Krabi and sports in the heat

Continuing the journey to the south

On October 29, 2019, we boarded a minibus bound for Krabi. There were four of us in a small, clean minibus with only a 10-minute break on the way to Krabi. We departed from Kao Sok at 8:10 am and arrived at PN Boutique Hotel in Krabi at 11:15 am (with a transfer and 10 minutes of waiting time in between). Luckily, we were able to go directly to our room. This time, we had two single beds, so there was no fighting over the one big bedsheet at night. Of course, our first priority was to connect to Wi-Fi, but it didn't work initially. So, we spent 20 minutes trying to get it to work, and suddenly it started working. At around 1:00 pm, we met up with Lena and Tobi, which meant it was time to look for scooters. In the end, we rented two scooters for 200 Baht each per day, and as a deposit, we had to give a photo of our ID and 2000 Baht. Hopefully, we will get everything back. At just after 2:00 pm, we set off towards Tiger Cave Temple. There, we had to climb 1237 steep steps up the mountain, in the midday heat. After what felt like 30 breaks, I finally made it. Imagine Thai steps - there are no standard sizes, the width and height of each step are different, so it was quite challenging. I believe it took us about 40 minutes or maybe a bit more, nobody was really keeping track of time. When we reached the top, we were rewarded with a great view, which also included a view of an approaching storm. Luckily, we were able to take cover just in time, and the storm passed as quickly as it came. In conclusion, the hike up there is definitely worth it, but it is also extremely exhausting and sweating is guaranteed. After the exhausting descent, we continued on our scooters to Ao Nang to look at the beach and have dinner. Unfortunately, we couldn't see the sunset completely because there were still some clouds in the sky. For dinner, we had Indian food, which was really delicious, only a bit spicy in the aftertaste. For dessert, we had rolled ice cream with coconut, Oreos, and vanilla milk from a street vendor. Then, at 7:40 pm, we had to ride the 21 km back in the dark on our scooters. Marius and I were not prepared for the evening, so we had to ride back in our short, sweaty clothes. We had to squint our eyes due to the wind and grit our teeth because of the cooler air. Back at the hotel, we said goodbye to Lena and Tobi as they continued their journey, while we stayed an extra day in Krabi and the surrounding area. Finally, we could take a shower and get rid of all the dirt from the day. Just from the air in the cities, it feels like you are getting grey, dusty, and dirty here in Thailand.

Oh, and one more thing about the climb - pack enough water, drink plenty beforehand, and maybe eat enough, too. Up until then, we had only had breakfast and an ice cream, so we hadn't had much to drink, which probably made it even harder 😜.