Wèi shénme bù?: Thailand Part 3: Pure Shores

Arriving on Koh Phi Phi after all that fuss was like some kind of miracle. Even from the first glimpse, I knew this place would be paradise… And it was!

After paying the island ‘entry fee’ (of 20 baht) and having not pre-booked accommodation, we followed the crowds off the pier and towards the action! Seeing as there was a pretty large group of us (11 now!) we were hounded by representatives of numerous hostels. We finally settled on the one offering us the best deal and let them lead the way. In hindsight, it was probably the wrong choice. Colour scheme aside, it was pretty dank in there…

Dank, sandy little room. With weird beds.

But despite our iffy digs, nothing was raining on our parade! The beaches were absolutely beautiful, the sea was clear and warm and the coconut shakes perfect.

Paradise!

And once again we organised a little tour! Koh Phi Phi – or at least an islet nearby – was used in that Leo DiCaprio film The Beach. So first stop on our all-day tour was The Beach beach. We met at the port in the morning and (along with about 12 other tourists) climbed aboard our boat for the day. Other than fearing seasickness, I was feeling pretty good about the day ahead, but that then took a turn for the absolute worst when I suddenly realised I have a dreadful fear of water I can’t stand in. We were told there was only one way to get to the beach, and that was to swim across about 20 metres (maybe – I’m not good with distances) of treacherous water. And that moment is when I had my first (mini) panic attack. Needless to say, I passed on that part of the fun and stayed safely on the boat.

Next was snorkelling. More deep water; terrific. But this time I was determined to at least try to conquer my fear, so I decided to get off the boat. I strapped on a life vest and climbed down the ladder. Hanging on the end, the panic attack feeling came back and I really thought I’d have to climb back up the ladder, but once (after a lot of reassurance from my friends) I let go and realised that life vests do actually keep you afloat, I had the time of my life. It was so much fun swimming around and having the occasional look under the sea. Didn’t see too many fish, but who cares?! The feeling of triumph I felt made it all worth it.

I'm doin' it!

Ah, the sweet taste of victory.

And the third and final stop was Monkey Beach – so named for the, well obviously, monkeys living there. And not friendly ones I can tell ya!

The one on the right reminds me of the Lion King. Am I right?

Then we topped the day off by watching the sun setting over the ocean. Beautiful.

We spent the next couple of days on this wonderful island paradise, going out at night with lethal (and VERY cheap) alcohol buckets then relaxing and tanning during the day. Absolute heaven! One afternoon, a few of us did decide to climb up to the viewpoint near our hostel. Fantastic view of the island! I then – possibly foolishly – decided to try and head down to another beach. 45 minutes and an awful jungle trek later (I may be exaggerating, but only slightly) I arrived, covered in dozens of new mosquito bites of course. It was practically deserted over that side!