Thursday, December 3, 2015

Krabi












For our second tour we decided to use the same company because we agreed they were a very fair price being only about 700-1,000 Baht per person (about $30 USD) for SEVEN hours of full touring and a meal/ to and from transport included! The guide had been great the day before too! 

Loaded up in an air conditioned (thank goodness) passenger van we bumped along a very windy road for about an hour or so before reaching the most magical rainforest home to natural mineral water hot springs! I was a little worried about being boiled alive not only by the heat and humidity outside but in a pool of warm water? It was actually so refreshing and beautiful I would say you absolutely MUST go if you are in Krabi! 


Emerald Pools and Hot Springs:
The second stop on the tour a little down the road was a jewel toned fresh water pool created by mineral springs rising natural out of the rainforest! What an amazing feeling slipping into the cool fresh water, you could see down to your feel in the 4-6foot emerald water. A water fall and streams flowed into the pool making it seem right out of a movie… We enjoyed relaxing in the healing waters for over 2 hours! I could have stayed forever! 


The Tiger Temple:
 was very uneventful for us because it was over an hour and a half hike UP to the temple in the clouds and we only had a total of two hours to be in the area. We decided to stick around the base and take photos of the details of the lower temple and the friendly monkeys! We did not want to be late back to the group and miss the elephants! 








Elephant Trekking:
 For what Elephant trekking is, it was the most ethical place I have observed, no sharp training tools were used, all commands were given audibly and the trainer did not even ride the whole time, he mostly gave commands from the ground, took photos of us, joked around, and laughed at me being terrified riding on bareback with no shoes! It was amazing! The area the elephants stayed in was several acres of free growing jungle, shelters with fresh food and water provided but they mostly seemed to snack on the natural surroundings and drink from the massive pond! I have done this before a few year ago in India and it was a VERY different experience, the elephants were very overworked and abused by the trainers without proper housing/care. This was a WORLD of difference which was the only reason I was willing to do it. 

A lot of you asked questions about the nature of how you ride them. There were elephant “chairs” or “saddles” but unlike other ones I have seen they were just a piece of wood put over lots of padding so it was not hurting the elephant, you really had to use your balance and were not strapped in… Mike and I both took turns riding off the chair which was much more fun! We also gave our guide a tip which is not required but he was so awesome and goofy even using our huge cameras to take photos and all of the other guides did not do the same for their clients! 






 













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