wonders of Trang, Thailand

*Ko Muk and Tham Morakot (เกาะมุก-ถ้ำมรกต) are the most prominent points in the Trang Sea. Ko Muk is mostly occupied by sea-facing towering cliffs to the west. Located on the eastern side of the island is a village of fishermen who have still maintained their ways of life as islanders. On the island to the west is Tham Morakot, a unique sea cave. With light from the outside, emerald water can be seen inside the cave; it is unusual and beautifully nature.

*Ko Kradan (เกาะกระดาน) is arguably the most beautiful island in the Trang. It has an area of 600 acres (2.4 km2). Most of the island (5/6) is under the responsibility of Hat Chao Mai National Park. The rest are privately owned. The most striking feature of Ko Kradan is its powdery white beach and crystal-clear water that permits a decent view of the coral reef underneath that stretches from the beach’s northern end to the coast. A variety of colourful fish inhabit the shallow water corals. Ko Kradan is to the west of Ko Muk and Ko Libong.

*Tam Lay Kao Kob is 8 kilometers away from Huay Yod District, Trang Province. It is a limestone cave with a stream running underneath the mountain. Inside the cave you will find many stalactites and stalagmites. Entering into the cave is not difficult. You will be less tired than expected. In fact you will enjoy the most exciting time of your life. Lay Kao Kob is water cave and never dry. You need to take a flat boat to go inside the cave. Each boat will be accompanied by a navigator at the front and a steersman at the back to help each other in rowing the small boat. You will be visiting the different chambers inside the cave. There are 23 of them but only 3 are open. Each chamber will be lit in a different color to create a different ambience. The cave is so damp that drops of water are created on the walls, reflecting the lights like glitters. After a tour of the three caves, it is time to duck underneath the “Dragon’s Belly” — a 250-meter pathway and definitely the climax of the trip. Your flat boat will travel under a very low cave ceiling and you will need to lie down flat, stretching yourself along the length of the boat. The ceiling will reveal stalactites one after another — a thrilling adventure making every traveler scream on and on.

Bohol Part1: the island of many wonders

Philippines, my home country has 7,107 islands and I’ve only been to few of them. One particular island is inhabited by the smallest monkeys in the world.  Tarsiers are small animals with enormous eyes; each eyeball is approximately 16 mm in diameter and is as large as its entire brain.

These nocturnal creatures are shy and timid. Unfortunately their numbers have greatly fluctuated due to the destruction of their habitat. Needless to say, I am lucky to have seen them in person and glad to know that the local government are making efforts in preserving their species.

However, Bohol is not only known for its tarsiers. The Chocolate Hills have been the landmark of this alluring island for years, and i had the circumstance to see most of the wonders. During the heat of the summer, the grass wilt turning the hundreds of hills across the towns of Carmen, Batuan, and Sagbayan brown hence the name.

It is also in this island that the peace pact signified by a blood compact between the Spanish explorer Miguel Lopez de Legazpi and the native chieftain Datu Sikatuna took place.

Statue commemorating the “Blood Compact” in Tagbilaran City

Another interesting historical artifact is the long standing Baclayon Church founded in 1596; that’s exactly 418 years old! Unfortunately the bell tower and the front facade of the church collapsed during 7.2 magnitude earthquake of October 15, 2013. Hopefully, the church will be restored soon.

The Bilar Man-made Forest is never to be missed. Stretching up to two kilometers, the dense forest made up of red and white mahogany trees is located along the border of Loboc and Bilar towns.

They also have the well known ship house and the loboc river, where you can experience a cruise while having lunch or in my case a romantic dinner ambiance on the boat.

The next day adventure was the dolphin watching and island hopping…which will be in Bohol Part 2.

The Unspoilt Beauty of Trang

After 9 years of living in Thailand, Trang which is about 3 hours away has never rang a bell in my ears. Located on the Southwest coast of the country, this province is peaceful and fascinating. I could not believe how much I have neglected to visit its glorious islands and white sand beaches until now.

 On a beautiful morning of April, I had the opportunity to explore some parts of Trang with some local friends on a private vehicle. We started our travel from Songkhla at the break of dawn and reached our destination at the pier near Pak Meng Beach for our Island tour(THB900.00/person including lunch).

First stop of the tour was the infamous Morakot Cave a.k.a Emerald Cave on the west of Koh Muk (Mook Island). It was a long weekend holiday thus hundreds of local tourists flocked, nonetheless I was ecstatic.

I made my research beforehand and found out that in order to access this cave one must swim into the 80 meter long channel which gets really creepy midway as it gets pitch black. After passing the entrance to the other side, one will stand at the large hall roofed by the sky looking like standing inside the very large funnel.

The reflection of the  midday sunlight beaming straight through the mouth of the funnel creates the emerald color thus the name “Morakot Cave” which means”Emerald Cave.”

Our next stop was a snorkeling in the nearby water and feeding some tiger fish. It wasn’t my first, but I always rely on life jackets as I do not trust myself swimming in deep waters.

The tour of course will not be complete without stopping by the exotic Koh Kradan (Kradan Island). The beach was just pristine and the turquoise waters was to die for! It’s always my little piece of heaven!

 

Could you resist this?

Swimming with the whale sharks.

One of my greatest dream is exploring the waters of Donsol, Sorsogon Philippines. The big gentle creatures (whale sharks) gave me an itch to swim with them and if possible touch them. The big hiccup is that I have a great fear in deep waters. I can swim, not as good but when I see that the seabed is already out of my reach, I just panic! As soon as I overcome my fear and improve my snorkelling skills, I will be visiting this jaw-dropping creatures!

Swimming with them is not impossible to do especially when you’re in the Philippines between November and June and in the months of February to May. Accommodations are available to tourists which varies from resorts to homestays. Just be cautious that most of the establishments accept cash only. The nearest banks and ATM machines are in Legaspi which is about an hour away. Boat rental and guided tours are also available.

This is not the only thing you can do when in Donsol. It has unique night firefly tour and shrimp-catching night tour available all-year round. You can also go for trekking and biking due to the abundance of hilly areas and fields. This is going in my bucket list.

Photos courtesy of: http://www.panoramio.com/photo/62648951, http://www.mitchellkphotos.com, http://www.heelsandwheelsonline.com

Resource(s): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donsol,_Sorsogon