"Did the tsunami get you?"

Rita, Michelle, Heather

Third destination . . . Railay. Heather, Michelle and I ditched the boys yet again and went off on our own girls’ adventure. Railay (where my parents spent time after their Nepal trip) is a beach that can only be reached by long boat, so I like to refer to it as an island because that is what it feels like once you are there.

We had a wonderful welcome to the new destination. We met wonderful (white) people on our boat and then searched for a cheap place to stay. We ended up in a rundown bungalow with mattresses on the floor and from all the rain everything had a damp feel and the shower water was salty. The perks to the place a hammock swing on the porch and an amazing Indian restaurant that we ate at quite frequently.  We only spent one night at this destination before moving the next morning to Diamond Cave Resort. A fancy place compared to the first night and only 150 Baht more expensive.



Raining Cats and Dogs

Diamond Cave was a perfect new destination considering we were forced to spend a lot of time in it due to heavy rains. It rained hard for about three straight days leaving Heather, Michelle and I to enjoy lots of reading, movies, skip-bo games, chips and beer. We did bundle up and venture out for dinner, eating a mix of Thai, American and Indian food. We made new friends: Kevin from Canada, Martin from France, and 2 other guys from Germany who we only saw one night. Once the sun came out Heather, Kevin and I would go out on adventures. One morning we made a muddy slippery steep climb to a lookout point that  

Heather and me at the lookout point

showed us the entire town of Railay. We also tried to make our way to a lagoon. We got to a place where we could see it be decided not to  rappel down old fraying ropes to get to the water.  Martin had been to the lagoon before the rains and said the water was dried up but from the rains it was completely full.  The three of us also went kayaking around from the West beach (the ritzy side of the “island”) around the point to the east side where we were staying. It was refreshing to finally be enjoying the ocean again and to be out and about exploring and getting exercise after being cramped up in our room for so long.





German friend, Martin,
Michelle, Heather, Me, Kevin

  

Me climbing



I had wanted to go climbing. Railay is known as one of the best climbing destinations in the world so I was dying to test out the walls for myself. I convinced Kevin to come with me for a morning. While getting our gear and signing up with a guide we told them we were married to get a discount so for the remainder of the time it was a joke that Kevin and I were married. Martin, our French friend, had been climbing all week so once we were set up with a guide and at the wall we met Martin and his guide. It was fun to be experiencing the climbs with friends rather than alone. Sure enough there were a huge variety of climbs for all types of climbers. We made our way to two locations for a total of 4 climbs. At our second location we met new friends Ida and Tim from Norway. Later that night Heather, Michelle, Kevin, Martin, Tim, Ida and I went to dinner. Our diverse group had a blast together and ended up spending a few more meals and beach time together.    Ida and Tim are 19 years old and traveling around the world in 3 months. Before their big trip Ida taught at an orphanage/school in India that takes in children with disabilities who have been abandoned by their families. She also studied in North Carolina her junior year in high school. She may be one of the most mature and inspiring people I have ever met and the easiest person to get along with.

Ida (said like Rita without the R) with her new friend.



Our stay in Railay ended up being a lot longer than expected due to the rains and the fact that we couldn’t have left the island even if we wanted and because we met so many people that we enjoyed being around. Each evening we would think about our plans and say, “let’s stay one more day.” There was so much to explore around this tiny beach community with kayaking, hiking to caves, and climbing that we were well entertained for our long stay. We also spent the first sunny afternoon out exploring the damage from the rains and were shocked at how many trees fell down and how the two main walkways on the island were washed out completely. Because of this when I returned to my village with my parents, my host families confused their English and asked if the tsunami got me. What they really meant were all the floods and the number of evacuations happening all around the south of Thailand. Fortunately we were safe in our bungalow oblivious to the damage the storm was making around us.
  

The damage!!!!



Arriving by long boat

can you see the lagoon??

Our visitors


 

Sunset