Amazing Views @ Ko Phi Phi

Ko Phi Phi was truly an oasis of paradise. We arrived the morning of May 1st via a ferry from Railay that was jam packed of backpackers. We even met two girls from SF and compared stories about our encounters on Tonsai Beach with the hippies etc.

Our experience in Railay of looking for a hotel for a solid hour taught me (who then forced Kor to also learn) that we needed to research a couple hotels at least a few hours or a day in advance so as to not waste our time in paradise looking for a room with AC at a decent price. We managed to begin our uber stingy traveling plan in Ko Phi Phi by booking a room for two people and sneaking in the the third (they usually charge about 10$ more per night for the extra person when the hotel room itself is about 20/night so it's a pretty steep price increase). Immediately after deboarding our boat we checked into our hotel and hit the beach. We snorkeled and swam around in the amazing water for a few hours before heading off to explore the island more.

For those of you Lost fans out there, Lindsay, Kor and I like to pretend like every island/remote beach we are on is a part of lost. We pass time role playing between who are the "others," dharma and the survivors etc. It's pretty fun and passes time fairly quickly when you are trying to operate on "thai time. "

We had heard that there was an amazing view point overlooking the entire island as well as the neighboring Ko Phi Phi Leh. We set out to find the view point and got an excellent little tour of the island. Ko Phi Phi has no roads and operates solely with bicycles, small motos and pedestrians. It really reminded me of Europe in this way (and with all the European backpackers). We went down winding little cobblestone roads past countless massage parlors, roti stands, and internet cafes. After stopping to ask a few times (this is a MUST if you are going anywhere in Thailand...even down the street) we found our way to the giant set of stairs up to the three viewpoints. For people who haven't exercised or exerted themselves in 6 weeks, this climb felt like half dome. While it only consisted of 365 steps (Lindsay counted), we were all huffing and puffing pathetically at the top. We continued on to viewpoint one which showcased an incredible view of the island and all the damage and recovery areas from the tsunami of 2004.

We next moved onto viewpoint two which was much more established and paused for some water and photo shoots. Our last stop was viewpoint three which involved somewhat of a trek through the woods. It was just the three of us for the first 500 meters or so until we happened upon an older Thai couple walking and stretching on the trees. Lindsay carefully watched the old guy use the tree as a stretching post and mimicked his moves. He then struck up a conversation with Kor and explained that he walks up this mountain everyday. What a bad ass. He took us up to the final viewpoint and pointed out where his beach bungalows used to be before the 30 foot swells of the tsunami destroyed everything. Considering what Ko Phi Phi went through 5 years ago, it's current state is remarkable.

During our walk down to the beach we made a quick pit stop at an internet cafe to check email and inform Kor's landlord that his rent would be two weeks late (Kor completely forgot about all of his bills he had to pay). Lindsay was sitting two computers down from me when she yells, "No, No No! Get over here and read this." I am quite alarmed thinking her dog has probably died (he's 14). Turns out her dog is still alive and she was accepted to OHSU medical school! Once Kor and I confirm that the email is real she immediately bursts into tears and the woman running the internet cafe is extremely alarmed. We finish up at the Internet and proceed to walk through town while Lindsay trails behind us bawling. Everyone in the street is very concerned and thinks that Kor and I must have physically abused her and are now letting her sulk in her injuries.

We make a pit stop at the Maya Bay Camping office to reserve our camping trip to "The Beach" for the following night. We catch a long tail home and have an awesome celebration dinner and head down to the beach to watch the flame throwers.

Flame throwing is a pretty commonplace late night activity on the southern beaches of Thailand. At first we watch a seasonsed professional throw around a stick covered in flames while dancing to techno music. He is fast and makes the flame look like it is one big string of light. Next he hands the stick over to his 8 year old friend. No Joke. This kid is awesome! He throws the stick in the air, catches it, spins it between his legs and does it all over again. We were quite impressed.

We watched a few more rounds of flame throwing before they put out the flame and started to clear the stage. We thought it was a bit early to end but started to leave when suddenly we see them grab a long thick rope and douse it in gasoline. This can't be real. Flaming jump rope. Two of the men stand on top of canisters and hold the rope at either end as one of them lights it on fire and from even where we were standing we start to feel intense heat.

The first jumper is (naturally) the 8 year old boy. He is impressively agile and keeps the beat and makes it out unscathed. Next up a drunk white dude saunters up toward the rope. This is going to be good. We quickly turn Kor's camera onto video mode and start filming. The tall and clumsy guy tries to get in the rope. He initially dives in and is immediately smacked on the back with the fire rope and nearly trips over it as he runs out and rolls onto the sand. I was shocked he wasn't completely on fire. Sure enough, he goes back in for another try. Totally drunk. The second time he gets himself under the rope successfully but cannot seem to find the coordination to jump at the right time and stumbles on the fiery rope a second time before tripping and running out. It was pretty much hilarious but I will post the video next week so you can really get a feel for the adventure.

We sauntered along the beach back to our bungalow and Lindsay passed out before her head hit the pillow. All of her crying and emotional happiness put her in a deep trance. Kor and I shared a small bed with a mosquito net that didn't protect us from the mosquito's whatsoever. The next day is far more exciting and gets a blog of it's own....