Her name was Rio

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Our last blog finished en-route to Ko Phi Phi (location of the Hollywood blockbuster 'The Beach' and an area heavily affected by the Tsunami). I mention these things again as they are both conversely the biggest contributors to the islands DNA. Both are commodities that can be sold and both draw tourists to the island in their thousands. Sidenote- the journey from Railey was only 50 mins or so but it was a good opportunity for me and Bazman to get a lick of sun, with our sunglasses on think of Duran Duran's 'Rio'. Apart from the supermodels but i'm sure you get the picture.

Like previous entrances to Krabi and Railey the Karst rock formations make Ko Phi Phi amazing and look like something conjured up by a very creative force. Ive not seen anything like it this side of Birmingham anyway :-)

Our landing in Phi Phi followed the usual process of a lot of hustle and bustle at the ferry port and the usual 'tourist information' telling us all the accommodation were full or getting somewhere for 500baht was impossible!! We are a bit wiser to this so after finding the closest bar the girls set off to look at a place recommended by guys we had met in Railey called James and Vicki. After no joy it was the boys turn to check out another place the far end of the village. The first place wasnt the best and it looked like our 400baht limit wouldnt get us anything. Barry chanced his luck at a place opposite and managed to find two nice rooms for 500baht and a POOL!! The fact it had a pool was definitely the clincher for the girls and the oriniginal 400baht budget was soon forgotten about.

We decided to make the most of our pool and chose to relax for the day to conserve our energy for the evening. Our first evening started off at the villages Reggae Reggae bar with James & Vicki and Louise & Mikey from Railey (now i call it a village but Phi Phi is very developed with inumerable amounts of market stalls, scuba shops, bars and restaurants all with their own touts)

The bars obvious theme is Reggae music but in the middle of the bar is a full sized Thai boxing ring. On the surface this seemed like a good USP but they also let westerners volunteer to fight each other for a free bucket. We didnt stay to watch Broad St on a Saturday night but we did get to see the 1st fight. Obviously the group waited in anticipation for the 1st set of Thai boxers to enter the ring; what we got was a boy & girl 2 years of age!!! it was very shocking and very exploitative but they seemed to enjoy and looked very cute in their Thai boxing shorts.

The night finished with the consumption of a few buckets of samsung, see the afore mentioned description of this infamous cocktail, some fire skipping and fire limbo on the beach then Kate and I getting lost and being very fortunate to find our way home on an Island with no roads or taxis.

Waking with a sore head and with no clothes on (which is more indicative of a good night) we decided the beach was calling. As Ton Sai beach is a busy part o the island we got a longtail boat to long beach. No its not very long but it was quiet and the beach was beautiful.

This over exersion of lying on a beach all day carried over to our 3rd day in Phi Phi but we added a trip to the viewpoint for our morning stroll. It was not much of a stroll more of a brutal climb up about 150 steps and then some. The calves were burning by the end but the view at the top were breathtaking. You can see the majority of the island and see the are most affected by the Tsunami. It puts it all into perspective as you can see how one square mile was flattened within hours.

We finished our 180m hike with a walk to the other side of the viewpoint to Rantee beach. It was a steep decline but not as bad as the way up. But where there's pain there follows pleasure and Rantee beach was well worth it. This beach was definitely more 'Thailand' as it picturesque with crystal clear water with no pesky longtail boats or euro-boys strutting their stuff. On the way home i realised i had left my sunglasses on the beach but tried in earnest to relay this to our longtail driver. As he was going back to the beach i wanted him to get my sunglasses from the beach and look after them till tomorrow. His English was poor but I hoped my explanation using backwards English and a sort of sign language would see the message understood. We just decided to wait and see. After a relaxing day we had a relaxing evening and some Italian food ready for the arrival of the gangs 3 days in Ko Lanta.

The next morning was an early one as the gang were getting the early boat from Ko Lanta and Barry and I said we would meet them to show them where our bungalows were. The obvious advantage being that they dont have to put up with the usual circus from the touts. Dan and Sam booked into Tropical but Dean choose a hostel called Phi Phi dream! We wanted to show off our amazing pool so we chilled out and soaked up a few rays while we caught up with our different misadventures from the last few days. Some of us decided that the beach was calling but we were soon back into the comfort of our pool as it was toooo hot hot hot! Even the sea was warm, im not exaggerating when I say the sea was like a warm bath after you've been in it for too long and your contemplating whether to add more water or get out.

The weather then obviously clouded over and we retreated inside to play some cards. Originally the plan was for me, Dean and Dan to attack the viewpoint again and trek back down to Rantee to collect my sunglasses but as it started raining we consoled ourselves with shelving said plan with some chang :-) The day finished off with some Italian food (which was a welcome respite for the guys from the Thai Curries and Pad Thai) and some buckets of Samsung. The dreaded buckets had made reappearance after their debut on Ko Phan Ngang due to being very cheap and between 12.00-12.10 you got one free! This then led to more debauchery, Dean and I pole dancing, the boys taking their tops off and then a very slow stumble home.

Another groggy start to another morning in Paradise. Kate and I decided that we had procrastinated long enough (2 days) about the walk up to the viewpoint and then back down to Rantee for too long, so we waited till it got cooler and off we set. It was a b*ll breaker just like the first time but we had a purpose this time. We had to find out if the message I had given to the longtail driver had transmitted into some sort of message that was understood and acted on. Or it was a bloody long way to find out my sunglasses had been robbed. Either way we had to check or else I would of kicked myself if the guy had them. With the Gods on our side the chap had understood me and looked after them for two days, Good Times! This had gone some way to changing my perception of Thais and made me very happy.

The Gods were on our side but time wasnt. We were told that you could walk from Rantee back round to Long Beach over some paths and some rocks. Needless to say it was not what it said on the tin and we nearly got stranded half way between the two beaches. I can safely say if we hadnt caught the attention of a longtail driver in the last few moments of light, Kate would of been stranded and had to live it up Tom Hanks in Castaway style. Very fortunate to say the least. In the evening we went to a restaurant that was recommended by the LP but there was obviously a 2 hour wait. Luckily when the food came out it was the nicest food we have had so far. The portions were too much which meant by the end of it we were all stuffed like it was Christmas day and I was certainly looking to lie down. The only thing missing from Christmas was the obligatory 10 pints at lunch time but im certain we had consumed 10 chang anyway so I was happy with the comparison to December 25th.

After being on Phi Phi for 5 days we thought it was time to do a day trip round the famous Phi Phi islands. We had got a longtail boat for a cheap cheap price for the 7 amigos plus James & Vicki and their friends Mike & Louise. We spent the day visiting 3 of the local islands and finished in the famous Maya bay. Unfortunately due to the time we only got to spend 40mins on 'The Beach' but it was still awesome and to me was the pinnacle of all the amazing beaches we had visited so far. I will try and add some photos to the blog, if not please look on facebook to see what I mean. To celebrate getting back safely (very choppy waters n a very small boat with lots of people) we went to the local Irish bar to watch the England match (funny i know but we were able to sneak in our own Chang from the off-licence). Cue too many Chang once again and a very sore head in the morning.

Surprisingly we were the earliest risers so to ensure we didnt waste our last day in Phi Phi Kate and I decided to go to Long Beach again. We left the guys a note and walked along the beach path. We had a really nice day there and I even managed to sunbath for longer than 10 mins without getting bored and annoying Kate. On our way back to Tropical Kate and I had an indepth conversation about all the food we had on Phi Phi. We had been there 7 nights and had amazing food every night. As tonight was our final night we wanted to eat in the best place we had eaten as a sort of treat. So we went back to a restaurant where Kate had pizza with capers and anchovies (Kate notches up pizza for 4 out 7 nights we where there) and I had Penang curry, delicious and a good end to our week on Phi Phi.

So we waved goodbye to Phi Phi and it was hello Puhket. We had persuaded James & Vicki to change their plans and join us in Puhket. We used the excuse of it being my birthday but i think James just wanted to carry on his session with the Brummie Badboys :-). So the afternoon ferry it was and we toasted a good week in Phi Phi with.................CHANG!!!!!!

Tune in next week for.....ladyboys, go carting and me dressing up as a woman for my birthday

xxx

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