The One and Only Phi Phi Island -- P.2

If Part 1 was about our arrival and a wild monkey chase, then Part 2's got EVEN MORE monkey madness.

Tyler 1 and I split off in the morning of Day 2 from Amanda.  She's got her international scuba divers license and went off to do that.  She's cooler than us (damn Europeans).  We decided to rent a kayak and navigate some of the beaches and other spots around the main island.

Our morning was full of fun-filled entertainment, to say the least.  This is a video of us on the kayak as we approach what's known as "Monkey Bay" -- yes, more monkeys!

We did a little snorkeling off the beach.  There was a very large group of Chinese tourists there so a lot of sand was kicked up and the visibility wasn't great.  We found ways to entertain ourselves on the island.  Within just a few minutes, we had a wild father monkey show up scouring through our snorkeling bag.  He apologized to us, then decided to stick around for a little social conversation.  Check it out.

The island had a few random tin huts.  No one was living in them -- and they definitely weren't for tourists.  We explored them a little.  Then Tyler 1 decided it was time he make one of them his new permanent residence.  Here's his "send off" video to his parents...tear.

Finally it was time for some "man-venture."  A little snorkeling.  Some cute videos.  No sir.  Can't leave it at just that.  Off in the distance we saw a small passage of water cutting through one of the large cliffs.  We decided to pass through it in our kayak while the water crashed the rocks and the waves undulated like maddened giants.

Our kayaking adventure would eventually come to an end, sadly.  The three of us all re-grouped and moved onto our next excursion: island hopping with a group of about 8 other people.  Yeaahh!

We stopped at about 6 different spots.  Our first stop was "Monkey Beach," not to be confused with "Monkey Bay."  And yes, there were plenty more wild monkeys, though these ones were a little more timid.

Actually no -- scratch that -- the monkeys were just as frickin' nuts!

They were jumping on the boats, falling from the trees and doing strange Asian monkey belly dances (okay, maybe not that).  One of them even bit Tyler 1!!  Fortunately he was wearing a shirt so the skin wasn't punctured.  He'd otherwise have to be taken to the hospital for rabies (which we were convinced he had BEFORE he was bit, anyways).

Here's a clip of one of the little buggers.  Kinda cute, actually.

Next up was a few different coves with absolutely beautiful, clear, blue water teaming with all sorts of colorful fish and marine life.  Here are some great shots.

A nice 360-degree view.

But the grand finale was Maya Bay.  You've probably heard of the Leo DiCaprio movie, "The Beach."  It was directed by the same director that won an Academy Award for Slumdog Millionaire, Danny Boyle.

Maya Bay is where The Beach was shot.  We were given an hour to check it out, snorkel, take pictures, etc. Every minute was breathtaking.  All this on a day when the sun wasn't fully out...

Me and Amanda playing in the sand. 

Some people from our excursion group.  We had people from Germany, England, Holland and even Vietnam!

The trek back to the boat.

We left the island in the early afternoon the following day.  

Here are some shots from our departure back to Phuket, to eventually go home.  

Needless to say, we were each a little depressed to be leaving.  The trip was too short, but we definitely made the most of it.  Phi Phi Island can be sure it hasn't seen the last of us -- for sure!

Thanks for reading.  Keep a looksy for my next post.  Who knows what adventures are a'brewin' as I write this!

The One and Only Phi Phi Island -- P.1

Phi Phi Island's resorts (pronounced "Pee Pee") were just voted by Frommers as one of the top 10 beach fronts of the world.

...and there are so many reasons why I wholeheartedly agree.  Phi Phi Island is truly a special place.

"The Mighty Three," as I now refer to Amanda, Tyler 1 and myself, made a trip down to the beautiful islands over a 4-day Buddhist holiday a few weeks ago.  From Bangkok, Phi Phi is about a 12-hour bus ride.  The bus will take you to Phuket and from there you take a 2-hour ferry ride to the main island of Phi Phi.

Sadly, the morning we arrived, it was overcast and raining, but the islands and their inherit beauty did not disappoint.  As you get close to the main island of Phi Phi, you begin to see the surrounding smaller islands as they majestically rise from the ocean.

We arrived on the island with the whole day ahead of us.  We intended to pack as much into our days there as possible.  After leaving our bags at the hotel, we headed straight to the beach.

Within seconds of stepping on the beach, we found our feet surrounded by these small, rectangular shaped jelly fish.  They were EVERYWHERE.

We had no idea what they were at first.  It took some gusto to finally pick them up.  And when we did, we could feel them pulsating in our hands.  They were completely clear, so you could see their brains and whatever other internal organs they had inside.  Pretty trippy.

The highlight, however, of the day was our little snorkeling excursion to what appeared to be an abandoned beach.  Just before the beach, however, we hit a large patch of sea urchins, where I was summarily pricked in the foot.  I panicked slightly (being that they're poisonous), but overall it wasn't too bad so we soldiered on.

We saw a large group of wild monkeys hanging around the beach; looking for food, carrying their young, etc.  Not thinking much of "primate territorialism," we walked on the beach closer and closer to them.  It wasn't before long when the three of us actually found ourselves surrounded by 5 wild monkeys.  And these guys weren't coming to say hello.

Before we knew it, they began chasing us.  Amanda and I split without thinking twice, while Tyler swung his snorkel gear at one that almost jumped him.  We all gunned it back to the ocean and they stopped.  Phew!  That definitely got our adrenaline going.  Let me tell you, if you're looking for a rush, go get chased by wild monkeys off an abandoned beach :)

Now, If you've ever been to Thailand, and specifically the islands located a ways from the mainland, you'll know that no one gives much credence to the weather reports.  The natives' method is simply to look up in the sky and see what's around.  If you see clouds coming, that means rain.  Pretty simple.

So within just a few minutes of returning to our hotel a large storm came.  This is a little clip from our balcony that afternoon.  Commentary courtesy Tyler Capp (Tyler 1).

We found some good photo opportunities during the trip.  Here are some shots we thought were funny and had to capture.

Want a tuna burgur?  How about a ham burgur?

Many Thai people have the habit of dropping the sound of the last letter of English words, as in the Thai language where many endings of words are not aspirated.  The humor in this is that "James Bond" becomes "Jame Bond."  We just had to get this shot.

That's all for Part 1.  The other days were just as adventurous.  I'll be putting up Part 2 in the next few days so keep a lookout!  I'll leave you with some nice photos of the main island we took before leaving.