The beautiful Island that's still recovering.....

---

Even arriving by boat to the Island of Phi Phi was breathtaking; Phi Phi has it all...beautiful white sand beaches, turquoise waters and limestone cliff backdrops. Of all of the islands I've visited in Thailand, this is by far the most beautiful. Most of you will have heard of Phi Phi as it was used as the location for the film 'The Beach,' but that's the glamorous stuff....it also suffered horrendous devastation at the hands of the Tsunami that struck on Boxing day in 2004. Although on the outer surface you would never guess, you only have to walk a few hundred yards off the main tracks to find buiding work amoungst debris to know that they are still trying to get back to the way it was before. They have done really well at re-building most things except their waste handling and water supply. The water is supplied by 2 reservoirs and when these run dry, they use the sea water (or so we were told by a local woman) and to get to the place we were staying we had to walk past a 'sewage field.' This is the only downside to Phi Phi but you really can't hold it against them considering what they have been through with the Tsunami. There are people on the island that survived to tell their tale, one notable figure is that of Luciano Butti, an Italian who came to live in Phi Phi from Florence and built up his restaurant on the beach, Ciao Bella. The restaurant was destroyed in the tsunami but he managed to rebuild a thriving business and has written a book about his experiences during the tsunami and in the terrible aftermath. He has also included first hand accounts from his friends and loved ones, some of whom suffered the great loss of a young child (heartbreaking to read). The book is 'Tsunami in Paradise' and is a worthwhile puchase as the profits go directly towards helping those in need.

So I arrived in Phi Phi on Sunday after a relatively easy journey over from Koh Phangan and an overnight stop in Krabi town. I met back up with Tri and Gill who I'd met doing the project, and also Gill's friend Hayley who I'd met when we were on Koh Tao and at the Full Moon party. Hayley's sister Becky had arrived and another friend, Collette. There were quite a crowd of us as we headed out that night for dinner and to the 'Half Moon' party at Hippies bar. We had a really good night, there was a guy called Amir who was playing the guitar and singing, then they had a fire show and lit up a big 'Half Moon' sign and everyone started dancing around it on the beach. At midnight it was the start of Gill's birthday so we decided to party hard and the buckets were going down a treat...what she didn't know (but all of us did) was that her mum, sister and brother were in Phuket and were getting the boat over the following morning to surprise her on her birthday!!! So, when we woke up the next morning, we all felt extremely hung over and it even rained a bit to match how we were feeling! But we were in full spirits for Gill's birthday and we headed to Hippie's bar for a 'hangover cure.' Luckily Gill happened to be sat with her back to the entrance of the bar and her family crept up on her with balloons as we all took pictures and tried to hold back the tears from witnessing such an emotional reunion....she was completely shellshocked but so happy and we were really happy for her too. So we sat in the bar and tried the old 'hair of the dog' trick which seemed to work and Gill caught up with her family and pieced together the corruption between her family and Hayley and Collette to arrange everything. The sun shone in the afternoon and we hit the beach, Gill still pinching herself that her family really were there on Phi Phi and it wasn't just a 'hangover vision.' Gill's family headed back to their 'luxurious-by-our-standards' room with air con, TV and a pool and we headed back to slumsville. We gagged every time we walked past 'sewage field' to get to our place and our bathroom (if you can call it that) also smelt quite unpleasant. Our shower didn't work so we had to literally kneel down on the floor with our heads tilted forwards to have a shower and wash our hair with the toilet hose (the hose they use to wash their backsides)...I kid you not!! The water was the same water as supplied by the shower so it wasn't all bad and I know we could have moved but it was cheap, and well, someone has to stay there and put up with it, it might as well have been us!!!

We stayed on Phi Phi for nearly a week which was bliss...the weather was fantastic, if not a little TOO hot, but I guess you can't complain at that when you have the sea to cool you off inbetween. There were 9 of us which made for a good crowd when we went anywhere and us 7 girls took our own boat out a couple of days as it made it worthwhile (the guys didn't want us cramping their style no guess!) The boats are classic Thai 'Longtail' boats, so called due to the engine being fixed onto a long 'tail' that submerges in the water at the back of the boat and is the 'steering wheel.' They are beautiful boats and looking at the sea and seeing them scattered along the length of the beach makes for an impressive view. The first day we took a boat out we did a full circular tour of the island (Phi Phi Don) which is actually much larger than you think when you're on it because the 'main' tourist village is nestled on a thin strip between the pier and a beautiful curved bay with a beach. Either side of this thin strip are 2 larger areas of land that are slightly hilly and almost as if they would be 2 separate islands if it were not for this strip of land. We stopped for a spot of snorkelling which was amazing...there was blue tip coral and many types of Fish, I was surprised at how 'tame' the fish were and these beautiful yellow stripey ones actually swam up to you if anything. We stopped off on 'long beach' on the way back which was a beautiful long strip of white sand and slightly less touristy than the Loh Dalam bay beach where the main village is. On our second boat trip we headed to Bamboo and Mosquito islands, just off the coast and then onto Phi Phi Lei, the smaller of the 2 Phi Phi islands and uninhabited. Maya Bay on Phi Phi Lei was the main setting used for 'The Beach' and it is simply stunning if not a little too touristy (maybe I was expecting too much, like my own private viewing or something aka Leo!!) with many boats and speedboats moored up along the beautiful stretch. Anyway, after a couple of hours soaking up the scenery our boat driver took us around the lagoons and coves on the rest of the island which were also stunning and quite serene...the journey back to Phi Phi Don was not quite serene, it was extremely rough, (what had happened to the sea in those few hours?!) we all got soaked (some more than others depending on where you were positioned on the boat - Hayley and I had chosen well!!!) and it was quite a hairy half hour!! We kept telling ourselves that if our driver could still stand up and somehow steer the boat, then surely we were going to be okay!

One afternoon we headed to the Phi Phi memorial park, located just at the end of the end of the main beach. It was really tucked away and difficult to find but that is part of it's beauty, a stones throw from the beach and the village bustle you step into this lovely enclosed garden with beautiful benches in memory of some of the victims and a centrepiece pond with a bridge. There is a main marble plaque board with many names of vicitims and also photographs and written tributes left by family and friends. It makes it so real when you visit it and see the faces of those who were lost in the disaster, some of whom their bodies were never recovered which makes things harder for the families. I'm really glad I went and just spent some time reflecting, I felt quite selfish in a way, travelling around having a good time, but in a way, coming here and having a good time is what Phi Phi needs; they need the tourism to rebuild the stability here and bring in the money.

I really enjoyed my time in Phi Phi and I'm really glad I delved a bit into the suffering that occurred from the Tsunami as it really makes you think that these things can happen to anyone, anywhere. It was over within a few minutes but the devestation it caused will no doubt last forever, under the surface.

---

Comments

[anonymous]

Hello
Hi Rach Read your blog on Phi Phi - I went there in 2001 - it is a gorgeous place and its interesting to hear how it has changed since 2004... I think it is one of my favourite places in Thailand and have a picture of it on my windowsill to remind me on dull grey days in Leicester that there are some fantastic places to see in the world! Love Lucie x

[Mum]

Seize the Day!
Great newsy blog - will try to get hold of the book written by the Italian from lovely Florence. More connections, how strange. Must be very thought provoking to read about the effect the tsunami had on a place you are actually experiencing. Missing you! xxxxx