Lunar New Year is here again, bringing the Year of the Fire Horse! We decided to revisit Koh Lipe, a special place for me because this is where Jerry’s ashes are.

We decided to stay at Chareena Garden, at the end of Pattaya beach. It offers decent accommodation with breakfast on the beach. Nothing fancy but simple and nice. The beaches on Koh Lipe are stunning with some of the finest, softest sand I’ve ever experienced. Although the island was absolutely full due to LNY, it still felt like the same authentic place of 2018 when I first visited. Still no cars and lots of walking around rustic bars and little shops. We walked all over the island, visiting different beaches and enjoying the constant sunshine.

It was a relaxing and amazing reunion. I love that Tom, Alice and I can still have these holidays after almost 10 years of friendship and life overseas. A decade of expat life next year…we spent a lot of time reminiscing and feeling nostalgic about our time in Penang.

Koh Lipe is the perfect paradise. It takes a little effort to get there, a lot of waiting and a lot of sweating in the sun on the Thai side, but it is worth it. There’s something special about this place. A much needed dose of Vitamin Sea!

It was a great week of noodles, beach beers, coconuts, swimming and snorkeling. Another one for the memory books and hopefully same again next year. The only element of stress was making our flight back after our boat was delayed, but we managed it! Koh Lipe, we love you!