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Hello!

Welcome to Often Away. I use this space to document my travels and hope you are inspired to get up and move!

Ton Sai Day 1: Home Sweet Bungalow

Ton Sai Day 1: Home Sweet Bungalow

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Ah, a day at the beach.  How I love to lazily sit around,  listen to some tunes, perhaps throw a ball around, and eat a good sandwich. If I happen to glisten (girls don't sweat), then I take a dip in the water to cool off.  The day drifts by with naps, sun bathing, and slow strolls along the water.  A normal day at the beach would've looked like this...but I'm in Thailand, remember? P1000572Our weekend in Ton Sai started off with a boat ride over to the island.  We clumsily climbed into the boat with our luggage - trying not to lose our flip flops, sunglasses or cameras and got ready for our short aquatic journey.

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The ride was stunning.  After a while beaches start to look like every other beach you've been to.  While this reminded me of the Almalfi Coast, the cliffs weren't covered in shops, restaurants and homes.  ((Joel was herre.) Sorry for that interruption, Joel was literally here...typing.)  These cliffs however were left in their natural element - covered in green.  Ton Sai is gorgeous.  The green cliffs, the blue water, the white beaches...not to mention Joel's presence thrown into the mix.  P1000587 P1000590 P1000594 P1000595 P1000597

(the man, the myth, the legend...Sir Daniel Cliffe)

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Arriving at our final destination a now what? feeling came over me.  At home if you are taking a weekend beach trip you usually have your housing arrangement set up.  But again...Thailand.  We walked away from the beach and up to a more jungle-like area to find our lodging for the weekend. Home sweet bungalow.

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Maggie and I took this opportunity to set up a photo shoot.  Even though this wasn't a professional job I was used to working at Merci New York, the lighting was perfect...and hey, check out those models!P1000601P1000605 P1000606

The thing that makes Ton Sai so different from the other beaches is that you don't wake up and wander down to your spot on the sand...no, no, no.  You hike.  We grabbed our towels and a cold beverage and started the trip over to Railay.  Now thanks to Keri and Joe I've been on a few hikes, however, I'm always well equipped with sneakers.  Hiking in flip flops is pretty funny and we had an interesting time getting about. P1000609 P1000611 P1000612

But in the end, it was worth it!P1000614 P1000616

We emerged out of the jungle onto a beach where we found mother nature up to her old tricks.  The rain held off long enough for us to play some beach games.  The usual "Sand in the Hair" was played, along with "Let's See Who Can Be Thrown the Farthest", "Some Days Your an Owl, Some Days Your Not" and the ever-popular, "Who Gets Knocked Over by the Wave First?" P1000617P1000619 P1000620 P1000621 P1000622P1000631

This island had several interesting features to it.  One being, The Penis Cave.  This area is a shrine to fertility where people can come and pray for help in order to have a child.  Maggie, obviously, got in on the action.  P1000636P1000633P1000638

At home we will stare at the clouds while we lounge of the beach, but Ton Sai has some more interesting entertainment: rock climbers!  P1000640 P1000644

This environmentally conscious monkey was guarding the trash and sorting the recycling into a separate bin.  Ok, ok, he was just chilling and eating other people's food.  P1000645 P1000646 P1000648 P1000653 P1000654

At night we gathered for some live music with fellow backpackers and quickly became friends with Tofi, the lead singer.  P1000655P1000658

Maggie and Dan got their turns to flex the golden pipes on stage...such a musically inclined group we have - minus myself.  P1000660 P1000661 P1000662 P1000666

For some reason the night was like a 6th grade dance - girls on one side and boys on the other.  We took necessary girls only photos.  P1000669

Meanwhile, Dan and the boys were crabbing. P1000708 P1000721

(Not a bad view for a night on the beach)P1000736 P1000742 P1000744P1000756

We ventured further up the beaten path and settled at another local joint.  Filled with pillows (and potatoes!) I was in heaven.  P1000760P1000770

For those of you who may not know: I am not a professional photographer...clearly.  We took turns playing with camera settings and while these may seem a little crazy, we still liked the lights and shadows we grabbed.  P1000774 P1000778 P1000780 P1000781

Night one ended on day two...stay tuned for the next post.  P1000784

Ton Sai Day Two: A Lazy Saturday

Ton Sai Day Two: A Lazy Saturday

This Ain't Yo Mama's Grocery Store

This Ain't Yo Mama's Grocery Store