Hilarious Kayaking

Krabi

Thailand is a destination that attracts all Indians irrespective of their age, background or different interests that it caters in a manner few can match in terms of affordability, proximity and very friendly people. A few years back my family and I flew into Krabi in Thailand, a destination which not many Indians generally prefer in comparison to Bangkok, Pattaya, and Phuket.

In the evening I went out for a stroll in the sleepy town of Krabi with my daughter and came across a travel agency that was offering a trip to Ao Thalene, a marshy area with unique ecological system. The trip included half a day of Kayaking in the waterways that go around the bay. Since we had never indulged in this before, we purchased the tickets for the next day and broke the news to my wife who was very skeptical but agreed to go.

Next morning we were picked up from our hotel to the destination in a big tempo traveler where a few foreigners already occupied the seats. After about 45 minutes of drive we arrived at the destination going through the jungles. After arriving, we were given a lesson for half hour to maneuver the paddles of the kayak and soon the trip started, with all three of us in a single kayak, with life jackets on. The kayak refused to budge initially but soon we were following many other accomplished kayak riders. As we were nearing the first halt a huge German assisted us in coming alongside.

Star Fish

The sight was unbelievable with hundreds of star fish and crabs crawling along the coast. It was literally as if stars had descended to earth. We then moved further sometimes pushing  the other kayaks out of the way by our paddles to avoid collision in some narrow channels,  other times getting stuck in the shallow waters and then desperately trying to push  back the kayak in midstream. Some of the fellow kayak enthusiasts threw bananas towards a horde of monkeys leading to a stampede and fight amongst them and for the first time I saw a monkey losing all his fingers due to a bite!

We stopped for lunch of lovely of Thai green curry, rice, pineapple and watermelons, which we literally gorged due pangs of hunger! When we finished our lunch I suddenly lost my balance while getting into the kayak and fell with a thud on the seat, jettisoning my wife out of her seat with the impact. Our kidlike laughter was uncontrollable for next ten minutes seeing the plight of my wife who was drenched from head to toe.

We came across some very interesting mud creatures, jelly fish, squids, lizards and some rare birds too on this sojourn. The trip came to an end about two hours late thanks to our collective incompetence to steer the kayak, leaving us exhausted but having a full share of fun. Whenever we remember that trip, it becomes difficult to control the laughter even now! No holiday is complete without children adding to the fun!

PS: 1.This is my entry for the Club Mahindra/ Indiblogger sponsored ‘Happy Hour’ Teddy Travelogue campaign about fun with kids on holiday

2. Pictures in the blog were taken by self in Krabi

(http://membership.clubmahindra.com/TeddyTravelogues/index.html.)