One Month in....

One month into our adventure and im finally getting used to all this traveling lark and living out of a rucksack. My last blog was 2 weeks ago when we were on a boat to Phi Phi so I'll start off from there...

Phi Phi
What can I say? Well to sum it up, a small island with lots to offer, there are no Cars so people commute by either bicycle or foot.. As this island is quite compact there are restaurants, bars and shops everywhere you turn; so as you can imagine it is a tourist trap and I must say one of my favorite islands so far. Unfortunately though, because of its appeal it is the most expensive island in Thailand we have been to so far.
Our room was 1800 baht a night (28 pounds) so more or less 10 pound a night each, which is a huge jump from our 2 pound a night each bungalow we had in Koh Samui that we had a few weeks back. However the extra cost in Phi Phi did mean that we had air con, a fridge, hot water and a TV and DVD player.... so this to us was more like a holiday for the 6 days we stayed here.

The main beach in Phi Phi is a big cove, the tide goes out mid afternoon which can be a pain especially when it is scorching and all you wanna do is jump in the water and not have to walk 10 minutes out in order to do so... However there are many small islands around Phi Phi with beautiful beaches, so I do recommend that you jump in a long tail boat for about 100 baht (2 pound) each and go to Bamboo island or Long beach- AMAZING.....

Also you must do a day trip on a long tail boat, this trip entails going to many of these different islands, which include Maya Bay- this is where the famous film 'The Beach' was filmed. You are also taken to Monkey Island- which lives up to its name as the monkeys come out to the people on the beach searching for food- amazing experience... You also have a chance to snorkel several times during the day with equipment provided, also lunch and dinner are included. The cost of this trip is around 650 baht each (13 pound).

The nightlife in Phi Phi is booming with loads of bars and beach bars which all have a good vibe, this island used to party into the early hours however due to an incident on Christmas eve the music went off at 1am whilst we were there. However Im sure this curfew will pass eventually.....

Koh Lanta

After our 6 day 'holiday' in Phi Phi we got a big boat to an island called Koh Lanta, approximately an hour away. This Island is a complete contrast to Phi Phi, it is much bigger and relaxed. There are not many bars/clubs and the nightlife and entertainment tends to exist around the hotels and their beach bars which are pretty chilled.... We had a good 4 days on this island, not only did we find cheap accommodation in a bungalow which was right on the beach and had a pool, 5 pound a night to be exact with hot shower- bonus. But this island was quite cheap and our complex had a good beach bar that played good music... 4 days of chilling and sunbathing was just what we needed after the 6 days of partying in Phi Phi.

Phuket

We are now in Phuket, where I am writing this blog from. We have been here for 5 days, we got a 4 hour boat straight from Koh Lanta. We are staying with a friend that I have known since I was 8 years old. I haven't seen her in a few years so it was really nice of her to let us crash at hers. She has lived in Thailand for 7 months now as she trains Muay Thai, therefore she lives in a part of Phuket that is mainly where the Muay Thai boxers train- Chalong. As this area is mainly where people come to train it is really in the middle of no where and not really an area where the avid holiday maker would venture. However you can get taxi's anywhere that are quite cheap, and it helped that we had 'inside knowledge' from my friend to take us to where we wanted to go. We have been to a beach a few times- Niharn Beach, it is really beautiful so a visit there is a must. We also ventured into Patong for a night out... before I continue I just wanna say that I have heard mixed reviews about Patong so I was intrigued to see for myself what it was like....

Patong- Well to sum it up- Very busy, very loud and very tourist equipt. So if you love to eat, shop, drink and dance then it is a must go place to experience... I'll let you make up your own mind though...

We went to a night market the other night, it was massive... I highly recommend that you go to a night market at least once whilst you are in Thailand... There is anything and everything you could possibly want for extremely cheap prices and you can still barter to make them even cheaper!! So, 'Cheap Chaep' as the Thai's would say....

We are going to Bangkok tomorrow, can't wait, but again I have heard mixed reviews about this city from other travelers..... Watch this space...