It was our last day in Thailand. Hell, it was the last day of our entire trip. Five months of temples, beaches and mountains. As well as lengthy bus rides, food poisoning and broken backpacks. It was all quickly coming to an end. We had been to Railay twice that week, and though we contemplated a different adventure for our final day, we ended up waiting at the main pier in Ao Nang for the long-tail to transport us to our favorite beach.
The idyllic beach is a crescent moon shape, hugged on either end by limestone cliffs, perfect for rock climbing. We spent the morning swimming in the bathwater temperature waters and playing beach tennis, occasionally chasing the local dog, a scrawny black mut, who decided to join our game by stealing the pink rubber ball mid bounce. We splurged that day, eating salads and a cheese plate at an overpriced restaurant directly on the beach. Drinking fruity cocktails and playing our endless game of Burraco, an Italian card game, the afternoon passed and the water slowly receded along with the sun. As dark clouds filled the sky we sat on the beach and I watched the tiny crabs make their crop circles in the sand.
The wind picked up and the sky darkened even more, so we packed our things and began wading into the knee deep waters of the Andaman sea, looking for the long-tail that would take us back to Ao Nang. We climbed the ladder into the boat and waited, facing the beach, watching as it slowly emptied. Knowing the next day as we sat in the Suvarnabhumi airport in Bangkok, the beach would again be full of sunburned tourists and the black dog would be chasing a different ball.
