Phuket "Hong by Starlight"

Hi Grandaddy (and the rest of our family),We are in Phuket right now and on the last day of a wonderful vacation. Yesterday we went on a tour called the "Hong by Starlight".

We traveled on a 20-person ferry-type boat into Phang Nga Bay and went "sea caving", paddling inflatable sea canoes through beautiful limestone caves to explore numerous Hongs (limestone lagoons). The caves were filled with with mystery- sparkling stagtites, small bats attached above, and some portions so pitch-dark Tia and Sara giggling reached for their flashlights.

The Hongs held further sights, high limestone walls decorated with jungle-like trees and vines, small long-tail mackau monkey families near the shore, and mangrove trees rising from the muddy bottom on their tangled roots. Sara had fun spotting the next cave to explore. Depending on the tide-level, some were impassable and some we could barely squeeze through.

When back at the boat we had freetime for swimming and paddling, but we had to lookout for the jellyfish! Tia's big grin was fun to watch when she was paddling the canoe.

To recreate the traditional Buddhist offering to the sea, we decorated our own Loi Kratong with banana leaves, flowers, candles, and incense sticks. After a wonderful seafood dinner at sunset we re-boarded our inflatable canoes. The tide had risen so some so we had to lay flat in the bottom of our crafts to maneuver through the dark caves into a Hong. After we launched the candle-lit Kratongs, the sight of them floating on the dark peaceful sea was simply beautiful. I asked Sara how she remembered it- "Peaceful Sea" were he words.

What a fantastic experience!