- Chapter 1 : Senandung Langkawi
- Chapter 2 : Hat Yai City to Krabi
- Chapter 3 : Bargaining for KRABI's Rooms!
- Chapter 4 : Pasar Malam Pasar Malam in Ao Nang
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Honestly speaking this travel challenge is really killing both of us! Basically during the day (well, for the most of yesterday were well-spent on the road in order to reach Ban Ao Nang. Hence it doesn't count) both of us only do what those on budget does. WALK. It's not the budget that killing us literally, but it is the walking! Both of us were those kind of Malaysians who Naik Kereta Sajer - a small group of society that willing to change car parking to the next 4 lots just because we don't feel the need to walk to the shop next door.
Morning In Ao Nang
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| Ban Ao Nang with the morning shine! It is 7.00 AM |
On the second day, both of us really wake up a bit early than we normally does. Back in Kuala Lumpur, we describe the word 'early' as any time before tea time. We always thought that morning is when the sun is high up in the sky. But indeed we were wrong! We wake up really beyond our comfort timezone; 7 AM. I repeat back freaking 7 in the morning. If our parents read my blog (only if they learn how to on the computer first and know that today's internet doesn't need to use 1515 dial up anymore) for sure they will be surprised. The whole Malaysia will be feed with tones and tones of bananas, donated by our parents to mosques. Unfortunately, both our parents are tech-illiterate and therefore, no free banana!
Travel Hacks : Don't jump out of bed when you wake up due to the bright day light immediately. Check the time first in order to be sure. The morning shine is quite bright compared to Kuala Lumpur though. Unless you already bought ticket for the long-tail boat tour (usually the trip start at 8.00 AM) and realize it is 8.16 AM when you wake up. Rushing to get ready, wear your best swimming trunks or bikinis or both (we don't judge your fashion sense though) and run as fast as your can to the meet-up point. Ending up, standing in from of the tour counter alone - not due to be left behind but due to own mistake not changing the time according to the local timezone! (If you never change the time accordingly, if your clock shows 8.16 AM, it is actually 7.16 AM yeah?)
Feeding the Monkey!
Around 8.00 AM, we had our morning walk along the Ban Ao Nang and we just exploring every inch of it, starting with the left side. Along the trail we by pass a row of massage huts that offer the ever-refreshing Thai massage by the beach! At the end of it, there is a magnificent white-marble shrine. The color and its design, facing the wide endless Andaman Sea really brings out the romantic ambiance to everyone who by pass the holy place. Unfortunately it doesn't work on me even though when i snap the below picture, a handsome Caucasian tourist with a surf-board abs and a face resembles to Zac Efron bypass behind me. Our relationship only able to stay on for 2 seconds when he throw a glimpse at me. But am still not sure whether he is looking at me or the shrine? If he is looking at me, then it is worth it that I gave him my sweetest smile. Because if he doesn't, it only mean that the smile was actually being given to an old couple who wear the smallest swimming trunk and bikini that left little for imagination. The last kind of nightmare I would love to have. Worst if the grandpa in the black swimming thong waving his hand towards me. Rather die!
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I simply can;t stop laughing remembering that I scream at Eeman and said, "Kubur Islam babe by the beach"
Due to its design of batu-nisan-alike surround it and I was looking at this shrine from far.
Worst I could heard some Malaysian Malay tourist followed me with their excited-face to have a look at so called malay cemetery in Krabi. Bimbo moment #121
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There is few trees near to the shrine and there is a swing! A normal classic swing - rope and tyre. Eeman did try her best Miley-Cyrus twerk-it-style pose with the swing while singing out loud Monster Ball. Some of the morning joggers did stop and look at us and shook their heads. Perhaps, they obviously thought that it is too early to get drunk for these two crazy ladies!
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| The world-famous Miley Cyrus. LOL |
Travel Hacks : Be extremely careful when you trying to have your twerking-pose at the swings. The trees are basically the location for Monkey Feeding! Aware of your surrounding as the last thing you want to have in this adventure is running around in your bikini chasing a monkey who took your bag! Lesson learn! Don't ask about it. Bloody monkeys!
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| Criminal who took my bag. |
Ao Nang Centera Beach
There is a 5 start resort that offer a private beach on the other side of the Ao Nang beach. Centera Krabi Beach Resorts. In order to get here is via a boat transfer as there is no connecting-road from Ao Nang to the resort. However, unknown to many tourists, there is actually a short hiking trail (staircases actually) that will lead your to the resort.
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| You will find this nearby the swings! This is the hiking starting point! |
We both didn't knew that the staircase will lead you to the resort as we thought there is a lookout point on top. At first, we only want to have a morning walk and then sunbathing till noon! Never cross our mind that we will be hiking a staircase for 30 minute; wearing a 2-piece-bikini, a chiffon scarf cardigan, a full beading flip flop and a flower on my head! But the view is just breath-taking. (Obviously I was short of breath due to the hiking more than seeing the view)
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| I didn't exaggerate when I said I hike in such a way. The only thing I left behind is a pair of heels! |
The Centera beach is only open for the resort's guests but however, since the beach is not easily access by the public, hence it is not a problem if you want to have a swim or chill around. Less crowd than Ao Nang beach.
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| Centera Resort's beach at 10 am. |
Travel Hacks : Since the resort rely on the boat transfer for all its guests, there is a 150 metres platform for the boats to dock. The platform will give you a beautiful picture shoot with the Andaman Sea and Thai's famous limestones as background. Just wait until there is no boats at the dock and approach the security guard with a smile and tell them you want to snap some pictures. Be kind and friendly to the locals!
Krabi Resort Beach Pathway
If the staircase to Centera Beach is on the left side, Krabi Resort Beach Pathway is located at the end right hand side of Ban Ao Nang. I am not talking about the beach in front of the Krabi resort though - that is still a common beach area. Many didn't know that there is a concrete pathway behind the Krabi Resort beach bar (Find the bar!). The pathway is basically on the cliff overlooking the whole Ao Nang beach and Andaman Sea.
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| The pathway that leads to Krabi Resort's beach. Overlooking the whole Ao Nang beach. |
About 3 minutes walking along the pathway, you will reach a private small beach about 10 metres long. It is between the Ao Nang beach and Noppharat Thara beach. What make this beach unique is there is a lot of limestone caves and believe me, it is extremely beautiful! So when others went to the island tours and snap a photo on the beach with few other tourist as the background, you basically have a photo shoot with no one around and don't even need to take the boat ride. Simple use your legs and walk.
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| When you in an exotic a d beautiful place like this, your mind just went wild and strike a pose! |
Travel hacks : This beach is much more deserted than the Centera Resort beach. Hence for those who are quite shy to swim in the public, this would be one of your option. Nevertheless be extremely careful with your belongings.
Free Pineapple
To sun-bathe while having a bite of fresh fruits or snacks will make you feel good about yourself, right?! However, like any other tourist destinations, a slice of pineapple in Ao Nang will cost you a good 40- 45 baht! Wallaweh, that is about RM4 plus. Even the expensive fruit stalls inside KLCC is charging cheaper than that.
Most of these fruit sellers are also the owner of massage huts along the Ao Nang beach. Some of the fruits portion are actually freebies to be given to tourists as a token of invitation to experience and purchase the massages. However they more likely to give these freebies to western tourists as they usually assume the westerners have more money to spend.
How to get a bit of these delicious fresh fruits for free? All you need to do is be friendly. As both of us never tried the massages before along the beach, we did what everyone do best - GOOGLE for review. Not reading about the massages but instead we looking for key-points or personal information about the massage huts' owners. Luckily for us, the reviews not only did share the massage experience details, the reviewers also share some personal details of conversation between them and the massage huts' owners!
Travel hacks : All we need to do is just approach the owner (cross your fingers and make sure you approach the correct person), smile and say, "Hi you Tik Tik right? Remember me? I came here to massage last 3 years!" or something like that. Then try to make conversation using the information you gathered from the internet. Make them think you really knew them and you are indeed their customers. and wallah - not one but TWO slice of free pineapple due to their kindness! If you can TALK, you get FREE stuffs!
Pizza Lunch
About 12 noon, both of us were damn hungry and starving for meal. What do you expect? We only had bread for breakfast and 2 slice of pineapples. We decided to have pizza or pasta for lunch. The rich bimbos attitude remain as usual despite the shoestring budget! We survey for Italian restaurants and surprisingly, most Italian restaurants hire foreign or local workers. The word foreign here referring to Pakistani and Bangladeshi workers. You see, back in Malaysia, when we said Bangladeshi working in a restaurant we only think of Mamak-kind of style. But in Krabi - they work in Italian food restaurant occay!
Most of the restaurants offer a limited-period (my a**) promotion for a 34cm diameter pizza and some restaurants also offer a deal-offer for pasta dishes. However, the price varies depending on the restaurants' location. Kindly refer to the travel hack below!
We went to Becoffino Restaurant since they offer all pizzas and pasta dishes for only 150 baht. Well, that is not the main reason though. Basically we went there for the cute-yet-muscular Pakistani waiter with the deep blue eyes. The waiter was wearing a muscle tee shirt and short-short pant that leave little for our wild imagination mind. Only the pizza being ordered - as we bring our own drinking water from the motel! Like what Eeman said, "splurge on the meals, air bungkus sajork!"
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| The 150 baht pizza for two! |
Travel Hacks : The restaurants adjacent to the beach will offer you 180 baht for a pizza. While those along the Krabi's resort is 150 baht; and those along the Starbuck offer 149 baht.
Ao Nang Beach
For those who love tthe beach-lifestyle, I mean just sun-bathe and lay on the white sands (don't believe other travel writers' review on how glamorous sun bathe and lay on the beach sand - as lay down on the sand without a towel or mat; it is f*cking hot and burn your skin. Trust me, I had learn my lesson!) then Ao Nang suit you, may be! Since there is none beach activities to be seen and less Victoria Secret (for the lady chaser) or Calvin Klein (for those who attracted to guys) models look-alike on the beach, it could be such a a boring situation after a while. Reading a novel or a magazine or a tabloid under the hot sun with shades and day dream that you look like a Kardaishian is far way from reality.
Travel Hacks : Every Sunday morning around 8 AM there will be a bootcamp for guys at the beach. And you can sit down and chill and enjoy the magificient view of roman-God-like bods running and do all the bootcamp training activity. (*wink* - we call it as scoutig for our personal 'Imam')
Travel Hacks : You may also order the delicious Pad Thai from the Beach Bar. It is located next to the Old Fisherman BBQ Cafe's entrance and adjacent to the Ao Nang beach itself. The dish costs only 50 baht per plate. Extremely spicy and yet heavenly delicious! I told you before, even we were on a shoestring kind of budget, we never skip a meal. Tea time is a must even though it only mean we had a McDonald sundae cone!
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| Landmark for this Beach Bar is look for that orange wall! |
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| End your day enjoying the sunset. |
Expenses
Pizza = 75 baht
Pad Thai = 50 baht
Meal Day 2 = 60 baht
McDonald Cone = 19 baht
Total = 204 baht
Balance = Thai Baht 677 and RM38.00
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Next : Chapter 6 : Beware of the Paperdoll Scam Nightlife - How To KRABI Yourself With RM350.
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