Thursday 3 March 2011

Travelling back To Koh Lanta Day 11

A day of travel and heading back to Koh Lanta. We had fond memories of the island and we just had to include the beaches on our itinerary for this trip.


Destination Koh Lanta

We were getting picked up around 10.30am. That left us with enough time to take the early morning with ease. Breakfast, included with the room, was over and our bags packed. We waited out side sitting at one of the table of the restaurant having a view of the street.


The skies were looking a little bit more clouded this morning, still incredibly warm and not a hint of rain. That was fortunate as our wait took a bit longer then we had anticipated. When the minivan arrived it was nearly full of other tourist, so we have them to blame for the delay.

We waved goodbye to Ao-Nang and we were on our way down south to Koh Lanta. There was a couple of stops, first at the transfer station out side Krabi Town and in Krabi Town itself as we waited for passengers. I guess picked the wrong transport company for this leg of the trip.

Koh Lanta Road Ferry

After enough time for a leg stretch we were back on the road again. The trip down to Koh Lanta was reasonable quick and a couple of little waits for the two car ferries to dock. Luckily there were no long queues of traffic waiting and before we knew it we were on the island.

Like our journey from Khao Lak, we just had one other couple in the van with us. We ere all staying near the north end of the island which means there was not a lot of driving around dropping people off.

In the short time it took us to get off the car ferry, past Ban Saladan and over to the west side of the island the heavens opened. Monsoons had brought the rains and it was heavy. It rained the first day of our trip last year, did we bring it with us?
Royal Lanta Monsoon

Hotel check in was quick and the whole place was quiet. The Royal Lanta has a bit more quality than we usually make do with and we have my Other Half to thank for finding this treat. The resort looked quite stunning even if the rains were pouring down.

The Royal opens up on to Long Beach but that had to wait. It was getting late in the afternoon and the good food was in the other direction towards town.
As well as opening on to he beach, the Resort was not far from the road. Armed with a pair of hotel umbrellas we headed to find a particular place to eat. When we stayed a Kaw Kwang we had quite a walk but this time it was on our doorstep.

Arnee Restaurant, a place we visited so often last time with a particularly good chef who we kept calling mum. Good food was eaten and the rains eased off. It was getting to late to take in the beach so we had a wander up and down the road seeing what we could remember. The whole place felt a lot more built up, outlets and restaurants that felt like they were new or maybe we just were forgetful.

We took and early dinner with the monsoon opening up again and settled down for another meal, this time with a Muslim flavour. That says no beer but the food was tasty and thoroughly enjoyed.

With the rains having a break we took the chance to head back to the resort. Stocking up at 7-11 with snacks on the way. The dampness brought out the frogs and we were serenaded by their croaks along with a sight that was quite awesome.
Fire Fly

With the streetlights behind and nearly complete darkness the air was filled with specks of light passing between of the trees. Flashing on and off, we had entered the firefly zone. Every place we looked they were flying around, flashing in front of our eyes and then vanishing into the darkness.

It turned out to be a wet first day but we still had a few more days here to get some warm beach time.

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