My husband and I returned yesterday from a 5-day holiday in Khao Lak, a quieter tourist destination some 90km north of the more popular Phuket in Thailand.

We met up with my husband’s friends, who had planned this holiday, a year in advance, yes, one year ahead. We’ve had other holidays with them. One in Bali and at least three when they visited Malaysia.  

It was only at breakfast one morning that I learnt why they had picked May. Which, by the way, is the start of the local rainy season. It rained the day we arrived. Repeat on the second day. It was the all-day, heavy-duty kind of rain. Unlike the thunderstorms we get at home. Whoosh downpour, stop after about an hour, rain.

Still, it was relaxing as our room at the resort overlooked a river, lined by palm trees, that led into the sea. There were also constant birdsongs. Not ambulance and police sirens, honking and motorbike revving, our everyday ambience in KL. No complains. 

On the third day, the sun shone intensely. It allowed us to visit Khao Sok National Park. One of two tours that our friends’ had signed up to. They had earlier suggested a few possible to-do tours. My husband and I don’t normally do group tours, and the times that we have, they were customised for us. Like in Vietnam. On this holiday we went with the flow. 

It worked out well as there were just us four. The guide, Thon, was knowledgeable and we had a leisurely 5km walk in the park. My highlight was spotting the white-rumped shama bird. Thon attracted and engaged this bird using a birdcall app. The real bird responded loudly and angrily each time he heard the app. According to Thon, the bird, a male, was upset because he thought another male bird was encroaching into his territory. I kid you not, the real bird sounded really miffed. Male muscle flexing. Hmm.

Another highlight was the prevalence of bamboo of every description. I didn’t know that bamboo is a member of the grass family, and Thailand is home to 60 species. There are more than 1000 types of bamboo in the world. Park inhabitants like the wild elephants enjoy bamboo leaves and shoots while others including porcupines and wild boars eat the bamboo roots. We also managed to see a few macaques in the distance, and a variety of lizards, chameleons, spiders, and beetle-like luminous insects. The full-day tour, 8am – 5.30pm also included river rafting and a temple visit.

My little moan about tours is a full-day experience means just that. Whether you want it or not. In our case, not. My husband and I would have quite happily gone back to the resort after the hot walk in the park. There wasn’t much to see cruising on the raft, also hot, and at the temple. That said, we were lucky because we were rained on, heavy and hard, at our last stop. It didn’t let up all evening.

Our second tour was to Takua Pa, an old town that was once a thriving mining area in the early 20th century. Mining activities have since been replaced by rubber plantations. Why Takua Pa? It was described as having attractive Sino-Portuguese commercial and residential buildings. In my mind, I thought it would be like a Penang or Melaka. Not so. It was very quiet on the Friday that we visited. Maybe, the town comes alive on Sunday, which is its weekly market day.

The half-day tour also included visits to a Buddhist temple, a Chinese temple and a biscuit factory. Our tour guide cum driver also walked us on a 200m locally built iron bridge. All that aside, my highlight at Takua Pa was an unscheduled stop at an air-conditioned ice-cream shop where I had a much needed strawberry ice cream sundae to cool down. It was hot, until it rained, again.

Anyways, back to this holiday in May. Initially, I thought it was about arranging days off from work. But no, it was about caring for their horse, Luna. Apparently, it’s easier, meaning there would be less work involved for their appointed horse-carer, whilst they were away on holiday. Why? Because in the usually warmer months in England, like May, Luna can be outdoors. Walk, trot and gallop on the field, and seek shelter in the stable, if she needs or wants to. In the colder months, she has to stay in the stable, and has to be brushed, fed, and taken for a ride and/or for exercise. Hmm. Interesting to ‘a know nothing and no time spent thinking about horses’ person like me.  

All in all, it was fun to get away and spend time with friends. Food was generally good. Places we visited were not too different from what we have in Malaysia. Nice but a little samey.