We arrived in coastal Southern Thailand on the evening of January 25th, with nowhere to stay and a laundry list of sights we wanted to see. By the time the following morning rolled around, we were on a minibus to Ko Lanta, which is a large, gorgeous, and mellow island in the Andaman Sea. When we arrived, it took us at least an hour of walking to find a magnificent little $15/night bungalow with an outdoor shower just off the beach. The sun was on the verge of setting while we were checking in, and after a mad scramble to get the packs in the room and pick up supplies from 7-11 (oddly, that store is all over this country) we were on the beach watching the multicolored orb descend into the sea, sipping home-made celebratory island cocktails.
The following day was a magnificent day of relaxation. We spent the whole morning on the beach, swimming, floating in the water, reading, and napping in the shade. We decided that since we were in the shade, there was no reason to apply sunscreen. Whoops. That mistake had implications for 5 painful days. Stupid. Oh well, lesson learned. We really did nothing else that day except relax and watch another sunset. And I finished Life of Pi, which is a glorious book that everyone should read.
The following day, urged on by feelings of guilt over the previous day's lethargy, we rented a motorbike to tour the island. We found a multitude of different size and shape beaches, separated by rocky outcrops, each bordered by a smattering of bungalows or restaurants. It was a blast moving along at our own pace and stopping to examine the beaches on a whim. And, of course, Matt and I both LOVED to drive the motorbike.
Afterwards, we stopped for dinner with Bendigo and Stephanie. I hadn't seen Bendigo since I left Jamaica and it was lovely to be able to catch up with him. As we ate, firedancers came out on the beach to perform and left us spellbound.
The following morning, we hopped the early ferry to Ko Phi Phi, where "The Beach" was filmed. We found the island to be just as stunning as we had heard. Where there wasn't a rocky cliff jutting up out of greenery, there was a silky, white sand beach sinking into translucent teal water.
As soon as we finished checking into a hotel room (think wicker box with no lid, turned upside-down on wooden slats, with no bathroom) I was heading to the beach in my suit with my snorkel. The guidebook referred to the beach we were staying as having "deluxe sand and polychromatic marine life," so I knew I had to get out there immediately. I used to snorkel frequently in Jamaica and became quite fond of it. Tripod would frequently join me on those ventures, but that's another story. It was lovely to get in the water again, and I could hardly believe that there could be such a variety of marine life so close to shore in a tourist area.
As I snorkelled, I saw angelfish, scorpionfish, parrotfish, as well as many others that I couldn't recognize. I snorkelled for about a half hour before arriving at a rocky outcrop where I could rest. There were two other snorkelers there so I asked how they were doing and if they had seen anything good. "Just the sharks," they replied. "Sharks?!" "Yeah, the sharks. This is Shark Point! Were you swimming with your eyes closed?!" As I followed them back towards shore, I made sure to scan the periphery of my vision, instead of investigating the little rocky nooks below me. And sure enough, there were sharks! I saw two black-tipped reef sharks! They weren't too big or too nearby, so I didn't feel threatened. Also, there were several other people snorkeling and if everyone knew the sharks were ravenous man-eaters, I would have been the only fool in the water. Needless to say, I survived the self-absorbed sharks. That evening, Matt and I walked along the beach to the main town where we asked about scuba diving opportunities before taking a boat back to our hotel (There were no motorized vehicles on the island).
The small island of Ko Phi Phi Don (wiki) was devastated during the tsunami. There is sandy isthmus where the shops and sunbathing areas are concentrated and waves met there coming from both sides of the island. Of approximately 10,000 people who were on the island on December 26th, 2004 roughly 2,000 were killed. Over half of those bodies were never recovered.
The following morning, we packed our stuff, checked out of the hotel and had breakfast. Then I was back in the water again since the ferry wasn't until 2:30. And I saw sharks again! About a dozen this time, with the largest looking to be about four feet long. I also saw a tiny octopus (I swam down to make sure) before I had to run back up the beach to leave.
After we arrived in Phuket, we hopped a bus to Khao Lak, where we signed up for the dive we wanted before heading to bed. The following morning, we were up early and on the shuttle (the back of a truck) to the boat. We went out with Big Blue Diving Company to Richelieu Rock, because we heard it was one of the best dive sites around (wiki: Similan Islands). I was anxious at first since the only times I had been diving were as part of my certification over nine months previously, but all my worries floated away as soon as I hit the water. We completed two dives that day and the marine life was gorgeous. I had never been so deep (20 meters!) and the density and variety of aquatic life far exceeded anything I'd seen before.
After diving, we headed back to Khao Lak to shower, eat, and chill out for the rest of the day. The following morning, we were on a bus to Kokkloi, then Krabi where we tried to finish some last minute chores before leaving the country. We were terribly unsuccessful. So the next afternoon when we arrived in Bangkok with an eight hour layover before our flight to Delhi, we headed into the city one more time. We spent a few hours eying up souvenirs, haggling over t-shirts, buying & selling books, and munching on cheap pad thai before heading back to the airport.
Soon, Matt, Laird, Brad and I were all talking about how this giant world seems amazingly tiny sometimes. After a brief chat and some hugs, Matt and I jogged back to the gate just in time and finally boarded our plane to Delhi.
The following day was a magnificent day of relaxation. We spent the whole morning on the beach, swimming, floating in the water, reading, and napping in the shade. We decided that since we were in the shade, there was no reason to apply sunscreen. Whoops. That mistake had implications for 5 painful days. Stupid. Oh well, lesson learned. We really did nothing else that day except relax and watch another sunset. And I finished Life of Pi, which is a glorious book that everyone should read.
The following day, urged on by feelings of guilt over the previous day's lethargy, we rented a motorbike to tour the island. We found a multitude of different size and shape beaches, separated by rocky outcrops, each bordered by a smattering of bungalows or restaurants. It was a blast moving along at our own pace and stopping to examine the beaches on a whim. And, of course, Matt and I both LOVED to drive the motorbike.
Afterwards, we stopped for dinner with Bendigo and Stephanie. I hadn't seen Bendigo since I left Jamaica and it was lovely to be able to catch up with him. As we ate, firedancers came out on the beach to perform and left us spellbound.
The following morning, we hopped the early ferry to Ko Phi Phi, where "The Beach" was filmed. We found the island to be just as stunning as we had heard. Where there wasn't a rocky cliff jutting up out of greenery, there was a silky, white sand beach sinking into translucent teal water.
As soon as we finished checking into a hotel room (think wicker box with no lid, turned upside-down on wooden slats, with no bathroom) I was heading to the beach in my suit with my snorkel. The guidebook referred to the beach we were staying as having "deluxe sand and polychromatic marine life," so I knew I had to get out there immediately. I used to snorkel frequently in Jamaica and became quite fond of it. Tripod would frequently join me on those ventures, but that's another story. It was lovely to get in the water again, and I could hardly believe that there could be such a variety of marine life so close to shore in a tourist area.
As I snorkelled, I saw angelfish, scorpionfish, parrotfish, as well as many others that I couldn't recognize. I snorkelled for about a half hour before arriving at a rocky outcrop where I could rest. There were two other snorkelers there so I asked how they were doing and if they had seen anything good. "Just the sharks," they replied. "Sharks?!" "Yeah, the sharks. This is Shark Point! Were you swimming with your eyes closed?!" As I followed them back towards shore, I made sure to scan the periphery of my vision, instead of investigating the little rocky nooks below me. And sure enough, there were sharks! I saw two black-tipped reef sharks! They weren't too big or too nearby, so I didn't feel threatened. Also, there were several other people snorkeling and if everyone knew the sharks were ravenous man-eaters, I would have been the only fool in the water. Needless to say, I survived the self-absorbed sharks. That evening, Matt and I walked along the beach to the main town where we asked about scuba diving opportunities before taking a boat back to our hotel (There were no motorized vehicles on the island).
The small island of Ko Phi Phi Don (wiki) was devastated during the tsunami. There is sandy isthmus where the shops and sunbathing areas are concentrated and waves met there coming from both sides of the island. Of approximately 10,000 people who were on the island on December 26th, 2004 roughly 2,000 were killed. Over half of those bodies were never recovered.
This is not my picture, it's just an example of a black-tipped reef shark from cyberspace.
This one's an adult, the one's I saw were juveniles.
This one's an adult, the one's I saw were juveniles.
The following morning, we packed our stuff, checked out of the hotel and had breakfast. Then I was back in the water again since the ferry wasn't until 2:30. And I saw sharks again! About a dozen this time, with the largest looking to be about four feet long. I also saw a tiny octopus (I swam down to make sure) before I had to run back up the beach to leave.
After we arrived in Phuket, we hopped a bus to Khao Lak, where we signed up for the dive we wanted before heading to bed. The following morning, we were up early and on the shuttle (the back of a truck) to the boat. We went out with Big Blue Diving Company to Richelieu Rock, because we heard it was one of the best dive sites around (wiki: Similan Islands). I was anxious at first since the only times I had been diving were as part of my certification over nine months previously, but all my worries floated away as soon as I hit the water. We completed two dives that day and the marine life was gorgeous. I had never been so deep (20 meters!) and the density and variety of aquatic life far exceeded anything I'd seen before.
After diving, we headed back to Khao Lak to shower, eat, and chill out for the rest of the day. The following morning, we were on a bus to Kokkloi, then Krabi where we tried to finish some last minute chores before leaving the country. We were terribly unsuccessful. So the next afternoon when we arrived in Bangkok with an eight hour layover before our flight to Delhi, we headed into the city one more time. We spent a few hours eying up souvenirs, haggling over t-shirts, buying & selling books, and munching on cheap pad thai before heading back to the airport.
We still arrived three hours early for our flight so we had wasted a bit of extra time before discovering our flight was delayed. My pent up energy, anxiety to finally get to India, and frustration sent me ambling all over the airport. After walking nowhere for a half hour, I stumbled upon an internet cafe, and when I stepped in to ask their rates, I met face to face with someone, and my jaw dropped. So did his. It was Laird Hayward.
The pictures in this post are: the post-sunset light show on Ko Lanta, fire dancers, two shots of Ko Phi Phi, a stolen reef shark, and Matt & I in the water.
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