Note: This post was really hard to write. I was very tempted to just link to the photos I took and let them speak for themselves. Very tempted.

20 Oct – Phi Phi Island

Owing to a “headache” brought on by the activity pictured to the right, P did not join me for today’s activities. She apparently went for a walk, got massages and had a good time on her own. I know she likes to have some time on her own, so that was fine. But she did miss out on some awesome sights.

So, I got up at the crack of dawn to catch a ride down to the marina for to get on a speed boat out to Phi Phi Island. I was grouped up with two Aussie couples amongst the 30 or so people on our boat. The first portion of our tour took us to the part of of Phi Phi that is favoured by Hollywood location scouts. Our guide, Pong, spent a lot of time showing us where location shots for Tomorrow Never dies were filmed, and especially The Beach. I thought that particular beach somewhat ruined by the excessive tourism. There was a lot of rubbish marring the beautiful water (and yet people were still swimming in it!) and it was really crowded.

I was relieved to move on and check out Viking (or Bird’s Nest) cave and the aptly named Monkey Beach. Viking cave is the site of some major money making. It is the roosting place for some birds that produce the core ingredient for that Chinese delicacy, bird’s nest soup. The Thai government pays a small group of people to live there full time and harvest the nests once they are abandoned by the birds.

From there, we went out into the bay for a spot of snorkeling. This was my first time, and I will definitely do more of it. While my Nikon D60 wasn’t up to swimming, I had the foresight to purchase a more durable disposable camera, which got some decent shots.

After snorkeling was lunch at one of the local resorts. I would like to stop at this point and just mention that alcohol in Thailand is almost as cheap as soft drink. A large bottle of beer was only a couple of bucks, and I never paid more than about $8 for a cocktail. And they really know how to make cocktails right over there.

Lunch was followed by some relaxing on Bamboo Island. Some went back in the water, some went for walks. Myself, I took a few photos and then took a short but refreshing nap on the beach.

That night, P and I went out for an awesome seafood dinner (have I mentioned how cheap it is to eat like a king?), some quick shopping, and then a massage. In addition to massage, I got my hair braided:

Hilarious. I also picked up a sweet hat.

Next up: Last day in Phuket – we do some touristy things.