We arrived in Koh Lanta yesterday evening around 7 pm.  It was a pretty long day of traveling.  We took a flight from Chiang Mai to Bangkok then from Bangkok to Krabi.  Once we go to Krabi, a car picked us up from the airport, and we had a 2 1/2 hour car ride (that included 2 ferries).  We were pretty tired when we got to the resort.  Koh Lanta is one of the southern islands of Thailand. We are staying at the Lanta Castaway Resort on the beach.

Even though it was dark by the time we got here, the sound of the water and the breeze was so nice.  Our room is pretty spacious with a separate sofa/table sitting area.  The bathroom is not the best, but it has everything we need.  Also, we have WiFi.  It doesn’t seem like all the rooms have it. I’m glad that we do so that I can keep up with the blogging!

We had dinner at the resort.  We are loving the Thai food!  The restaurant at the resort has a huge menu….everything from hamburgers and tex mex to pad thai.  After dinner we walked on the beach then sat on the big mattress lounge cushions.

Although I have been loving our trip so far, we have been going full steam ahead.  I’m really looking forward to slowing down a little bit.

Today, I FINALLY got to experience one of the best aspects of Thailand: cheap massages!!  I got a 1 hour Thai massage on the beach for 10$!!!!  It was wonderful!  I plan on getting one every day until we leave. This was the first time I have had a “Thai” style massage.  Let’s just say, I’m glad I got the “medium” pressure over the “firm” pressure!!!  I loved it, but they certainly put alot of oomph into it!  I also liked it because they stretch you out along with the massage.

Then, I met Justin on the beach.

There is an interesting variety of people here: old, young, families, hippies.  The people watching has been great! One thing that we noticed is that I am one of the more modest people on the beach.  There are many people wearing speedos and bikinis that should not be wearing them!  Justin even saw a topless old woman!

However, people may look at us and think we are the weird ones.  Right now, we are sitting outside by the beach bar.  I have the ipad and the bluetooth keyboard, and Justin has the MacBook Pro.  Not a bad way to watch the sunset!

Tomorrow, we are going diving for the first time in Thailand.  It’s been about a year and a half since the last time.  I hope I still remember how!  Don’t worry (mom and Mrs. Leigh), the dive shop is very highly recommended.  We will be diving in a group of 4 with a guide.  One thing that I am certain is that we will have the most technology on the boat.  We will have a camera in a waterproof case (an upgrade from our old one), a go-pro camera attached to Justin’s head, and dive computers (that I have no idea how to use).  We are going to look like a couple of nerds.

I hope that everything goes well….I’ll let you know!

P.S. It may seem like Justin hasn’t been involved in the blog too much, but he has been doing alot of the “behind the scenes” work (editing pictures etc.).  Also, he’s working on a dissertation-length review of Japan.  You are going to need a few cups of coffee to get through that one 🙂