Any arduous journey should have its peaceful moments too, I highly recommend beaches to bookend a long expedition. I knew the 4 months I'd be trekking and traversing SE Asia would be rough on me, so I started my trip lazily on the paradise of Phuket, and ended it with a well deserved respite on Koh Tao, days filled with shipwreck diving, $3 massages, and dirtbiking around the islands rough terrain.
