In lieu of the gross weather, we dropped our bags and headed for the lagoon, which we had heard was spectacular and relatively untainted by a plethora of tourists. We met up with our 3 other companions--Ross, Jeremy, and Peter--and made our way, hiking up and down slippery, muddy, and rocky routes, to finally reach the oasis that was the lagoon. It was a pool of brilliant sea-green water connecting to the ocean, but closed off to travelers by a gigantic wall of rocks; it was as if someone had started from the peak and dug out a hole, heading straight down until he hit water. And there we were: alone, gross and muddy, and ecstatic (jaw-droppingly thrilled) to have beared through the difficult, and at times dangerous, trail all the way til the end. Unfortunately, we preferred to spare our cameras from our muddy hands and wet everything else, so we don't have any pictures of the lagoon. BUT, afterwards we trekked back and up to reach a magnificent viewpoint of the island, of which we certainly have a pic.
For most of the rest of our stay on the island, Jon and I lounged at the beach and relaxed. That is to say that we read, sunbathed, sweat an exorbitant amount, took dips in the fabulously warm green water, played volleyball with the most flaming gay men in Thailand, and watched movies every night at our hotel, YaYa. Periodically during the day and during the sunsets, I'd look out onto the horizon of water, rocks, far islands, longtail boats, and beautiful sand, and I'd let out a deep satisfied sigh, absorbing just how lucky we were to be there.
One of the few organized activities that we did was rock climbing, which we had heard was a must-do if we wanted to fully take in the beauty of Railay. I hadn't been rock climbing in nearly 4 years and missed it dearly. Jon was a novice, but up for a new adventure. We head out bright and early.....well, it was gray out, so overcast and early...to the climbing site with our guide Tu, a small and spunky sort of fellow who insisted on yelling suggestions up to Jon while he was climbing even though Jon had nearly zero success deciphering his words through his thick accent. It was such a thrill to be on the rock and feel like I was solving a puzzle to figure out the best way to get to the top....and like I was mustering up all the strength within myself to, one foothold at time, pull and push myself upwards. Totally amazing.
Now we're back in Bangkok. We arrived yesterday after another long night bus ride, but this time instead of repetitious Thai pop music on a public bus, we got 4 awesome movies (one including Superbad.....sweet!) on a V.I.P. pimped-out bus, which was at least a little more comfortable and enjoyable. We made sure to fit in a bit of pick-up frisbee yesterday afternoon...clearly.
Today, we went to check out the Grand Palace, which was a huge and beautiful complex, and Wat Pho, which was a temple home to the largest reclining Buddha. Both sites were very touristy, but certainly worth our while.
Tomorrow we're off to Cambodia, on a ridiculously early train at 5:55a.m., making our way to Angkor Wat and Phnom Penh. So tonight we're living it up in the shopping complex with a V.I.P movie-viewing of Batman: The Dark Knight, with honeymoon comfy seats, blankets, and yummy treats.
We're off to enjoy a nice evening of air-con..... :)
Laa kawn!!
-Emma
