October Weekend Trip

October 11-14

We had a three-day weekend in October and decided to hire a driver to take us to Hua Hin, a seaside town on the Gulf of Thailand about 3.5 hours south of Bangkok. We booked a bungalow at Thai House Resort, just outside of the city meaning less people and noise. :) It was a sweet, little place which was perfect for us. Here's a few photos and video of the place.

This place was so relaxing and breakfast was awesome (coffee and tea included). We were able to spend time playing games (Uno and Chicken Foot) and plenty of swimming (at 6:30am, lol). We plan to go back again and not leave the resort. :) There was a great restaurant right around the corner, and a beach within a short bike ride, so everything we need. :) 

Colt wasn't feeling well on Day 2, so Zamin and I explored the local beach, Hat Soi Noi. The resort had bikes for guests to use for free, and even had one with a child seat for Zamin. There were only a few people on the beach and the weather was great. We caught up with a local jellyfish and caught some great views on our ride home. 

That afternoon, with Colt feeling a bit better, so we headed around the corner for lunch, followed by a Thai massage at our resort, while Zamin took a nap. Then, we rode our bikes to the Memory Cafe down the street. We had no idea what to expect, but planned to get some tea and relax by the lake; instead we were greeted by about a hundred people trying to get their best "grammable" shot at sunset. I guess I should have read the reviews better. :) It was cute place, but way too crowded, so we got two drinks to go and walked a bit of the lake boardwalk. We ran into a monitor lizard along the way. From there, we rode our bikes to pick up some dinner, then headed back to the resort. Here's a few pics from lunch and the rest of the evening, along with a special video to hopefully give you an idea of the cafe picture taking madness. 

The next day, we decided to explore a local cave, Phraya Nakhon in the Sam Roi Yot National Park. Phraya Nakhon Cave is located in the Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park in Prachuap Khiri Khan province. First step to reach the cave is to drive to the small village of Bang Pu located by the beach, and from there decide if you'd rather rent a boat to take you around the cape to Laem Sala beach, or walk a 30 minutes trek above the hill leading to the same Laem Sala beach. We decided on the boat; it was low tide, so we had to walk out to meet it. Oops! Now time for some history: 

According to local legend, the cave was discovered around 200 years ago when a local ruler, Nakhon Srithammaraja, was forced to abandon his ship during a storm and found refuge in the cave. Some historians, however, believe the cave was discovered by, or at least named after, a nobleman called Nakhon, who lived in the region in the 17th century. Either way, the cave has long been a treasured natural attraction along the northern part of the Malay Peninsula. In 1890, for the visit of King Chulalongkorn (Rama V), a mound was built inside the cave. Upon this mound was placed a small pavilion, built in Bangkok and assembled inside the cave. Positioned perfectly to catch the full flood of the morning sunlight, the Khuha Kharuehat Pavilion, as it is known, has since become an iconic symbol of the Prachuap Khiri Khan Province.

On our hike to the cave, we saw some "dusky leaf monkeys."

Overall, we couldn't have asked for a more relaxing weekend. Like I said before, we will definitely be going back to this place. It was a great first road trip for us in Thailand. :)