BANGKOK - DAY 1
Our plane touched down in Bangkok, the start of so many backpacking adventures for many young people, but for us was close to our traveling coming to an end. After grabbing our bags, we went hunting for a taxi to take us into our hotel, but before we found a taxi a lady found us and before we knew it she had whisked us off to the taxi stand and negotiated a price for us with the driver, including her commission. We then zoomed off in our bright pink taxi through the busy streets, past the King's residence to the Banglamphu area, where our hotel was located.
After chilling out a bit we decided to go check out the neighbourhood. We weren't very far from
Bangkok's famous Khaosan Road, perhaps the world centre of backpackers (having done plenty of travel and met plenty of backpackers, we aren't too sure whether this is a title to be proud of...) It is a reasonably short street full of shops, stalls, restaurants, bars and white people. We hadn't seen so many white people in one place for a while and it was a bit disconcerting...
We checked out the street food vendors before deciding we could probably go for something a bit nicer for dinner so find a marginally nicer place in a small restaurant which looked out over the street. A serving of Pad Thai and a green curry later, all washed down with a couple of Chang Beers, and we were feeling full but not yet amazed. After another wander up and down the street to walk off our dinner we made our way back to the hotel where we hit the hay.
BANGKOK - DAY 2
It was a day of sightseeing ahead so, as is our way, we set off on foot towards the Grand Palace. We had heard a couple things about visiting the Grand Palace. The first was that you needed to have your legs covered if you were going to visit as it was also the site of a number of temples. The second was that you might get approached by people telling you it was closed and instead trying to sell you an all day tour. We expected this might come from Tuk Tuk drivers, but were very surprised that ever person we met along the way, stall vendors to simply people walking along the street, told us the Grand Palace was closed. They certainly had us doubting ourselves, but we carried on determined to see for ourselves. This turned out to be the right thing to do, because the Grand Palace was opening and operating and in fact there were loudspeakers announcing that you should ignore anyone who tried to tell you that the Palace was closed because it was in fact open for visits. The Palace is a complex of various grand buildings built under the reigns of various Thai Kings. There were many huge buildings with massive Thai style spires on top stretching into the sky. There was also plenty of gold around. Very opulent. You couldn't go into many of the buildings but one which you could visit was the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, which houses a little Jade Buddha, seated high above you, looking down on the worshippers.
After stopping for an ice-block (Marcus went with red bean..perhaps not the best choice...) we left the Grand Palace and walked down the road to Wat Po, a Buddhist monastery and site of a massive gold reclining Buddha. It is 43 metres long and as it is inside a building with lots of tourists looking at it, it is pretty difficult to see one end from the other. We also checked out the grounds which are a bit quieter but had some cool statues of men in robes and top hats. Not sure what the story was but it was nice to see something different than a Buddha statue.
We were still up for some more Buddhist temples, so we made our way down the street to the river and caught a ferry across to the other side. There were ferries all over the river going in all directions but we ended up on the correct one. Directly across the river is the temple of Wat Arun. This was a really tall temple. We didn't go inside this one, rather we climbed up the steep outside where we got an amazing view across Bangkok along the river and all over the city. It was really hot and the climbing up in the beating sun helped us work up a pretty heavy sweat. After making our way down the temple we found some cold drinks, which we quickly drained, and jumped on another river boat which took us down the river again back to Khaosan Road. It was pretty packed so we didn't get to see much out the windows but it was definitely a good way to get from one part of the city to another.
We wandered back down Khaosan Road, checking out the stalls, before heading back to the hotel to cool down a bit after being out and about in the heat all day. Once dinner time came around we headed back out to Khaosan Road where we found a restaurant down a side street. We had a table in the middle of a courtyard and got some tasty Thai curries for dinner. It was nice and peaceful and the light was low. It was a nice break for us from the hectic city that is Bangkok.
BANGKOK - DAY 3
For our third day in Bangkok we decided to do a bit of shopping. As it was the weekend we were able to head out to Chatuchak weekend market. After a bit of studying we found out that there was a local bus that would take us straight there from a nearby bus stop. We weren't really sure what we were doing, but we managed to find the bus stop and before long a bus with the number we were expecting came along. We boarded, bought some tickets and we were away. The bus was pretty basic, with wooden floors with plenty of holes in them, but we managed to find some seats and after quite a long drive and a few head shakes from the driver when we looked to be getting off at the wrong stop, we made it to the market.
We followed the crowds and entered through one of the many gates. The market was huge. There was basically a path that went in a circle around the middle with stalls as far as they eye could see on either side. Like any good market it was divided up into different sections, clothing for locals, clothing for tourists, food, souvenirs, pets, home wares. If you needed something you would be able to buy it, or some version of it here. The place was also teeming with people so it was slow going through some parts. We wandered our way amongst the stalls, buying the odd thing but mostly looking. We grabbed some tasty street food for lunch, all finished off with a beer and chocolate and hundreds and thousands coated banana.
Much of Bangkok is connected by the Skytrain, a monorail system which travels above the roads. There was a station nearby, so we decided that once we were done with the market we would jump on the skytrain and head down to another shopping area around Siam Square, in the centre of the city. There are a number of big shopping malls around the square selling all manner of legitimate and knock off goods. It was nice to be in some air-conditioning after all that time in the hot sun. There were floors and floors of shops and stalls selling all manner of items, although a day of shopping was starting to take its toll on us and everything started looking the same. There were only so many Pikachu's, iphones and t-shirts with Tuk-Tuk's on which you can look at in a day so we decided that having done a good job on the public transport today we would stop while we were ahead and we took a taxi back to the hotel. All that walking around and looking at shops had taken its toll on us. We were pretty tired, Jess especially, so Marcus had dinner by himself at the hotel while Jess got a couple of hours extra sleep.
BANGKOK - DAY 4
We weren't 100% sure how we wanted to spend our last day in Bangkok so we started out by going for another walk to visit the temple of Wat Saket. It is a reasonably new Buddhist temple built on the top of a hill, which was the remains of a collapsed old temple. There is a path which runs around the outside of the hill, through pretty gardens with statues dotted throughout. Along the way there are places where you can stop and admire the craftsmanship. The temple is right at the top and you can walk through from one side to the other. Wat Saket is known as the Golden Mount and from the top you get a good view out around surrounding Bangkok and in particular to the huge skyscrapers in the distant business district.
It wasn't too far from Wat Saket to China Town, so after walking past a bunch of car part shops we finally manged to come across a series of narrow streets, packed full of various cheap wares, including food, shoes, plasticware and everything else you could imagine. It didn't look particularly Chinese so it took us a while before we were sure we were in the right place. We wandered up and down look at what was for sale, but not buying as nothing tickled our fancy. We came close when we came to the funeral paper area, where you could buy anything you could imagine made from paper so you could burn it at your funeral and it could accompany you to the next life. There were little houses, ornaments and even pineapple! We decided that that was a bit too morbid a souvenir, so instead we start on the walk back to the hotel.
After resting our weary legs we decided to have a drink down at the hotel bar. There was a nice garden bar outside where you could sit in the warm and enjoy a refreshing beverage. We got talking to a Thai guy who was there about our travels and where we were from. He said that he was friends with the owner of the hotel. Apparently he sells them all their carpets. After talking for a while he invited us to go with him to experience some proper Thai street food, not the stuff at Khaosan Road. He seemed nice enough so we went with out into the Bangkok night. Before long we reached a street full of food stalls with tables all around and not a white person to be seen (except us of course). He ordered us some authentic Pad Thai, the best in Bangkok, he said. Before long it arrived and unlike what we had had before this was wrapped in an omelet. It was amazing! So much better than any food we had had in Thailand so far. About half way through our meal a man from a neighbouring table started talking to us in English. He told us about his daughter who was studying in Australia. It looked like our host was starting to get jealous. I wouldn't have thought white backpackers were a novelty in Bangkok, but was nice to be popular.
After a yummy dinner our host encouraged us to go and visit another Buddhist Temple. This one was less on the tourist track. We weren't sure but thought we shouldn't be rude as he had been so welcoming. The temple was a bit more modern than many of the older ones we had seen but still had steps leading up to the door and there were a lot of people worshiping, rather than a lot of people taking photos. We were welcomed with smiles from many of the people who made space for us to sit down on the mats and worship. We felt very humbled and welcome. This made up for all the people who had tried to trick us the day before. Our host was keen for us to continue touring around Bangkok with him, but we had an early flight out of Bangkok on the meaning so had to bring our impromptu exciting night to an end.
BANGKOK TO PHUKET
We got picked up early in the morning by a taxi to take us to the airport. It was a domestic flight this time down to the south of Thailand, another popular tourist destination, the island of Phuket. We hadn't arranged any transportation from the airport to our hostel in Phuket, but we didn't need to worry because we had only been off the plane for a few seconds when we were being bundled into a minivan shuttle. The shuttle filled up with people and then zoomed off through rather uninspiring countryside along wide main roads. After a while the van pulled into a travel agent and took turns to take people off the van and try to sell them holiday activities. We were looking quite grumpy by this point and they knew to give us a wide berth. The van eventually got going again and we had the long trip of stopping at people's accommodation. We had decided to avoid the tourist mecca of Patong, instead deciding to stay at the quieter beach of Kata, a bit further south. What this meant is that we were the last ones to be dropped off, but we did get there eventually.
Jess was still feeling a bit poorly, so decided to have a sleep, while Marcus went for a walk to try and see
what the neighbourhood had to offer. It was about a 15 minute walk to the beach, along paths past people's houses and then alongside a stream that went out to the beach. It was a nice long beach as Marcus walked past all the Swedes and Danes (apparently it is a popular north European holiday spot). There was a resort at one end but clouds forming in the distance heralded the afternoon monsoon rain. Marcus made his way back to the hostel to see how Jess was doing.
After the rain had subsided we both made our way back down to the water for a walk along the beach together. We took our time to get to the resort end where we had a look around. There were a few shops around the place but nothing that sold more than tourist fare. We stopped for a drink and some Pizza at the resort bar on the beach. We sat back watching the sun set and then slowly wandered our way back to the hostel.
PHUKET - DAY 2
We slept in the next day before rising, packing our towels and heading down to the beach for a lazy day lying on the beach. We went for a few swims in the sea but otherwise it was a nice lazy day. We thought about doing some travel around the island on the local bus network (mini trucks with open backs filled with seats) but decided we had traveled plenty over the last while. We had to retreat for the afternoon monsoon, but after that we came out again in hunt of a restaurant for dinner. We found a place that served seafood and after some yummy prawn curry (with MASSIVE prawns) some delicious fresh fish we made it to bed satisfied with our day.
PHUKET TO KO PHI PHI
It was another early start as we met our transfer to the port in Phuket town. It was a bit of a gray and overcast day as our taxi wound its way around the central hill in the middle of the island to the town of Phuket, a relatively drab town where it was clear that people lived, but it didn't look like there was much reason to visit. We climbed onto a packed ferry with loads of other backpackers and a handful of locals and after waiting for a while we were on our way to the island of Ko Phi Phi.
The sea was pretty rough on the way out and there were plenty of passengers rushing to the toilets with green faces but after a couple of hours we came up on the small dock on Ko Phi Phi island. We disembarked and went hunting for some transport to our resort. We were staying on Long Beach, which was one bay away from the main part of the island. Apparently it was only 10 minutes ride away on a long boat. We figured it would be a bit nicer and quieter. Unfortunately we soon discovered that with the rough weather there were no long boats willing to take us there. Apparently it was too rough to land there. A little disheartened we eventually found a boat who was willing to take us to the far side of the main bay. It was closer to our resort but we would still have to walk over the hill and back down again to get to Long Beach.That was easier said than done. With our heavy packs on our back we made our way across the soft sand and then up the muddy rutted path trying to avoid the puddles and trying not to get stuck in the mud. We followed the signs and got to the top of the path before heading off down a side track. We met a guy who pointed us in the direction of a rope which was tied to a tree and then dropped down a steep path towards the beach. Apparently that was how we got down to Long Beach. It was pretty steep and slippery. Thankfully the guy helped Jess with her bag and we were pleased to get to the bottom. We made our way along the sand until we found the first resort where we got onto firmer ground and made our way to our resort, about halfway along the beach.
By this time we were pretty hungry. Unfortunately the restaurant at our resort was closed for the off season, but luckily the restaurant at the first resort was open so we grabbed a table by the beach and got some sustenance. It was warm but not tropical, so after unpacking our stuff into our beachfront bungalow we went for a walk along the beach. It had been a bit of an effort to get there but we certainly felt like we were away from it all on our tropical island. We tried for a swim in the afternoon, but before long the pouring rain came pounding down and we retreated back into our bungalow. Fortunately it passed after an hour or so and we were able to head back down to the beach.
After chilling out for a couple of hours it was time to do a bit of exploring. We made our way up beach
and climbed the rope we had come down earlier. Unfortunately the 10 minute long boat road to the town wasn't an option so we had to settle for a 45 minute walk. After climbing across some roots, walking along a couple of beaches and traveling through some other resorts we finally found a concrete path which we were able to follow to take us into town. Town was a series of concrete buildings with concrete paths in between. The rain decided to come back again just as we arrived in town so we stopped at a bar on the beach for a couple of drinks. Apparently they did a fire show there at night but we couldn't really see it happening with the wet weather. The rain eased off a bit so we went in search of dinner. After avoiding the Australians who were trying to force us into booking a dive tour, we found a place that served cheap and cheerful Thai curries. The surroundings were pretty basic, but the food was solid and just what we needed. We did a bit more exploring around town but there wasn't a lot to see so we started to make our way back to town. However, along the way we got waylaid by a shop full of fish tanks and tiny fish. We had seen this at Camden Market and thought it looked a bit unhygienic, but figured we had earned ourselves a foot massage performed by little fish. Our worries about hygiene were unfounded as the woman who ran the shop actively scrubbed our feet clean before letting us anywhere near the fish. We then plonked our feet into one of the fish tanks and the little fishes came flocking to eat the skin off our feet. We couldn't help but giggle as they tickled between our toes, but we could feel them gently massaging our feet too. It was a relaxing experience, even when the drunk Chinese man came blundering into the shop and tried to put his feet into the nearest tank. The Thai lady struggled to sort him out but managed to get his feet clean in the end. Our feet feeling clean we then made the long walk (often in the dark!) back to our resort for some sleep.
KO PHI PHI - DAY 2
We decided to make the most of the beach front again and hung out on the beach for the morning. Some reading and swimming and relaxing was what we had in mind for this part of the trip. After a few hours of this we checked out the map of the island and saw that there was a path from the edge of town which led to a viewpoint on the top of the island. We made our way around the path to town but then turned off at the edge and went looking for paths up. We found the right road and carried on into the jungle. By this time it was pretty hot and the road was actually pretty steep in places and there wasn't much shade to keep the sun off us. After about an hour of walking we had a good sweat on, but fortunately it was at this point that we could turn off the road and onto a path into the jungle. The paths were not every well marked, but we kept heading up and eventually, after climbing up and around and over logs, rocks and dirt we came across the viewpoint which gave us a view out over the town and the bays on either side of
it. Like any good tourist spot there was a shop where we could buy some drinks to replenish some of the fluid we had lost on the way up. We decided to head down the path which took us into the middle of town. After 20 minutes of climbing down steep stairs and watching people puffing their way up we were pretty pleased that we had chosen to go down this path rather than up it.
The clouds were coming in at this point so we jumped into the nearest bar and grabbed a drink and some food to eat (burgers, very un-Thai...) and sat back while the rain wore itself out. We checked out some of the tourist shops before the walk back to Long beach. We chilled out for a couple of hours and decided we had done enough walking today so visited the restaurant at the resort at the end of the beach for some dinner. It was nice and quiet, unlike the busier town which was a nice way to end the day.
KO PHI PHI - DAY 3
We had hoped to go on a boat tour today, but the sea was looking pretty rough in the morning so we decided to put it off and put up our feet for the day, hanging out on the beach, doing some more reading and generally taking it easy, dodging in and out of our bungalow into between rain showers.
Having had a lazy day it wasn't too bad walking to the town to find some dinner. We found a place with bright orange walls down a quiet side street. The menu looked good and as it turns out, it was, with amazing fresh noodle dishes. Other than the street food in Bangkok this was definitely the best meal we had had in Thailand.
KO PHI PHI - DAY 4
It was our last day in Ko Phi Phi so regardless of the weather we would be going on a boat cruise today. Fortunately it was looking reasonably settled in the morning, so we made our way off to the town to get some of the included breakfast and meet up with the Long Boat for the tour around all sorts of exotic locations, including Ko Phi Phi Lei, the island we had been looking at in the distance (it is the island from the Leonardo Di Caprio movie, The Beach) and Shark Bay. The breakfast was nothing exciting, but that wasn't why we were there. It was a big long boat but it was still full of various young people and one older couple. We had decided we wanted to take the long boat rather than one of the bigger ferries. We piled into the boat, grabbed our seats and then we were underway. It didn't appear that our driver an older Thai man, or his assistance, a younger Thai guy who scampered all over the boat trying to impress the girls, spoke any English so it was up to us to work out what we were up to during the day.
The boat ride was OK as we made it out through the bay, but as soon as we got out into open water the force of the waves got stronger. There were some anxious looks on people's faces and some tight knuckles holding seats as the boat slow made its way towards Ko Phi Phi Lei. We rocked back and forth but eventually arrived at the island and entered through the entrance to the bay which was our first stop. There was a white sand beach with jungle behind it and cliffs surrounding the bay. Disappointingly there were also about six other boats, all bigger ferries who were also visiting the bay at the same time and whose passengers were teeming across the beach.
Our plane touched down in Bangkok, the start of so many backpacking adventures for many young people, but for us was close to our traveling coming to an end. After grabbing our bags, we went hunting for a taxi to take us into our hotel, but before we found a taxi a lady found us and before we knew it she had whisked us off to the taxi stand and negotiated a price for us with the driver, including her commission. We then zoomed off in our bright pink taxi through the busy streets, past the King's residence to the Banglamphu area, where our hotel was located.
After chilling out a bit we decided to go check out the neighbourhood. We weren't very far from Bangkok's famous Khaosan Road, perhaps the world centre of backpackers (having done plenty of travel and met plenty of backpackers, we aren't too sure whether this is a title to be proud of...) It is a reasonably short street full of shops, stalls, restaurants, bars and white people. We hadn't seen so many white people in one place for a while and it was a bit disconcerting...
We checked out the street food vendors before deciding we could probably go for something a bit nicer for dinner so find a marginally nicer place in a small restaurant which looked out over the street. A serving of Pad Thai and a green curry later, all washed down with a couple of Chang Beers, and we were feeling full but not yet amazed. After another wander up and down the street to walk off our dinner we made our way back to the hotel where we hit the hay.
BANGKOK - DAY 2
It was a day of sightseeing ahead so, as is our way, we set off on foot towards the Grand Palace. We had heard a couple things about visiting the Grand Palace. The first was that you needed to have your legs covered if you were going to visit as it was also the site of a number of temples. The second was that you might get approached by people telling you it was closed and instead trying to sell you an all day tour. We expected this might come from Tuk Tuk drivers, but were very surprised that ever person we met along the way, stall vendors to simply people walking along the street, told us the Grand Palace was closed. They certainly had us doubting ourselves, but we carried on determined to see for ourselves. This turned out to be the right thing to do, because the Grand Palace was opening and operating and in fact there were loudspeakers announcing that you should ignore anyone who tried to tell you that the Palace was closed because it was in fact open for visits. The Palace is a complex of various grand buildings built under the reigns of various Thai Kings. There were many huge buildings with massive Thai style spires on top stretching into the sky. There was also plenty of gold around. Very opulent. You couldn't go into many of the buildings but one which you could visit was the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, which houses a little Jade Buddha, seated high above you, looking down on the worshippers.
After stopping for an ice-block (Marcus went with red bean..perhaps not the best choice...) we left the Grand Palace and walked down the road to Wat Po, a Buddhist monastery and site of a massive gold reclining Buddha. It is 43 metres long and as it is inside a building with lots of tourists looking at it, it is pretty difficult to see one end from the other. We also checked out the grounds which are a bit quieter but had some cool statues of men in robes and top hats. Not sure what the story was but it was nice to see something different than a Buddha statue.
We wandered back down Khaosan Road, checking out the stalls, before heading back to the hotel to cool down a bit after being out and about in the heat all day. Once dinner time came around we headed back out to Khaosan Road where we found a restaurant down a side street. We had a table in the middle of a courtyard and got some tasty Thai curries for dinner. It was nice and peaceful and the light was low. It was a nice break for us from the hectic city that is Bangkok.
BANGKOK - DAY 3
For our third day in Bangkok we decided to do a bit of shopping. As it was the weekend we were able to head out to Chatuchak weekend market. After a bit of studying we found out that there was a local bus that would take us straight there from a nearby bus stop. We weren't really sure what we were doing, but we managed to find the bus stop and before long a bus with the number we were expecting came along. We boarded, bought some tickets and we were away. The bus was pretty basic, with wooden floors with plenty of holes in them, but we managed to find some seats and after quite a long drive and a few head shakes from the driver when we looked to be getting off at the wrong stop, we made it to the market.
We followed the crowds and entered through one of the many gates. The market was huge. There was basically a path that went in a circle around the middle with stalls as far as they eye could see on either side. Like any good market it was divided up into different sections, clothing for locals, clothing for tourists, food, souvenirs, pets, home wares. If you needed something you would be able to buy it, or some version of it here. The place was also teeming with people so it was slow going through some parts. We wandered our way amongst the stalls, buying the odd thing but mostly looking. We grabbed some tasty street food for lunch, all finished off with a beer and chocolate and hundreds and thousands coated banana.Much of Bangkok is connected by the Skytrain, a monorail system which travels above the roads. There was a station nearby, so we decided that once we were done with the market we would jump on the skytrain and head down to another shopping area around Siam Square, in the centre of the city. There are a number of big shopping malls around the square selling all manner of legitimate and knock off goods. It was nice to be in some air-conditioning after all that time in the hot sun. There were floors and floors of shops and stalls selling all manner of items, although a day of shopping was starting to take its toll on us and everything started looking the same. There were only so many Pikachu's, iphones and t-shirts with Tuk-Tuk's on which you can look at in a day so we decided that having done a good job on the public transport today we would stop while we were ahead and we took a taxi back to the hotel. All that walking around and looking at shops had taken its toll on us. We were pretty tired, Jess especially, so Marcus had dinner by himself at the hotel while Jess got a couple of hours extra sleep.
BANGKOK - DAY 4
We weren't 100% sure how we wanted to spend our last day in Bangkok so we started out by going for another walk to visit the temple of Wat Saket. It is a reasonably new Buddhist temple built on the top of a hill, which was the remains of a collapsed old temple. There is a path which runs around the outside of the hill, through pretty gardens with statues dotted throughout. Along the way there are places where you can stop and admire the craftsmanship. The temple is right at the top and you can walk through from one side to the other. Wat Saket is known as the Golden Mount and from the top you get a good view out around surrounding Bangkok and in particular to the huge skyscrapers in the distant business district.
It wasn't too far from Wat Saket to China Town, so after walking past a bunch of car part shops we finally manged to come across a series of narrow streets, packed full of various cheap wares, including food, shoes, plasticware and everything else you could imagine. It didn't look particularly Chinese so it took us a while before we were sure we were in the right place. We wandered up and down look at what was for sale, but not buying as nothing tickled our fancy. We came close when we came to the funeral paper area, where you could buy anything you could imagine made from paper so you could burn it at your funeral and it could accompany you to the next life. There were little houses, ornaments and even pineapple! We decided that that was a bit too morbid a souvenir, so instead we start on the walk back to the hotel.
After a yummy dinner our host encouraged us to go and visit another Buddhist Temple. This one was less on the tourist track. We weren't sure but thought we shouldn't be rude as he had been so welcoming. The temple was a bit more modern than many of the older ones we had seen but still had steps leading up to the door and there were a lot of people worshiping, rather than a lot of people taking photos. We were welcomed with smiles from many of the people who made space for us to sit down on the mats and worship. We felt very humbled and welcome. This made up for all the people who had tried to trick us the day before. Our host was keen for us to continue touring around Bangkok with him, but we had an early flight out of Bangkok on the meaning so had to bring our impromptu exciting night to an end.
BANGKOK TO PHUKET
We got picked up early in the morning by a taxi to take us to the airport. It was a domestic flight this time down to the south of Thailand, another popular tourist destination, the island of Phuket. We hadn't arranged any transportation from the airport to our hostel in Phuket, but we didn't need to worry because we had only been off the plane for a few seconds when we were being bundled into a minivan shuttle. The shuttle filled up with people and then zoomed off through rather uninspiring countryside along wide main roads. After a while the van pulled into a travel agent and took turns to take people off the van and try to sell them holiday activities. We were looking quite grumpy by this point and they knew to give us a wide berth. The van eventually got going again and we had the long trip of stopping at people's accommodation. We had decided to avoid the tourist mecca of Patong, instead deciding to stay at the quieter beach of Kata, a bit further south. What this meant is that we were the last ones to be dropped off, but we did get there eventually.
Jess was still feeling a bit poorly, so decided to have a sleep, while Marcus went for a walk to try and see
After the rain had subsided we both made our way back down to the water for a walk along the beach together. We took our time to get to the resort end where we had a look around. There were a few shops around the place but nothing that sold more than tourist fare. We stopped for a drink and some Pizza at the resort bar on the beach. We sat back watching the sun set and then slowly wandered our way back to the hostel.
PHUKET - DAY 2
PHUKET TO KO PHI PHI
It was another early start as we met our transfer to the port in Phuket town. It was a bit of a gray and overcast day as our taxi wound its way around the central hill in the middle of the island to the town of Phuket, a relatively drab town where it was clear that people lived, but it didn't look like there was much reason to visit. We climbed onto a packed ferry with loads of other backpackers and a handful of locals and after waiting for a while we were on our way to the island of Ko Phi Phi.
The sea was pretty rough on the way out and there were plenty of passengers rushing to the toilets with green faces but after a couple of hours we came up on the small dock on Ko Phi Phi island. We disembarked and went hunting for some transport to our resort. We were staying on Long Beach, which was one bay away from the main part of the island. Apparently it was only 10 minutes ride away on a long boat. We figured it would be a bit nicer and quieter. Unfortunately we soon discovered that with the rough weather there were no long boats willing to take us there. Apparently it was too rough to land there. A little disheartened we eventually found a boat who was willing to take us to the far side of the main bay. It was closer to our resort but we would still have to walk over the hill and back down again to get to Long Beach.That was easier said than done. With our heavy packs on our back we made our way across the soft sand and then up the muddy rutted path trying to avoid the puddles and trying not to get stuck in the mud. We followed the signs and got to the top of the path before heading off down a side track. We met a guy who pointed us in the direction of a rope which was tied to a tree and then dropped down a steep path towards the beach. Apparently that was how we got down to Long Beach. It was pretty steep and slippery. Thankfully the guy helped Jess with her bag and we were pleased to get to the bottom. We made our way along the sand until we found the first resort where we got onto firmer ground and made our way to our resort, about halfway along the beach.
By this time we were pretty hungry. Unfortunately the restaurant at our resort was closed for the off season, but luckily the restaurant at the first resort was open so we grabbed a table by the beach and got some sustenance. It was warm but not tropical, so after unpacking our stuff into our beachfront bungalow we went for a walk along the beach. It had been a bit of an effort to get there but we certainly felt like we were away from it all on our tropical island. We tried for a swim in the afternoon, but before long the pouring rain came pounding down and we retreated back into our bungalow. Fortunately it passed after an hour or so and we were able to head back down to the beach.
After chilling out for a couple of hours it was time to do a bit of exploring. We made our way up beach
and climbed the rope we had come down earlier. Unfortunately the 10 minute long boat road to the town wasn't an option so we had to settle for a 45 minute walk. After climbing across some roots, walking along a couple of beaches and traveling through some other resorts we finally found a concrete path which we were able to follow to take us into town. Town was a series of concrete buildings with concrete paths in between. The rain decided to come back again just as we arrived in town so we stopped at a bar on the beach for a couple of drinks. Apparently they did a fire show there at night but we couldn't really see it happening with the wet weather. The rain eased off a bit so we went in search of dinner. After avoiding the Australians who were trying to force us into booking a dive tour, we found a place that served cheap and cheerful Thai curries. The surroundings were pretty basic, but the food was solid and just what we needed. We did a bit more exploring around town but there wasn't a lot to see so we started to make our way back to town. However, along the way we got waylaid by a shop full of fish tanks and tiny fish. We had seen this at Camden Market and thought it looked a bit unhygienic, but figured we had earned ourselves a foot massage performed by little fish. Our worries about hygiene were unfounded as the woman who ran the shop actively scrubbed our feet clean before letting us anywhere near the fish. We then plonked our feet into one of the fish tanks and the little fishes came flocking to eat the skin off our feet. We couldn't help but giggle as they tickled between our toes, but we could feel them gently massaging our feet too. It was a relaxing experience, even when the drunk Chinese man came blundering into the shop and tried to put his feet into the nearest tank. The Thai lady struggled to sort him out but managed to get his feet clean in the end. Our feet feeling clean we then made the long walk (often in the dark!) back to our resort for some sleep.KO PHI PHI - DAY 2
We decided to make the most of the beach front again and hung out on the beach for the morning. Some reading and swimming and relaxing was what we had in mind for this part of the trip. After a few hours of this we checked out the map of the island and saw that there was a path from the edge of town which led to a viewpoint on the top of the island. We made our way around the path to town but then turned off at the edge and went looking for paths up. We found the right road and carried on into the jungle. By this time it was pretty hot and the road was actually pretty steep in places and there wasn't much shade to keep the sun off us. After about an hour of walking we had a good sweat on, but fortunately it was at this point that we could turn off the road and onto a path into the jungle. The paths were not every well marked, but we kept heading up and eventually, after climbing up and around and over logs, rocks and dirt we came across the viewpoint which gave us a view out over the town and the bays on either side of it. Like any good tourist spot there was a shop where we could buy some drinks to replenish some of the fluid we had lost on the way up. We decided to head down the path which took us into the middle of town. After 20 minutes of climbing down steep stairs and watching people puffing their way up we were pretty pleased that we had chosen to go down this path rather than up it.
The clouds were coming in at this point so we jumped into the nearest bar and grabbed a drink and some food to eat (burgers, very un-Thai...) and sat back while the rain wore itself out. We checked out some of the tourist shops before the walk back to Long beach. We chilled out for a couple of hours and decided we had done enough walking today so visited the restaurant at the resort at the end of the beach for some dinner. It was nice and quiet, unlike the busier town which was a nice way to end the day.
KO PHI PHI - DAY 3
We had hoped to go on a boat tour today, but the sea was looking pretty rough in the morning so we decided to put it off and put up our feet for the day, hanging out on the beach, doing some more reading and generally taking it easy, dodging in and out of our bungalow into between rain showers.
Having had a lazy day it wasn't too bad walking to the town to find some dinner. We found a place with bright orange walls down a quiet side street. The menu looked good and as it turns out, it was, with amazing fresh noodle dishes. Other than the street food in Bangkok this was definitely the best meal we had had in Thailand.
KO PHI PHI - DAY 4
It was our last day in Ko Phi Phi so regardless of the weather we would be going on a boat cruise today. Fortunately it was looking reasonably settled in the morning, so we made our way off to the town to get some of the included breakfast and meet up with the Long Boat for the tour around all sorts of exotic locations, including Ko Phi Phi Lei, the island we had been looking at in the distance (it is the island from the Leonardo Di Caprio movie, The Beach) and Shark Bay. The breakfast was nothing exciting, but that wasn't why we were there. It was a big long boat but it was still full of various young people and one older couple. We had decided we wanted to take the long boat rather than one of the bigger ferries. We piled into the boat, grabbed our seats and then we were underway. It didn't appear that our driver an older Thai man, or his assistance, a younger Thai guy who scampered all over the boat trying to impress the girls, spoke any English so it was up to us to work out what we were up to during the day.
The boat ride was OK as we made it out through the bay, but as soon as we got out into open water the force of the waves got stronger. There were some anxious looks on people's faces and some tight knuckles holding seats as the boat slow made its way towards Ko Phi Phi Lei. We rocked back and forth but eventually arrived at the island and entered through the entrance to the bay which was our first stop. There was a white sand beach with jungle behind it and cliffs surrounding the bay. Disappointingly there were also about six other boats, all bigger ferries who were also visiting the bay at the same time and whose passengers were teeming across the beach.
Our boat went further in to shore but the driver didn't want to go right in to shore for fear of getting stuck. So we had to leave our bags on the boat and then drop into the water in our togs. This meant no camera as we didn't want to risk losing it to the sea. The old Australian decided to stay on the boat with the captain. We swam in to shore, walked along the beach and then went back into the water again for a paddle around with the crowds.
We had only been in there a few minutes when the sea around us started sucking out towards the mouth of the bay, black clouds were forming outside the mouth of the bay and people started running out of the bay. We were struck by strong winds and rain and decided out of the water was the right place to be. Then BOOM! The heavens opened and it started to pour with rain and the winds blew a gale around us. We desperately looked for shelter. Most people were huddling under the nearest cliff. There was a tiny shack just up from the beach and we ran for it and hunkered down behind it along with a bunch of other people. The rain continued to pour and the wind continued to blow, battering our exposed flesh with sand from the beach. It actually seemed to be getting worse rather than better. After a while the wind started pulling away parts of the walls from the shack. This was a worry and before long, one of the tour guides from the other boats told us to get away from the shack because it could collapse at any second. We joined the masses under the cliff which was much more exposed to the sand and the rain and tried to wait it out. The wind and rain did let off a little but it was still coming at us pretty hard. While we had been hunkering down the boats in the bay had been moving around to try and combat the big waves. Some had left the bay to avoid being smashed against the cliffs. Unfortunately one of the boats had ended up stuck on the beach and members of the crew were trying to push it out into the water again. Marcus joined a bunch of other men to help push the boat back out into the water. It was hard going with waves pushing the boat back into the beach every time they managed to get it out, but eventually the boat got turned around and they put it out into the bay.
The weather had settled down a little but was still pretty rough, so we decided to move from the "safety" of our cliff and made our way into the middle of the island. There were big muddy puddles everywhere, but there was also a building where we could get out of the rain and wind. There was no power in there though so it was pretty dark and cramped. We were also starting to feel pretty cold. We had our towels (which were soaking wet) but our bags were still on the boat. Marcus decided to head back down to the beach and see what he could do to get our stuff back. He got to the beach and our boat was now also stuck on the beach. It had come ashore to let the old couple out, but then they hadn't been able to float it again. The captain and his man were trying to push the boat out but weren't really getting anywhere. Marcus had a look over the side of the boat and could see why. It was half full of water. That boat was not going to float again. The captain started handing Marcus bags, shoes and anything else that was loose in the boat. Marcus took as much as he could carry, and took it back to the building before making a few more trips with other people's stuff. The boat was listing dangerously on the beach and the captain was
trying to move it from inside but was getting thrown around like a rag doll. He was looking pretty dazed and it was likely that he had hit his head more than once. A few of the other men from the boat had come down to the beach and we started pushing on the boat in the hope that we could get it back into the water in the same way as the ferry earlier. Unfortunately after a long time of pushing and pulling and stripping out everything from the boat to lighten it (including the seats) our boat was not going anywhere. Ironically we should have known that a boat called "U Rip" was probably better called "U Rip Off."
By now the weather had settled down some more and the ferries had started coming back and taking away their passengers. We weren't quite sure what was happening with us, but the impression we got was that we weren't going anywhere, and we might have to stay the night on the island. With a flight out of Thailand the next day, we weren't very happy with the situation. The captain was still wandering around the place trying to encourage people to eat the rice and shrimp lunch which was in the chilly bin from the boat. Marcus decided to tuck in. Might as well get something out of the day. We waited around for a while longer and then all of a sudden one of the other passengers told us to come to the other side of the island because a boat had come to pick us up. Hooray! We grabbed our bag and barefoot (our jandals were long gone) made our way through puddles and pools to the other side of the island. We came to a pool which we had to wade through to get to some stairs on the other side. The stairs took you up and over a stone wall. However, you had to time your trip up the stairs properly, because every time the waves crashed on the other side of the wall a massive blast of water came through a hole, soaking whoever was unlucky enough to be on the stairs. We made it to the top without getting blasted, but what greeted us was not something we had expected. We were at the top of a stone wall where waves were crashing against it below. We were told that if we wanted to get back to the main island the only way was to jump into the thrashing sea and grab a rope which was tied to a boat about 50 metres out in the water. You then had to use the rope to swim across to the boat and haul yourself over the side. The other New Zealand couple from the trip and the old Australian couple weren't having a bar of it. With our flight leaving the next day we had not choice. Fortunately they had a waterproof bag we could put our backpack in to hopefully keep it dry as we swam out to the boat. The sea was thrashing around us as the rope ducked under the waves but eventually we each made it our to the boat. The boat was full of the other passengers from the trip, many of them crying or vomiting over the side as the boat rocked in the rough seas. Eventually the boat started to make its way back to the main island. Fortunately it was a speed boat so it could make it back to the main island in reasonable time. Unfortunately the boat captain was an idiot and decided that this was the best time to be pulling doughnuts in his boat. This did not do anything to help the crying and the vomiting.
We arrived back at the main island, disembarked from the boat and all the people from the tour wandered off. There were no apologies or even acknowledgements from the tour operator of what had happened. We tried to explain to them that there were still people stuck on the island and that they should be doing something to get them back, but the man who must have been the head of the tour company was busy getting his legs massaged and his lackeys weren't interested in talking to us. Eventually we had to give up and made the walk, barefoot, back to our resort. We spent the afternoon feeling pretty annoyed that our multi-stop tour had barely been a one stop tour but pleased that at least we should be able to get to the airport the following day. The weather was still pretty average so we chilled out for what was left of the afternoon, before making one last trip back to the main town for dinner at the place we had eaten the night before. It had been an exhausting day and we had had enough of Ko Phi Phi, so made our way back to our resort to pack our bags for the early ferry ride the next morning.
KO PHI PHI TO PHUKET
We awoke to some pretty miserable weather on our last morning in Ko Phi Phi. There was a steady drizzle and unfortunately the long boats were still not picking us up from our beach, so we had to make our way to the port by foot. Fortunately we could wear shoes for the trip. We made it without event to the port and piled in the boat. It was pretty full of people, but we managed to find some seats on the lower deck. The boat eventually got underway, but the rain and wind had picked up by now. We were pleased for our downstairs seats. Unfortunately the rice and shrimp dish from the day before was a bad move on Marcus' part. After all these weeks on the road travelling and eating foreign food, the stomach bug had finally caught up with him with a vengeance. We were keen for the boat ride to go as quickly as possible. Unfortunately there was another storm which had built out in the main sea and the ferry had to go slowly to safely travel through it. That didn't stop the boat from rocking up and down and left and right. Marcus wasn't the only person on the boat feeling queasy. It didn't help when the water from outside started dripping in through the roof. Our hopes that we would at least stay dry were also in vain. An hour and half longer than it was supposed to be, the ferry finally arrived in Phuket town and we gladly disembarked. We managed to get ourselves onto a shuttle which took us to the airport. We had a long time until our flight left, but with the way Marcus was feeling and the disaster of the last 24 hours we weren't up for any more sight seeing. Instead we hung out at the airport, reading and sleeping until boarding the plane too get us out of Thailand...We weren't in a hurry to come back...
The weather had settled down a little but was still pretty rough, so we decided to move from the "safety" of our cliff and made our way into the middle of the island. There were big muddy puddles everywhere, but there was also a building where we could get out of the rain and wind. There was no power in there though so it was pretty dark and cramped. We were also starting to feel pretty cold. We had our towels (which were soaking wet) but our bags were still on the boat. Marcus decided to head back down to the beach and see what he could do to get our stuff back. He got to the beach and our boat was now also stuck on the beach. It had come ashore to let the old couple out, but then they hadn't been able to float it again. The captain and his man were trying to push the boat out but weren't really getting anywhere. Marcus had a look over the side of the boat and could see why. It was half full of water. That boat was not going to float again. The captain started handing Marcus bags, shoes and anything else that was loose in the boat. Marcus took as much as he could carry, and took it back to the building before making a few more trips with other people's stuff. The boat was listing dangerously on the beach and the captain was
By now the weather had settled down some more and the ferries had started coming back and taking away their passengers. We weren't quite sure what was happening with us, but the impression we got was that we weren't going anywhere, and we might have to stay the night on the island. With a flight out of Thailand the next day, we weren't very happy with the situation. The captain was still wandering around the place trying to encourage people to eat the rice and shrimp lunch which was in the chilly bin from the boat. Marcus decided to tuck in. Might as well get something out of the day. We waited around for a while longer and then all of a sudden one of the other passengers told us to come to the other side of the island because a boat had come to pick us up. Hooray! We grabbed our bag and barefoot (our jandals were long gone) made our way through puddles and pools to the other side of the island. We came to a pool which we had to wade through to get to some stairs on the other side. The stairs took you up and over a stone wall. However, you had to time your trip up the stairs properly, because every time the waves crashed on the other side of the wall a massive blast of water came through a hole, soaking whoever was unlucky enough to be on the stairs. We made it to the top without getting blasted, but what greeted us was not something we had expected. We were at the top of a stone wall where waves were crashing against it below. We were told that if we wanted to get back to the main island the only way was to jump into the thrashing sea and grab a rope which was tied to a boat about 50 metres out in the water. You then had to use the rope to swim across to the boat and haul yourself over the side. The other New Zealand couple from the trip and the old Australian couple weren't having a bar of it. With our flight leaving the next day we had not choice. Fortunately they had a waterproof bag we could put our backpack in to hopefully keep it dry as we swam out to the boat. The sea was thrashing around us as the rope ducked under the waves but eventually we each made it our to the boat. The boat was full of the other passengers from the trip, many of them crying or vomiting over the side as the boat rocked in the rough seas. Eventually the boat started to make its way back to the main island. Fortunately it was a speed boat so it could make it back to the main island in reasonable time. Unfortunately the boat captain was an idiot and decided that this was the best time to be pulling doughnuts in his boat. This did not do anything to help the crying and the vomiting.
We arrived back at the main island, disembarked from the boat and all the people from the tour wandered off. There were no apologies or even acknowledgements from the tour operator of what had happened. We tried to explain to them that there were still people stuck on the island and that they should be doing something to get them back, but the man who must have been the head of the tour company was busy getting his legs massaged and his lackeys weren't interested in talking to us. Eventually we had to give up and made the walk, barefoot, back to our resort. We spent the afternoon feeling pretty annoyed that our multi-stop tour had barely been a one stop tour but pleased that at least we should be able to get to the airport the following day. The weather was still pretty average so we chilled out for what was left of the afternoon, before making one last trip back to the main town for dinner at the place we had eaten the night before. It had been an exhausting day and we had had enough of Ko Phi Phi, so made our way back to our resort to pack our bags for the early ferry ride the next morning.
KO PHI PHI TO PHUKET
We awoke to some pretty miserable weather on our last morning in Ko Phi Phi. There was a steady drizzle and unfortunately the long boats were still not picking us up from our beach, so we had to make our way to the port by foot. Fortunately we could wear shoes for the trip. We made it without event to the port and piled in the boat. It was pretty full of people, but we managed to find some seats on the lower deck. The boat eventually got underway, but the rain and wind had picked up by now. We were pleased for our downstairs seats. Unfortunately the rice and shrimp dish from the day before was a bad move on Marcus' part. After all these weeks on the road travelling and eating foreign food, the stomach bug had finally caught up with him with a vengeance. We were keen for the boat ride to go as quickly as possible. Unfortunately there was another storm which had built out in the main sea and the ferry had to go slowly to safely travel through it. That didn't stop the boat from rocking up and down and left and right. Marcus wasn't the only person on the boat feeling queasy. It didn't help when the water from outside started dripping in through the roof. Our hopes that we would at least stay dry were also in vain. An hour and half longer than it was supposed to be, the ferry finally arrived in Phuket town and we gladly disembarked. We managed to get ourselves onto a shuttle which took us to the airport. We had a long time until our flight left, but with the way Marcus was feeling and the disaster of the last 24 hours we weren't up for any more sight seeing. Instead we hung out at the airport, reading and sleeping until boarding the plane too get us out of Thailand...We weren't in a hurry to come back...
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