Thailand itinerary 1-5

Day 1: Patong Beach--This is the Cancun of Thailand...beautiful beaches, filled with bars, cabarets, "cheap, cheap" market stalls. The beach may have been beautiful but not more beautiful than WA, and hard to appreciate as "tuk-tuk" drivers, market vendors sold Rolex watches for $10, and sequined women/men in drag advertised beer specials all vied for your attention. After walking throught the night markets, we found a bar where the most attention getting thing was a bottle of "CHANG" (thai budweiser) and a fierce game of connect 4.

Day 2: Ferry to Phi Phi Island: We came to Thailand on the edge of the Wet season. We found we hadn't quite missed the monsoons, when getting caught in the rain during a trip to the 7-11 left us soaked to the skin. After changing into dry clothes, we caught a taxi to the Ferry. The weather was still ominous for the ferry ride, and we got soaked again as we stood outside to watch the approach to Phi Phi Island. We took a Thai long boat to the resort, where we finished the day in style. Nathan in the beachside bar watching Eurosport, and me at the beachside massage stand getting my first Thai massage.

Day 3: OW, what sort of bed is this? I don't know if its a cultural thing (or if our resort was just really cheap, but I swear we didn't have a mattress, just a wooden plank wrapped in sheets. After a delicious breakfast (nothing like chillis in the morning) we decided to walk to town to book our trip from Bangkok to Chang Mai. 1 mile into town, being called upon by vendors. If a price isn't posted, you are expected to haggle. so as we walk down the street, we hear "pretty lady try beautiful thai silk, $500 Baht, wait---for you special price $300 Baht, ...$150 Baht--best I can do" We had a curry for lunch at a beachside restaurant before deciding to hike around the Island, top to bottom. With a humidity of 100% the climb to the top was exhausting and sweaty. After a change of clothes, we decided to finish the day with beer and massage on the beach.

Day 4: Ow, maybe we should sleep on the floor? Our next goal was to take a trip to Hollywood superstar Ko Phi Phi Leh . Featured in the movie The Beach, this limestone island juts out of the Andaman like a crown. White sand, turqoise water, green plants. thousands of tourists. snorkelling, a trip to monkey



Day 5: We decided to finish our time in phi phi with a kayak trip around the island. After a few false starts we paddled out to a more secluded resort where we had a plate of fruit, a beer, and some time in the hammock. This resort included my first trip to a squat toilet--but years of camping have prepared me for this moment.

Tomorrow off to Bangkok----