As much as I love a good resort getaway, I do find that having everything at my fingertips can sometimes make me a little bit complacent when it comes to actually getting out and exploring the towns and cities outside of the comfort of whatever resort I happen to be staying at.
So to combat this, during at my stay at Soneva Kiri, I made sure to get out and explore at least a couple of Koh Koods beautiful nooks and crannies.
The first stop on this day spent exploring was the traditional fishing village of Ao Salad about a 20 minute drive from Soneva Kiri.
Visiting such a village was certainly a first for me. I had never seen an over-water stilted village before, and I had never imagined that one could be so bright, vibrant and colourful.
I spent a while just wandering passed all the boats and the few shops, and while doing so, I was inadvertently passing peoples homes, most of which were without doors. It was strange to walk passed people sleeping, people breastfeeding, people watching television, people cooking and going about their daily lives completely at ease, despite being totally out in the open.
There was also a stack of animals living in this quiet yet bustling little fishing village. I spotted at least five doggos and about a dozen meows!
As much as I generally consider myself more of a dog person than a cat person (and a bunny person first and foremost) this next cat was the coolest animal I have spotted in ages. I decided to call her Captain Cat!
I remember being astounded at what people had managed to build over the water. It all looked so flimsy, like it could fall apart any second, but it felt so stable under my feet, it was nothing short of totally strange.
I remember taking this next photo and having absolutely no idea what I was photographing. I remembered thinking that all the people crowding around it must mean it was something important. As it turns out, this was a stack of octopuses (octopi?). I still have no idea what they were doing with them in that old basket…
…but this man looked pretty bloody stoked about it!
After I had spent a while at the village, I was hot, sweaty and sticky from the humid Thai wet season weather, so the idea to go check out a nearby waterfall was a bloody good one. Klong Chao is supposedly one of the more popular waterfalls on the island, but despite this, I only saw a few other people while there.
Entrance to the waterfall is by donation only, and though the walk from the entrance to the falls is a short one, it is very slippery. Try to stick to dry rocks to avoid going arse up!
Once I arrived at the falls I took a few seconds to take pictures and then I promptly jumped in! The water was refreshing but not cold and was a beautiful shade of blue that these pictures just do not do justice.
An added bonus, unlike at the beautiful waterfalls back home, I didn’t need to be on croc watch while freestyling my way through the water!
On one hand, I wish I had brought my waterproof camera so that I could share some awesome snaps with you all, but on the other hand, the feeling of floating below these beautiful falls with nothing but the sound of the water running to distract me was pretty unbeatable. Sometimes it can be nice to leave the electronic world behind, if only for a short while.
Eventually it was time to return to my beloved Soneva Kiri, to make the most of my last night in this unforgettable resort.
T H E L O W D O W N
Getting to Bangkok Suvarnabhumi: The busiest airport in Bangkok, you can fly to Bangkok from any major airport hub
Getting to Soneva Kiri: Click here to learn more about Soneva Kiri’s Slow Life Flights
Soneva Kiri: One of Thailand’s best resorts, click here for more info
Camera: Olympus OM-D E-M1 with M.Zuiko 12-40mm f2.8 lens
Koh Kood: The fouth largest island in Thailand has tonnes to explore, I have only scratched the surface here
Remember: Bring bathers with you wherever you go, you never know when you may need them!
Don’t forget to add me on Snapchat and Instagram – @wwellend – for more foolishness and travel adventures!
Disclosure: My stay at Soneva Kiri was provided FOC by the Soneva Resorts group, however, all thoughts and opinions expressed on this blog are unbiased and in no way influenced by the Soneva Group.