Thailand

It's so peaceful and my heart is quite serene. It seems people all speak softly around here. The belief here is that you make a wish and then walk around the Golden Pagoda three times clockwise and then your wish will come true.

From the multifaceted gold and green Chiang Mai, we head far south to the popular seaside resort, Phuket. The spectacular beach and the breath-taking tropical coastal scenery lure countless travelers each year. The grand view looking toward the Andaman Sea is quite a contrast with the delicate subtlety you experience of the Thai culture inland. The rainy season in Thailand is between May and October. If you come during the dry season, you are very likely to witness a magnificent sunset over the sea. At night, it really comes alive along the seashore. Bars, restaurants, coffee shops and interesting little stalls are strung along the coast to provide visitors with lots of diversion. It's tempting to kick back, to enjoy a cool night, among a group of merry strangers, just a stone? But if you have only one night to spare here, I suggest you go to at least one show before you venture into the bar scene.

The Phuket Fantasea show is staged in the Phuket Fantasea theme park every night except Thursday. Before the show begins, you can enjoy a moment of shopping outside the theatre. All of the novelties here are related to the show, which tells the story of Kamala Prince and his loyal magic elephant. It's a great show that weaves the contemporary with the traditional, to embrace the charm of both. It features a shadow puppet show, dancing, singing, and of course, many elephants. It embodies all the qualities of the true Thai spirit: fun loving, elegant, mysterious and magical. All of the delights you've experienced of Thai culture are here in this show.

Along with the Fantasea show, another "must see" around here, is Phi Phi Island. From Phuket you can rent a boat or take a ferry to the famous Phi Phi Island. It's one of those places that you've already seen, without realising it. It's been the location for many famous or unknown films, and at least a hundred TV ads. It's really like a forgotten and forsaken little piece of land that looks reserved for the lucky and blessed amongst us. Everything looks so preternaturally untouched that you don’t have the heart to spoil it.

That's where people pick the bird nest. Which is worth like gold on the market. And this is the famous Maya beach, where the Hollywood blockbuster?

Ah, but we must leave. From Phuket, we head a little bit north to the less crowded Phang Nga province. Here another island, the location of yet another famous Hollywood film, has been developed into a tourist attraction. The movie was The Man with the Golden Gun and the island is now referred to as the James Bond Island. Before getting there, we have to take a boat and navigate through a mangrove jungle. It is very weird experience. There are waterways through the jungle, but a stranger could easily get lost in this water maze. It's a great place to play hide and seek or stage a water ambush. The mountains or islands in the distance remind me of the mountains we have in Southwest China, around Guilin city. But this is sea Karst topography, sculpted limestone.So this is the James Bond Island, it's so different from the Phi Phi island.