Karbi Province

Dec 1, 2016

3 min read

After spending the last two stop off's on the beach we've decided to head inland a little to stay in Krabi Town. Karbi as a province is huge and there's is so much to see and do. The town its self is quite built up with shops and accommodation but it still feels authentic and is in no way modern. The white temple dominates the town with it's abrasive marble exterior and vast stair case railed from top to bottom with a carved out dragons tail. Krabi It's an adult playground for out door activities, Rock climbing, Hiking, Quad biking, Cave hunting and it takes some serious energy to get through, Krabi is not for the faint hearted!

Yesterday we took a full day tour to The emerald pool, The hot springs and to the Tiger watt temple.

All three are part of Krabi's National Park but are more that 50 km away from each other so lots of travelling! The emerald pool and the hot springs are both quite small but very relaxing and well worth a visit. The emerald pool is crystal clear it almost looks man made. There is also lagoon there, Sapphire in colour and quite mesmerizing but you're unable to enter it as is is so deep.

After a dip in the emerald pool and a skin detox in the hot spring it was time to climb the 2137 steps to the top of The Tiger watt temple. This was the most challenging thing we had experienced to date. The steps were so steep I had to use mu hands and feet to pull me to the top. It took us abut 45 minutes to do a near vertical climb and once at the top you could see for miles across the Krabi Province and even to the surrounding islands of Phi Phi and Maya Bay. The climb down was just as exhausting and after a killer day we decided to treat ourselves to a relaxing Thai Massage.

A quick look on tripadvisor lead us to a reputable Thai massage parlor, here we would relax with a full Thai body treatment...or so we thought! Having never had a Thai massage before we weren't really sure what to expect. My limbs were bent in ways I didn't know possible

and stretched within an inch of dislocation! At one point, I turned to look at Matt (my husband) who was laid next to me, to see a small Thai lady, holding on to a six foot metal frame whilst jumping on his back! We couldn't help but yelp in pain throughout the whole experience, much to the delight of the Thai masseurs who though it was hilarious that we found it so painful. I can honestly say that was my first and my last Thai massage but at least we have the memories to laugh at!

We also spent a full day at the beautiful Railay Beach, a 30 minute long tail boat from Krabi town. Railay, is like a picture you'd find in all of the travel guide books. Golden sand, emerald water and limestone cliffs that shoot up out of the sea. As usual we got bored on the beach and went to explore the caves. As we passed the professional rock climbers, who were kitted out in hiking gear and head torches, I rolled up the bottom of my maxi dress and switched on the torch light on my phone! We were set! Inside the caves it was pitch black and the echoing of bats wings fluttering was everywhere. We climbed the vertical bamboo staircases while holding on to the rope rails and after 20 minutes we were at the top, where we could see all across the island. Our spontaneous trek turned out to t=be the best part of the day and as the heavens opened it was time to head back to the town.

Karbi Town, unlike Phi Phi, is so much more chilled at night. The town is filled with small cafes and bars that have dim lighting and live music. We love that you take your shoes off before entering bars and restaurants and you can really make yourself at home. Most bars here have board games that you can play for free and I am officially now the champion of connect 4! haha Tomorrow we move on to Khao Lak.