Thailand Phi Phi Island

Slowly but surely I will get through my Thailand blog posts I promise! On our first day in Thailand we had booked a heap of tours for the next few days and our first tour was the Phi Phi Island boat tour. We had to catch a bus at 5am which wasn't the best time, but considering we were still getting over the awful flight, sleeping early the first night was not very hard. But early mornings mean sunrises, and Thailand sure knows how to put on a good sunrise. 

We made our sleepy way to the dock where we would be leaving from. My biggest regret from Thailand would be not getting the exact names of the tour groups we were on because this one was definitely the best! We sat up the front of the boat with a group of Aussies and the tour guide people were so nice. The boat would be speeding through the ocean and they would just be casually climbing on top and around the sides of the boat, whilst I was sitting there holding on to dear life. 

We stopped at Maya Bay first, which I am sure most of you would know is where The Beach with Leonardo DiCaprio was filmed. I am so happy we stopped here first because it was already pretty crowded and I can't imagine how busy it would have been if we had gone in the middle of the day.

I was playing with my camera settings a lot and that is why the photos are different colours. The photo above is what it actually looked like there. Phi Phi is just awe inspiringly beautiful. White sands and crystal blue waters, I'm sure you've heard it before but you really do have to see it to believe it. 

The best thing about Thailand is that no matter where you go, no matter what time of the day, the water will always be a perfect temperature. 

I so badly wish we stayed longer on Maya Bay. Or that we just did this exact same tour again on a different day. It was literally that good! Free fruit and water all day, we were living like Island Kings and Queens. 

This is the Viking Cave which plays host to the thriving birds nest soup industry. Fun fact: "Edible bird's nests are among the most expensive animal products consumed by humans, with an average nest selling for $2,500 per kilogramme for end-consumers in Asia."

We could only stop for a bit to have a look but it was still pretty spectacular.

Next stop was Monkey Island. I was a bit annoyed because we weren't allowed off the boat. But to be fair it was just a few monkeys eating things that monkeys wouldn't usually eat. 

The island was amazing though.

We had our first swimming stop over before lunch. It was in a section between 3 Islands and there was not much light in there. We jumped off the front of the boat and floated in the water whilst we watched people from another tour climb up the sides of rock walls and then proceed to jump in to the water. 

We stopped off at this lovely island to have our first of a ridiculous amount of buffet meals that we had whilst we were in Thailand. Had my first paw paw salad, found out that they are actually incredibly spicy but still so good. The view as always was just incredible. 

And of course they had perfectly situated swings to really rub in that tropical island effect. 

Hanging out on another swing whilst waiting to go. After lunch we went snorkelling twice. The first time they were basically throwing bread on top of our heads so I had fish running in to me at one point. But at that place a few people started seeing jellyfish so we went to the second place.  Luke didn't snorkel at the second place, so I had a peaceful float just watching the little world underneath me go about it's everyday business. I am so obsessed with snorkelling. Ever since the first time I went at Spoon Bay just out of Sydney I have absolutely loved it. Thailand snorkelling is just out of this world. I have never seen anything like it! After our last snorkel we headed back home.

Back at the resort we rested our exhausted bodies by the pool and watched the sun go down. Still can't get over the fact that we were literally in paradise. 

That night was made even better by the fact that our hotel had an Asian Experience buffet. Which was basically every type of asian food laid out in buffet form. I will never get over my love affair for buffets, or for how much I love Thailand. This place was just beyond amazing.

erica

Thailand First Day

Ok, ok it's time! I have been so busy since Thailand I haven't had a chance to put my photos and words together. And considering the photos are off 2 phones, an SLR, an underwater film camera and a polaroid, it has taken considerably longer then I first thought. 

Now there is a pretty ridiculous story of how I actually got to Thailand. See that passport above? I got that the day I flew out. Because the night before I found out that my old passport was out of date by a whole year! It was probably the most gut wrenching night of my life. If I wasn't able to get a new passport the next day I wouldn't be able to fly out that night, would have to pay for a whole new flight and Luke would have had to flown out alone and spend the next couple of days by himself. 

Tuesday came, and it was the most stressful day. I was up as early as possible calling the passport office. There were no bookings available for today but she told me I could go there and try my luck. I caught the train straight in and spent my whole morning in this passport office. When I got through I was told that if I could get someone who wasn't family to come in and help me fill all the papers out there was a chance I could get a new passport that day! I called up Luke and he had to leave work early, yada yada yada I GOT A NEW PASSPORT!

So please learn from my ridiculously stupid mistake and CHECK YOUR PASSPORTS!!

We made it! Said our goodbyes at the airport. Bought a heap of alcohol to pick up when we came back and on our flights we went. 

I don't sleep on planes. Our flight was 9:45pm - 7:00am, with a midnight 2hr stopover in Malaysia. Where we ate these ridiculously spicy crepes and aged 20 years in the smoking rooms. The longer flight was good, we had a spare seat next to us which was nice. But other then that my advice to you would be, do not fly Air Asia for a longer then 3hr trip unless you really do not have the money. I didn't know chairs could even be that close together, apparently they can.

The first thing that happens to you after you walk out of customs is that you get yelled at, and it's scary. All you want to do is get a cab and go to your hotel, but what you get is 8 men yelling at you to pick their cab company, grabbing you, pulling you, it's a nightmare. Then you get on the roads, thats where the real nightmare begins. The way Thai people drive is just incredible. The lines on the road are merely decoration, 2 lane roads are actually 3 and a two person moped can fit as many people as you like if you are creative enough. I saw mums riding mopeds with little children wrapped around her like baby possums, packs of men sitting on the edge of utes barely even holding on, and of course everyone is going as fast as possible. But then again I can't argue with how quickly we got to our hotel from the airport. Still beats Sydney traffic. 

Our hotel was beyond amazing. My best friend bought this deal on groupon but was unable to go so she sold it to us. It was $220 for 7 nights at a spa resort! The Mangosteen Resort and Spa to be specific. And Luke and I felt like absolute royalty!

The room was huge with a balcony overlooking the water and an outdoor rain shower! Even the bed was huge! The first day we decided to stay at our new home away from home for the day and kickstart our relaxation. The deal came with a free 30min massage, which we then updated to an hour. I am pretty sure I was asleep for most of it, but for what I remember it was pretty relaxing/ painful. I am not really that big on massages, I am more of a back scratch kind of girl. I would actually pay someone to professionally scratch my back. But Luke loves a massage so we did the hour long one, it was dead cheap. But then again, money is different when you are overseas.

Our first lunch in Thailand, Luke has Pad Thai and I had some sort of stuffed crabs. I can't say my dish was that amazing, I had this weird taste in my mouth for literally the whole day. But Luke's was great!

We spent the day by the amazing pool drinking coconuts and Singha's and eating our free fruit platter of tiny fruits. 

And then we ate again. Salt and pepper shrimp as an entree which was actually on special that night and were exquisite! 

And for mains I caved and got the Pad Thai and Luke got the Beef Pad See Ew.

Just a heads up, Neither Luke or myself got sick the entire time we were in Thailand because we were super safe with what we ate and drank. If you are going to Thailand any time in the near future, first of all be careful because there is a bit of political turmoil going on at the moment, but also here are some simple rules to follow in regards to what you eat and drink whilst you are there. 

• Avoid chicken, unless it is in soups because it has been boiled. 
• Avoid salad because they wash it in their water. (This was the hardest for me)
• Don't get ice in your drink
• Avoid cocktails
• Avoid any alcohol that doesn't come from a bottle that you can open yourself. 
• At clubs and bars they tend to put methanol in their drinks, be especially careful if you go out and only drink from bottles. 
• If they have already opened the bottle, unless you see them open it, give it back. They often reuse bottles, empty out the beer and mix it with water to make more money. There is a reason drinks at clubs are so cheap. 
• Stick to seafood, its usually the safest option when you are out.

If I can think of more I will make sure to add them to this list. More thailand posts coming soon. Sorry for the slow first post, we had a pretty slow, relaxing start to Thailand. 

erica