Part of visiting Thailand meant stepping inside intricately decorated, gold-adorned Buddhist temples—well, at least for me. Without any such temples on the Tigerair Philippines media tour itinerary, the only time I get to see these places of worship were when our tour bus passes them en route to some destination or another.

And of course, the only photos I get were blurry, electric line-ridden images.

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I was ecstatic then when our bus pulled into a gravel drive in the town of Song Phraek where one such temple is located. We weren’t really there for the temple though, the group was simply waiting for the smaller vans that would take us to the Phang Nga whitewater rafting area.

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Ice cold water splashed through our whole being—shocking and drenching us completely, as our bright red raft attacked the raging waters of the Song Phraek River. With no briefing whatsoever, we were suddenly plunged headlong into a wild ride. Our only lifeline, a rope tethered across the boat and footholds at the bottom of the dinghy.

Thailand’s weather has been uncooperative since yesterday; our Phang Nga Bay day trip was marred with scattered rain showers. And it only got worst as we navigated the rubber tree-lined road up to the Phang Nga River Lodge for our whitewater rafting adventure.

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The uneven stone staircase circling one side of Ko Khao Phing Kan Island, more popularly known as James Bond Island to the flock of sightseers visiting Thailand, was jammed with tourists. I patiently waited as they gingerly descended, one slow person at a time, waiting my turn to climb and see one of Phuket’s famous icon, the strange Ko Tapu Islet.

For more than an hour, our media group from Tigerair Philippines traversed the right-hand driven highways of Thailand en route to the jetty which would take us to James Bond Island. The isle’s name evokes tuxedo-wearing spies, shiny guns, fancy cars, sultry women, and exotic locations. I’m definitely excited for the last two.

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