I manage to sleep six hours on the plane. After getting up and dressed—I opt for a simple sundress—we dine on a filet mignon with eggs breakfast, served with Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee. We watch a movie with JD and Amy. I work on my statistics homework for about an hour. Not long after lunch, the flight begins its descent.

Looking out the airplane window, I’m blown away by the cerulean ocean water and the white sandy beaches.

Maybe it’s because I’ve never been in another country, but I love Thailand. It’s a balmy eighty-five degrees when we arrive in the early afternoon. I drink in everything from the airport to the ride to the resort and am so absorbed, I don’t think to take photos.

Our driver names the different beaches we drive by and explains that the winter season tends to bring drier weather, calmer seas, and sunnier skies. Nothing but sunshine and temperatures in the eighties are expected for the next ten days.

Darren tells us the resort that we’re going to was developed by distant relatives in the Lee family and sits on what is effectively a private beach, which are not allowed in Thailand, but the Lee family purchased all the surrounding land.

“O.M.G.,” whispers Amy when the car pulls up to a multilevel resort built into the side of a cliff and overlooking the ocean.

I don’t even have words.

The driver says he’ll have our bags taken directly to our villas. Following Darren and JD to the lobby, Amy and I try not to fall over our own feet as we ogle our surroundings.

“O.M.G.,” Amy says again as we look down from the lobby at the huge infinity pool below. It almost looks like you can swim from the pool straight into the Andaman Sea.

After JD and Darren have checked in and a resort staff member has offered us drinks, another staff member asks if we wish to take the elevator or stairs down to the villas.

“Stairs,” I answer so that we can see more.

“O.M.G., this is yummy,” Amy says of her Singapore Sling.

We walk by huge lounging areas with incredible vistas. From the stairs, I can see tennis courts, another swimming pool, one of the three restaurants set in the middle of a pond, and a pavilion for spa treatments, with another for yoga. The staff member tells us the resort is one of the few with direct beach access, goes over the amenities offered, and provides logistics such as the availability of internet and international plugs.

As if the main resort area wasn’t astounding enough, the villas leave me speechless. JD and Darren each have their own one-bedroom villa with full kitchen and dining area. The large windows and glass doors make all the rooms extremely bright even with the shade of the surrounding trees, and each villa comes with its own private pool.

The king-size bed beneath a romantic canopy faces the beach. The balcony doors are open, allowing in a faint breeze.