104. KHAO LAK, PHANG-NGA PROVINCE

 

Work took me to Khao Lak, about 2 hours drive from Phuket to this hotel and the province that was badly hit by the 2004 tsunami

The main street of Khao Lak town became a river carrying debris, from homes to vehicles to bodies during the tsunami. 

The shopkeepers here have their stories to share, the Thais are a resilient bunch, it's business as usual, nobody has moved away.  It's a sleepy hollow, so a tsunami hitting them once in a long while must provide some excitement

Morning yoga before breakfast by the Andaman Sea. The 2004 tsunami hit this hotel but it got away with minimal damage.

This English Aussie monk is a big hit with the Buddhist ladies in Singapore. Women are more devotional and tend to be followers of charismatic religious leaders whatever that religion, who have a gift of the gab with wit to boot. 

It's unlikely I'll travel this route again, can't handle a retreat in such luxury - give me an Indian ashram any day where I sleep on the floor, eat vegetarian meals all the time, walk around barefoot....it's comical to run across hot concrete floors in the afternoons, it's like running across smouldering coals.....