Chinese New Year... out of China

First off, I realize that I've let this blog go to the wayside... I suppose I've gotten to attached to the quick and easy updates via Facebook, Instagram, or Foursquare.  This will still be a pretty short review of our trip, but I wanted to do it at least a little justice by documenting it a bit more permanently here on the blog.  So here goes...

The best strategy for enjoying Chinese New Year seems to be: get out of China!  We chose Khao Lak, Thailand as our escape route because when we visited in December 2010 we found it to be relaxing, beautiful, and full of just enough diversions to avoid beach boredom.  The Le Meridien welcomed us (and C's SPG Platinum status) with open arms at 2:30 am, and showed us to the lovely ocean-front pool villa that we received as an upgrade.  Note to self:  the next time I want to bring a dozen of my closest friends to come party at the beach, we're staying at this place!

Each morning C enjoyed sleeping in with the waves crashing and birds chirping just outside our door.  I preferred to get up, make a cup of coffee and lounge on our patio while reading a few chapters in Game of Thrones.  I had to make sure C was up in time to enjoy the breakfast at the lagoon café; who would want to miss out on chili mango smoothies or eggs benedict?

To get ready for the beach we just had to throw on our suits, lather up with sunscreen, and mosey the 15 yards to our beach chairs that were already set up with fresh towels.  If we needed a break from the beach we usually walked over to the beach bar for a little sandwich, or a cocktail at sunset.  We also passed the time playing with the resort's adopted elephant, 2 1/2-year-old Nam Wan.  Her name means "Sweet Water" and she was indeed very sweet.  She was giving big trunk-sucking kisses to everyone!  You were lucky if you got one on the cheek instead of smack on the lips.  The best was watching her romp along the beach, even swimming out into the waves.  She got a little frisky with me after I fed her some bananas; I thought she was just sniffing around for more fruit, but before I knew it she had wrapped her trunk around my ankle and was tugging me along the pool deck - yikes!

I also made two day trips to go diving: one day way out in the Similan Islands to Koh Bon, and one day out into Phang Nga Bay to Phi Phi Island.  The long boat rides were enjoyable with charismatic dive guides and travelers from Europe and Australia, and the weather was perfect.  I didn't see any of the huge spectacles like manta rays or sharks, but the tropical fish and coral reefs were still stunning.  I got to try out my new underwater camera, and learned a few things.  One tip: make sure the flash is turned OFF between dives to save battery power.  Oops.  Fortunately there was a videographer who made a fabulous video of our first dive when we saw a sea turtle.  Check it out here on YouTube.

I managed to drag C out on a day trip to several different islands, and we had a great time chatting with a couple traveling from New York.  We got to canoe through a few caves and lagoons, stroll through a floating village, and stop off at the famous James Bond Island, where The Man with the Golden Gun was filmed.

It goes without saying we also gorged ourselves on delicious food: more buffets than I care to admit, sublime creations by Jean Gorges for breakfast, yummy Italian food, and fresh seafood grilled to perfection.

So, next time you find yourself living in China during Chinese New Year, make the right choice and get out of China to actually enjoy the holiday.

See photos on Flickr:  Khao Lak and Diving Koh Bon and Diving Phi Phi