Krabi is a nice town to spend a pair of days in. There is not much to see or to do, as most of the action takes place on nearby beaches Ao Nang, Tonsai and Railay, but the general laid-back atmosphere is nice. One of Krabi’s few attractions is Tiger Cave Temple on the top of a hill. You have to walk 1237 steps to reach it, but the view is well worth it (I love how in Eastern tradition they make you to do an effort to visit a temple, no easy way). Then there is a night market on weekends with plenty of food and entrainment. Lots of delicious seafood for supper and a drag queen show and a children breakdance performance for entertainment, all in one evening. It is interesting how in Western countries drag queen culture is something you can see only in a gay club, but in Thailand it is part of the mainstream culture. Other than that it is free decent internet and reasonably priced shops for essential things like flips-flops and fisherman pants. Purchased myself a fourth pair of flip-flops already, which was only 80Baht. It will be interesting to see how long these ones last.
Krabi’s beaches are another story, though. Ao Nang is a massive faceless tourist hell that could be in any part of the world. The beach itself is nice, but the environment is not with its endless chain of shops and restaurant tailored to specific nationalities. German and Swedish are the most popular ones. Tonsai and Railey are a mecca for rock climbers and apparently some of the top climbing stops in the world. I did a half day course, which was my first time outdoor climbing experience. So much superior to than indoor one, it is like a treadmill run versus mountain hiking. The course was pretty much all practice with bits of theoretical knowledge here and there. The climbing course I did in Helsinki was spread over two days with the first day filled with theory. I think I prefer Thai way much more. Other than rock climbing and spectacular scenery Tonsai and Railey were nothing special and here again the same problem as on Ao Nang – too crowded, too developed and too touristy. E.g. there were tractors on Railey transporting people and baggage to long-tail boats during low-tide. How messed up is that? Then again I am spoiled with Hat Yuan. Both places have similar environment – an isolated bay reachable by boat, but Hat Yuan is much more chilled and less developed. So after one night and one rock climbing course it felt pointless to stay there any more and made a return to Hat Yuan. Back to Ko Phangan, back to Hat Yuan.
