Stormy Day in Railay Bay

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It's definitely been awhile since I posted but it is much more difficult to find fast (and affordable!) internet in Thailand! I still haven't seen anywhere I can post photos so I guess that will have to wait until I get home on Tuesday.

The beaches in Thailand are definitely beautiful but they are nothing if not hard to get to! We said a sad goodbye to Ann Candler in Bangkok and she took off for JAX while we boarded a flight to Krabi. Carlos bought the wrong plane ticket (a common problem for he and I on this trip!) so he was scheduled to take the flight later that day. Kimika, Jason and I arrived in Krabi and found out that we then had to get on a crosstown bus, then a small mini-van, then a 90 minute ferry to Ko Phi Phi, and then finally a longboat to our hotel on the island. We also realized that by the time Carlos arrived in Krabi, he would have long missed the last boat to Ko Phi Phi and would not make it until the following day. We were totally bummed that we had no way to talk to him so we sent some emails once we arrived and about twenty four hours after our arrival, Carlos arrived by longboat to our hotel in Ko Phi Phi.

Ko Phi Phi is the island just adjacent to where The Beach was filmed and the water and surroundings are absolutely beautiful! Grass green water and gorgeous rock formations surround the island and we were very excited and exhausted when we finally arrived at the Phi Phi Paradise Pearl Resort. The only problem was the resort actually turned out to be quite a dump! In fact, I would not call it a resort at all - they nickel and dimed us for every little thing and the restaurant was teeming with flies and a waitstaff of transsexuals! It was definitely weird. Ko Phi Phi was completely devastated by the tsunami five years ago (2000 people were killed) but the locals who did survive have done their best to rebuild the place as fast as possible. The sloppy work shows though and Kimika and I, who are a bit weary at this point in the trip, were none too pleased with our accommodations.

Still, the sunset that evening was breathtaking and we celebrated heartily when Carlos arrived on Wednesday. We had a fantastic day on the beach and got in a ton of swimming. It was interesting also because there were literally 300 Uruguayans who showed up on our beach that morning and stayed the whole day. We learned later that they had won some sort of lottery for a trip around the world and they would be traveling together for eight months! I don't know how you travel with 300 people for eight months but they seemed to be having a great time and they were certainly beautiful people! I've never seen so many women in thong bikinis - I guess it's a preview of what's to come in Brazil and Argentina!

We enjoyed another great sunset and a good night of sleep before Kimika and I took off a day early for Railay Bay. This beach is famous for its rockclimbing and is also quite stunning. Although it's not far from Ko Phi Phi, at least as the crow flies, the process of getting here was no less simple than the first trip to Phi Phi. We bought tickets on the ferry but when we arrived at the port to board our long boat, the driver refused to take us unless more people showed up or we paid him more. We were unsure exactly how long it would take for more people to show up and the other people waiting for the boat, a young Dutch couple traveling with their 2 year old daughter, Isa (pronounced "EE-Zia" - very confusing for me!), who definitely needed to get to Railay for her nap! We gave in and paid him more and 30 minutes later (actually 45 with the almost customary stop for gas), we were in Railay Bay. The resort was much more to our liking and Kimika and I settled in a for a relaxing day on the ocean, although we stuck to swimming in the pool because the ocean is full of jellyfish!!

We have enjoyed a couple of restful days here and have enjoyed some of the best Thai food of the trip. This afternoon is stormy so Jason and I finally ponied up some money to veg out in front of the computer. Surprisingly, Thailand has been my least favorite of the places we've visited but I'm still so glad we checked it out. We're all heading back to Bangkok tomorrow for some sightseeing and to catch our LONG flights home. It will be great to enjoy some of the creature comforts of home but this has been a fantastic journey! I can't wait for my next trip back to SE Asia!

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