Cave inside karst at Phuket

The theme letter for our ‪‎travel pics this week is U, for Under.

For Tuesday, we go under a karst, in Phang Nga Bay, near Phuket, Thailand.

Karsts are large limestone outcrops that dot the waters of Phang Nga and Krai in Thailand, as well al Halong Bay in Vietnam, and many more regions around the world (I mention those in Vietnam and Thailand only because we’ve actually been to them 🙂

Anyway, karsts nearly always have caves and grottos inside them – in Thailand, there’s a specific sort called Hongs where the roof has collapsed, leaving astounding hollowed-out islands where tourists regularly kayak.

This was one such karst – and if you keep paddling toward the light (see bottom left in the picture) you emerge into a tropical paradise, home to monkeys and mudskippers.

But as you paddle into the hong, you have to pass through a cave which is only accessible at low tide.

And on the ceiling of the cave is distorted limestone – which in this case looks like a seated Buddha – or a waiting princess, depending on which guide you get 🙂