Okay, so we’ve moved up a notch on the Baht scale.

After a rather cheapish two weeks between Bangkok and Chiang Mai I figured money buys you a little time. So I hopped on a 747 for a 50 minute flight into the capital city, from there on a slightly smaller plane to Krabi in Thailand’s south. Krabi is an international airport and serves daily flights to Bangkok and Helsinki (yep). I personally believe the local government pays Finnair to come here for international recognition, the airport is little more than a dirt track and a concrete slab. (I hear they use bamboo huts for security over in Phuket).

Finding budget accommodation is rather hard in the island region. (I learnt the hard way). But never give up! I found this remote place in the Ao Nang hinterland, miles away from the craic. But the beach is not that appealing anyway, the Irish Rover (sic) is closed for maintenance and big Baht are better spent in Rai Leh (orgasmic sunsets, so they say), so I figured just to go along with the ride and enjoy the tiny pool at the bottom of soaring cliffs. The restaurant is absolute crap here (figure that for a midrange resort!), but it helps keeping the prices low.

So Raileh will be next (or Rayley or Rilee, or…), then hopefully Phi Phil Island (if I can find accommodation, or else, sponsor me!) to meet up with a couple of friends I met in Chiang Mai. The weather is quite average, but for the first time in two weeks I see a blue sky! I mean, it wasn’t cloudy or rainy or anything (in fact, I’m gasping for a bit of a tropical shower, for the experience), but air pollution just means you don’t see anything but hazy sky. Saves you sunscreen, too.

This is roughly half-time.