Yesterday, we walked ten minutes down the street to Ao Nang Beach. It's a beautiful walk that parallels giant limestone rocks that are the size of mountains. At the beach, this limestone comes out into the water which makes the view amazing. The water is a crystal clear blue and there were several occasions where I said something in awe like, "Just look at this view!"
Ao Nang Beach
We walked a short distance down the beach to get a little bit closer to the limestone, when we noticed a little wooden path with a sign next to it that says, "WARNING: DO NOT FEED THE MONKEYS!" Like any normal human, we immediately got on the path and had cameras at the ready in case we spotted any monkeys. We quickly found them and started taking pictures next to them (how could we not?!), but after a few too many flashes, they started chasing us and hissing at us. I'm dead serious when I say that I'm not sure what was scarier: being in a tiger cage or fending off wild monkeys. Needless to say, I'm not making any plans to take the monkey path again!
Today, we took a tour to three different islands off the coast of Thailand: Koh Dang, Koh Poda, and Koh Hong. Koh Dang means "red island" in Thai which is very appropriate as the island is made almost entirely of red rock. We went snorkeling in the water here and got to swim around the rocky island. Then, we went to Koh Poda. We docked at a beach and had the opportunity to lay out, swim, or snorkel -- and I did a little of all three! Lastly, we went to Koh Hong which is appropriately nicknamed "Paradise Island". We had lunch and then two and a half hours to swim and sunbathe. I seriously have never seen a more beautiful place in my life and I'm not sure if my words will do it justice. At one point, I was just floating on my back in the turquoise water, looking up at the cloudless sky and the huge limestone rocks jutting out of the water thinking, "This is it! This is the most beautiful place I will ever see in my life!" I literally got tears in my eyes as the boat was leaving, just thinking about how spectacular this island was and how I will probably never see it again in my life. (But how fortunate am I that I got to see it once?!) God is so good!
Koh Hong Beach
Lastly, I want to give my proper thanks to Thaton and to the HELP International team. My volunteer work this summer was something that was humbling and eye opening in every way imaginable. I truly feel like I've made a difference among the locals in northern Thailand. The fact that students now love English, their teachers have resources to continue making the subject enjoyable, and that I had the opportunity to interact with both the faculty and kids at many schools has made all of my hard work this summer SO worthwhile! Please pray that the volunteers for the remainder of this summer and in the future can continue to make a difference among the needy in this beautiful country!
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