The turquoise bay is a maze of limestone karsts and mountains- bursting out of the sea at perpendicular angles. We kayaked 500+ meters into one of the islands; through a pitch-black bat-filled cave,and emerged in a perfect movie lagoon. The blue-green water was surrounded on all sides by steep green walls spotted with caves leading to other lagoons.
The last photo in this entry; the gorgeous limestone karst jutting out of the water like an upside down bottle, was the first to make my 'Absolutely Must See' list back in December when I was in planning stages. I couldn't wait to admire this natural beauty; to ponder it with the unspoiled solitude that all of the photos I had seen portrayed. But when we got there, the 'viewing island' was swarming with tourists. There were even rows of souvenir stalls! I was heartbroken. How could this place be such a lie?
But the reality is that is happens over and over again. Heck, I've done it over and over again. Just look at my picture-you would believe we were the only people there, right? Angkor Wat was the other place where I was not able to reconcile tourist-swarm reality with my expectations (silent, peaceful, Zen) ...and I know I let my photos lie there too. I took pictures to reflect the reality I wanted. I am a tourist, so I realize that complaining about tourists is hypocritical but....had to do it. With that rant out of the way....
We wrapped up the day at a truly secluded island beach. It was only accessible by boat and was perfectly desolate before we arrived. So...I was still able to find some of the image I had been carrying for 3 months. And when I look at my photos years from now, perhaps my memories will forget the swarms of farangs (Thai for foreigner).
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