After our “poorly spell” we donned our back packs and set off to meet Kate in Krabi where she had been roughing it in a nice hotel waiting for us. The transportation here always amazes us by its ease, efficiency and low cost. We were picked up from the hotel, taken to the port on the opposite side of the island, shepherded and stickered (presumably to make the herding of foreigners easier) by staff onto a boat and then herded onto another van to be driven to our hotel. The journey cost £8 each and took 4 hours! The speedboat trip was something we would have paid for just the views.

The following day, Kate had a lot of work to do (she is actually doing a masters..) so Callum and I headed to immigration to extend our visas for the extra month we need. Callum liked the sign on the entrance-we did wonder who the other parking was for. We were amazed how easy it all was and we were out in half an hour all sorted. It seemed a good idea to make use of the moped and go to the Tiger Temple as Kate wasn’t keen on going. We found it easily (thanks to Google maps) and, after a quick addition of a dress over my clothes, set off. The tiger is no longer at the temple as, unsurprisingly, it ran off when the monks arrived in 1975 but it was still pretty cool to see. For some unknown reason, we decided that it would be a good idea to climb the 1260 steps up to the viewpoint and the Buddha. The steps were of very different heights and widths( some thigh height) and definitely not easy in 32 degrees whilst wearing a dress. Not only did we have to stop A LOT (and we were not alone in that) but I had to sit down to just breathe several times. We really did think it had beaten me. After a bit of bad temperedness, we did actually make it to the top and it was worth it- as was the ice cream when got back to the bottom again.

The next day, we joined Kate on a hike to a famous trek and viewpoint before her lectures. We really enjoyed the National Park spotting huge centipedes and ants but no monkeys or snakes this time. The noises were most amazing however, there were birds that sounded exactly like lorries reversing and the chorus of cicadas was at some points deafening. It took us about 2 hours up and only a little quicker downhill. It was much easier than the Tiger Temple climb, however, so maybe the lungs are recovering after all.

On our final day in Krabi, we decided a beach day was necessary so we got on a longtail boat and in a few minutes we were at Railay beach. It was quite idyllic. Kate sat in the shade to work though was dogged by sand and tech issues as well as mischievous monkeys trying to steal things. There is also a temple there with some rather interesting offerings. They were put there as fertility offerings so Kate (and you – if you’d been here Em) was ushered away rather quickly – we’re far too young to be grandparents!