Jan 2009

Arrived in Phang Nga town - a sleepy village tucked in between the vast craggy karst mountain ranges that make up this area. After a few hits 'n misses we finally settle on a place to stay - Therwisik hotel, dirt cheap (150 Baht) and looks like a semi-converted prison. But its clean, which for this price, is really the only thing you hope for. Wandering around town we stumble upon the Heaven & Hell caves - a mean fiery looking fiberglass dragon guarding its entrance. Intrepidly we enter the realm of the dragon and approach a massive deep humid cavern stacked with Buddha shrines in every nook & cranny - Heaven? Eerie! The Hell part comes quickly thereafter - a still play of giant plaster ghouls caught in the act of torturing people in all kind of intricate ways. Some of it so perversely graphic it would definitely not make PGR rating anywhere =). Curiously, a local monk goes around and collects money from the tortured ones who also, as it happen, double up as donation boxes - intriguing.

Next morning we meet up with our driver for the low budget longtail trip we arranged earlier - to the mangrove maze forests and limestone formations that this part of the bay is well known for - it's a popular outing around here. Meandering thru many mangrove alleyways and several hongs (limestone passageways that eroded away by the waves) we set course for the bay's most celebrated island - Kao Tapoo (James Bond Island), with in its bay a peculiar rocky outcrop that is vaguely reminiscent of an icecream cone, aptly named Khao Taper (needle rock). James Bond purists will recognize this spot as Scaramanga's hideout from the 'Man with Golden Gun' movie. Not surprisingly, the place is teeming with day trippers making it the last place on earth any villain would choose to hide his affairs =).

On our way back we stop in at Koh Panyee, a local authentic Muslim fishing village on stilts that floats around a limestone outcrop. Reeling with souvenir shops selling all kinds of paraphernalia that nobody really wants its hard to imagine what makes this place authentic, though we did almost end up with a nappie-crapping baby gibbon on our trails…

Once back in Krabi from Koh Phi Phi we stayed the night to explore Krabi town proper. Found the outdoor food market where Guido tried the strangest looking concoction on display and spent considerable time picking his way through the minute bones that pervaded throughout the whole dish. Curious as to what he'd eaten - he asks..."frog" replies the vendor, mimicking the amphibian kind using his hand in bunny hopping fashion. We stroll along the pier marveling at the karst cliffs & mangroves that predominate the krabi area - a stunning backdrop indeed. We felt like having a big night since beer is so cheap here (compared to Koh Phi Phi at least) but were surprisingly denied at the pub - King's Birthday, the whole country is on dry. The next morning we head to the pier to catch a long tail boat out to Railay, waiting for a while for the boat to fill up with people going the same way. As it turns out most of our crew were rock climbers anyway (surprise, surprise), all heading past Railay for the next bay over, Ton Sai Bay. Apparently more mellow, less crowded and still only a few minute walk to the other Railay bays and Phra Nang - we're easy ...and sold.

Around the bay we go, subsequently passing East Railay, Phra Nang and West Railay bay, people scattered everywhere along the beaches, palm fringed shores, lush jungle inland, small islands dotting the sea...and Ton Sai - a little gem in the midst with bamboo shacks reaching out from among the palm trees. We dump our packs and explore - encountering a troop of gorgeous tree dwelling black fluffy gibbons. As we explore the inland dirt track slowly a community unravels. Back to basics and thoroughly welcomed - an enclave of rock climbers and chillers embracing the much slower pace of life, lounging on axe pillows and rattan mats...to lie on, read and drink the days away - we avidly adapt to this new way of life for the foreseeable future.

Hammocks, swings, the inevitable climbers balancing on slack lines, learning fire dancing amid the white sandy beach that is surrounded by mammoth vertical limestone cliffs... we have to come back just for the climbing! We find the perfect bungalow right at the beach @ the Chill out bar. Another Bob Marley outfit (its hard to escape Bob Marley and pancakes on these islands) but with the perfect bamboo chill out platforms. Our bungalow is a mere 2x2 meters and only just fits a futon, a bedside table, light and a power plug next to a small window that overlooks the greenery out the back. Simplistic but equally brilliant. The bar is made of bamboo and driftwood and in fact so is everything else, with empty beer bottles as garden walls. Even the communal showers and toilets are richly decorated with sea shells. You must get very innovative when you're living on a secluded bay with all the time in the world. The shower is a through used to pour water over yourself. We relax on our stranded boat that has since been converted into a lounge platform - a spot we spend much of our time on over the next week. After all, once you've found paradise, why move?

At night the beach bars come alive with lanterns and small beach fires lighting the way to entice you in. We have some Changs at various bars and eventually settle at the Chill Out bar, where we meet Mattias and Monica - bold travelers from cold Sweden. Keen to do some climbing we agree to meet up the following day. Up early and feeling the Changover, we head inland to buffet brekkie. Delicious waffles drenched in chocolate and condensed milk, fresh fruit, omelets...the list goes on and on...we made a pretty good effort at it =) but obviously way overdid it as we couldn't lift a finger until noon. M & M drag us off to the cliffs @ east Railay. Stunning crags looking out over the bays, darn popular too! On our last climb, the sun had already set and so had to find our way back to Ton Sai in the pitch black via a steep jungle track. Not entirely uneventful if one of your team has a severe snake phobia and all vines look like exactly that in total darkness. Finally we scramble home for a much deserved dinner and sink our teeth in a delicious Massaman (Muslim) curry.

The all you can eat brekkie becomes sort of a routine - it's just too good and M & M decide to join in. This is always followed by a near coma on our lounge boat near the beach until lunchtime and every second day we move. M & M meet for some further exploration - we clamber over the the rocks to West Railay then East Railay and climb up to the viewpoint, which looks out over both bays. Heading down the cliffs to the lagoon with Mattias as our probe - the lagoon turns empty and we all save our efforts. Phra Nang beach - apparently the best stretch of sand in the area surrounded by even more limestone cliffs (where do they all come from?) and home to the Princess cave. Swimming in crystal clear water, drinking fruit shakes from the longtail boats which, for the occasion, have been turned into mobile cafes - excellent!. Later we meet for more beers - it's great to have drinking buddies again =). By 1.30am we're ready for a true beach party...but the only place open is Viking Bar, which is having an ipod party..how random.

We break tradition and have yummy sticky rice drenched in coconut milk with mango for brekkie. Shortly followed by seafood pad thai, our staple diet it seems. Hiring a sit on top kayak we paddle out to Koh Poda island on the horizon. It looked close enough from the beach but its vicinity is cunningly deceptive, darn! The island is stunning though and surrounded by azure blue water the color of Bombay sapphire gin. There's even a longtail selling fruit shakes on the beach, how convenient. We also bump into M & M who, coincidentally, had the same plan (this becomes quite the recurring theme, stalkers!). Appreciating the scenery we paddle off to Chicken island next door for some insanely good snorkeling. Huge coral beds, brain coral, trumpet coral, small reef sharks... A large black spotted moray that scares the crap out of us, heaps of nemo's and his friends, parrot fish, butterfly fish and plenty more exotic species continually fight for our attention. Best off all - we seem to be the only ones enjoying it as there's no soul in sight. Lost in time we paddle back between the upcoming moon and the setting sun, in perfect alignment and light shimmering on the water...

Coming back we watch the locals deck out their beachfront with lights, banners, flags, lanterns and the like. Fat Freddy's Drop resonates through the bay and welcomes us back home. As it turns out they played a whole compilation of our favo Kiwi music - Black seeds, Salmonella dub, Unity Pacific and the good stuff goes on. Everyone's gearing up for a big one as it is full moon tonight and Full moon parties equal cheap drinks, fire shows and general craziness. We head to the Gypsy bar with M & M and Brendon (another climber we met) for their all night happy hour - 190 baht for the ever popular vodka buckets. We load up on vodka buckets as Mattias lays out the cards for a favorite drinking game of his "Circle of Death" hehehe, ain't it universal? Brendon asks for just a vodka bucket and literally gets just that: a bucket with pure vodka on the rocks - absolutely lethal. The very best thing is that you simply ask the waitress to make your potion stronger so they keep filling your bucket up with more and more booze at no extra cost. Needles to say we paid dearly for that the next day. With such paradise time really tends to slip between your fingers and after 8 days of good fun it's time to make a move....now to decide on our next destination.

Sawat dii!

Flew out from Kuala Lumpur to Krabi, Thailand – Wahoo! Met Alex, a Brit from London, also in the queue for immigration. Semi-shitting our pants as we have no proof of onward travel whatsoever. Made it through safe and well with no questions asked – phew! Alex convinces us to come with him to Koh Phi Phi and seeing as we have no plan or idea where to go yet we decide to jump on board.

Many a chang beer later we approach Ko Phi Phi Don by boat, a breathtakingly beautiful tropical idyll on the Andaman Coast. White sandy beaches aplenty locked in by dramatic karst limestone cliffs, lush jungle and surrounded by clear turquoise waters. In the midst of it all a gentle sweeping curve of perfect powder sand – Ton Sai Bay. This place is truly postcard material! Little did we know that its reputation as a tropical paradise enjoys fame worldwide, bringing vast crowds to its shores every day to party it up – looks like the place to be!

We settle into our guesthouse, a place in the heart of the village near Ao Loh Dalum. Our luggage follows soon thereafter in its own purpose built box trailer – nice. We head off to the centre of village activity and buy a few vodka buckets from the many stalls that line the streets. A toxic mix of home-brewed vodka, industrial strength Red Bull and a splash of Coke, served on ice in a sand bucket. We wander around picking up flyers of tonights specials while steadily sipping from the many straws of our buckets. The waterfront is lined with seafood resto’s, people drinking on the street, sheepishly carrying their buckets from bar to bar – Party Central it seems.

We end up at “Hippy’s Bar”, who’s offering free buckets of Sangsom, a cheap and particularly nasty Thai Whiskey, Coke and ice – we get one each – lethal stuff! We sit at a table, listening to the tunes blasting, people dancing and drinking, scoring, buckets everywhere, competitions and even, yes, a live Kung Fu show – gotta love this place. Walking back we pass an Irish pub with oodles of noodles on offer outside and drunkenly scoff plat after plate of this heavenly (free) food to satisfy our munchies. Off to Tiger Bar next to get another free bucket – in the space of just ten minutes the bartender lines up ten sand buckets and fills them up in one flow – smooth operator. Lost Alex along the way somewhere – he was trollied big time. Stumbled home, after stopping in for more noodles of course. Huge night and great vibes. Didn’t spend a cent after our first round of buckets and had an absolute blast! You can get fed and pissed for free night after night if you time it right – this is the life. We can get used to this!

Awoke at noon – ravenous and not even the slightest hangover (thanks to them noodles). Headed down to Cosmic with Alex for brekkie. After a mighty feed we hit the beach at the other side, where the isthmus is so narrow both beaches almost meet. Overcast but the temperature is pleasant enough to sunbathe and read on the beach, sipping on cold watermelon shakes and digging our toes into the warm soft sand – bliss!

Time to get ready for yet another big night - everyday is Friday here so we’re confident we can find some fun. “Hey sexy boy, sexy girl, you want massage?” the girls from the local massage parlour wail in unison. We stop off at another Cosmic Bar (how many does this tiny island need? Really) and order Panang Curry for only 80 baht – the meanest curry we’ve had so far. One of the bars screens movies and tonight “the Beach” is on – a story about a bunch of people who seek the ultimate paradise (safely assuming everyone knows about this one =). This flick is particularly popular here as most of the beach scenes were filmed at nearby Maya Bay, on Ko Phi Phi Leh – an uninhabited sister island of Phi Phi Don, a mere 20 minutes away by longtail boat and focus of a great many day trips here. The widespread controversy this movie has caused among many Thai greenies is less well-known as extensive parts of the Phi Phi Leh jungle were effectively refurbished to make the location look more “natural” for the movie, despite the island being under marine park “protection”. A recurring theme in Thailand we find out later.

Between bars we pass a man hand in hand with a gibbon monkey dressed in funky beach shorts and a wifebeater shirt – incredibly random. Slightly bemused by this strange sight we ask if we can take a photo of the cute couple as a memento. But the guy wants hard cash for this favor and by the time we realise which way the wind blows the monkey is sitting on Guido’s shoulder. Not all that keen to encourage this sort of animal profiteering we kindly decline but by doing so clearly upset the monkey. Mr. Gibbon promptly jumps off & runs away crying, and climbs into his shopping basket at the front of his get-away bicycle, furiously gesturing to the man to take him home. Talk about monkey throwing a tantrum!

Another day at the beach. The sun has finally broken through the cloud cover and we feel an intense heat – welcome summer! We forego our usual beach spots and walk past Hippie’s Bar on Ton Sai side and crawl around the rocks to Long beach, aptly named because it’s indeed quite long, lined with fine powdery white sand and blessed with azure blue clear water – simply a stunner compared to where we came from. We go for our first snorkel of the trip, lovely warm water, friendly tropical fish with the likes of many parrotfish and butterfly fish, and lots of dead coral. A bit further the scene changes remarkably however, Shark point – a rocky outcrop with resident blacktip reef sharks and some very good coral. Jelly fish are so omnipresent and we swim through a thick soup of them, getting stung like crazy. Nothing better than a 40 baht ice, cold fruit shake to temper those stings and burns as we make our way back as the sun sets behind those immense limestone cliffs.

Home to refresh, then out for all you can eat buffet dinner ($220 baht) – prawns, tuna steak, pad thai, sashimi, tempura, vege, Tom Yum soup, chicken kebabs…washed down with a giant Chang beer. Time for a movie at the 007 movie bar – Casino Royale this time round, not bad. A minimum order of 100 baht applies to help out with their electricity bill (which must be up there with all those plasma screens), but we do away with a fruit shake. Hippies Bar for free buckets & bar snacks while the DJ works his magic as the night comes alive. A fire show comes past with fire poi’s, fire sticks and the works handled by some of the best performances we’ve seen so far. The smaller the island the more time they have to practice =). “Firestarter” and other great tunes spur the guys on to go faster, harder and better… “Blue Moon Bar” tops the night with free vodka buckets and we watch him pour it – shitloads of vodka, ice and rocket fuel Red Bull – a potent one! We share, while sitting on the beach chairs in the sand, singing along to Billy Jean and other great tunes, while getting nicely toasted. Enjoy a good boogie to our trip theme song “destination unknown” amongst the Tiki torches in the water – sensational! Another groundhog day in paradise!