Phi Phi, Thailand

Phi Phi is probably one of the most famous of the Thailand Islands. 

Unfortunately we didn't have good weather here. I was concerned about it being rainy season in Thailand. But so many said it was like Florida - raining only for an hour or two a day, and then sunshine. Well we had a few days of constant down pours. Because of the weather, it was cloudy and we couldn't fully appreciate the views. And our second day there was a big hazy cloud everywhere. The water was also churned up so we didn't see the crystal blue waters or appreciate the diving the place offers. 

So all most of what was left of Phi Phi Island was the raging partying. Which we weren't into (especially Josh). But we had planned to adopt the mentality of embracing and participating (for a night)! 

We didn't love ko phi phi. It was very touristy. Just a ton of shops and bars. The nice beach and resort areas were very isolated and hard to get to. 

We arrived around noon the first day. 

Our hotel - PP Insula - was in Ton Sai village. It was OK. Nothing special and it overpriced for it being so basic. But the location was central and you couldn't hear the party area and loud music from it. 

When we arrived, we went to lunch at pirates - a recommendation from a friend. It was good! 

Then we went walking around town. It was just a mess of restaurants, bars, tour sales stands and tourist stalls. No character. We walked to the other bay, which has an ok beach, but I guess it gets really filled up with boats. 

We walked up to the viewpoints and that was amazing. It's a ton of stairs and then a bit of a hike to the top. Their are three viewpoints, but number 3 is kinda hidden and farther. We saw beautiful views of both bays and the isthmus that contains the main town area. 

Of course we kept hiking off the beaten path and into the jungle. We got really far but then hit marshland so we couldn't walk to the lookout point at the tip we wanted to. 

For dinner we went to Anna's. Nothing special but good. And then we went for beers at Ragaee bar - which has nothing to do with Ragaee. It was a sports bar with a muy Thai ring. Where there were fight performances (most likely with some WWF acting). Tourists can also fight for free buckets of alcohol. It was funny. I can only imagine how rowdy it gets during season when there are more people there. 

The next morning we got a late start. Went for a walk to long beach. It's about 45 minute walk through some hilly cliff walk areas from the main part of town. It's a beautiful beach and the best one to hang out on I think.

We went on an afternoon boat tour to phi phi lei - the uninhabited island to the south which has made the area famous for its feature in the movie, the beach. 

Our first stop on the tour was monkey beach. It was really a sliver of beach where monkeys would come down from the cliffs and trees because they knew the tourists feed them. You should see them grabbing people and the food cartons out of people's hands. 

Next we crossed the open water to phi phi Leh. We first went past Viking cave, where Thai fisherman harvest the nests of birds to get their throw up which is a delicacy in China. 

We then went into pi-Leh bay. It was a gorgeous cove. We swam here for a bit. 

Next was a bay loh samoh  where we stopped for a snorkel. The water visibility wasn't great and the coral sucked. If that was an indication of diving in Thailand, I wouldn't be happy considering what I've seen elsewhere. But maybe it was just an over visited area. 

The main event, maya bay was next. We got lucky and because of the rain, and that our tour started later, we missed the crowds. We miraculously were the only boat there. I doubt that happens much! It was beautiful. But I actually thought the other bay was more stunning - this one just more famous bc a movie was shot there. 

We stopped to see phosphorescent plankton on the way back, but there wasn't any in the water. You could see a particle or two flash but nothing much. 

Thank god the stop was short and we were soon home. As soon as we hit land, major stomach and food poisoning hit me. And there went my plans for us to have a fun night out and actually participate in the beach parties phi phi is know for!

Recommendations of things to do/tips for going:

1. Drink at Ragaee bar 

2. Hike to the viewpoint and beyond. Go to at least view point #3. and if you have a full day or extra time - hike through the jungle to the more remote areas. 

3. Relax on long beach- we just visited but wish we would have chilled out here. It was what I thought more of the Thailand beaches would be like. More remote and pristine in comparison to others. 

4. Half day tour to maya bay. Do your own long tail boat - it's not that much extra even if there's just two of you. 

5. Embrace the party scene - even if it's not your style. It's the only way to enjoy what this island has become. 

If extra time - we didn't do these but they interested me: kayaking and a trip to bamboo island

Everywhere you look is tour companies selling the same tours. All are about the same price. Just pick a place. Don't waste time shopping around. 

Phuket, Thailand

Phuket has a reputation for craziness, parties and prostitutes. We hadn't liked being in the middle of the craziness, aren't much for the debauchery parties here (there's no middle ground - only go big or go home vibe), and saw the prostitutes in Chaing Mai (and were grossed out). But we still opted to come see it. 

To try and get a little of middle ground, we chose to stay in Karon, which is supposed to be quieter. It is calmer, but it's still pretty much without unique character or culture. The town and streets resembled a very western tourist town with a pretty beach. There were some bars but there is definitely less action at night. There are lots of cheesy restaurants serving a foreign cusine plus a Thai menu. There were also a ton of electrical wires and tour stands. The beach was nice. But we again had hazy weather - I guess to be expected in September (rainy season). 

We booked a nice hotel (Simpletel) off the main road for $22 / night. When we arrived we weren't feeling well so we went spent the afternoon in the AC and thinking about where to end our trip. We ended the day to the beach for a late afternoon swim. 

That night I tried the fish massage. It was SO weird with them sucking my feet!!! It tickled and then kinda felt like bubbles. My skin felt softer but I didn't feel a lot of dead skin removed. 

I think I'll stick to the regular massages!!

We walked through a market that was in the main temple. It was the standard market. Nothing different or impressive. We still weren't feeling a 100% so we got to go pizza and ate it in bed. 

I really only wanted to be in Phuket a night to see the craziness but Josh wanted to have two nights so we didn't have to travel back to back. Good thing because we did stay longer because we would not have enjoyed it if we pushed ourselves to go out the first night. 

The next morning we went on a tour to Pha Nga Bay. I didn't realize how far it was from Phuket. It's at least an hour drive. It was pretty. But the tour felt very herded and there were just so many people doing the same thing, and seeing the same sights. Again, I couldn't imagine how crowded Thailand would be in season, if this is off season. Besides that feeling, it was something I'd recommend if you were in the area, but not something to stay longer for. 

We saw a lot of limestone cliff islands which we had seen in both Phi Phi and Railay Beach. They were pretty! We went to an island to canoe into caves and under the limestone over hangs. I thought we were getting to do the canoe but you are paddled around by a worker. The caves and everywhere we went were really cool though. 

We then went to the famous James Bond island - it's a rock in a lagoon that is known because it was featured in a film. No more pretty than any other rock islands. 

The best part of the tour was our lunch stop at Panyee Island. Lunch was awful, but the muslim Island fishing town was so cool to see. Much of it is built on stilts, over the water. 

That night we were went to see the craziness and went out to Bangla road. 
The street is crazy with go go bars and strip clubs.
Our goal was to see a show, so we asked around.
It's an experience to say the least.
We did see the famous ping pong show, along with other tricks such as shooting darts.
We learned a lot about the whole process of that side of tourism by talking to a gentleman from England.
Josh wasn't feeling 100%, and there was no way to deal with more of the experience without alcohol, so we saw, checked the box, and went home.

As a whole, Phuket reminded me of a Daytona-esque beach town with only strip clubs and go go bars. Not really worth it in my opinion. 

Going in to Phuket, you need to know:

*Embrace the Patong area for a night or skip Phuket - we stayed outside of it to be close but avoid it. But we wanted to see it. So we spent too much money on cans

*Be ready to spend - the most expensive area of Thailand, especially if you want to experience the strip bars (add more money if you want to participate in that side of tourism haha)

*There is more to explore outside of sex shows. I wish I would have explored the area more (we meant to but weren't feeling well).  There were lookout points we should have rented a scooter to go see.

Railay Beach, Krabi, Thailand

Our first Thailand beach stop was Railay Beach in Krabi. It's an isolated part of the peninsula that we needed to take a bus and boat to get to. 

Of course it was raining during our boat ride! 

And basically the whole time there. It limited some of the experience, but it was still gorgeous there. And one of my favorite stops in Thailand. I can only imagine if we would have stayed longer or had better weather. 

We stayed at Hotel Avatar. We got an amazing deal because it was just opening.  It was easily a 4-5 star hotel by US standards, which we paid ~$30 USD per night for. It was awesome! The room was modern. And all the rooms overlooked a long pool, which you could literally walk right into from your porch if you had a bottom floor room. 

We arrived in the early evening so we basically enjoyed a luxurious hotel and went to dinner in the main strip of restaurants which was right nearby. We ate a Mama's Kitchen, which was really good local food. 

In the morning, it was still raining, but luckily lightly so we set off exploring. We went everywhere there was to go! 

First we went to Princess Cave and the South Cave Beach. 

The one cave is known for a fertility shrine. 

We continued walking up through the jungle and out to the Ton Sai village. It was really cool, but remote, very hippie and bare bones. There seemed to be a lot of cool bars. I would have ventured back in the sunshine for happy hour (if we were there for longer or had better weather....it is a decent 45 min to 1 hour walk / hike)

We walked down to the beach and there were lugar monkeys playing in the trees. They were cool and had white eyes. 

Instead of double backing through the jungle, we decided to walk the beach back. There was a trail that took us through some rocks. All was fine except at the end we had to wade in the water and waves were crashing up in the rocks. I slipped. It was pouring rain. Not great with phones in tow. 

We spent the rest of the day enjoying the warmth of a nice hotel room. 

That night we went to dinner at a shop along the east beach walkway and then to a fire show at last bar. 

I really liked Railay. It was probably the only place in Thailand I wish we stayed longer at.  We didn't stay because of the rain and we thought we wanted to see more of the islands. Looking back, all the islands are much more similar than descriptions lead you to believe. I liked the vibe here, and would have liked to kayak through the cliffs. I also would have gone rock climbing if it wasn't raining (or if Josh wasn't afraid of heights). And I heard the snorkeling and Emerald Cave trips were good. 

I thought where we stayed in East beach was the coolest area and best to stay, with a great strip of restaurants and bars. But it wasn't super party rowdy. 

West beach had the big famous beach but I didn't find the big resorts there all that impressive. If it was sunny, the long tail boat restaurants would have been there, but we didn't get to see that. 

The other strip of action is inland, which we walked through but didn't venture back too bc it was raining and muddy back there. 

A lot of people come here for a day trip, and I would definitely recommend longer. 

Mae Sot, Thailand

Our next stop was Mae Sot. It was a very out of the way stop, as we were coming from the Central North, and Mae Sot in on the very west of Thailand, near the Mynamar / Burmese Border. But it was a very important stop to us. Our friend Christen Chiles had spent a year living here, working on a mission. 

Mae Sot is not a tourist town. Some may pass through on their way to Mynamar, but it is mostly freight drivers passing through and locals. 

After a full day a full day of travel - two mini vans and a bus - we arrived. 

We were dropped off at an essentially closed bus station. 

We didn't have a map or directions for our hotel. 

Of course this was the only place we haven't been swarmed by taxi drivers, and the people working in the little convenient store spoke no english. 

We took a guess at which way looked more populated, and started walking. 

We had no clue. 

We were just looking for anywhere open. 

After much walking around, we found a tourist police station. We went into it to ask directions, and they actually drove us! 

Our hotel, Picture Book Guest House, was super cute! 

It was very artistic and unique. It's gardens and cool stain glass windows made it an oasis in the (pretty grey) city. The room was built out of concrete molds, and the furniture was hand made out of reclaimed teak wood. 

To top it off, it was cheap ($17/night) and was run by a non profit group who provides training and jobs to Thailand's youth and Burmese refuges. 

The next morning we went and explored on bicycles the hotel provided. 

Mae Sot quickly became a favorite stop on our trip. 

We went all over town! 

First we headed to the day market. It was a typical flea market setting, but we found at least one interesting (and funny....maybe applicable) find. 

Next, we headed to the border. Which to get to, we biked along Asia Highway 1, which is the main route between Thailand and Myanmar. A very busy road! 

We stopped along the side of the road where local stands were selling HUGE beetles for fighting and bags of eels for eating. 

We interacted with the locals for awhile, trying to speak to each other through hand motions to understand what the eels and beetles were for. It was so fun. While maybe the most simple, it was one of my top favorite moments of the whole trip. 

At the border there is a huge market (Rim Moei border market) which we also walked through. And we also crossed the friendship bridge. 

The whole town is basically full of markets. 

I don't know how they sell everything - it wasn't that bustling of a city. And there is not a wide selection or differences in stands. 

The markets were more like big flea markets - selling shirts and clothing, small electronics, and some food. 

For lunch we went to the restaurant Christin Chiles helped build, and the reason we were in Mae Sot- Famous Rays. 

The restaurant was built by a mission in an effort to provide jobs to the Burmese refugees and to support a local safe house. It was such a good thing to see what she contributed to and where she lived for a year. 

It was a cool place - really nicely decorated. And the burgers were awesome!!! I had a Burmese one for lunch (curry flavors) and Josh had a Thai one. 

Christen painted those signs

The workers were so nice! Bah was our waiter and he was so sweet and kept saying how much he missed Christin. We also met Michael, who was American and helping there. 

In the afternoon we rode our bikes around more and explored. Really just saw more markets. 

The city is a real Thai city. There were no tourists. Lots of electric wires. Lots of businesses. 

That evening, we took a yoga stretch class our hotel offered and just chilled. 

That night it was back to Famous Rays for dinner. Unfortunately we didn't get to meet Christen's friends who were still working there, but we got two more burgers. I made a veggie one and we had the Thai salad which was so good!! 

Mae Sot was a lot of out of the way travel but it was so worth it and good to see the real Thailand and something different. And something meaningful. 

Pai, Thailand

We chose to go to Pai for its access to nature and to do some hiking. Unfortunately we didn't plan a proper guided trek in advance and couldn't figure it out last minute. And there weren't self-guided hikes like we expected. We ended up doing a lot of exploring though. 

The area is very green, and beautiful with lots of lookouts and farmland. 

The town has character. It was more touristy than I expected and filled with backpackers and ex-pats. It had a vibe that was good for a few days, especially if you're traveling for awhile and need a break to chill out. 

There weren't a ton of sights, so everything there is to see can be done in a day. It would have been great to plan more time here and take an adventure from here.

We arrived around noon, and immediately rented a scooter and went for sandwiches at Little Big Cafe, which was really just a cool little counter on the main road. 

Then we drove around and explored. The roads to Pai are known for crazy turns. On the way here, I even felt car sick, which rarely happens. And with all these turns, comes lots of backpackers with bandages from scooter accidents. It's like a badge. 

Luckily my expert driver helped us escape without a scratch! 

Our first stop exploring was to Mo Paeng Waterfall. It was a really easy walk to see. 


There were multiple tiers with people relaxing in the pools and sunbathing around flat rocks. 

We ventured off the path and walked up into the streams that flow into the waterfall. 

It was a nice place to relax, but not a very impressive waterfall. 

We went to a nearby look out point in Pai's "Chinatown". It was a little farm house that served green tea. The views of town and the surrounding areas were awesome. So much green! 

We next went to Pai canyons, which is one of the area's main draws. It was pretty cool and some crevices to hike in and climb. If you read up on the area, the descriptions compare it to the Grand Canyon and make it sound much more stunning than it was. 

The last stop was to the Pai land split and Pem Bok waterfall. It was a really pretty area. We went for a swim here. 

At night, we explored the "walking street" which is lined with food stands and craft stalls. These street fairs are of Thai towns, especially those that tourists frequent. There were also a few nicer boutiques amongst the stores of the typical tourist items. 

We had dinner at Na's Kitchen. I got the pad thai, and it was super delicious and cheap!

The second day did not start off great. We slept in, and Josh and I were not on the same page with traveling dynamics. (We really only had two fights on the trip and this was the bigger one.) But the good news is we talked through it, expressed our frustrations, communicated, and moved on. By this point we had spent enough time together to notice something was wrong with a slight change in each other's behavior, event without saying anything. In this case, we let things build up and then just let it all out more negatively than needed. 

Basically we couldn't decide what to do, and were let down by our hiking options when that was our goal for going to Pai. The only self-guided hiking trail didn't have great reviews and would take all day. We didn't really want to commit to 8 hours of OK scenery during our only full day in Pai. 

We decided that we would do part of the trail, but not go the whole way to the waterfall at the end. Hiking is why we went to Pai, so we were going to give it a shot. We hiked through soy bean fields and jungle for an hour. 

We had to keep criss-crossing a river. It was really pretty but not as different, or "Thai" scenery as I expected.

After, we had a late lunch at boomalicious  where I had a really good roasted vegetable salad. It never seems there are enough vegetables while traveling. 

Then we did Josh's favorite thing - scootering around. We went down lots of side roads and off the beaten path areas. Once again, if there was a road on the map, we went down it. And then a few others too. 

We passed through tons of beautiful farm land - soy beans, corn and rice. 

Went to the white Buddha temple for sunset. The temple is just a giant statue.

 You have to hike up 300 stairs and its up on a hill facing west, overlooking the town. 

Unfortunately we didn't get much of a sunset. The sun went behind mountains pretty quickly. 

We went back to the street market for dinner, and went for a drink at an Aussie pub to watch some soccer. 

As for our accomodations, we stayed at Paiburee Guest House. It was a good place and it had pretty cool little rooms with beds like western adobes.  Cute common area, although no other guests. It was located just north of the main section of downtown. 

I would recommend a place further outside of town for quiet and peacefulness - There were SO many beautiful area of fields. There were pretty & quaint resorts to the northeast of town. But the main town area did have some great options too. 

Next up is a LONG travel day to Mae Sot. We are going from very Northern Thailand, to as far west as possible.