Phuket, Ko Phi Phi, and Railay

We just got back from another great trip to the islands. It was relaxing, adventurous, and definitely the most beautiful place on Earth. (Besides Kansas City and Springfield)So we left last Monday and landed in Phuket at about noon. We then took a mini-bus to Patong beach, about 45 minutes away. We stopped at a travel agent along the way to set up our tickets to go on the ferry that will take us to the other islands. Then we checked in to our hotel and headed to the beach. The beach was loaded with tourists, hence why we wanted to go to other islands. These islands take a little bit of work to get to so some stay away, which is better for us. That night we went to Bangla Rd, in Patong. The whole road is blocked off from cars and is filled with people, you can see from the pictures. It is just restaurants, bars, dance clubs, and craziness stacked on top of each other.

The next morning we took an hour ride to a pier to catch our first ferry that was going to Ko Phi Phi. Chuck and I went here, but this time we were going to have more time on the island. We were also not with a group, so we were able to do what we wanted. When we arrived, we hiked up one of the huge limestone cliffs to get an incredible view of everything below. You can see in the picture the isthmus that separates the two sides of the island, really amazing.



After the hike up and down we laid on the beach for about three hours before we had to catch our next ferry headed to Railay Beach.

When we arrived at Railay it was the giant rock formations that were most striking. Then, we noticed that the beach was all sand and mud. Also, we had to jump out of the ferry boat, into a long tail boat, and then walk in the mud to get to shore. Sean and I thought this was pretty funny, and pretty typical of Thailand. The other people in the boat, were very upset. You could tell by the looks on their faces, especially about walking in the muddy sand.

Railay was the strangest beach we have ever seen. When we arrived it was all mud, but by eleven pm that night, the water had come completely up covering all the mud. Railay also provided the most beautiful sunset either of us has ever seen. The sun looked so close, it was as if we could touch it. It was fiery orange and sadly none of the pictures turned out. I guess you will have to go and see it for yourself. Railay is the most natural beach I have ever been on as well. I would say that by American standards Railay would be too rough, and not cleaned up enough. However, it was great to see something so untouched.

Overall the trip was great and we can't wait to get back to Phuket when the girls come!!!

By the way, Happy Belated Valentine's Day. We both forgot about it :)

A little Behind

We have gotten a little behind on keeping up with the blog, but that is a good thing. It means we have been traveling a lot and we had our first visitor from the States, my brother. There are lots of new photo albums on the blog, there is a brief description/explanation of each below.

Ko Samet

It is a beautiful island about three hours from Bangkok. We took a bus there, which I am pretty sure is the only way to get there. The island was beautiful with blue water and white sandy beaches. The accommodation was extremely cheap. The bungalow we stayed in that was just off the beach was 350 baht a night, which is about 10 bucks. Now, there was no TV, hot water, towels, or maid service, but it was a great location. It is very difficult to find a place on the island to stay because no one takes reservations you just have to walk in to a place, and several are often full. The food in Ko Samet was really good, every restaurant was great. The nightlife in Ko Samet is probably its main attraction. There are fire shows on the beach, bands playing everywhere, and lots of games and competitions at various bars and restaurants. The fire show is attached below.


English Camp

English camp is a three day trip that our school puts on every year for about 30 students. The students do not have to pay for the trip or any of their expenses and go through an interview process with Kaplan to determine who gets to go. For teachers, the trip basically ammounts to a free vacation, so Jana and I were both excited to go. Unfortunately, the night before we were leaving, Jana got severe food poisoning so was unable to go.
The camp started at 7am on a Tuesday morning at Kaplan's main school. We herded all of the students into a classroom, went through introductions and briefly explained the camp rules. (Maybe it's a blessing in disguise that Jana couldn't come since gambling and drinking were both prohibited.) After introductions we loaded the students onto a giant tour bus and were on our way out of BKK. The trip down gave an accurate preview of the next couple of days. The tour bus was wired with a microphone and speakers and the students each took turns coming up to introduce themselves and to perform a song. I haven't listened to much pop music over here, so this was a good chance to catch up. The enthusiasm among Thais for karaoke is difficult to exaggerate; these kids were belting out lyrics to an audience full of strangers.
After a three hour bus ride we reached our pier (a haphazard structure that looked like 40 people was about all it could or should hold) got on a ferry boat and raced (at about 10mph) to the island camp was to be held on. The island, Ko Minork, is a tiny island (about 20 minutes to walk around) containing one resort that was virtually deserted while we were there. Upon arrival, we played a get-to-know you game then divided the students into their 'camp teams.' The students were then given the rest of the afternoon to come up with team names and jingles. The jingles were elaborate and coordinated. When the students performed their jingles later that day I was again struck by their enthusiasm and sincerity. (Maybe I'm just cynical, but it's hard for me to imagine getting 30 college age american students to be such good sports. I include myself in that description.)
The next morning the students had what we called a scavenger hunt but which was more like a series of games at different posts around the island. At each spot the students had to present their team name, flag, and jingle.
In the afternoon we had free time to explore the island. A few of the teachers and staff used the time to kayak around the island. The staff member I went with must of thought she drew the short straw; I've never really kiyaked before so we moved considerably slower than the other boats. Eventually, though, we made it around. As we boated around we could see little flying fish--fish jumping out of the water and skimming over the surface.
That night our students put on performances that they had been preparing the past day and a half. The plays were elaborate, lengthy, and hilarious. Everyone in the audience was applauding and yelling things as the performances were going on.
Our last morning we gave out awards, had one more contest, then headed back to the mainland. Before leaving, though, the students took about 10,000 pictures of themselves, the island, the ocean, themselves again, the teachers, a rock by the beach and many, many more. (Perhaps the only thing Thais love more than karaoke is taking pictures.)
All in all, this was a very memorable experience for me and (my previous joking aside) it's a shame Jana couldn't come because she would have loved it: the setting was beautiful and students were fantastic.

Chuck's Trip

Well Chuck came to visit and he was very shocked by Bangkok, in more ways than one. He felt pretty sure that mom would not be able to handle it here. He also had intense food poisoning which he is still recovering from at home. However, we had so much fun. We hit all the main attractions in Bangkok in just two or three days. It was exhausting but fun. Then, Chuck and I went down the Phuket which is the southern most province in Thailand. We hit several islands: Khai, Phi Phi Don, Monkey, and Maya Bay. We were able to do some snorkeling and got some good pictures of fish. (They will not be on the website because I only have hard copies) Overall the trip was great and I was so happy to have him here. Although when he left I became very home sick. The pictures while he was here are amazing, because their camera is a lot better than ours. So check out the ones from the snake farm and floating market.

I think that is pretty much the update for now. We are leaving for Phuket in about 5 days so more pictures will be going up soon.

We miss everybody,

Sean and Jana