beach | loveliness. | Page 3

Tag: beach
- koh lanta
  
  Posted at 3:36 am by jasminedesirees, on July 15, 2014
  
  The funny thing about Koh Lanta is that even though it was one of my favourite islands, it was so chill and relaxing that I took almost no photos the whole time we were there.
  
  It was super quiet, we maybe saw 10 other tourists the whole time were on the island, and our guest house was right on the ocean, so we had the whole place, and the pool to ourselves.
  
  We rented a moped because tuk-tuks were 200TBH each way, and you could rent a moped for an entire day for that much. I was a bit nervous since they drive on the opposite side of the road than we do, and also drivers there tend to be a bit erratic, passing each other constantly, even when other drivers are coming, so there are quite a few near misses.
  
  On our first night, we set off on our moped, looking for a restaurant on the southwest side of the island where we planned to eat dinner. Over an hour of cruising later, we realized we had hit a dead end. It was starting to get dark outside, and we were clearly lost, so we turned around and headed back the way we came. When we finally found a map on the side of the road, we realized we’d taken a wrong turn, and had ended up on the complete opposite side of the island from the restaurant we were looking for.
  
  Other than that little incident, it was pretty much smooth sailing. Quite a few of the restaurants on the island were closed because we were there during the low season, but the island was so gorgeous that we weren’t too upset.
  
  We did visit the national park at the very southern tip of the island, which was crazy-gorgeous, with monkeys and monitor lizards running around everywhere, a lighthouse, and a nature hike that takes about two hours to complete.
  
  One tip if you are going to visit Koh Lanta, we liked being there in the low season because it was cheaper, and it was nice to just relax after a few days of partying in Phi Phi, but the one downside was that some of the islands near Koh Lanta are designated as being part of the national marine park, and they aren’t open during the low season in order to give the reefs time to recuperate.
  
  There are lots of diving, snorkeling and tour trips to the other islands advertised everywhere, but you can’t go during the low season, so keep that in mind when you’re planning your trip.
  
  Posted in beach, Thailand, travel | 1 Comment | Tagged beach, koh lanta, monkeys, Thailand, travel
- viewpoint
  
  Posted at 6:01 pm by jasminedesirees, on July 11, 2014
  
  On our last day in Phi Phi, I finally mustered the energy to climb up and see the viewpoint. There are signs for it all over the island, but it was so. damn. hot. every day we were there that just getting up out of your lawn chair was a real physical effort.
  
  We found our way there, and started climbing, for some reason I didn’t think it would be that far to get to the top, probably because I was in denial.
  
  It was all cement stairs, and there were a lot of them. I could see the top from the bottom, so I concentrated all of my leg muscle and determination into reaching that point, only to realize that that wasn’t the top at all, just a layover along the way. That happened to me about 4 times.
  
  When you finally drag yourself to the top, you have to pay 20TBH for each person (not a lot but still, it would be devastating to get up there and not have any money and have to turn around and go back down). There are two view points, the bottom one is pretty nice, but the top one, another 5 minute hike through the trees, is truly spectacular.
  
  You can see the entire island, both bays, and it is breathtaking, absolutely worth the climb.
  
  The climb really isn’t even that bad in hindsight, or should I say, once I’d clawed my way to the top of the Railay Viewpoint in Krabi (more on that later) where you are literally taking your life into your hands climbing up there, the stairs up to this viewpoint seemed quite lovely and relaxing by comparison. It’s all relative.
  
  Definitely make the effort to climb up and see this view if you’re ever in Phi Phi, you will absolutely not regret it.
  
  Posted in beach, Thailand, travel | 2 Comments | Tagged beach, island, koh phi phi, phi phi, Thailand, travel, viewpoint
- phi phi
  
  Posted at 6:02 am by jasminedesirees, on July 10, 2014
  
  This post is going to be part love letter, part rave, so be prepared.
  
  As soon as we decided we were going to be going to Thailand on our way to Australia, I started getting excited for Phi Phi. I’ve seen so many pictures of it, I had a friend visit the island a few months ago and she totally loved it, and let’s be honest, if it’s good enough for Leo, it’s good enough for me (in case you don’t know, the movie The Beach was shot here).
  
  So there we were a few months later, on the crowded ferry to Phi Phi. We rounded the corner of another little island and saw it for the first time. And it is beautiful. Like awe-inspiring, stop what you are doing, kind of forget to even take pictures beautiful.
  
  The cliffs are massive and green, the beaches are snow white sand, and the water fades from turquoise to deep blue as you head out to sea.
  
  So here we are, all of these people on this ferry completely blown away by the beauty of this place, and as I’m sitting there gaping and trying to figure out how many of my worldly possessions I would need to sell to come live here permanently, out of the corner of my eye on the deck below where I am standing, I see a man pull out a packet of cigarettes, open it, take out a cigarette, and pull out a random piece of paper from the pack and THROW IT INTO THE OCEAN.
  
  I almost couldn’t believe it, because it was unbelievable. I took a deep breath, and tried to calm down and give him the benefit of the doubt because, accidents happen right? Then, just as my blood pressure started to sink back down to a regular level, his buddy came up to him, presumably asked for a cigarette, and the guy gave him one, pulled out the extra piece of paper (no idea what kind of cigarettes these were) and THREW IT IN THE OCEAN AGAIN.
  
  The left side of the ferry was completely packed with people, so I couldn’t get to him, but if I have learned one thing from my sister over the years, it is the effectiveness of a vicious death stare. It took a few minutes for him to notice me staring at him, but as soon as he did I gave him a look that would have most certainly killed him if I possessed any magical powers whatsoever.
  
  He at least had the grace to look a bit embarrassed, and quickly made his way to a different part of the boat.
  
  We made it to Phi Phi, it’s such a fun island, there are no cars so everyone walks and bikes everywhere, and you are never more than 100 yards from the beach. It has lots of great restaurants, and probably more bars than anything else on the island. At night every single beach bar becomes a dance club, and there are fire shows and lots of booze, and then even more booze, which leads to more fire.
  
  The first thing we did once we dropped off our stuff was hit the beach, we ordered some drinks, got a table, and then waded out into the water.
  
  I didn’t make it three feet in before my foot hit a beer bottle. I picked it up, carried it back up the beach, and left it there, planning to grab it after my swim. I started back into the water, took two more steps and found a beer can, and then a large piece of broken beer bottle.
  
  Everybody knows that there is garbage in the ocean, that we need to do more to keep it clean, but seeing that just made me so, so angry. Phi Phi is probably one of the most gorgeous places on the planet, and people are just ruining it.
  
  It might seem like I’m overreacting, but I had just come from Phuket (which I didn’t really care for) and had the same thing happen at two different beaches, I’d wade into the water, only to find a plastic bag wrapped around my leg.
  
  Most of our time in Phi Phi was so much fun, and it really is gorgeous there, despite a few pieces of trash in the water, but it just seems like if we can’t even see the benefit in not completely destroying someplace that looks like this, there isn’t a lot of hope for anywhere else.
  
  Posted in Thailand, travel | 11 Comments | Tagged beach, island, phi phi, Thailand, travel
- cast away
  
  Posted at 5:13 am by jasminedesirees, on June 24, 2014
  
  Arrived at Phi Phi today. Noticed quite a few job postings for bartenders.
  
  In unrelated news, I can open a beer like nobody’s business.
  
  If I go missing, no need to come find me.
  
  Posted in Thailand, travel | 1 Comment | Tagged beach, island, koh phi phi, Thailand, travel
- beachie keen
  
  Posted at 8:10 pm by jasminedesirees, on May 12, 2014
  
  Yesterday, Sunday funday at Capitola.
  
  My favourite thing in the world is the feeling when you’re all warm and sandy and sun-kissed from a day spent laying on the beach, and you come home to a quiet house and crawl between clean, cool sheets.
  
  I don’t even mind the sand in my bed. To me, this is bliss.
  
  Posted in beach, California, travel, USA | 0 Comments | Tagged beach, bliss, California, capitola, Sunday fun day
- we could run away
  
  Posted at 9:20 pm by jasminedesirees, on April 30, 2014
  
  Last Wednesday, my parents called me from L.A., they were in Phoenix and decided to take a spur of the moment trip out to SoCal to watch the Sharks play the Kings.
  
  We immediately decided we were going, but we were supposed to go to Phoenix for a wedding the next day, so it took a bit of finagling. We managed to switch our flights to leave from Long Beach, hopped in a rental car, and drove down.
  
  We were only in L.A. for 24 hours, but we had a great time creeping around Venice and watching the game from a suite at the Staples Center.
  
  Venice is one of my favourite beaches in southern California, I love the vibe, the people, and the graffiti. People there are so unique and unapologetic, and I love seeing all of the colourful art for sale on the boardwalk. We were there last year and I found an artist doing these really simple, almost comic book-like drawings, but they were so beautiful.
  
  We stood and looked at all his paintings for almost an hour, because I wanted all of them and I literally could not pick a favourite, but eventually I got dragged away. I asked if he had a website where I could order some of his paintings, but he didn’t, and told me to come back because he was always there. He wasn’t there when we went back this time, so I shall spend the rest of my life fruitlessly searching.
  
  I hadn’t noticed it the last few times we were there, but they have a really cool half pipe for skateboarding set up right on the beach. We stood and watched them for awhile, some of them were really good. I was pretty jealous of their skills, I tried to get the boy to teach me how to long board last year, but he pointed out that I would almost certainly be irreparably damaged due to my lack of coordination. He was not wrong.
  
  Posted in art, beach, California, family, Los Angeles, travel, USA | 3 Comments | Tagged art, beach, California, graffiti, Phoenix, road trip, sharks, skateboarding, spur of the moment, travel, Venice
- bolinas
  
  Posted at 4:49 pm by jasminedesirees, on February 18, 2014
  
  This last week was kind of a strange one, I just couldn’t muster up the energy to do anything, and I’ve been really tired. The long weekend helped a bit, especially since we got out of the Bay and went for a day trip to the Marin county coast, touring around Olema, Bolinas and Point Reyes. It was kind of cold to be out at the beach, but it was so nice to just be outside and to be surrounded by trees.
  
  One of the things I noticed when I lived in Honolulu was that sometimes I would just get really grouchy and lethargic, without a real reason why. Then we would jump in the car and leave the city, head to North Shore or Lanikai for the day, and I would instantly feel better. Being surrounded by people and buildings and cars all the time is just not great for me, and sometimes I need to get away from all of those things and recharge.
  
  We stopped for lunch at a cute little restaurant in Olema, did a bit of wandering around on the cliffs at Bolinas, and made our way to Limantour beach, which was gorgeous, but freezing. We finished off the day in Point Reyes, with a visit to the Cowgirl Creamery.
  
  Posted in art, exploring, life, travel, Uncategorized | 0 Comments | Tagged beach, bolinas, Cowgirl Creamery, exploring, hiking, limantour beach, Marin county coast, Northern California, ocean, Olema, Point Reyes
- L.A. wanderings
  
  Posted at 12:54 am by jasminedesirees, on January 25, 2014
  
  Just a few more pics of our trip to L.A. last weekend. We ended up doing everything I had on my list, and lots of other things, like spending the day cruising down the PCH and checking out Venice and Huntington.
  
  We were there for four days, and didn’t have any real concrete plans so it was very relaxing. We ate lots of yummy food, and found hoards of 49ers fans in Huntington beach to watch the football game with on Sunday. The niners lost, but it was a beautiful day, and it was $3 mimosas so I wasn’t too upset.
  
  Also I read Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns) on the trip and at the beach, and loved every second of it. Mindy Kaling is my spirit animal.
  
  It made me endlessly happy that there is a restaurant called Pink Taco and that their sangria was basically the nectar of the Gods
  
  Santa Monica pier at night
  
  Kt von D’s tattoo shop. I was very excited, her eyeliner makes my life complete
  
  Grauman’s Chinese theater, the Harry Potter cast
  
  Posted in beach, food, Los Angeles, travel, USA | 0 Comments | Tagged beach, California, L.A., Los Angeles, macarons, Venice
- pipe
  
  Posted at 12:39 am by jasminedesirees, on January 14, 2014
  
  This video of the Bonzai Pipeline on Oahu makes my heart hurt. Hopefully I get to go home soon.
  
  from Eric Sterman on Vimeo.
  
  Posted in beach, Hawaii, travel | 0 Comments | Tagged beach, Bonzai, Hawaii, North Shore, Oahu, ocean, Pipeline, surfing, waves
- viva mexico
  
  Posted at 9:40 pm by jasminedesirees, on December 11, 2013
  
  We booked our tickets for Christmas in Mazatlan with my family yesterday. I am so excited to go, my grandpa has a house there and I used to go all the time, but I haven’t been since I was 18.
  
  Most of the memories I have of being a kid are in Mazatlan, and it’s kind of weird to think I’ll be going back there and bringing my husband. I still very clearly remember stealing quietly from my bed and creeping down the stairs in my Aladdin night gown to see if Santa had found us in Mexico.
  
  Lazy beach day, before I realized that I should be scared of sharks
  
  I remember swimming at the Granada pool and playing mermaids with my sister, and then stretching out on a lounger to eat Oreos and Ritz crackers that my grandma stocked by the closet-full when we came to visit.
  
  A palm tree started on fire and we forcibly adopted two iguanas. Mine was named Princess. I was terrified of her.
  
  I loved driving my grandpa’s golf cart, visiting the crocodiles that lived on the first hole, and spending days at the beach jumping over the waves until I was too exhausted to move and then laying on the beach looking at the wares of the beach vendors and trying on jewellery.
  
  The money keeper around my neck is both a great place to keep your pesos, and a stylish fashion accessory
  
  My sister and I would creep around the house at dusk and try to catch iguanas and geckos, and spend our days trying to sneak into the pool at the El Morro so we could jump off the highest rock in the waterfall, and then reward ourselves with a dip in the hot tub.
  
  As we got older we’d go out drinking and dancing and maybe to a foam party or two. I know people who won’t go to Mexico because they are scared, but I’ve only had wonderful memories and met great people there.
  
  I can’t wait to be back there with my family again and to show all of 5 year old me’s favourite places to 26 year old me’s favourite guy.
  
  Posted in beach, family, life, Mexico, travel | 0 Comments | Tagged beach, Christmas, family, life, memories, mexico, travel
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