It is now time to head east onto the first of several islands. Each hopefully becoming quieter and more remote as we go. We really enjoyed Phuket for its vibrant colonial vibe but the purpose of this peregrination is to try and find the old backpacker Thailand of our younger days. It's 25 years since we last visited here and it fell off our radar as it became more and more to popular. I've said it before, and I still hold by it, that as soon as the package holiday companies move in you can say good bye to a destinations unique identity. We are hoping that this little adventure will allow us to find a Thailand as we remember it ( I really hope that doesn't sound snobbish or elitists. It's not meant to be).
We woke early to pack our Matilda's before checking out of our downtown lodgings. We had to wait for the room to be checked to ensure we hadn't trashed it or stolen the shower before getting back our bond. The bond is a regular thing in backpacker lodges in Asia. I think it harks back to the time that travellers were usually young smelly students without much money who would steal items to sell to pay for their onward travel. I can reassure you that Crispy and I have never stolen anything.
Once we had received the bond we went for a coffee and free WiFi to book a grab taxi in order to get to the ferry port in time for our 11am sailing.
Phuket is a major hub for ferrys to most of the popular islands and as such the ferry port was very busy. All sorts of people were jostling for tickets or boarding passes but like everything else here it is super efficient
Before long the gates to our ferry opened and within minutes we were seated on the top deck in readiness to leave port at 11 am as scheduled.
Our first destination is kho Phi Phi a 2 hour sail away. Phi phi is a very popular destination both for day trippers from Phuket and Krabi plus onward travellers like ourselves. It's a tiny island but very busy. It became very popular after Leonardo De Caprio starred in the popular "the beach".
The Beach tells the story of a young traveller searching for the perfect tourist free beach on a remote island. If you've not watched it then I seriously suggest you give it a go. It might even prompt you to come here. The actual beach shown in the film is now a nature reserve and swimming is not allowed but you can still take a long tail boat there to see it. It's on the list of things to do whilst on the island.
The ferry ride was gentle on calm blue seas. We arrived at the pier in Phi Phi on time. Because the island is busy I have arranged for us to stay at a small backpackers hotel on the far north of the island. There are no roads there so as part of the cost of staying a long tail boat taxi is included in the price. As we got of the ramp from the ferry I spied a young guy holding up a plaque with the name of our hotel and guided Crispy to him.
He welcomed us to the island and instructed us to wait on the beach for our taxi. There was Crispy, three young travellers and me.
After a few minutes an older guy came to us and requested we leave our packs on the beach whilst he waited for our boat to arrive. At this point it started to rain, only a passing shower, but enough to spur the guy into action to avoid our gear getting wet. He picked up our packs and strode out to a long tail boat with a roof. He put all our gear in this unmanned boat. We had followed him out into the surf but he instructed us to go back to the beach as this wasn't our boat. His English was poor and we were a little confused as to what was happening. He then disappeared..,..
After another 20 minutes another guy appeared and directed us to walk into the sea towards his boat. His English was even worse than the first guys and when I asked about our packs he just smiled and ushered us up a ladder into his boat. It wasn't easy as the water was around 3 foot deep at this point. The young travellers were as anxious as me as their entire worlds, like ours, existed in their little canvas bags. "Where are the bags" I asked. "Yes yes" he replied with a smile. "No no" says Crispy "where's my bag". " Yes Yes. Welcome Phi Phi" he shouted with a smile as the engine roared to life and we put out to sea. It was pointless repeating the yes no game so we resigned ourselves to sort the problem once we regained land.
After a short ride he beached the boat on a fairly remote beach. There wasn't really anything to see apart from a few abandoned bungalows. I was getting a bit anxious and felt sure I was going to face Crispy's wrath for getting her marooned without any essentials on a remote stretch of sand. Just as I was about to mutiny and overthrow the captain to take us back to civilization I heard the distinctive sound of motorcycles. Two bikes and riders appeared on the beach. Each motorcycle had a metal cage and a third wheel bolted onto it. "Yes Yes. Get on" they said in unison. I attempted one final try to find the location of our missing bags but again was met with "yes yes. Get on".
We climbed into the metal baskets attached to the bikes and as soon as we were in they set off through the forest. After a short time we arrived at a tiny village. A single street through the forest bordered by wooden huts, ramshackle restaurants,a small supermarket and our lodgings. It was fantastic. Just as we remember. The riders dropped us off outside our accomodation smiled and rode off into the forest.
At reception I mentioned the missing bags and a look of disbelief and terror came over the young receptionists face. He tried to play it down but it was obvious that this wasn't a normal situation. Our bags where in a little boat bobbing about somewhere near Phi Phi beach. After a series of hurried phone calls and conversations he assured us, rather unconvincingly, that our bags where on their way to us as we spoke. It turned out he was right as about an hour later the bags, and my Ukulele appeared at our room. No harm done we showered and went out for tea in the tiny village. The food was the best we have had. Real authentic Thai. It's a world away from Phuket and a great start to our adventure. Crispy loves it thank the lord. Tomorrow we shall look forward to exploring the area and hopefully get a swim in the sea. One of the best beaches on the island is approximately 1 hours walk away through the jungle. We love it here already and are here for 3 nights before moving off.
I truly hope there aren't many monkeys here. I fecking hate monkeys!!!!!!
Bare and Crispy, signing off, Kho Phi Phi, Thailand
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