The third day was full of things far from dry comfort. We went river rafting, jungle trekking and waterfall exploring. Though all the activities were wet, I didn't feel in the least bit uncomfortable. The environment, atmosphere and surroundings made the dampness fit. It just wouldn't be complete if you weren't at least a little wet. ^_^
So we started the day off with an hour drive to Phang Nga, Phucket in a minivan with two other families. As usual, I got the window seat, so I got to see the magnificent views and sights of Thailand with clarity hehe.
Some of the numerous shots taken during the ride. It felt great passing by village life and seeing the locals carry about their daily activities. These days, though, despite the whole rural image, there were still quite a lot of villages and small restaurants that owned the luxury of Wifi! I guess it's as what people are claiming, Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs now include another tier: Wifi. Haha!
So after an hour, we stopped by the elephant trekking trail. My family chose not to take the elephant ride as I personally felt quite bad about going on its back while it was all tied up. But no judgments on the people who actually did take the ride. I'm sure it was a good experience!
Photos of the elephant I managed to get close to. Animals are so beautiful. :')
After that short detour, we immediately went off to the river rafting venue.
Pretty clouds with the decorating telephone lines.
Ayah and I at the starting point of the rafting adventure. The breathtaking views fueled my excitement to start the rafting adventure.
The boats!!! :D
Juuuust before the river rafting started, Ayah managed to buy a waterproof bag to put my phone in so I can take photos during the adventure. Because the bag was quite thick, despite its transparency, the photos ended up a little blur. Nonetheless! I had an amazing time. :)
Our session of river rafting had around twenty other boats as well, so the river was quite crowded, but that didn't deter us from enjoying the experience. Each boat had two captains who were in charge of the fun and safety of the people in their boat. And the captains who were responsible for my family were very friendly and amusing! Hahaha it was really fun, alhamdulillah. It was also impossible to not get drenched because all the captains of every boat used their paddle to splash water onto other unsuspecting people. Such fun. :')
Some of the okay-looking photos I managed to take. Amid the fun and enjoyment, there were also breathtaking views to behold. The large mountain ranges, the fast river streams, the intricate rocks along the way, the stones that line the banks... All my 'O' Level Geography knowledge rushed by, and I felt really thankful to have studied the beauties of the Earth.
It was a great 5km river adventure, and I really hope to go through that experience again some other day. Maybe then it'll be twice the distance or more. Heheh.
Then, in all our wetness and drenched clothing, we rode the same minivan to a small hut to have our lunch.
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And I found this beautiful white cat in all its royal laziness on one of the tables! You have no idea how many times I had to meow before it actually even lifted its head to face the camera. Hahaha!
Ibu and Ayah lining up to get their food. I loved the setting of the restaurant.
I saw geese as well! At least, I think they're geese. Please correct me if I'm wrong. ^_^
A shot of the slightly dirty lake from the restaurant. I just loved the view; the stillness of the lake paved way for reflections of the objects above it to materialize. Else it would just be puddles and ripples of water.
My brothers on the bench and me on the ledge. ^_^
After lunch, we head to the forest waterfall! This time, we didn't take the minivan. We instead took this open vehicle that was sort of like a bigger van version of the Thai tuk tuk. Pardon my lack of knowledge of the real official term for that vehicle eheh. I loved the ride to the waterfall because the sights were so beautiful to behold. (It is always about the sights hahaha)
Plus, because there were no windows, I managed to get a much clearer view of the things we passed by. The roads, villages, streets, trees and more. I wondered what it was like to live in such a place, and whether I'd be thankful for everything I had while living there.
A shot from inside the vehicle. It was that open. Nothing besides those metal bars protected me from the road outside. The ride was exhilarating.
Ayah at the entrance of the forest. You can see a stream (?) there, too. When I first saw it, recollections of Geography lessons just streamed (ha ha ha) into my mind.
We went forest trekking for a while before reaching the waterfall site. Ibu loves to go on walks in the jungles and forests, so it was nice to see her extra excited. I was just in awe at the trees and shrubs, and, of course, took lots of photos of it.
The waterfall site!!! I was so excited when we reached it. I just couldn't wait to get into the clear, cold, clean water.
I loved the experience of being in the waterfall today because I haven't done it in a very long time. Plus, this time, I was given more leeway to where I could swim by myself in comparison to years ago when Ibu and Ayah would hold on to me wherever I was in the waterfall. Hahaha. This time, I was also more appreciative of the nature and it just felt great to be able to utilize all my senses into the waterfall. Alhamdulillah. :D
Shots of me in the waterfall. Heheheh.
The waterfall experience lasted for about an hour or less, (I was the last member to leave the waterfall haha). After that, we all headed back.
Frames from the forest taken while on the way back to the entrance.
The family at the entrance of the forest! Ayah took it, so he's sort of in it.
After the forest, is our final stop: the Monkey Cave. It's as the name suggests, a large mountain cave with lots and lots of monkeys swinging on trees and on the grounds. The monkeys were entertaining and entertained. Tourists who neared them came with the intention to give bananas, but they were in for a shock because these monkeys were apparently also skilled pickpockets. Hahaha
The monkey cave. I didn't near the monkeys because I guess they're not exactly my most favourite animal, but that didn't discount the fact that it was a beautiful mountain. It's amazing how these animals just find home in it. I find it great that while the tourism industry gains a lot of money from preserving the site for tourists to visit, the industry is also protecting the homes of the animals. Good job, guys. ^_^
This generation of tourists. Me included, of course. Hahaha
Ayah at the entrance of the cave. He looks really amused because I was taking photos of nearly everything from numerous angles, and I guess that tickled him. Hahaha
So after that, we all head back to Krabi. The visit to the monkey cave was a wrap to the entire day. Weirdly, the return drive felt much quicker than the departure drive. But that's often the case, isn't it? Maybe it's because of the increased familiarity of the route. It made me think about how easier certain things get after you've gone through it the first time. Such is life. :')
Shots of the drive back!
Fisheye photo of Abang and Haziq in the van. It's cool because it's candid and you can see Abang's frustrated "Why you taking my photo???" face. Hahaha
Ibu, me and Nadia the very nice and friendly tour guide of today. Nadia taught me and Ibu more Thai vocabulary and she was great in telling stories about Krabi and Phucket to the entire group. She was also really honest and down-to-earth, I loved how I could sense her raw passion in tourism and also Islam. It was great to have met her and have her as my tour guide, alhamdulillah. :D
So that was the wet-but-not-uncomfortable trip today! After the whole trip, everyone felt reaaaally tired. So no walks today. Haha! We relaxed in the hotel, and went to sleep immediately after dinner. Until the next day, everyone! :)
