September 7 (Friday)
Rise And Shine
We had an afternoon flight back to Bangkok which meant that we would need to make our way out of Railay relatively early. Having gotten in so late the previous night we'd seen very nearly nothing, so our plan was to wake up early and sneak in as much sightseeing as we could before we needed to bail. We started by waking up at 5:30am seeing that it was raining, and then going right back to sleep. We woke up again an hour later and the rain had stopped, so we dragged ourselves out of the hotel room to explore.
Pranang Cave Beach is located on the south-west end of Railay and it's reputed to be one of the nicest beaches in Thailand. In order to get there we had to walk south along the east side of Railay and it became clear why the west side was pricier. There was a small stretch of beach, but beyond that was a much longer area of soggy flats. The fact that there was a lot of construction didn't help matters either, because it meant that a good chunk of the beach-front property was occupied by half-built or half-demolished structures.
Once we got to Pranang Cave Beach we found that it was pretty much the exact opposite of what we'd just been walking past. Even the overcast skies couldn't disguise the fact that the beach was absolutely gorgeous. Since it wasn't even 7am yet we were the first people there, but that didn't mean that we were alone. After walking up and down the beach we discovered that we were sharing it with a ton of monkeys. It was probably the closest I've ever been to a monkey and since none of them tried to eat my face it was really neat.
After taking a bunch more pictures of monkeys and beaches we headed back to our hotel to check out and get our stuff. There was still a bunch of time before our flight, but since the only way off the island was by boat we wanted to make sure we had plenty of time to arrange a ride. It turned out we didn't have anything to worry about though, because as soon as we hit West Railay we found a guy arranging longtail rides. If we wanted to leave immediately we'd have to pay for all 8 seats on the boat, so we decided to take some time and explore yet another picturesque beach.
People Get Ready
No one else showed up, so we eventually ponied up for the ride (it was still cheaper than pretty much any cab ride I've taken in the States) and were on our way. Since we'd told the guy we were going to the airport he headed for Krabi rather than back to Ao Nang and when we got there there was a motorcycle with a platform and bench for a sidecar to take us from the pier to a waiting taxi. "Taxi" turned out to be shorthand for "some guy's Corolla," but at this point that wasn't any great surprise. A short, Bob Marley-filled car ride later and we were at the airport. I grabbed some coffee and a muffin (my first non-ice-cream meal in like 36 hour) and we settled in to wait for our flight.
Back in Bangkok
Once we'd touched down in Bangkok we went to Sukhumvit to pick up our suits (which were awesome) and then headed back to New Siam II to check-in. We were really hoping we'd go three-for-three with room 4246, but unfortunately we got 3246. Sure, it was identical to our other room, but it just wasn't the same. There wasn't much time to dwell on that though, because we needed to get all our luggage packed and then head out to meet Nikki.
We had arranged to link up with Nikki and her friend in Silom for dinner and drinks. We ended up getting there early so we decided to do a bit of exploring. We encountered stalls selling all the usual souvenirs, but what was unique to Silom were the wide array of bars and, well, I was going to say "gentlemen's clubs," but I feel like that implies a veneer of class. After a while fiercely avoiding eye-contact with the dudes trying to get us into these establishments it was time to meet Nikki. There was a decent Mexican restaurant nearby, so we settled in there to get something to eat and wait for Nikki's friend, Jeng.
When It's Time To Party We Will Party Hard
After Jeng joined us we kicked off one hell of a night. We started off at a rooftop wine bar that had an awesome view and a significant French contingent. We then hopped to a second bar for a beer or two before closing out the night at a super-tiny bar full of international travelers located off an alley.
Our whirlwind tour of Bangkok's nightlife wrapped up somewhere around 5am and, needless to say, we were exhausted. When our cab dropped us off on Khao San Road we found out that we'd even managed to outlast the party there. The only other people still on the street were a bunch of partied-out dudes and some "ladies of the night." Getting all packed up earlier in the afternoon turned out to be a very smart move because as soon as we got back to the hotel it was lights-out.