Paradise lost

East Raleigh Beach-Thailand, originally uploaded by kathrynparry41.

On arrival at Railay Beach I was greeted with all the beauty I had imagined.... the place is stunning and lives up to the hype.

I stepped of my long tail boat- a very cool way to travel if you don't mind getting a little wet and headed straight to Ya Ya's Resort on the recommendation of a friend from Sydney. Immediately the bliss that I had expected to find was shattered by the realization that people can be rude, rooms can be dingy, bathrooms can be dirty and that living the high life in Thailand can be expensive.

Railay is situated in Southern Thailand and whilst still being apart of the mainland it is referred to as ‘the island’ by the locals because it is surrounded by imposing lime stone cliffs, jungle and is only accessible by boat.

Railay is ruled by honeymooners, pregnant couples and rock climbers (an unlikely mix) and not really fitting into any of those categories I decided to leave after one long night.

The island is very small and consists of 4 beaches around a narrow belt of land combining a mix of reggae bars and luxury resorts.

After minimal sleep due to some rodent’s deciding that playing in my bathroom at 4:00am was fun, I boarded a boat and headed to Koh Phi Phi.