunny out). You would have never have thought there would be such a nice place in the middle of these gigantic limestone rock formations. Nature always amazes us.

The lagoon was full of trees and plants on the walls of rocks. There was another entrance to another section but the water level was not high enough to make it through due to rocks. Unfortunately, we weren't really kayaking along with Richard and Melissa, as we had gotten on a kayak a few people ahead of them.  We just did a quick circle of the lagoon, and Nang took some photos of Rebecca and I. We were in there for less than 10 minutes, which I was a bit disappointed in as you didn't really get the chance to soak in and admire the scenery.

The next island was Hong Island, the main lagoon. This entrance was trickier at the end of the cave as we had to fit through a triangle shape and had to use our hands to push off the rock. The lagoon looked pretty similar but we were able to kayak through to another section. I'll just let the pictures and video do it justice.

Still no sign of the private US Navy kayaking group. I guess Sea Canoe really go off the beaten path or they made a special route so we wouldn't see the Navy guys.

We had a buffet lunch on the boat, which was pretty decent for a tour lunch, as we headed to the famous James Bond island (Khao Phing Kan). It was where 'The Man with the Golden Gun' was filmed. Once we arrived, we had to take this super long tail taxi boat and could see there were many other tours already here which I thought was weird as we only saw couple of other boats at the previous spots. Once we landed, it was clear why. The place was full of Chinese tourist, who obviously wouldn't do the kayaking excursion but just visit the James Bond Island and take pictures on their cameras, cellphones and iPads. Anyway, the four of us set out to explore the island. Right at the entrance, there was this huge sliver piece of rock that had somehow broke from the mountain of limestone with the inner face being almost perfectly straight/flat and had fallen down. Imagine seeing that piece fall, it would surely be amazing and scary. We explored some crevices and made our way to the James Bond beach which was packed. We had made our way only maybe half way on the path when we were told that our boat was leaving. We only had 30-40 minutes there, so we aren't sure where the stair path led to.

The last spot we were supposed to stop at was Naka or Lawa Island, but due to a high amount of jellyfish in those area, it was not safe to let us swim there. Which is unfortunate, as the picture of the beach on the brochure looks nice. So instead, they stopped at this random spot on a side of an island, with a tiny beach and let us swim. Richard and I were playing Jenga with a crew member and for the last game, the loser had to jump off the boat into the water in front of everybody. I wasn't aware of this rule until I Jenga'd lol. Luckily, this was nothing compared to the cliff jumping we did in Phi Phi so I wasn't scared

I just needed Richard to throw down a life jacket. I talked the crew member to jump in as well and he went first. After me, more people from the tour jumped, as well as Richard and Melissa. Rebecca was about to but couldn't do it, even though it was only maybe 3-4 m high :p.

After jumping, we were finally able to do some kayaking on our own. Although not inside a lagoon, exploring the outside will do. We got pretty far away from the boat compared to a few others who decided to kayak as well. At the end, we decided between to have a race back to the boat between Melissa vs. Rebecca. Rebecca proved herself as a kayaker as we got a big lead over Richard and Melissa. It was Mel's first time however. Half way through, they were exhausted and turned into a relay race with Richard and I taking over. We had a decent 10m lead or so but I wasn't able to paddle straight all the time and had to correct our path. Richard was catching up though so I paddled even harder and was pushing it all the way to the end and was able to maintain our lead for the Win! It was harder than I thought but it is probably because we were in inflated kayaks and it didn't cut through the water as well as the pointed plastic ones.

The boat ride back to the pier started off as quiet as the tour group didn't really mingle that much and were all just resting after the days activities. Music was playing with American top 40 tracks and Gangnam Style played like 5 times. Must still be popular in Thailand lol. One of the tour members started to liven up the atmosphere by doing a lip singing performance to Linkin Park and it just took off from there. He was pretty good at putting on a show even did some Eminem. From there, he started some break dancing and then the rest of the guys from the tour members started breaking as well. They weren't that great but could do some moves and were just having fun putting on a show. Wished I could breakdance but those couple of learning sessions I did at MacBreak a few years ago wouldn't be enough and I never followed through. Breakdancing is one of those arts that you can bring anywhere in the world and be able to share with other dancers around the world. Plus it looks so cool.

Back at pier, we had arranged a direct drop off at the Phuket Airport which one of the tour members drove us in his truck. We got to the airport at 5, which was 3 hrs before our flight so we went to Burger King as they were craving Burgers and had free WiFi. We started to look for an elephant excursion we could do in Chiang Mai, last minute planning again which Rebecca was not pleased about. Fortunately, she was able to find a good elephant sanctuary where the elephants are treated well from someone's blog post. The sanctuary was called Ran Tong and she emailed them to inquire about doing the tour tomorrow. luckily, as it was still early evening, they replied right away to say that they can accommodate us tomorrow and we were able to get wifi at our gate, as there was another burger King there, to confirm our elephant excursion!

Our flight from Phuket to Chiang Mai was with AirAsia and Richard didn't say he was checking in any baggage when he booked online, so he had to pay an extra $60 to check in  their bags compared to like $20. However, their bags were tagged and sent down the conveyor and was told by the baggage check in to go pay at the AirAsia service booth. Seeing how their bags were already sent down then conveyor to be loaded, he thought he could get away with not going to pay at the booth. We get to the gate to board our plane and he gets caught as it was written on their boarding pass that money was owed for baggage, so he ended having to pay the fee anyway.

Our flight was only 2 hrs long but there was a lot of turbulence. We all passed out and I was woken up by our plane shaking as it landed in Chiang Mai. We arrived at our hostel, So Hostel, with no issues. The hostel is relatively new and has a modern design to it. This was our first hostel that we stayed at for our entire trip. It is also the first hostel experience for Rebecca, Richard and Melissa, who weren't really fond of the idea but I pushed for it as that is part of the backpacking experience. It’s also because she has this negative association of hostels as old, dirty places and you have to share a bathroom with randoms. she never really had to do that in 1st year University so it’s a new concept for her. However, So Hostel's rooms were pretty good and clean for a hostel; I’ve been in questionable hostels in Europe lol. Their bathrooms were okay except the shower stalls were a bit small and didnt seem to have hot water or a lot of water pressure.

The thing I learned to love from travelling in Europe was meeting new people from around the world. It was easiest to do when you stayed in Hostels as that is where all the young backpackers stay. Hotels aren't as open and don't have much atmosphere.  The best memories were meeting some good people, like Eugene whom I still stay in touch with a bit, and going out with the hostel.

Anyway, we had 6 beds to the 4 of us and since we arrived late and have an early morning tomorrow, no meeting anyone today. Oh well.

Posted by Steven

Snorkeling Adventure in Koh Tao

The day started off early for our snorkelling excursion. We had to be dropped off at the Pier where all the ferries also arrive. The tour was run by an older Australian man and cost 1545 baht for the entire day.

The tour comprised of 5 different areas around the island to stop for snorkelling, but our first stop at Shark Bay had to be skipped due to the rough waters coming in. I was disappointed.

The next stop was Aow Leuk Bay, and there were also a few other tours arriving at the same time. We excitingly jumped into the water, GoPro on my DIY GoPole in hand, and right away, there were abundant fish all around us! We had brought some bread with us to attract the fish right in front of us, and a flurry of them came to take quick nibbles at it.

There were big coral structures below us, with many different species of fish, including anemones and clown fish.

I was trying to turn my GoPro so that it faced me to get some footage of me swimming, but it turns out that the nut on the end of the mount can come out and it fell down to the floor. So note to others, be careful of the nut falling out when removing the screw (especially in water).

We stopped at a few other spots to snorkel. There were pretty much the same types of fish in all areas. I'm sure the variety of fish and coral is significantly better more out in the ocean and deeper down.

Our last stop was at the Nangyuan Island, considered to be most beautiful island, just west of where we were staying. We were given a couple of hours to explore. There is also a trail that leads to the top of the island mound but we decided to go snorkelling again in the bay.

When we returned to the main land, we had to go to our new accommodations, New Heaven Resort which was on Shark Bay. The resort was on a hillside so it had a nice eating/patio area at the top of the hill that overlooks the bay.

There was some mix up when we arrived, so we got upgraded to an ocean view bungalow for free! Not bad! All of the bungalows were down on the hill so there are a lot of stairs.

The bungalow was decently sized, with a king sized bed and mosquito net. There was also a balcony with chairs and tables that had a view out to the ocean. 

 
The best part was the outdoor washroom and shower as the view had no trees obstructing it. I’ve never had such a beautiful view while on the can haha!

Since we missed Shark Bay earlier in the day, and the tides had calmed down, We went snorkelling in search of the black tip reef shark. There was one other guy in the water and he briefly saw one but it was never to be seen again.

We had dinner at their restaurant that overlooks the bay and sat right along the railing. It was nice as you can see the lights of resorts on the other side of the bay.

 

Posted by Steven

Lazy Day in Koh Tao

Our first full day in Koh Tao started with breakfast out on the beach front, enjoying our first beach-life stay on our trip. Tough morning right? Nothing worse than waking up and taking in the sunshine and ocean out in front of us. Our plan was to go on a snorkelling excursion for the day.

Unfortunately, by the time we finished breakfast, we had just missed the cut-off time for the late morning excursion to get dropped off at the pier. (My fault for not booking it the day before, so we booked one for the next day). They recommended that we ask the long-tail boat taxis all along the beach, but the majority of them have already left taking diving schools out to the open.

Koh Tao is well known for their superb scuba diving sites. The abundant coral reefs And vast marine life (including whale sharks!), along with the lack of strong underwater currants, make it an ideal spot for beginners and to get your diving license.

Scuba Diving has been and will always be on my list of activities that I wish I could participate in. However, with my partially collapsed lung episode I had a few years back; I do not think I will be able to partake. I will definitely try to go to a dive doctor to have an examination though. Marine life just simply takes my breath away (literally lol) and there are just so many crazy creatures down there that I want to see in real life.

Rebecca and I decided to walk up and down the beach and check out what was around. There are many restaurants/cafes with outdoor patios with cushions and tables for people to eat and drink by the beach.

Check out this horizontal grown palm tree with a 90 degree tree top! But don't try climbing it, as it was wrapped in barbed wire.

The sky was clear of clouds except for further out in the horizon where this massive mountain of clouds could be seen.

We then decided to go snorkelling right out in the water of the beach for the rest of the afternoon. There was surprising quite a big section of coral but it seemed like the coral was dead or dying but there were a few small fish out there. This is most likely due to the high long tail boat traffic that are constantly disturbing and polluting the coral below.

 While enjoying the sunset, this stray dog came and sat down next to me for some company.

Today would be the only time I could record a time lapse video of a beach sunset, so we sat at the same table we did for breakfast at Sairee Beach. Thinking of it now, we should have gone to the cafe a few spots over with the triangular prism floor cushions but they are usually taken up pretty quickly for sunsets.

The sunset was beautiful as the sun set directly out on the ocean horizon.
Make sure you check out my sunset time-lapse videos in our Videos Section!

We went over to a restaurant a few buildings over and they had a display set out on the beach for their daily dinner BBQ. Several types of fish were offered that were caught the same day such as barracuda, along with chicken and beef skewers. We opted for the chicken BBQ skewers with a baked potato and veggies.

It was the BEST BBQ skewer I have EVER had! The pieces were big and juicy and the sauces complimented them nicely. I still think and crave these skewers to this day and always recommend those travelling to Koh Tao, or Thailand about them.

Thailand beach areas are also known to have fire dancers on the beach at night, twirling their batons at amazing speeds and patterns with the ends on fire to some chill music. The two performers this night were very impressive, and I would have to say they were the best ones we saw on our entire trip.

Too bad Toronto beaches doesn't have this type of entertainment at night (hmm...idea?)

After a long day, we decided to head back to our hut and Rebecca had passed out at 8pm lol.

Posted by Steven

Suit Up and Get Out of Bangkok

Today, we had set out to visit some custom tailored shops to get myself a suit and some dress shirts. Daniel had told us we can just google best tailored shops in Bangkok and there is a CNN article listing them. We set out to visit the number 1 rated shop that has done suits for US presidents and other high up personnel and it was right by the Nana BTS station, as well as the shop Richard suggested for dress shirts. I was a bit worried as most shops are closed on Sunday, and we come back from Chiang Mai on a Sunday morning and fly back home the next morning. So I was hoping the shop could do some special arrangement for me.

Once at Nana station, we stopped for lunch at a bar called "The Game" which was replaying a Bruins-Rangers NHL playoff game. It was nice to watch some playoff hockey again. After lunch, we went to the tailor but unfortunately because of our schedule, he could not work anything out for me as he was not open Sunday. Luckily, the area has many tailored shops and I went to another shop around the corner whose ad was in the BTS map. However, same issue, they were closed Sunday. We then walked back towards the station and had passed this store that tried to get us to come in previously, but I figured I would check them out anyway and if they can accommodate my schedule.

 

The shop was called Armani Tailors Studio, and the main tailor is Jimmy and he is from Italy I believe. He was a nice little guy and offered us cold water while we looked through magazines for idea. Not that I knew what to look for in a suit or the differences, or what I wanted,  I was counting on Rebecca to choose the styling lol. Jimmy explained that the basic differences were the number of buttons, the angle of the pockets, the collar style, and the rear cut.

So I finally chose a couple of designer styles that I liked; a Hugo Boss or the Ralph Lauren style that was in the magazine of designer suits. The next step was to choose the type and style of material. Jimmy showed us 3 different tiers or types of fabric. I decided to go with the top quality fabric in dark grey as I needed a nice suit. I planned on getting a couple of dress shirts as well but then Jimmy tried to sell me to get two suits and 6 shirts for 20,000 BHT. I was a bit hesitant at first as I did not want to spend that much, but the black suit I had from Mexx did not fit me that well, so eventually I caved in and agreed to 2 suits with my name embroidered inside, 6 dress shirts and 2 ties for 20,000 BHT (around $700 CDN). Not bad for a tailored suit and shirts.

After choosing the black fabric, I had to decide on the style of each suit. Th dark grey suit will have 2 buttons, a bit shorter,  angled pockets, Italian style collar and 2 rear cuts. While the black suit will be more traditional with 2 buttons, same length, straight pockets, regular collar and single rear cut.


I then had to choose, or rather Rebecca chose the patterns for the dress shirts.  After that they took my measurements and set up another meeting on June 2 where I will come in for the final fitting.


After getting suited up, Rebecca and I went to the mall at Silom station to stock up on some Chinese buns for the overnight train ride to Chumphon. The buns Bangkok were quite expensive to the prices in Toronto. They were about $1 each compared to like 50-60 cents. We then had to take the train back to our hotel to get our bags and then head back to the Hua Lomphon train station. It was quite a lot of back and forth but a lot better than carrying our bags all day.

Once at Hua Lomphon train station, I set out to look for dinner as I read that the food they sell on the train is not that good. The food court is kind of hidden on the side as you cannot really see it from the main waiting area of the station. There were a few small window like stands selling food for cheap and then there was a big open stand that sold pad Thai, and a bunch of other dishes, for only 40 BHT! What a deal! So I bought one for myself and one for Rebecca.

We boarded train #85 and were in the last car. We got the 2nd class A/C sleeper car, with two lower bunks. The trains in Thailand are quite old so they were definitely not that nice. It did have better seating and bunking arrangements compared to the overnight train I took from Amsterdam to Austria. It was an 8 hr train ride to Chumphon and I had no issue sleeping, but Rebecca didnt sleep as well because she was paranoid of people stealing stuff from our bags. The train was scheduled to arrive in Chumphon at 4 but did not arrive until 5am. We then had to wait for the Songserm "bus" transfer which was the back of a pickup truck, while the Lomprayah passengers had a double decker bus. After a 30-45 minute ride, we get to the Pier and board our boat which was pretty small and old. We sat in the bottom of the boat which had plastic seats and wasn't comfortable at all. The water was very wavy that morning so the oscillations for 2hrs was making us sick. it didnt help that the AC smelt like fumes for the entire ride. Sleeping helped a bit but woke up with 30 minutes left, and the constant big oscillations put me on the edge of sickness. I had to try hard not to feel sick and was thinking just 30 more minutes until we reached Koh Tao. Perhaps I should have went onto the deck and sat outside for a bit. I'm glad we were getting off at Koh Tao and not continuing to Koh Phangan.

To be continued on Day 9...

Posted by Steven