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299--Thailand: Rock Climbing on Railey Beach @ CherieSpotting     Jul 07 2005 - 17:10 PST cherie writes: The Spanish say: A life lived in fear is half lived. (Except the Spanish say it in Spanish.) Instead of facing our fear—we climbed it. Hilda, Diane, Leighton and I took a longtail boat from Krabi to Railey Beach near Ao Nang, Thailand. Railey Beach (also spelled Railay) draws rock-climbers from all over the world. Craggy limestone cliffs jut out of the water dare you to climb to the top. Hilda, who fell off a 28-ft cliff a few years ago, faced her fear of heights and climbed to the top like there was no going back. As the saying goes, a person needs to have great depth to reach a great height. To quote Pope John XXIII, who was an avid Thai rock-climber (just kidding!): “Consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams. Think not about your frustrations, but about your unfulfilled potential. Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in, but with what it is still possible for you to do.” *Many of the excellent rock-climbing photos were taken by Diane. Click on each picture to see it full size. read comments (0) | write comment| views: 5499    | rated: 0.0    printer-friendly version   I'm half-way through my climb and still smiling! Remarkably, I made it to the top! Go climb a rock! Cherie ready to belay. Which one is having a bad hair day? Hilda: "You call these tiny crevices hand-holds?" Hilda makes it look easy. Or funny? Note: Hilda is afraid of heights. Leighton in shadow. What is Leighton doing to that rock? Kids these days! There's a wall. Let's climb it. Cherie ready to rock. You look a bit skinny. Are you sure you can hold me? Up, up, up and away. That is a genuine: I-made-it-to-the-top smile. There's no other feeling like the exileration you feel at the top of a tough climb. There's Diane! Hanging in there, or hanging on there? Leighton. He's at the top! On his way down. Where's the beer? No worries...this guy's got you! That's me in the middle! Going up? Going down. Can you see the people climbing the rock? Not bad scenery here on Railey Beach. I'll take one rock, straight up. No fear Hilda! Climbing ladies. After the climb we are rewarded with sweet pineapple. Leighton eats his weight in pineapple--about 3 pineapples! Diane on the beach. Lush. Cherie stretching her legs on the powder-fine sand. My hut is your hut. The tide is out. While we wait, let's inhale the view. Hilda and Leighton on the boat ride back back to Krabi. The whole gang survived! A quick stop? Is there supposed to be water here? Are those rain clouds heading our way? Hannah, Hilda, Diane and Cherie. Shore to shore service. Sand yachts? The local gas station. The girls cool off. Refreshed!