Sun, Sand and Sparkling Seas

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Central Krabi Bay Resort - Our Spot of Paradise

If you enjoy tropical getaways, you will love Krabi. Located along the coast of the Andaman Sea, it is one of the more rustic and less commercialised beach getaways in Thailand. Almost everything a beach bum wants - sparkling crystalline seas teeming with colourful fishes, white sandy beaches, great seafood - can be found there. The icing on the cake is that great Thai hospitality which always makes experiences extra special.

Here's a photo essay of a our recent holiday there. Enjoy.

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Our idyllic sojourn began at Central Krabi Bay Resort, a hotel so exclusive that it has its own private beach.

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Located at separate villas, each hotel room was well appointed. The spacious luxurious bathroom offered three different ways to bathe!

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Nestled amidst cliffs lush with tropical vegetation and facing the sea, our resort had a nice swimming pool, coconut trees, and overhanging cliffs. The works!

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Here's a view of the floating jetty leading out of the resort. Because of its location, we had to take a speedboat ride to get from the resort to Ao Nang town in the mainland.

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Tuk tuks are a cheap, fun and sometimes thrilling ride here, without the price haggling that comes in Bangkok.

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Ao Nang town was relatively quiet when we were there as it was the low season. We were there every evening for magnificent massages, fabulous food and deadly drinks.

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One of the restaurants serving a mixture of Thai and European cuisine. Prices are always affordable for fresh seafood and alcohol.

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A shot of the nice seafood dinner that we had. Barbecued squid, prawns and fishes washed down with tropical cocktails. Splendid!

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On our first day trip (a Phang Nga Sea Tour), we visited this animal farm where a cute cuddly gibbon clung to me. It later bit my finger, probably mistaking it for food.

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We also clambered on top of a Thai elephant for our first elephant ride. The gait of the elephant made it quite a "rock and roll" experience.

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We next visited a monkey cave temple with a huge golden statue of a reclining buddha. Some of the rock formations inside were awesome.

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Tina and I gearing ourselves up for a long-tail boat ride to James Bond island. Its actually speedier than it looks.

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A view of the muslim villages on stilts where we had lunch. Its fascinating to see how an entire community was built solely for tourism purposes.

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James Bond Island, a tourist hotspot, in the background.

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A souvenir shop on scenic Ping Gan island selling cuttlefish. Yummy and chewy!

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We next went on a short canoeing adventure, where we had many close encounters of the rocky craggy kind!

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Our second day trip brought us to 4 islands - Phra Nang Beach, Tup Island, Chicken Island and Poda Island. Here's a shot of Tina with our trusty ride.

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Another shot from inside the speedboat, with the wind blowing against us and the spray of salty sea in the air.

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At Phra Nang beach, we saw this little shrine located in the beach caves. Guess what these objects are?

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The famous Chicken Island with a limestone rock formation shaped after the head of our favourite fowl.

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The sandy causeway at Tup Island with blue seas teeming with fishes, white sandy beaches and half-naked hairless apes.

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The most memorable shot at Poda Island are the ones of clear waters full of fishes. Many of them were quite large and incredibly friendly when you can offer them food.

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On our last day, we took a walk through nature along a hilly path which joins our resort to the main town area.

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A sordid reminder of what happened along these parts on 26 December 2004. Let's hope that future natural disasters will leave this pristine paradise alone.

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