Khao Lak

When we reached our stop, the bus conductor hurried us off the bus. Expecting more to follow, we were left alone on the side of a main road full of shops. It was a baking hot so we quickly found a taxi to take us to the hotel.

We couldn't have picked a better place to stay. We had a wooden hut to ourselves which was on stilts set upon the side of a cliff. From our balcony we could see the sea through the trees and it overlooked the infinity pool. It was the definition of paradise and we couldn't understand why everyone was so worried about the monsoon season. The sky was clear and the beach was beaconing. The beach completed the whole experience. White sands stretching as far as the eye could see, within a bay with rainforest surrounding us. On top of all this we had the whole beach to ourselves. At first this seemed incredible but then we began to question why no one was around.

When we explored the town later on we again noticed the lack of tourists. It wasn't until the evening when we were having dinner that we understood. The heavens gave in, heavy rainfall ensued throughout the evening and into the night. Despite the turn of weather, we were determined to see the waterfalls while we were there. Luckily the rain died down the next morning as we made our way by Tuk Tuk into the rainforest to the waterfalls.

We were the first people to enter the national park that day. The wet stones made us cautious as we climbed the waterfalls especially as we were all alone. But it became quite an adventure and there is a great sense of freedom to walking through the rainforest alongside running water. The waterfalls were beautiful and soon we met others along the track.

Phuket

In true Thai style, the bus to Phuket was late and we spent an hour on the side of the road waiting to wave it down. That evening we made it to our hostel in Phuket old town.

It was the first time on our trip that we had stayed in a hostel. And it was nice to chat to others doing similar journeys. But when we went out that evening, the area seemed to be dominated by locals and we end up chatting to a few Thai people. It turns out Phuket Town is not very touristy and the place to see a good night out is Patong road - about an hour away. But we took it in our stride and made the most of seeing a very Thai area. It was a good location for a stop over and to get the ferry to Koh Phi Phi the next morning.