Phuket: Gateway To Paradise

Hey folks,

Standing atop a rock at Maya Bay

So excitement has once again crept not so quietly into my life and the lives of my two buddies Goose and Dan! After a mild first day in Phuket, we amped things up the next day of our tour and headed to the pier to hop on a speedboat bound for islands galore. Our first island was a small one by the name of Khai Island. The sun came out briefly and was warmly welcomed as we stood at the shore and let hundreds of fish swim around us. We attempted to snorkel in the shallow water, but the fish were particularly hungry that day and were fond of nipping at our feet, which despite not hurting is quite uncomfortable! We had a great buffet lunch before jetting off to our next destination, the island of Koh Phi Phi. We had only heard good things from all the travelers we had met along the way and I was certainly not disappointed. First, we stopped in a bay for 45 minutes and had a real opportunity to snorkel. This was my first time snorkeling (aside from a 5 minute venture at a lake as a kid) and it took a minute to get used to breathing only through my mouth, but once I got the hang of it, the experience was completely exhilarating! I swam amongst hundreds upon hundreds of fish of different sizes in the pristine, turquoise-blue waters and was shocked at how fast the time went by. Next, we made the stop all of us were anticipating and that I have been looking forward to for months: Maya Bay. For those of you who aren't familiar with the name Maya Bay, it is the location that was used for the film "The Beach" starring Leonardo Dicaprio, and it is the star of that film. Before the film, I can imagine what an absolute paradise it would have been for Thai locals to stumble upon and enjoy in solitude. Now, although it is swarming with tourists and companies who suck profit out of its beauty every day, this doesn't change the fact that it is one of the most picturesque, amazing viewpoints I have ever witnessed. The water is an incredible glowing-blue colour and the sand could be the softest I have ever squished between my toes. Standing on that beach made me feel like I never wanted to leave and our 45 minutes there went by way too fast! But after stopping at Maya Bay, we had one last stop at some rocks jutting out of the other side of Koh Phi Phi, home to a family (or several families) of crab monkeys. We threw them watermelon and pineapple and watched their amazing dexterity as they caught the fruit and devoured it quickly before putting their hands up for more. A few of them ventured to greet us, hopping on the boat and approaching cautiously before abandoning ship and swimming back to their home amongst the limestone. After an exciting day of beautiful vistas and new experiences, we headed back to our hotel in Phuket, tired but very content...

The three of us posing at James Bond Island

On the third day of our tour, we had a long drive to Phang Nga Bay, a bay that is home to hundreds of islands, forty-two of which are considered "big". The longtail boat throughout the bay was quite pleasant despite the crappy weather, and eventually we made our way to another destination that was used for filming, James Bond Island, used as a set in the 1974 film "The Man With The Golden Gun". The island was a pretty cool place to stop, although it was swamped with tourists, and we circled the whole island in around 45 minutes. We then headed for lunch in a little village, but not just any village, the only one in Thailand that is completely built on the water! It consists of over 200 homes built up without any land beneath them. I found this village pretty cool and enjoyed walking through the long narrow market (which reminded me of parts of Jerusalem), all suspended by wooden posts and docks. We ate a nice seafood lunch in the village before heading back to the mainland and checking out a cashew factory. Finally, we ended our day by hopping on a boat over to Koh Yao Noi, our next island destination...

Climbing up my first limestone crag during Deep H2O Diving

The following day, we did another activity I have been anticipating for months, Deep H2O Diving! The title may seem confusing, as there is no diving involved in this activity... what is involved, however, is an adrenaline rush from boating out to the middle of the Andaman Sea to specific limestone crags that jut out from the sea floor, and rock-climbing by stepping straight out of a kayak and just going for it! At first, it seemed quite intimidating as our instructor was not telling us much, and the rocks are incredibly sharp. To give you an idea, picture going into a cave where there are lots of stalactites and stalagmites and trying to climb on the ceiling! However, after trying it out for a few minutes, we all adjusted and managed to succeed in our first climb to the top of a 10m crag overlooking the islands of the Andaman Sea. It was a spectacular view and a spectacular feeling to have accomplished for the first time! We continued with a few more crags, some lower but more challenging, before heading back to re-do the original with a bit of a different route. We were limited in our options, unfortunately, due to low tides which made the starting points of climbing much more difficult. None of us have enough upper body strength to hoist as much as our instructor was demanding! Despite this minor pitfall, it was an incredible experience and definitely a highlight so far. The only major drawback was the damage the rocks did to our arms and legs. I have no fewer than 20 or 30 cuts and scrapes on my hands, wrists, knees, and ankles and Goose was not as lucky as me... he fell on his second climb and tried to grab back on to the rock face, a futile attempt. This resulted in him falling 5m onto his face in the water, and also cutting his hands up on the sharp rocks by trying to grab back on. Deep H2O Diving is not for everyone!

My first driving experience!

The rock-climbing adventure ended early in the afternoon so we wanted to find something to finish off our day. At the pier, we noticed signs pointing to a motorbike rental shop and they were only 350 Baht for an entire day ($12 CDN) so we decided to go for it! I have never driven a vehicle before, so I was a little (understandably) nervous but after about five minutes on the road, I was accustomed to the feel of it and ready to roll. Driving around that little island was incredibly fun and we darted along muddy trails and through forest paths at pretty awesome speeds! Even with my lack of driving experience, it was a little weird getting used to driving on the left side of the road and I found myself on the wrong side for a few seconds at one point with another Thai family (yes, that's right, 4 people on one bike) coming at me laughing. But aside from this little minor error, I did quite well on the bike and was sad to return it. I could have driven around on it comfortably with the wind in my hair for a whole week...

This morning, we headed to the pier to take a ferry back to Phuket but had to wait several hours because of the weather. There was a huge storm and it was warranted unsafe to travel in such conditions. By 1:30PM, they decided it was calm enough for us to leave although the ride was incredibly rocky and rain pelted me from all directions the entirety of the trip. Definitely happy to not have any boat rides for a week or so...

That's all for now people. New updates will follow soon

Ciao for now,

Max