Unique Places in Southern Thailand

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At certain times of year it is possible to climb into the mountains for a very unusual harvest. Firstly it is advised to wear clothing of white or yellow colour. Secondly, bring with you two metallic objects that when striking them together create a nice metallic ringing sound. At the mountain top, as the sun begins to set, begin the rhythmic metal striking. For a minute or two nothing happens, then barely audible at first a slight humming sound, growing in intensity until you catch the first glimpse of the source of the sound. All around, is a maelstrom of flying beetles, attracted by the metallic beating and now as you look down, to the light coloured clothing you are wearing. Crawling all over you are big black beetles. Don’t panic, they are completely harmless. Simply pick the insects from your clothing and put them in a bag. These are the basic ingredients for tonight’s meal. Gently fried with garlic and some special Thai seasoning a tasty treat is served. Delicious!

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Taratua Island/ Marine Park of the coast of Trang on border of Malaysia. Undeveloped apart from a handfull of reasonable national park bungalows with a great restaurant. Colourful birds everywhere and a real treat are the hornbills who visit the environs around the restaurant. The beach at Au Molea is a lovely place to hang out and do nothing. wake to the sunset and venture out onto the only road to meet the early morning monkeys, wild pigs and huge monitor lizards as they scurry into the jungle. Not a lot to do here but if your seeking solitude and nature and you enjoy birdwatching then this is a good place to chill out.

On the island of Ko Lanta in the south of Thailand, was the first place I experienced caving. It's something I wanted to try for a very long time, getting deep within the earth.
First off, I was completely surprized how hot it was in this cave. I figured that we'd be down in the cold, cold, ground. But I guess we were getting closer to the bowls of the earth.

Luckily for some, there were pools of cold water to wash-off in. I'm not a strong swimmer myself, so didn't jump in. I didn't take the risk of leaping into the unknown darkness, if I can't see what I'm jumping into, forget it. There were only two out of our group who risked this.
So, we heard just how cold that water was!

Before we went into this particular cave, we noticed a very huge shiny black spider hanging on its web outside. It had markings of white on its under belly, and nasty mandibles.
Someone asked our guide, "would it hurt if it bit you?"
His reply was a big Yes!

Once we got inside however, this monster was forgotten, and replaced by unseen winds around our faces and ears. Bats!
In the lights of our head-lamps and flashlights, thousands of the webbed flying rats were swooping all around us! And the smell from their guano was pungeant.
It's incredible to witness these amazing animals, dodging and swooping, coming so close to you that you can feel their wind, it's like witnessing tiny silent birds taking flight.

I wonder if they act this way when noone is in their domain, or we disturb them alot by entering their homes. I'd guess the latter.
It was filthy down there, so be prepared to be crawling in some spots on your hands and knees, even belly. You will get dirty, as you can see in this photo.
This is right after the group got outside. Bunch o' filthy foreigners!
But, as you can see on most everyones face, we had a blast.

Wow! What a fantastic experience I had whilst riding an elephant.

We rode through some rubber trees where we were encouraged to pull the rubber off the trees. It was a definate highlight to the holiday. They take you up into the hills for about an hour where you can see what Thailand is all about.

After that it was onto snake charming which was also a spectacle on it's own. They wrapped a python around my leg to demonstrate the squeeze it can apply - wow!

Haad Rin Beach is located on the southern island in the Thailand Sea.It is home of the Full Moon Party that goes down every full moon.From Bangkok you can catch a bus or train down to Koh Samui, myself I wanted to get there quick so we paid about 4,500baht for standby on one of the airlines.From there you can take one of the boats over...about 40 min.Had a good bungalow at Pradise Bungalows cost was 450 baht/night.We experienced the rave party in late Feb. 2003 with 10,000 of our closest friends from Europe and Asia.The next day up on the hill try the dance music at The Backyard Bar.Save time for travel and relaxation for the island...very beautiful.Yes there are many things there other than beer...just becareful.

From the entrance to the National Park there are 3 walks you can do - beautiful scenery but have a lighter at hand to remove leeches! The accomodations also run day trips to other parts of the NP. I fully recommend their lake tour - a lengthy trip by boat across the lake, and a hike through the jungle including following an subterranean stream for 800 metres underground(make sure your flashlight fits in your mouth as at times you need your hands free for climbing and swimming!). This was an awesome day out which would have been practically impossible to arrange on my own.

Highly recommended

Midway between Surathani and Phukett this National Park is one of my favourite places in Thailand.

I caught the bus from Surathani (very easy) which drops you off on the main road where vans are waiting to take you to the accomodations which are all clustered within 300m of the NP entrance.

I stayed in "Jungle Huts" a group of simple stilt huts, with great food, very friendly mangement (a little crazy - say hello to Chicken Woman, Spider Woman and Gekko Man from Mosquito Man!). A great place to chill out and meet other people.

u'll discover the mountains with a four-wheel drive jeep and an experienced driver, explore the other unknown side of the island jungle, local villages,. Don't miss the refreshing bath at a scenic waterfall.
than don't miss the Elephant trekking, its so great:) Elephants are so nice and funny:) You'll enjoy much more than ridding the jeep:)