Phi Phi Don is the main island where all the accommodation is, and Phi Phi Ley is a marine park that houses one of the worlds most beautiful beaches. Sheer cliffs peppered green by lush vegetation that greets you at every turn.

We found a nice little pension right in the center of town and negotiated a few nights stay. We were happy to finally rest and decided to hit the beach for a nap. After a photo shoot in the shimmering turquoise waters we laid on the soft sand, content.

Right as we were falling asleep, a Canadian man approached us selling his services for a cruise on his sailing yacht around Phi Phi Ley. We listened as he talked but told him we were nearing the end of our trip and unfortunately…Â our funds. He was understanding so he offered us a price we couldn’t refuse. But, we had to meet on his boat in 20 mins. We quickly grabbed what we needed out of our room and boarded. He had the whole day planned out with made lunches and all the cold Chang beer we could drink.

Before we knew it, we were on the boat with 4 other peeps about our age, and were dropped off to swim up to monkey beach with a dry bag full of bananas and a strict warning to stay away from the grown up ones. It was packed full of tourists slinging fruit and as Chels bent down to feed a baby monkey, the angry parent went for her. She high stepped out of the way behind a shocked teenage European kid in rock’n a Speedo. Laughter ensued.

We all swam back to the boat and headed off to do some cliff jumping. The only other guy and I were the first to go. We climbed up the sharp limestone cliffs to a height of about 30 feet and leapt off into the blue waters. As I swam back to the boat, Chelsea jumped in and we swam over for her turn. As we began climbing we were met by a swarm of hissing monkeys. When we looked up further, the swarm was growing and most certainly were telling us we were not welcome. Unlucky for Chels but better to turn back than challenge a pack of pissed off primates.

It was time to sail off to Phi Phi Ley. As we approached, our skipper told us a brief history of

the island. How there is a highly coveted swallow that nests in the high cliffs. The birds spit is sold for around $1000 a gram as it is believed to be an aphrodisiac (…..yea). So for many years the island was a battle ground for this bird spit. There had been mafia type warfare going on for years until the government stepped in and said no mas. They took possession of the island and made

it a marine park. The bird still nests and is still highly valued so “don’t be surprised if we are greeted by a man holding a AK47, but it’s okay.. because he knows me” – says our confident captain. He explained how the birds nest high up in the cliffs and is only accessible by a dangerous climb that claims the life of at least one person a year.

The water was so incredibly beautiful, and the undeveloped island provided a perfect backdrop as we sat on the yacht drinking beer and eating watermelon. We pulled in to a small bay and ate some lunch. Suited up with snorkel gear and swam to shore. Right before I jumped in, I asked Captain Bob what kind of sea life I should look out for? He named a few native fish, sea snakes, Tiger Shark, etc. At the time I guess I wasn’t really listening but looking back I realized, man why didn’t I pay stay in longer… And that thing about the Tiger Sharks being one of the more aggressive brands of fish.

We snorkeled across the bay, spotting “Dory” and even a sea snake before coming to a small cave opening we had to climb through! Suddenly the colors around us changed from crystal blue to piercing green as we trekked through the jungle to find MaYa Bay. We knew we were close when the dirt below us turned to soft pure white sand, and when we emerged onto the beach, it was unreal!! The water was just SOOOOO turquoise, the sand SOOOO white and soft, and barely anyone around! The ONLY disappointing thing was seeing a few boats in the bay. We figured since it was a national park, boats wouldn’t be allowed. BUT still plenty of space to admire the beauty.

Before we knew it, we had to make our way back to the boat to try for a little open-sea fishing! Although we DIDN’T catch anything, we did see a crazy fish swarm/sea gull fight! Along the way, Captain Bob also taught us how to sail the yacht (super cool!) before taking us to a little private beach on the side of Ma Ya bay. This one was teeny tiny but really exotic feeling. The jungle came right up to the sand, with steep cliffs surrounding the sides.

Just when we were hopping back on the boat, a crazy storm suddenly approached, and it just started down-pouring. The 3 girls climbed into the cabin but before we knew it, the hurling wind and rain had passed and we were all jumping off the boat into the warm water! Unfortunately we had to skip the caving part of the trip because of rough waters, but we were all pretty beat by now anyway. The sun was starting to set as we played in a private cove….which gave perfect opportunity for some cool pics!

Eventually it was time to head back, and Bob took couple by couple back to the mainland on his dinghy. Brad and I were last to go, but decided to ask if we could stay to have a beer with him. He was super cool the whole time, letting us bring our ipods to rock out to our

own tunes….so of course he said yes. In retrospect…probably a bad decision haha. We had already had plenty to drink! Anyway, the boat ride made for one incredible…and memorable experience! We felt so privileged to have seen “The Beach”!

The next day was spent wandering the streets of Phi Phi. It’s really small with so many little shops and restaurants. Lots of tourist stuff…but also if you really wander… you can find the local markets with fresh raw fish and veggies galore! We stumbled onto a place that we decided was a MUST to visit later.

BUT tonight was Halloween and Stones was the bar to go to tonight! Right on the beach and offering free BBQ, drink specials and a fire show…it was an easy decision. As we walked down the beach, we noticed it was a huge competition between the bars, with a contest of skeleton sand castles and fire, free giveaways, and lit-up jump ropes. We weren’t terribly anxious to drink, but went for the buy one get one free buckets anyway, and anxiously awaited the fire show. The crowd grew in perfectly sized numbers as everyone chilled out around the fire.

Finally about 4 Thai guys, 1 Thai girl, and 1 white dude painted like a smurf emerged with fire poles and sling-balls to start the show. IT WAS AWESOME!!! The music was perfect with the DJ placed high in a tree house overlooking everyone. The dancers were amazing, especially the smurf-guy!

Somehow we got so lucky with the weather because the day we were leaving was a crazy rainy day! We didn’t leave without going to “Just Noodles”, the little hole-in-the-wall spot in the middle of the local markets we found yesterday! The reason we were attracted to it was because everyone that eats there from around the world leaves a note and hangs it on the wall! EVERYONE said it was the best Pad Thai they ever had…and it WAS!! It was creamier than normal…think she added a bit of coconut milk….but SOOOO good!

A belly full of pad thai is possibly one of the best ways to leave a place…even though we didn’t want to. But I get an easy feeling knowing that Phi Phi, like so many other places we’ve been to, will never have to leave us!

Kho San Road!

We booked a room at New Joes guesthouse, which is located in the back alleyway behind the Kho San. Moderately priced at about 350 baht for a double, with a friendly staff and all the amenities you’d need for a decent stay in the city including: on site travel agency, Thai message, restaurant and bar. Our friend Michael took massage classes here for a few hundred baht and in a week was a certified Thai masseuse.

Amazing Banana Roti!

After chow’n down on 30 baht pad Thai and comforting banana roti we sat down for a few beers in front of some kids break dancing in the street; our new friends Michael and Ron joining us. Our waitress was, how to put this, a pretty young man (ladyboy to be P.C). Despite what one might think about the confusing gender of this person, she was a good waitress and very polite (even when we stared a little).

Beer Tower with New Friends

Two beers quickly turned into four beers as we got to know Michael a little bit more. Our conversation flowed as he told us about his beat-boxing performances on Broadway in New York City. Frequent interruptions of women selling bits and bobs would otherwise been annoying, but we just chalked it up to the “Bangkok experience and laughed it off. The night ended shortly after our second tower of beer and we tucked in to bed dodging thoughts of bed bugs and concentrating on where we were leaving for the next morning… Angkor Wat!

Loving it!

River Kwai Bridge

Train ride!

The 2 hour shuttle ride passed by quickly, and we were immediately dropped off in the heart of town. Brad and I made our way to the famous bridge over River Kwai that the Japanese built through forced slave labor during World War II. On our way we passed a baby tiger and leopard which stole my attention for what could have been hours if Brad didn’t pull me away…not before i got to feed the tiger some milk though! It’s uncanny how similar their mannerisms are to tiny house cats!

Aaanndd the bottle’s empty!

When we did make it to the bridge, it was quite pretty with the extraordinary green surrounding the river (which itself was quite the opposite…brown). Before we knew it, we were being hustled along with the group to hop on the train for a long ride through mountains. It was a super classic-style train, and although it did take ages, it was a nice trip! We eventually arrived at our home for the next 2 days, a floating guesthouse on the river!

Our new home – floating hotel!

We were given a massive amount of food, met our new friends and travel companions, and then headed to Sai Yok Noi waterfall. Some people could only stay 15 minutes, but since Brad and I chose the 2-day trip, we were able to relax and explore the waterfall for about 3 hours. Instead of following everyone up the footpath, we took off our shoes and waded through the water, climbing up the falls ourselves….way more fun! At this point, i was even happier i bought my waterproof camera, because we had tons of fun in the water! I kept my red pants on over my bikini, unsure of who i could offend, but it turns out Thailand is quite liberal! Surrounding the waterfall were caves, markets, temples, and plenty more to explore!

Fun in the waterfall!

Exploring…!

Eventually it was time to return to our floating hotel, where we were fed another scrumptious meal and had a couple beers with friends. We met 2 English girls who we planned to meet up with in Kho Phangan, Michael from Israel who we still keep in touch with, and an Aussie who owned a farm and belong to WOOF! Along with some great conversation came our dessert, Rambutan’s… the weirdest hairiest looking delicious fruit out there!

Rambutan’s!

Our next morning was early, as Brad and I took a long boat ride down the river to bath with the elephants! This was the coolest thing EVER!! We were allowed to hop on the elephants completely barebacked, and go into the water with them. They were just the friendliest animals, especially the little baby! It was swimming around in circles the whole time, coming up to everyone with its trunk to say hello….SO cute The owners kept telling the elephants to dunk down, trying to knock us off, and it completely worked!

Brad being knocked off!

Together!!

I was also able to ride on one just up to the bank of the river, where i was promptly sprayed over and over with water! A really really crazy experience. After it sprayed me a couple times, it would put its trunk up to me to kind of see how i was doing! I didn’t want to leave, but we had so many other things planned for the day, not to mention our 2 hour bus ride home. So we left, watching as the elephants very impressively trotted up this steep hill into the jungle.

Splash!!

Next in line was our bamboo ride down the river. It wasn’t quite as exciting as i thought it was going to be (the agency tricked us with different pictures), but it was relaxing and we were joined by good company! First a speed boat towed us up the river before we detached and floated back down….to our floating hotel! Water was spewing through the bamboo sticks as we went, and we all took turns with the paddle!

Bamboo rafting!

Then we were off to go for an elephant ride, which was really cool, but just didn’t quite compare after bathing with them. We sat in a seat, and slowly trekked through the jungle. It was fun to see the elephants eating everything green in sight…tearing down bushes with their trunks I love their trunks! We also got to chat a bit with our guides, and found out our 8-year-old elephant was his fathers pet before it was handed down to him. Such a different thought, having an elephant as a pet rather than a cat or dog!

Hello again!

After a quick break for ANOTHER delicious meal, our last stop was at a museum that exhibited just how brutal the Japanese were during WWII, and in particular to the Aussies. We saw “Hellfire Pass” where the train tracks were layed in the middle of a carved out mountain! It was really interesting to learn about the other side of WWII, as we do not hear about much in the U.S. with Japan other than Pearl Harbor.

Hellfire Pass

Before we knew it, we were on our way back to Bangkok, and sad to be leaving such a magical place! I highly recommend anybody who goes to Thailand to make it to Kanchanaburi! Only $60 each for accommodation, all meals, museums, waterfall, bamboo ride, elephant ride, and of course the best…. bathing with the elephants! Experience it!

Bye bye!

Thai Airways!

We arrived very early in the morning and as in some places we’ve visited before, Bangkok had energy. Unfortunately for us, we didn’t. We caught the taxi to our CS host, Mai’s apartment in Sukhumvit. She answered the door, still in pajamas looking sleepy, with evidence of a party in the background. As it turned out, her celebratory birthday dinner got a little crazy the night before and had plans to go into work a little late. SO, she went back to bed and Chelsea and I passed out on the amazingly comfortable futon leaving the intro phase till later that night.

Finally – delicious Thai food!

That night we got to know Mai a little bit over some delicious Thai street food in a area set up for vendors with little plastic table and chairs set up besides their portable kitchen. We were really excited since we’d been looking forward to that since the inception of our trip. The service was quick and personal, and the mixed meat and noodle dish did not disappoint, especially the mango and sticky rice for dessert!

Mango and Sticky Rice!

On our way home, we all decided to get Thai Massages!! Yay we had been waiting 6 months to get a massage (it was especially difficult turning down 5 a day on the beach in Santorini!), and the moment had finally come! Mai knew this CHEAP place, only 100 baht, which is just over $3!!! We may have been sketched out if Mai had not been with us. This place was dark with little cubicles to lay in, BUT it ended up being amazing! A Thai massage is more like being stretched out after a work out. The outfits they give you to put on are the coolest too

The next day on our way to the train station to buy tickets to the Cambodian border, we were lured in by a travel agency. A bit skeptical but intrigued enough to listen we sat in there for over 2 hours figuring out plans for what would turn out to be, the next two weeks.

Bootleg Thai massage!

First stop on our tour was Kanchanaburi and this involved an early next morning “bus” to experience the River Kwai and surrounding areas. These new travel plans had us booked for two return trips to Bangkok. Since we had to be up-around 5:00am we opted for a visit to China Town knowing at some point in our returns, we would explore the cities famous attractions. We got lucky picking China town on this particular night, where the vegetarian festival was underway. We took advantage of the street vendors and even caught a glimpse of some ancient Chinese dancing. The night concluded with the long walk back to the sky train.

Tacky Chinese dance!