By the time we arrived at Chalok Baan Kao Bay, the quiet southern beach on Koh Tao, the sun was peeking up over the island. Dead tired, we checked around the local dive shops for accommodation. The only available option was Tropicana, which was an original recommendation from Robin, one of the German guys we met en route. He had stayed there once before, and was returning with his friend to obtain open water certification.

After waiting for a few hours, we all got rooms at Tropicana which featured beautiful gardens, and a comfortable restaurant. I opted for the one available bungalow as my island life in Thailand was about to wind down.

It was a quiet day for everyone. Sleep, internet, trips to 7-11. Josi, Catharine and I all booked a full day snorkel/island tour for the next day. We opted for the longboat, not because it was cheaper, but because we expected it to be a better experience with fewer people than the big boats.

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The plan had always been to try my hand at rock climbing in Krabi before leaving the south of Thailand. Those plans changed when I wasn’t yet ready to say goodbye to Josi and Catharine. I knew Steve (from London…we last hung out on Koh Phangan) would understand. He’d become a rock-climbing fiend there, and was even on his way to Koh Phi Phi Don on a field trip the same day I was leaving.

Josi, Catharine and I sat on the ferry’s roof for the two hour ride to the mainland. It was reminiscent of the first time we met (all of 4 days ago, but it felt longer).

Once we arrived at the Krabi port, it was time for everyone to get their backpacks. Given we were some of the first people on the ferry, our packs were at the bottom, though somehow the girls managed to position theirs in such a way that they were able to get them out quickly. Mine, on the other hand, was as far lost as a backpack could be. A little patience was required, and it was eventually uncovered. We boarded the shuttle to the travel agency where we had a short wait for the minivan that was to drive us to the night ferry.

The drive was longer than I think we all expected. There were two Italians guys, two German guys (Robin and Martin), one unknown guy, and the three of us. The German contingent was picked up first, and they had laid claim to the front row of seats with the most legroom.

Four to six hours later, we arrived at our sad looking night ferry. It was probably a good thing we didn’t see it in daylight. I might not have had the confidence to board it. There were mattresses set up inside, and even fans to keep things cool, however I was drawn to the roof.

Ten years ago, on my travels through western Europe, I heard about the overnight ferries from Italy to Greece. I had chosen to visit Ireland instead, and while I had a nauseating experience on my giant car ferry from England to Ireland, it didn’t match the romantic image I had developed in my mind of the one to Greece.

We were delayed about an hour from embarking because the electronic lift to pull up the main door on the lower level of the ferry broke. A group of Thais began to analyze the mechanical dilemma before them. The door was too heavy to be pulled up by people alone, so it was determined that the giant yellow crane would be used.

Several of us watched the first attempt from the roof. As the tension built in the steel cable, I held my breath. Something broke, and a heavy metal piece of the rigging flew backwards past some scooters which had not been moved out of the way.

By the second attempt, I was ducking farther out of view so as not to be decapitated by steel. The bent and broken railing on the roof (shown in photo above) illustrates similar situations may have been more destructive to the ferry itself! Amazingly, the second attempt worked, and the gate was slowly cranked upwards to a near vertical position.

Catharine and I ended up sleeping on the roof, under the stars and moon, as we motored (verrrrry slowly) toward Koh Tao. I didn’t sleep at all, using only the provided pillow and blanket as my bedding. To sleep would’ve been to miss the passing squid boats along the horizon…the clouds floating eerily past the bright moon…and our approach to the small island of Koh Tao before sunrise.

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Before those drinks with Nathan my last night, I’d spent the day in the shade, though I did stop by a beach restaurant for lunch to take in the views. Between rooftop ferry rides and baking under an umbrella on the sand, I needed the break.

I spent a few hours on the internet doing the often mundane acts of uploading photos and creating DVD back-ups to send home.

In the late afternoon, I met up with Catharine and Josie, and along with another French Canadian, we ascended the steep stairs and path to a scenic viewpoint.

The photo opportunities were great, though the sunset itself did not beat the one we saw our first night from Long Beach.

After the sunset, we headed back to town for dinner and a delicious Cornetto ice cream cone from 7-11. I’d been eating them daily for weeks, and Josie and Catharine affinity for them lessened my guilt.

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Nathan, author of the Ubertramp travel blog, had suggested I stop by Viking Divers once I arrived on Koh Phi Phi Don so we could meet up. Given how much I’d enjoyed meeting other travel bloggers in New Zealand and Bali, I was excited to meet him.

I know being a dive instructor entails work, but it also seemed to entail a lot of hanging out in the dive shop, being available to answer questions from potential customers. And if you love to dive, and are working and living in one of the prettiest spots on Earth, then I’d imagine life is good.

After a few chats in the shop, I stopped by my last night on the island and we headed to the beach for a beer. Inevitably, we talked about our blogs and the ability to earn money through advertising. I also took the opportunity to confirm the family that controls much of the island (as referenced in The Lonely Planet) is basically the Thai mafia. They apparently have their hands in everything from resorts to the ferries. I also confirmed, as on Koh Phayam, that the Thai police are well aware of the drugs available/brought onto the islands, and as Nathan suggested, such information would allow them to know exactly what is going on and clamp down if deemed necessary. For some reason, I find these aspects of local life on the touristy islands fascinating.

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I splurged on a new pair of sunglasses and met up with the girls at the beach. We spent a few hours going for swims, reading, and just staring out into the sea. I went back to my room to get a cold shower, and fully enjoy the air-conditioning. I ended up napping for awhile. I was probably dehydrated because I was low on energy. In the back of my mind, I was hoping not to have a recurrence of the hotel-bound Phuket days.

While I was napping, the girls went off to explore the lookout point, though they arrived after the sun had gone down. Meanwhile, I roused myself out of bed to hit the beach for yet another amazing sunset. The sky was filled with pinks and blues, though I was a bit bummed to have no one to share it with.

After sunset, I went back to my room where I met up with the girls. We went to dinner at Ciao Bella, an Italian restaurant on the beach. Along the way, we met up with another French Canadian. I had no appetite for the pizza or beer I ordered due to anxiety around my lack of energy.  Lots of French was being spoken. My mind drifted around as I tried to involve myself in the conversation from time to time. The Canadian guy had been living in Hong Kong for four months, and was starved to speak some French with Josie and Catharine who were happy to oblige.

Later, I learned how little English Josie and Catharine would’ve been speaking if I weren’t around, and I decided a pinch of patience during such occasions was within myself.

We watched a bit of the fire dancing on the beach (it never gets old) and I saw women doing it for the first time. The music was a bit too loud at some of the bars though.

Before retiring for the night, we stopped in at the island’s reggae disco club which has a big Muay Thai ring where tourists can fight one another for a free drink. I found it rather obscene, and wondered why anyone would want to risk their health on vacation for such a stupid reason. We watched two tourist bouts - one was a draw after 3 rounds, and the other resulted in a win by an Israeli over an Italian.

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The longboat dropped us off along the more populated isthmus of Phi Phi and we headed into town, wet with sweat and saltwater. After receiving a tip from another traveler that most of the accommodation was of equal price and value, we went with air-conditioned rooms at his place. The tipping point was free internet, though we’d later find the catch was a sole computer with a 30 minute per day rule in a separate building adjacent to a construction site. The rooms were great though. My queen bed was wonderful, with big fluffy pillows and a soft comforter. A few cable TV channels and a fridge were included in the $24/night cost.

We settled in, got some brunch, and headed to the beach. To my surprise, the view was just as amazing as Maya Bay. Around sunset, I headed to the beach and found it to be low tide. Huge swaths of sand were uncovered while boats sat impotent, awaiting the water’s return.

Locals were playing a soccer game on the uncovered sand, while tourists like me enjoyed a Singha, trying to absorb the absolute beauty of what was before us.

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Arriving to the beach in Maya Bay early paid off with great opportunities for photos sans speedboats.

I love this photo looking back at “the beach” from the longboat.

Maya Bay.

This one is of us approaching a beachless bay surrounded by tall limestone walls. I thought it was prettier than Maya Bay to be honest. And a great place for a swim!

If only my landing was as perfect as the water!

Josie and I.

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After fueling up on Carnation Instant Breakfast with water (kindly provided by the Canadian contingent), we threw our packs into a longboat and motored toward Koh Phi Phi Leh at the early hour of 8am. The hope was to arrive at Maya Bay before an armada of tourist speedboats. The water was just rough enough to make the journey fun.

Our approach to the bay lead us along sheer vertical limestone walls. The anchor was thrown ashore, we hopped off, and had “the beach” to ourselves. It was smaller than I expected, and there didn’t seem to be any tall coconut palms curving out and over the sand. Despite my distorted expectations based on movie magic, Maya Bay was gorgeous. The sand was fine and white, the view out over the water amazing.

I walked off the beach on a little sandy path, and ran into a guy who had camped overnight. Apparently all the tour agencies offer it with drop off at 4pm and pick-up the next morning around 10am. I made a mental note to consider coming back in a few days to spend the night. The boatmen and girls wanted to head off again, so I took a quick swim, and we left as more boats started appearing.

The first snorkel stop was rough. I wasn’t paying attention to the current, and after a few minutes in the water, I was 10-20 meters from the longboat. There was only one pair of flippers available, and I didn’t have them, so my attempts to swim back were in vain. My preoccupation with not drowning meant I wasn’t having much fun snorkeling. It was a short stop though, so I waved to the boat to pick me up and we continued our island tour by visiting a secluded bay enclosed in limestone walls.

We took a few leaps from the boat and swam around the turquoise waters. The second and final snorkel stop featured calmer waters and lots of little fishies.

I was a lucky guy to be sharing paradise with Josie and Katharine.

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There were only two people on the ferry’s roof before me, and while I wouldn’t have guessed it at the time, they were to be the fun company I’d keep through the end of my second month in Thailand.

I sat down under one of only two spots of small shade, and was asked where I was from by one of them. The never-fail travel icebreaker set off a casual conversation that lasted much of the hour and a half ferry ride from Phuket to Koh Phi Phi Don. As we cruised along under the intense tropical sun, passing beautiful islands set in blue waters, I got to know Josiane and Katharine from Quebec, Canada. They were on a 6-week trip which began in Malaysia where they placed 6^th in their class at the world championships of dragon boat racing. Josie was a sport nutritionist who worked with athletes, including Olympians competing in Beijing as we spoke. Katharine was a social worker. As a reminder, I’m in my 9^th month of unemployment.

The girls were headed to Long Beach, a short longboat ride from main pier on Koh Phi Phi. Far less developed than the isthmus of the island, it offers perfect views of Koh Phi Phi Leh (the island featured in The Beach movie). I’d wanted to arrive on a beach by longboat since Koh Phangan, so I decided to join them. Besides, Long Beach looked like paradise from the ferry, whereas I could only see a congested bay from the main pier.

We set aground on the beach, booked rustic bamboo bungalows, and explored our surroundings. I went for a swim, only to find a lot of rocks. The view of Koh Phi Phi Leh was perfect though. This must have been the beach from which they shot movie scenes as the characters contemplated their swim to the secret island.

We enjoyed a great dinner on the beach at sunset.

I was blown away by the amazing sunset that first night. I was taken aback by the images I saw on my camera. I can guarantee the sky was not on fire as it appears in the photo above.

Meanwhile, the view of sunset over Phi Phi Leh was slightly less dramatic. The girls found the bungalows a little too basic, and given there was nothing to do at night, we decided to take a longboat to Koh Phi Phi Leh for an island tour in the morning, and get dropped off at the main pier to seek a more sociable scene.

The fact that a roach crawled up my stomach in the middle of the night only served to reinforce my worst nightmares, and the need for some concrete walls.

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I was nodding off at the bar of Banana’s Tacos while waiting for my transport to the Phuket pier from which my boat tour departed. I started to wonder whether I’d have the physical energy to enjoy the tour. Finally, with some phone support from the hotel staff, a taxi arrived an hour late to pick me up. I was the last to arrive on the boat, and we zoomed off in beautiful waters.

The speed boat could hold 50 people, however we lucked out with about half that many. There were young guys from Dubai and India, an older Indian couple, some Polish and Australians, and a Saudia Arabian couple on honeymoon. The woman was dressed from head to ankle in a black burka, while her husband looked like a typical westerner in shorts and a t-shirt.

The efficiency of the tour amazed me. The Thai tourism industry seems to operate with military precision (save forgetting to pick me up earlier in the morning). The highlight of the tour through Phag-Nga bay is a visit to Khao Tapoo, aka James Bond Island, which received its nickname after being featured in The Man With The Golden Gun.

After our photo session of Bond Island, we headed to lunch at Panyee Island, with it’s restaurants built over the water. To save time, lunch was already laid out for us upon arrival. Eat, eat, talk, talk, and we’re speeding off to Tham Lod for sea kayaking. Unlike my tour of Ang Thong Marine Park, we didn’t paddle our own kayaks. I paired up with an Australian and we were guided around some islands and mangroves for an hour. It was a different experience to have my feet up, and hands free to take photos and accept the beer bought for me by the Australian. As they say in Thailand – same same but different.

By the time we got to Naka Island for a swim on a beautiful, undeveloped beach, it was pouring rain. Getting in the water was still a nicer way to spend the time than standing around on the wet boat, but it was a little less than idyllic. There were a few minutes when I put my eyes at water level and watched the raindrops pelt the rather flat surface. It created a cool effect similar to the computer animations you can run with music.

Arriving back at Banana’s Tacos, I felt good about the day’s tour and my health. After spending two weeks on Patong, when my intention had been two days, I knew I had to take a leap of faith and leave at some point. Time was running out on my second month.

It was time to see the much lauded Koh Phi Phi Don.

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