Sawasdee ka!
(if you guessed that that means hello in Thai, you are correct)
I've been in Australia for 8 months (whoa!) and I finally made it to Asia. It was worth the wait. Linnea and I had a great time island hopping in Southern Thailand. The food was good, the scenery was beautiful, and there were outdoor adventures aplenty. It wasn't all sunshine and rainbows as our trip included doses of Thai tummy, Dengue fever, sunburn, and jet lag. There is a silver lining to the nearly inevitable unplanned hardships of a trip in another country: they often make for a better story. I'm going to take you day-by-day on our trip with us and fill you in on the good and the bad of our 9 days in Krabi province.
Before starting, I'll fill you in on a few basics. Phuket is pronounced poo-ket. It's a rainforest-covered island in the southern part of Thailand that's outlined with beautiful beaches on the Andaman Sea. It's further from Melbourne than you would expect; a direct flight takes close to 9 hours. If you're wondering how we decided what to do during our trip, we leaned heavily on two Lonely Planet books, Pocket Phuket and Thailand's Islands and Beaches, that I picked up on Gumtree (Australia's Craigslist). This was the first trip that I depended on guidebooks and they proved immeasurably useful. I will be traveling with them again in the future.
Day 1: First Day in Phuket
The night before we were supposed to leave for our trip, we got an email from the budget airline (Jetstar) that we were taking to get to Thailand letting us know that our flight was delayed by 11 hours. Instead of arriving at 8pm on Friday night, we arrived at 7am on Saturday morning. This meant that we ended up having to sleep on the plane, which is never an ideal start to a trip. Oh well. That's what Thai iced coffees are for. If you've never had a Thai iced coffee, order one as soon as possible. It's espresso, sweetened condensed milk, and ice. If that doesn't wake you up, I don't know what will. Plus, the sweetened condensed milk means it tastes like candy. Delicious.
Upon arrival, we needed cash because many things are cash only. Due to a conversion rate that makes mental math difficult (currently 1 USD = 35.6 Thai Baht), we were rich! Or so we thought. We each took out 5,000 THB; that many zeroes in a number makes it seem really big, but it is only ~$140USD. Throughout the trip, we would find out that 5,000 THB goes a long way. In fact, our first lunch in Thailand (2 beers, 2 mains) was under 300 Baht. That's under 9 US dollars!
We stayed in Phuket Town our first couple of nights, which is the oldest part of the island. The architecture is Sino-Portuguese, meaning it combines architectural elements from eastern and western cultures. It makes wandering around the city very enjoyable, which is what we did after getting settled into our hotel (The Rommanee Classic Guesthouse, highly recommended). After getting food and a feel for the city, we had to make our way to Patong, where we had booked a cooking class and a show. Patong is party central on Phuket Island and is teeming with people who want you to participate in the debauchery that they are selling, including entry to the infamous "ping pong shows." We weren't there to party - we wanted to learn to cook. At the cooking school (Pum Thai Cooking School) we learned how to make gaeng kheo wan gai (green curry with chicken), tom kha gai (chicken in coconut milk soup), and tom yum goong (hot and sour prawn soup). All were tasty and we were sent home with a Thai cookbook to try it on our own at home. After dinner, we made our way to the Simon Caberet to finish our night with an hour of ladyboys singing and dancing. Very entertaining.
Day 2: Motorbiking across Phuket
If you haven't been to Southeast Asia, you may not be aware that there are motorbikes everywhere. There are so many people riding them and it seems dangerous at first. Some of them are daredevils, driving quite recklessly, but the majority are taking their time to get to their destination safely. At least that's what I told myself when we rented our first motorbike.
We spend our second day in Thailand bombing around the island on a motorbike. I had ridden mopeds in my neighborhood growing up and recently rented a motorbike in New Zealand to do some exploring, but it's much different to be riding one in traffic. It's also different to have someone else occupying the "back seat" of the bike, but it's a positive difference. Linnea in the back acted as a second pair of eyes and a navigator, which allowed me to focus on driving. Once we got a hang of driving and navigating, tooling around on the motorbike was a ton of fun. It gave us an inexpensive way to see whatever we wanted for as long as we desired. If you're in a country with a lot of motorbikers and you're comfortable driving one, I would say go for it. Just stay all the way to the left (yes, they drive on the left in Thailand), wear eye protection, and don't drink alcohol.
We got to tick a few things off with the freedom of a bike. We saw Big Buddha, which is an aptly-named gigantic statue of Buddha that can be seen from much of Phuket island. Like all religious places in Thailand, it is rude to show too much skin (no bare shoulders, shorts must be down to knees at least) at Big Buddha. The more touristy places will offer sarongs for people to use to cover up, but you need to be prepared if visiting somewhere sacred, especially on a hot day. That reminds me of another Thailand etiquette tip: there are a lot of places where it is rude to wear shoes, including in homes, hotels, and family-run businesses. Anyway, at Big Buddha, we did what you do at huge statues: you take a selfie.
Another stop on our motorbike trip was an elephant sanctuary. We rode an elephant. Not that I didn't already know it, but they are HUGE. I'm fairly confident that the elephant we rode didn't notice that we were there.
Days 3 & 4: Ko Phi Phi
Time to head to our first island! While technically Phuket is an island, it's big enough that it doesn't feel like it. Ko Phi Phi, or the Phi Phi Islands (pronounced 'pee pee,' unfortunately), are a group of islands just over an hour ferry ride from Phuket. When researching Phi Phi, the two words that came up most frequently were hedonistic and beautiful. Correct on both counts. After arriving via ferry, we weaved our way through the town to make our way to the hostel (Phi Phi Ingphu Viewpoint, not recommended). On our way, we saw bar after bar advertising drink specials, beer pong nights, and something called a "bucket." We would later learn that "bucket" is not a misnomer. It's a small plastic bucket like a child might use to build sand castles. Instead of containing water and sand, however, it is filled to the brim with a noxious-seeming mixture of cheap liquor and sugary drink. We did not participate in the consumption of any buckets, but we certainly enjoyed watching people muster the courage to finish theirs while wandering the streets.
We weren't on Phi Phi to practice hedonism; we wanted to enjoy the beauty of the islands. So, of course, we got a foot massage. I had never had a massage before and my feet are very ticklish, so I wasn't hopeful that I was going to enjoy the experience. I have beat my feet up quite a bit, though, through running and playing basketball, so I figured it was worth a shot. It turns out that a foot massage is equal parts painful and relaxing. I did not enjoy it. One moment something would feel really good, then the next my masseuse would do something that either hurt quite a bit or put me on the verge of a foot cramp (which, if you haven't experienced one, is agony). I was asked me a dozen times if I was okay by both Linnea and my masseuse, and I responded with a yes through gritted teeth every time. Each time I looked at Linnea she inexplicably seemed to be enjoying herself. Maybe it's just a "me thing" but I don't understand foot massages...
Let's get back to enjoying the beauty of the islands. When we arrived on Phi Phi we booked spots on an all-day tour of the surrounding islands on a longtail boat. We climbed aboard with 20 others assigned to be our friends for the day. The other folks on the boat turned out to be from all over the world: Hungary, France, Spain, the UK, and Australia. Several languages were being spoken on the boat, but luckily for us everyone spoke English when communicating with someone who they didn't come with. However, we weren't on the boat to chat up our co-seafarers. We were there to swim, snorkel, and (most importantly) see monkeys, all of which we got to do. After spending a full day looking at them, I can confidently say that the Phi Phi Islands are stunning. The water is a lovely colour somewhere in between blue and green and clear enough to see the bottom 10 meters down. The islands themselves have craggy limestone cliffs dotted with greenery lining all sides, with the only break in the cliffs being absolutely bodacious beaches. Spending the day on the water and in the sun was exhausting, but I wouldn't hesitate to do it again to get the chance to enjoy the scenery again.
We did one more notable thing on Ko Phi Phi: we had a bunch of tiny fish eat the dead skin off our feet. Yes, it sounds weird and I agree that the claim that this "improves circulation" seems gimmicky. Health benefits or not, it was way more fun than I expected. Those fish really get after your feet and legs. Immediately upon putting my feet in the tank, they started nibbling away and I began laughing. It felt funny and tickled enough that I thought I might not stop laughing the whole time we were there. I was able to calm down, but never stopped enjoying the "doctor fish." Highly recommended.
Day 6: Ko Lanta
We only spent one night on Ko Lanta, but I would have loved to spend more. It felt less touristy and more chilled out than Ko Phi Phi, which was a very nice change of pace. We also had air conditioning (Thailand tip: always get a place with air conditioning if you want to get decent sleep) at our place (Luna Sea, highly recommended) so we were able to get a bit of rest. We again rented a motorbike and cruised along the coast until we found a beach that we liked. I enjoyed a beer while reading my book and watching the sunset and Linnea got a massage next to the beach. Lovely!
We did learn one important lesson during our time on Ko Lanta: don't motorbike home in the dark outside of a city. We did that, not realising how little light there would be. I spent the whole ride home white-knuckling the handlebars of the bike while riding slowly. We will not make that mistake again.
Days 7 & 8: Tonsai Beach
Tonsai Beach was our last destination before having to head back to Phuket Island. It was also the most remote, as it cannot be reached by car. It's on the mainland but surrounded by cliffs, so the only way to get to Tonsai Beach is by boat. We had read that Tonsai Beach is hippie central, and our experience confirmed that. At one point, we saw a group of girls approach an employee at our hostel (Chillout Bungalows, not recommended) and give him money. He disappeared for a few minutes and then returned to give them a joint. Weed is not legal in Thailand, so the hostels and bars in Tonsai Beach have become drug dealers on top of the other services they offer.
As I'm writing this, I'm realising that this trip was filled with spectacular sunsets. They of course make good photographs, but the photograph never seems to quite capture what it looked like in person. I say this because the best sunset of the trip was on Tonsai beach. On our first evening there, we relaxed at a bar on the beach with a few beers and were treated to a gorgeous sunset. To make it even better, a guy base jumped from a cliff right above us and landed safely on the beach as the sun dipped into the ocean.
Tonsai Beach is not only known for being a hippie haven. It's more well-known for being a great place to rock climb, so we booked a half day of climbing with a local guide. Let me get this out of the way before going into more detail about climbing: Linnea is a better climber than me. It's not even close. She kicked my butt out there. Luckily, she was nice enough to show me the ropes (get it...ropes...because we're climbing...) because this was the first time I had ever rock climbed outdoors. Most of my previous experience was at a climbing gym in Madison with my monkey of a former roommate, Jared (who, coincidentally, was in Tonsai Beach a few months before us). After getting over my initial fear, I had a great time climbing. The limestone made for good holds and our guide made me feel comfortable. My climbing form is not very good, so I tired myself out pretty quick, but I would love to climb outdoors again the next time I have a chance.
Climbing wasn't the only available outdoor activity. There were nearly always kayakers paddling around the bay and to the nearby rock formations. Renting a kayak seemed like an excellent way to spend the morning before we had to get on a ferry back to Phuket Island, and it turned out to be very scenic.
While beautiful, this kayaking trip was also proof that we may need to change our accommodation in Phuket that night. Linnea had begun to feel pretty sick and didn't have the energy to kayak, which is something that she normally likes to do. She had gotten quite a few mosquito bites right when we arrived on Tonsai Beach, which is something that you want to avoid when in Thailand because they can carry diseases. When she realised how sick she was feeling, we decided that she had contracted Dengue fever. It's nothing to be alarmed about if the symptoms aren't bad, but you should definitely get some rest to let your body fight the virus. Couple her sickness with the fact that we hadn't showered in a couple of days (the bathroom in our hostel was disgusting) and hadn't been sleeping well (no air conditioning in a hot, humid climate makes for bad sleeping conditions) and we decided we'd be much happier not staying in a cheap place for our last night in Thailand.
Day 9: Resort in Phuket
It turns out that, just like the US Dollar, the Marriott point goes far in Thailand. We found a resort (Nai Yang Beach Resort) that costs a very reasonable number of points (35,000 per night, if you're wondering) and spent our last night there. What a dramatic change it was to be at a resort. In the morning, we had checked out of a hostel where taking a shower would have made you less clean. In the evening, we checked into a place where we were given a soothing tea upon arrival and were delivered to our room using a golf cart. We even had our own cabana! It was a welcome change after we weren't feeling great. We spent our last day sitting by the beach and pool being waited on at the resort, which was a relaxing end to an otherwise action-packed trip.