Koh Lipe: My Own Paradise on Earth (part 2)

Continued from part 1..

For snorkeling around Koh Lipe, there are 2 options to choose: closer or further circles. We chose the further circle and paid 1,500 baht total  (US$50, one boat can carry around 8 passengers). The further circle took around 6 hours. We left the resort at 9 a.m and returned around 3 p.m.  The weather was gloomy in the morning but we were very lucky that the sun came out in the afternoon. Under the water was so much more beautiful when there was sunshine.

Let's go...

The long-tailed boat that we took for our trip. 

Uncle Thep was our boat driver and guide, he's awesome!

Koh Lipe: My Own Paradise on Earth (part 1)

This is it! A place I can call my own paradise on earth. Nooooo, I am not exaggerating, I really do feel that way. Koh Lipe is amazingly beautiful, great snorkeling sites, great people, and great fresh seafood. What more could I want for a great holiday?

Saxophone Jazz & Blues Pub - Bangkok

It is a nice and lively pub for fans of Jazz and Blues, it has been open since 1987. I think there are live bands who play almost every night but to make sure you should check the schedule on their website before you go. 

Working hours: it's open everyday from 06:00 pm - 02:00 am.

Ripley's Believe It or Not?

This visit happened because we got a special deal from Thailand Tourism Fair. We bought package ticket of Ripley's for only 490 baht ($16), from a full price of 2,220 baht ($74), which we could visit Ripley's Believe It or Not, Ripley's Haunted Adventure, 4D MMT, Infinity Maze, and  Louis Tussaud's Waxworks.

Ripley's Thailand is in Pattaya city, to be specified it is on the 3rd floor of Royal Garden Plaza Pattaya. Here are some photos from there.

Review 'Love Korea' restaurant @ Udomsuk9

Love Korea restaurant ,in Thai รักเกาหลี (pronounces rak-kao-lee), is a small family-owned Korean restaurant in Bangkok, situated at Udomsuk 9 Street. The grilled buffet costs 290 baht net per person (around $10). There are many things to choose such as pork belly, pork neck, chicken, spicy chicken, squid, kimchi, kimchi soup, bibimbad, etc.

The restaurant looked simple but clean, good smoke absorber, and the most impressive to us was the owner who was really friendly and helpful. Food and services were good, I think it was a good value for money.

Visiting Sri Mahamariamman Temple, Bangkok

Lyn, my best friend, asked me to visit Sri Mahamariamman Temple for good luck. So, we set a day off to visit the temple together.

Sri Mahamariamman Temple, Bangkok, is a Hindu temple that is situated in the business area called Silom and was built on 1879.
The daily rituals at the temple are conducted in the afternoon. The temple remains open to the public from 6 am to 8 pm, from Saturday to Thursday, and from 6 am to 9 pm on Fridays. Make sure that you remove your shoes before stepping over any of the lines around the shrines.

Taking photos are not allowed inside the temple, so here I have photos from outside the temple and across the street where they sell the wreaths to worship at Sri Mahamariamman.

Mini review << Ancient City >>

The Ancient city can be considered as an outdoor Thai art museum with a wide range of architectural symbols combined with fine arts and craftsmanship, structural layouts and a natural environment. There are structures built which mimic counterparts from every part of Thailand. Visiting one place, you can see the architectural styles from the whole country!

== How to go ==

The ancient city is situated in Bangkok’s outskirts, but is easy to access by bus, taxi or car.

It is open daily from 08.00 am - 17.00 pm.  The entrance fee costs 400 baht per person. There are many ways to look around, such as by bicycle, golf cart, or trolley.

As the weather was really hot, we weren’t there for long (took 2 rounds of the trolley tour).

Please come take a tour with us ..

Loi Krathong Festival in Phitsanulok

Loi Krathong takes place on the evening of the full moon of the 12th month on the traditional Thai lunar calendar. On the western calendar this usually falls in November.

"Loi" means "to float" and a "krathong" is traditionally made from a section of banana-tree trunk. Modern krathongs are more often made of bread or styrofoam. A bread krathong will disintegrate in a few a days and be eaten by fish and other animals. The traditional banana stalk krathongs are also biodegradable, but styrofoam krathongs are frowned on, since they pollute and may take years to disappear. Regardless of the composition, a krathong will be decorated with elaborately-folded banana leaves, flowers, candles and incense sticks. A low value coin is sometimes included as an offering to the river spirits.

Sunshine Days in Koh Si Chang

Koh Si Chang is a small island in Chonburi province, the east coast of Thailand. It’s only about 65 kilometres from Bangkok.  There are many ways to travel to Koh Si Chang such as bus, van, car, or taxi. We took a van from the Victory Monument: Bangkok - Siracha. The tickets cost around 100 baht each. We told the van driver to drop us off at Siracha Robinson Mall because it’s closer to the pier than the van station. Then, we took a tuk-tuk (three-wheels motorcycle taxi) to Jarin pier where we could take the boat to Koh Si Chang. The boat costs 40 baht each for a 40-minute journey to the island. The boats from Jarin pier leave hourly from 07.00 a.m. to 08.00 p.m. and boats from Koh Si Chang to the main land are also hourly, from 06.00 a.m. to 06.00 p.m.

Promenade in Supanburi

Supanburi is one of the cities in the central Thailand. It's 107 km. from Bangkok. We took the van from the Rajadumnoen Road, the tickets cost 100 baht each. It takes around 1.5 - 2 hours to get there.

We stayed at the Songpanburi Hotel. The room has all basic utilities, there are two swimming pools, good food in the hotel restaurant and helpful staff. So, I think this hotel is a good value for money.

Pleasant Ampawa

Ampawa has become a very popular weekend getaway in the last few years. Homestays and resorts have been built to welcome the high number of tourists. Ampawa is the home of the well known Ampawa floating market. The market only opens in the evening on the weekend.

Ampawa is a district in Samutsongkram province, the distance from Bangkok is about 80 km. It takes about 1 - 1.5 hours by car, bus or van. We took the van from the Victory Monument, the tickets cost us around 60 baht each. Our accommodation was close to the floating market. From the Van Station we needed to take the taxi truck there, you can ask people in the market where you can get this taxi. It costs only 8 baht per person to the floating market.

Fine days @ Koh Larn, Pattaya

Koh Larn (Larn Island) is a place to get away from Bangkok to have a chill weekend. It is about 30 minutes by boat from Pattaya. (According to Wikipedia it's 8 km)

I have been to Koh Larn several times because the beaches on Koh Larn are very beautiful. Even though it's near Pattaya (well known for partying, nightclubs, & bars), Koh Larn is very clean and peaceful. The most important thing is that it's only 1.5 hours away from Bangkok, so I can come here more often than the beautiful places in the South.