Day 50 - Koh Phi Phi - Beauty and speedos
After a few wonderful weeks in Malaysia we left to go to one of my "home countries," Thailand. To get a 30 day Visa we had to go back all the way to Kuala Lumpur and fly to Phuket from there. Our attempt of having a "green" trip has now lead to 3 shorter Air Asia flights. We will try to do better during the next weeks.
We arrived in Phuket late in the evening, so we got a room for one night and booked boat tickets for our intended first destination, the Phi Phi Islands.
When we arrived early Sunday morning, we realized that the Lonely Planet had been spot on in describing the islands. The amazing views of the dramatic limestone cliffs, the perfectly white beaches and perfectly clear turquiose waters make you shed a tear, but when you realize that you share everything with every speedo on the planet you shed another tear. Aside from the speedos we also had to share the islands with every woman over 60 that thinks it is a good idea to sunbathe topless on a crowded beach, Swedish families with young children, and people who think that it is fashionable to wear sandals when you swim in the ocean.
To get away from all of this we were lucky enough to find a decently remote beach with a few bungalows and huts, the Ao Poh Bungalows. They had a few of the best morning views you could imagine. At 6 o'clock every morning, we popped open the windows and saw the most amazing sunrises by just opening our eyes while still half sleeping. The evenings were not bad either, the moon shone straight on our beach and you fell asleep to the sound of the ocean waves rolling in over the beach.
The days on Phi Phi were spent swimming in the turquoise waters and working on our tans. One day Emily and I thought that we had enough rest and went on a 7 hour boat trip around the islands. The first stop was Maya Bay, better known as the beach in the Di Caprio movie "The Beach" from 2001. As deserted as it is in the movie, it was filled with tourists to the brim. Being there you can not understand that the islands actually are part of a national park. When you swam out a bit and imagined the place without other people, the beauty of the beach became very obvious with its amazing water and beautiful cliffs.
After we left the beach, we went snorkeling in a bay nearby. The sights above the water was more mesmorizing than the ones under the water. The next stop on the boat trip was Monkey Beach. As you can guess there were monkeys on the beach that gladly posed for a picture in exchange for a banana or a sip of Fanta orange. The boat ride also took us to Mosquito Island and Bamboo Island and both of them gave us wonderful views. So much in fact that when we were supposed to watch the sunset in the water between the islands, the people on the boat had enough and we went back to the pier for some pizza.
We have done quite a lot on the trip so far, but one thing we have not done is that we have not enjoyed the nightlife in Southeast Asia. So tomorrow we are heading to Koh Phangan. An island infamous for its parties, and its full moon parties in particular. We just missed the full moon, but in a few days it is half moon, and we are guessing that the backpacker crowd will celebrate that as well...
We arrived in Phuket late in the evening, so we got a room for one night and booked boat tickets for our intended first destination, the Phi Phi Islands.
When we arrived early Sunday morning, we realized that the Lonely Planet had been spot on in describing the islands. The amazing views of the dramatic limestone cliffs, the perfectly white beaches and perfectly clear turquiose waters make you shed a tear, but when you realize that you share everything with every speedo on the planet you shed another tear. Aside from the speedos we also had to share the islands with every woman over 60 that thinks it is a good idea to sunbathe topless on a crowded beach, Swedish families with young children, and people who think that it is fashionable to wear sandals when you swim in the ocean.
To get away from all of this we were lucky enough to find a decently remote beach with a few bungalows and huts, the Ao Poh Bungalows. They had a few of the best morning views you could imagine. At 6 o'clock every morning, we popped open the windows and saw the most amazing sunrises by just opening our eyes while still half sleeping. The evenings were not bad either, the moon shone straight on our beach and you fell asleep to the sound of the ocean waves rolling in over the beach.
The days on Phi Phi were spent swimming in the turquoise waters and working on our tans. One day Emily and I thought that we had enough rest and went on a 7 hour boat trip around the islands. The first stop was Maya Bay, better known as the beach in the Di Caprio movie "The Beach" from 2001. As deserted as it is in the movie, it was filled with tourists to the brim. Being there you can not understand that the islands actually are part of a national park. When you swam out a bit and imagined the place without other people, the beauty of the beach became very obvious with its amazing water and beautiful cliffs.
After we left the beach, we went snorkeling in a bay nearby. The sights above the water was more mesmorizing than the ones under the water. The next stop on the boat trip was Monkey Beach. As you can guess there were monkeys on the beach that gladly posed for a picture in exchange for a banana or a sip of Fanta orange. The boat ride also took us to Mosquito Island and Bamboo Island and both of them gave us wonderful views. So much in fact that when we were supposed to watch the sunset in the water between the islands, the people on the boat had enough and we went back to the pier for some pizza.
We have done quite a lot on the trip so far, but one thing we have not done is that we have not enjoyed the nightlife in Southeast Asia. So tomorrow we are heading to Koh Phangan. An island infamous for its parties, and its full moon parties in particular. We just missed the full moon, but in a few days it is half moon, and we are guessing that the backpacker crowd will celebrate that as well...
So romantic you are Tola! Mam cannot believe that you write it, haha
Glad that Tola's experiencing "home."