Post by Lauren

We spent the first five days of of our trip in Phuket, Thailand. We stayed at the Renaissance on Mai Khao beach, which was the Northern most tip of the island. It is very quiet and serene and still hosts sea turtles who hatch their eggs in the nature preserve.

Gabe selected a very romantic beach villa. An added benefit was the private pool attached which you can tell he enjoyed!

Beyond relaxing at the resort, we did two day trips. The first was a boat trip to the Phi Phi islands. We snorkeled and had a chance to catch breathtaking views of Thailand’s most beautiful coves.

The next day trip (actually on Christmas Day), we visited James Bond Island, which was made famous by the film, The Man with the Golden Gun. This outing also allowed a visit to the sea gypsy island of Koh Panyee, to see a traditional fishing village. To cap it off, we were able to sea kayak into island caves housing secluded lagoons of banyan trees.

The day we left was December 26th, the 7-year anniversary of the horrific tsunami that claimed so many lives in Phuket, mainland Thailand, and all over Southeast Asia. It is really hard to imagine this beautiful ocean producing such a disaster. The Thai people have such beautiful spirits and we continue to wish for peace and prosperity for them as they still heal after the storm.