We have been on Koh Lanta island in Thailand for just over a week and are still enamoured! The nature is beautiful, the people are kind, the food is absolutely delicious and the vibe is so chill. It has been a really wonderful week, mostly because we get to share these experiences with my sisters.

On Sunday we went on an all day boat tour that was incredible! We went to four different islands where we snorkelled, swam, visited an amazing cave that we had to swim to, enjoyed a fresh and healthy lunch on a pristine beach and got our first real glimpse of the natural beauty in this part of the world.

Our first stop was snorkeling at Ko Chueak. From there, we drove another 30-45 minutes to our second stop: swimming to Emerald Cave at Koh Mook. This truly was a unique and beautiful experience! Also, a little terrifying, and I’m so proud of the girls. At some point during the swim it was pitch black but everyone kept on swimming and no one panicked. And we were rewarded with this paradise! The photos don’t quite do it justice….

Our next stop was snorkeling and lunch at Ko Nagi, where the water was unbelievably clear and we could see so many colourful fish. Unfortunately Charlotte cut her foot on the rocks there but is on the mend.

Our final stop was swimming at Ko Kradan where the water was so shallow, you had to lay down. You could also walk on to the beach where there was a little bar and a picturesque swing.

 We finished the day with a delicious meal in town.

On Monday we hung out at the pool and then headed to the beach for sunset and dinner.

On Tuesday we did much of the same, but for dinner we ventured up to Walking Street Koh Lanta in the northern part of the island. Unfortunately, since it is low season, it was mostly closed. But we did find one street food spot open and a few clothing shops to peruse. And everything was crazy cheap! On the island they don’t have the tuk tuks we are used to from India and Sri Lanka but rather these simple scooters with a larger cart attached. Very interesting!

On Wednesday my sister treated us to a spa day as an early Christmas present! What a luxury! There is nothing more relaxing than getting a massage outside as you listen to the waves crash on the beach.

Additionally, it was an end of an era as I finished reading the final book of the Harry Potter series to Luisa. I started reading them to Hannah and Charlotte on our Big Trip through Europe in 2020-2021, read them all to Olivia in 2022-2023 and have now read them all with Luisa. It has been one of my favorite traditions and it is a bit bittersweet to have it come to an end, to be honest. But we cheered ourselves up with a gorgeous sunset and then watched the final two movies. Can you spot the rainbow in the cloud?

On Thursday we ventured south this time, to Kantiang Bay where the beautiful Bakantiang Beach is to check out the mini-town there, take a walk along the beach and relax. We took two tuk tuks part of the way and loved the gas “station” they have! Just old glass bottles filled with just enough gas to fill their tank. And we saw a bunch of monkeys running all over the road! We finished the day with a dip in the pool, joined by the hotel cat.

On Friday we did something very fun–a batik workshop, a traditional wax-resist dyeing technique used to create intricate patterns on fabric. This was our Christmas present from my other sister which was very sweet. The class was really cool! The art is done in three steps–draw your design on the cloth with a pencil, draw over your pencil drawing with melted wax and then paint the cloth. Our teacher did an amazing job of walking us through every step, and we are all so proud of how each of our cloths turned out. What a fun experience and now we all have a great memento!

We started with the pencil drawing and then the wax.

By then we were quite hungry, so we walked into Lanta Old Town for lunch. As we arrived in Old Town, we knew right away that we needed to come back another day! It’s so cute!!

Then we went back to the workshop and painted. It was so cool to see everyone’s designs come to life and see everyone’s creativity shine. We left then left them there overnight to dry. Stay tuned for the next post to see how they turned out. A very fun day!

Koh Lanta continues to work her magic….