Merry Christmas from Taiwan!
It is officially Christmas day in Taiwan, so merry christmas to all! I was originally very scared that Christmas would be really sad, being so far away from family and friends. And while it is hard to be away during the holidays, I'm not as sad as I thought I would be. Not nearly as sad as I was last year at least. Regardless, I miss all my family and friends and wish a Merry Christmas to everyone!
Rick and I had a traditional Christmas morning. We sat down in front of our tree and opened our gifts. Now I am having hot chocolate with marshmallows and eating breakfast. Later I have three classes, we still work Christmas in Taiwan. But they are three of my favorite classes and coteachers so I don't mind!
Love you all.
25 December 2013
24 December 2013
Teaching Christmas
Since we arrived right on Christmas Eve last year, we kind of missed the crazy that is Christmas at Gloria. For the past week, we've been having Christmas parties in all of our classes. Its been a lot of fun but I am so exhausted. Rick and I decided that we didn't want to just make Christmas cards with our students which is what they usually do. So I researched and found some crafts to do with different levels. With our older classes, each student gets to make a wreath and decorate it. The younger classes made reindeer with their hands for the antlers and their foot for the head. Here are a couple pictures of my cutest kids or the best jobs done to explain...
In one of my classes, we made gingerbread houses! I was pretty impressed with them. Their houses looked a lot better than mine ever have...
Our week of Christmas parties isn't over yet! We still have tonight and tomorrow. Tonight I am making Christmas cards because its their first Christmas at an English school. The next day we are making a Santa craft, and then more wreaths. All of these Christmas parties have really helped to put me into the Christmas spirit while being so far from home. It also helps that Rick surprised me with a Christmas tree! And we've been watching a lot of Christmas movies as well.
We just realized actually that as of today, we have officially been in Taiwan for a year. When we first got here, I never would've thought I'd make it the full year. And now its only 37 more days until I am back in Canada. Time really does fly.
Shampoo Hat?
Just an example of some of the random things you can find available to buy in Taiwan...
You put it on your head in the bath when you are shampooing and voila! No shampoo in your eyes. Any takers?
You put it on your head in the bath when you are shampooing and voila! No shampoo in your eyes. Any takers?
Happy Birthday to Rick
On the actual day of his birthday (November 29th), I had one of my coteachers help me to find an ice cream cake for him. That is his favorite kind of cake, he always gets one from Dairy Queen for his birthday so I tried to recreate that for him. The Taiwanese version of an ice cream cake was very different though. It was literally just a big circular block of ice cream. It is the thought that counts.. right? Right?
Anyway! On the weekend, we had a birthday party for him at a bar with a bunch of our friends and coteachers. Rick had a great time and really felt like it was his birthday. The bar was nice. There were literally only two other people in the bar who weren't there for Rick's birthday. So the owner just kept giving Rick free drinks the whole night.
The next day, Rick and I went hiking on Elephant Mountain in Taipei. This mountain has always been available to hike in Taipei but recently, they connected the MRT to the area which makes it so much more accessible. The view was amazing. We had a lot of fun while hiking there. The many many stairs were kind of killing me though.. maybe I should start to work out. I may be skinny but I am not in good shape. Rick found a lookout which was off the trail and terrified me to walk to. I powered through the huge grass, my fear of bugs and my fear of snakes and made it there. It was a nice view but the entire time all I could think of was that I had to walk back through the forest I came in through... I made it out alive.
Rick's favorite food is Indian food which is something he doesn't get a lot of in Taiwan. I had looked into an Indian restaurant in Taipei called Ali Baba's Indian Kitchen. I had seen on a food blog that they have a great Indian buffet which was exactly what Rick wanted. When we got there, we found out that the buffet was only for lunch time so we ordered from the menu. The food was amazing, but obviously spicy which was a struggle for me but Rick really enjoyed his birthday dinner.
Then when Rick's birthday celebrations were finished, we could get started on Christmas!
Anyway! On the weekend, we had a birthday party for him at a bar with a bunch of our friends and coteachers. Rick had a great time and really felt like it was his birthday. The bar was nice. There were literally only two other people in the bar who weren't there for Rick's birthday. So the owner just kept giving Rick free drinks the whole night.
The next day, Rick and I went hiking on Elephant Mountain in Taipei. This mountain has always been available to hike in Taipei but recently, they connected the MRT to the area which makes it so much more accessible. The view was amazing. We had a lot of fun while hiking there. The many many stairs were kind of killing me though.. maybe I should start to work out. I may be skinny but I am not in good shape. Rick found a lookout which was off the trail and terrified me to walk to. I powered through the huge grass, my fear of bugs and my fear of snakes and made it there. It was a nice view but the entire time all I could think of was that I had to walk back through the forest I came in through... I made it out alive.
Rick's favorite food is Indian food which is something he doesn't get a lot of in Taiwan. I had looked into an Indian restaurant in Taipei called Ali Baba's Indian Kitchen. I had seen on a food blog that they have a great Indian buffet which was exactly what Rick wanted. When we got there, we found out that the buffet was only for lunch time so we ordered from the menu. The food was amazing, but obviously spicy which was a struggle for me but Rick really enjoyed his birthday dinner.
Then when Rick's birthday celebrations were finished, we could get started on Christmas!
23 December 2013
Bangkok; Snakes, Food, and Sickness
Now that I have finished my review of the horrible hotel.. I can finish the rest of our time in Bangkok. I won't mention it again, even though it was a horrible, horrible place and I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy.. moving on.
Our first day in Bangkok we headed to the Snake Farm. The Red Cross put together this Snake Farm to try and find antidotes to snake venom. They had a bunch of snakes in enclosures and then they do a snake show as well. I am not a big fan of snakes at all but it was definitely cool to experience. I spent a lot of our time there gasping, and squeezing Rick's hand/arm in fear but I would recommend the Snake Farm to anyone. Definitely worth a visit.
Next, we were starving so food was on our minds. We headed to a restaurant called Taling Pling, recommended by our guide book. The food was very tasty and the area we were in was very nice. There was a beautiful Christmas tree which really made me miss home. We had went to that area to visit the Erawan Shrine. We actually ended up walking past it the first time as we were expecting a huge display but it was nice when we found it. It was small, but beautiful and it has a very cool story behind it. It was originally built because the hotel that was being built beside it had consulted a monk who had told them they needed to build it to counteract their bad karma. Then in 2006, it was vandalized by a man who was then killed by the crowd because they were so angry that he destroyed it. It was rebuilt to what it is today. However after seeing so many massive temples and the like, we both found the shrine very underwhelming.
That night, we went back to our hotel and I wasn't feeling so great. But we had already booked the Escape Hunt for the next day. So we went to bed early and woke up early for our day.
Escape Hunt is a mystery-game where you are the detective. They have three different types of games, two where you are in a room and trying to find a murderer and another where you go to a mall next door and try to solve a bomb mystery. All games have an hour time cap on them so we spent our time running through a shopping mall trying to find who was going to set off the Bangkok Bomb. We succeeded! It was very exciting and we felt pretty accomplished afterwards. They gave us tea and we took some pictures. It was a great experience and I would recommend it to anyone. The only downside was they advertise that they take credit cards and then when we got there, they said their credit card machine wasn't working that day. When I got home, I read that other people had the same problem which leads me to believe that it wasn't just a problem that day. Maybe they don't want to accept credit cards because they don't want to pay the fee that businesses have to pay which is fine, but then don't advertise that you accept credit cards. Say upfront, cash only.
After we had finished our mission, my sickness was back in full force. I think the excitement and running around kept it at bay but after Escape Hunt, I felt like crap. We went to eat lunch at the mall and headed right back to our hotel after as I was feeling pretty feverish. We spent the rest of our day lounging in our hotel room, me sleeping and Rick watching movies. I felt a bit better around dinner time so we went out for dinner. Only to feel worse while eating and afterwards.
The next day was our day of departure but our flight wasn't until late afternoon so first we went to the Chatuchak Weekend Market. I think this was one of my favorite parts of Bangkok. I really wish we would've went here when we first came to Thailand as every souvenir we had seen all over Thailand was being sold here at a fraction of the price. Live and learn. Regardless, it was a great way to spend our last day in Thailand and we really enjoyed ourselves while spending our money.
Next we headed back to Taiwan and the countdown officially started for me to come home.
Our first day in Bangkok we headed to the Snake Farm. The Red Cross put together this Snake Farm to try and find antidotes to snake venom. They had a bunch of snakes in enclosures and then they do a snake show as well. I am not a big fan of snakes at all but it was definitely cool to experience. I spent a lot of our time there gasping, and squeezing Rick's hand/arm in fear but I would recommend the Snake Farm to anyone. Definitely worth a visit.
Next, we were starving so food was on our minds. We headed to a restaurant called Taling Pling, recommended by our guide book. The food was very tasty and the area we were in was very nice. There was a beautiful Christmas tree which really made me miss home. We had went to that area to visit the Erawan Shrine. We actually ended up walking past it the first time as we were expecting a huge display but it was nice when we found it. It was small, but beautiful and it has a very cool story behind it. It was originally built because the hotel that was being built beside it had consulted a monk who had told them they needed to build it to counteract their bad karma. Then in 2006, it was vandalized by a man who was then killed by the crowd because they were so angry that he destroyed it. It was rebuilt to what it is today. However after seeing so many massive temples and the like, we both found the shrine very underwhelming.
That night, we went back to our hotel and I wasn't feeling so great. But we had already booked the Escape Hunt for the next day. So we went to bed early and woke up early for our day.
Escape Hunt is a mystery-game where you are the detective. They have three different types of games, two where you are in a room and trying to find a murderer and another where you go to a mall next door and try to solve a bomb mystery. All games have an hour time cap on them so we spent our time running through a shopping mall trying to find who was going to set off the Bangkok Bomb. We succeeded! It was very exciting and we felt pretty accomplished afterwards. They gave us tea and we took some pictures. It was a great experience and I would recommend it to anyone. The only downside was they advertise that they take credit cards and then when we got there, they said their credit card machine wasn't working that day. When I got home, I read that other people had the same problem which leads me to believe that it wasn't just a problem that day. Maybe they don't want to accept credit cards because they don't want to pay the fee that businesses have to pay which is fine, but then don't advertise that you accept credit cards. Say upfront, cash only.
After we had finished our mission, my sickness was back in full force. I think the excitement and running around kept it at bay but after Escape Hunt, I felt like crap. We went to eat lunch at the mall and headed right back to our hotel after as I was feeling pretty feverish. We spent the rest of our day lounging in our hotel room, me sleeping and Rick watching movies. I felt a bit better around dinner time so we went out for dinner. Only to feel worse while eating and afterwards.
The next day was our day of departure but our flight wasn't until late afternoon so first we went to the Chatuchak Weekend Market. I think this was one of my favorite parts of Bangkok. I really wish we would've went here when we first came to Thailand as every souvenir we had seen all over Thailand was being sold here at a fraction of the price. Live and learn. Regardless, it was a great way to spend our last day in Thailand and we really enjoyed ourselves while spending our money.
Next we headed back to Taiwan and the countdown officially started for me to come home.
18 December 2013
Back to Bangkok; Riverview Hotel
After Koh Phi Phi, we were back in Bangkok for a few days before our flight back to Taiwan. We wanted to stay in a different area and at a nicer place this time so we paid some more money and booked at the Riverview Hotel.
Prior to arriving, I already wasn't too fond of this hotel. I had been emailing them every day while we were in Koh Phi Phi asking for directions on how to get to their hotel from the smaller airport. They emailed me back but didn't answer any of my questions, told me they would get back to me, told me that they would never forget to respond to my emails. And then they just stopped responding. So we arrived in Bangkok, unsure of how to get to the hostel. We called them, they told us if we would've asked beforehand.. they could've sent a car to get us but now they can't... Um.. I did ask beforehand. I emailed for a week straight. I tried to get past it, miscommunication and a language barrier, moving on.
We checked in and headed to our room. I have never been so disappointed. The pictures and descriptions shown on their website are so different from what is actually given to you. The floor was concrete and there was a horrible smell. We tried to make the best of it. Since we had gotten there pretty late, we went to the hotel's restaurant. Which was possibly the one redeeming part of this hotel. The view from the restaurant was amazing. Again, the food was subpar but the view was great so we had a good time. When we went back to our room, it had started to rain and come in through the window, making the smell 10x worse. I had fallen asleep so Rick went down to complain to the front desk and they said we could switch rooms in the morning.
By the time the morning came, the smell was unbearable. Rick went down to inquire about switching rooms and of course, completely different staff. They had no idea what we were talking about and said that since the rain had stopped, we couldn't switch rooms. I was so frustrated at this point, I was looking at other hotels in Bangkok to switch to. Eventually, Rick kept talking to them about the smell and how horrible it was, it really was bad. They switched our room... to a dorm room. It was definitely nicer than our last room but we had four single beds to ourselves.. it felt very weird.
In the end, I wasn't impressed with this hotel in the least bit. Usually when someone has so many complaints about a room, a hotel will offer a better room. Instead, we were given a dorm room. I would NOT recommend this hotel to anyone. They claim to be in China Town but they are really on the outskirts of China Town. Not a convenient location at all and the staff speak little to no English. Very poor customer service.
Here is the link to the hotel so you can be sure NOT to book there.
The Worst Hotel Experience Ever
Prior to arriving, I already wasn't too fond of this hotel. I had been emailing them every day while we were in Koh Phi Phi asking for directions on how to get to their hotel from the smaller airport. They emailed me back but didn't answer any of my questions, told me they would get back to me, told me that they would never forget to respond to my emails. And then they just stopped responding. So we arrived in Bangkok, unsure of how to get to the hostel. We called them, they told us if we would've asked beforehand.. they could've sent a car to get us but now they can't... Um.. I did ask beforehand. I emailed for a week straight. I tried to get past it, miscommunication and a language barrier, moving on.
We checked in and headed to our room. I have never been so disappointed. The pictures and descriptions shown on their website are so different from what is actually given to you. The floor was concrete and there was a horrible smell. We tried to make the best of it. Since we had gotten there pretty late, we went to the hotel's restaurant. Which was possibly the one redeeming part of this hotel. The view from the restaurant was amazing. Again, the food was subpar but the view was great so we had a good time. When we went back to our room, it had started to rain and come in through the window, making the smell 10x worse. I had fallen asleep so Rick went down to complain to the front desk and they said we could switch rooms in the morning.
In good spirits at the restaurant
Beautiful view
By the time the morning came, the smell was unbearable. Rick went down to inquire about switching rooms and of course, completely different staff. They had no idea what we were talking about and said that since the rain had stopped, we couldn't switch rooms. I was so frustrated at this point, I was looking at other hotels in Bangkok to switch to. Eventually, Rick kept talking to them about the smell and how horrible it was, it really was bad. They switched our room... to a dorm room. It was definitely nicer than our last room but we had four single beds to ourselves.. it felt very weird.
Not in a good mood.
Our dorm room
Our dorm room
Urinal, anyone?
In the end, I wasn't impressed with this hotel in the least bit. Usually when someone has so many complaints about a room, a hotel will offer a better room. Instead, we were given a dorm room. I would NOT recommend this hotel to anyone. They claim to be in China Town but they are really on the outskirts of China Town. Not a convenient location at all and the staff speak little to no English. Very poor customer service.
Here is the link to the hotel so you can be sure NOT to book there.
The Worst Hotel Experience Ever
Koh Phi Phi: Part Two
We had one full day and one half day left at Koh Phi Phi and we hadn't done the viewpoint yet so off we went. First, I headed to breakfast while Rick figured out the room situation. It didn't take long, the staff there was so nice. They apologized profusely and switched our room right away. I was exponentially happier! Before the room switch, I was feeling pretty upset and just wanted to leave but that definitely made things better.
We decided to spend the morning snorkeling and swimming at our resort's beach since it would be our last chance to do so. After spending a few hours swimming and relaxing, we took the afternoon taxi boat into the main village for lunch and the hike.
We ended up going for Mexican food at Banana bar, a bar we had went to before that sold buckets buy one get one free and the food was great. It was really good food and they gave us a discount because we liked their facebook page while we were there. After lunch, we were off to the viewpoint.
We had talked about hiking the viewpoint from when we first got to Koh Phi Phi because our beach and the main island are connected via the viewpoint but that hike turned out to be not my thing haha too much jungle for me. So we went to the main area and did the smaller hike from there. The hike was hard.. so many steep stairs but it was totally worth it when we got to the top. There were two different viewpoints and they were both beautiful.
After the viewpoint, we did some more souvenir shopping and then relaxed at a restaurant which was playing the Friends DVD . Then it was back to our resort. We spent the night there going for dinner and relaxing. The next day we left Koh Phi Phi at 10AM to head back to Krabi for a flight to Bangkok for a few more days. Our hotel in Bangkok was supposed to be our nicest one yet but we were in for a big surprise.
While in Koh Phi Phi, we stayed at Rantee Cliff Beach Resort. I would definitely recommend this resort to anyone who is not interested in the crazy partying that goes on in Koh Phi Phi. The rooms have an amazing view and the staff are very helpful in all aspects. But, like I said, you are not on the main village so if that is where you want to be, it can be difficult and expensive to get back from there very late. We weren't really interested in getting drunk so it was perfect for us.
Happy to be in our new room
We decided to spend the morning snorkeling and swimming at our resort's beach since it would be our last chance to do so. After spending a few hours swimming and relaxing, we took the afternoon taxi boat into the main village for lunch and the hike.
Hanging out on the swing at our resort
We ended up going for Mexican food at Banana bar, a bar we had went to before that sold buckets buy one get one free and the food was great. It was really good food and they gave us a discount because we liked their facebook page while we were there. After lunch, we were off to the viewpoint.
We had talked about hiking the viewpoint from when we first got to Koh Phi Phi because our beach and the main island are connected via the viewpoint but that hike turned out to be not my thing haha too much jungle for me. So we went to the main area and did the smaller hike from there. The hike was hard.. so many steep stairs but it was totally worth it when we got to the top. There were two different viewpoints and they were both beautiful.
On the way
Viewpoint One
The view from viewpoint one
More hiking to viewpoint two.. 5 minute walk.. liars
On the way
WE HAVE ARRIVED
10 Baht for the toilet please
We were joined at the last supper by stray cats
Saying goodbye to our resort during our last breakfast
Goodbye Rantee Beach
Goodbye hammock
While in Koh Phi Phi, we stayed at Rantee Cliff Beach Resort. I would definitely recommend this resort to anyone who is not interested in the crazy partying that goes on in Koh Phi Phi. The rooms have an amazing view and the staff are very helpful in all aspects. But, like I said, you are not on the main village so if that is where you want to be, it can be difficult and expensive to get back from there very late. We weren't really interested in getting drunk so it was perfect for us.
12 December 2013
Koh Phi Phi: Part One
Koh Phi Phi was the place where we were staying still for the longest amount of time; four days and three nights. We decided to stay not in the main village but on Rantee Beach. We decided this because Rick wanted to make sure we were right on the beach and this was recommended from our guidebook. We got off the ferry and found the taxi boat to our resort; Rantee Cliff Beach Resort. We had to wait a few minutes and we were off, 15 minutes later, we had arrived at the resort.
By the time we got to the resort, it was after six o'clock so we decided to spend our first night on our beach. There were three other resorts on our beach and they all had their own restaurant. We were both tired from a long day of traveling so we went for dinner at our restaurant. While the resort in general was great, the restaurant left a lot to be desired. Safe to say, we didn't go back there for dinner after the first night.
The next day, we woke up bright and early to take the taxi boat from our beach into the main one BUT we missed the first one at 8AM. Noon it was! Instead we spent our morning enjoying our free breakfast from the resort, Rick snorkeled a lot and I sat in the sun and read. The reason we chose Rantee Beach out of all the beaches was because of the great snorkeling which was apparently right off the shore and what we had read didn't disappoint. Rick rented snorkeling equipment from our hotel and got right to it. He had an amazing time and I got to enjoy the sun. Win win.
We headed into the main town, Tonsai Village and our first stop was lunch. We went to a restaurant recommended by our guide book, Cosmos, and we were so far from disappointed. Rick had ravioli and I had gnocchi.. probably the best pasta we have both had in over a year. If there is one thing that Taiwan can't get right its pasta but boy did this place get it right.
Next we hung out at the main beach for a bit, enjoying the water and the sun. After the beach, we went for dinner at a great Thai restaurant and then headed to a bar. We took our time because we had decided to stay in town until a bit later and take one of the taxi boats back (not provided by our resort). We knew it would be a little expensive for Thailand standards, around $20 CAD, but we really wanted to check out this one bar we had heard about. The bar offers free buckets of alcohol to any one who volunteers for an amateur Muay Thai fight so obviously we had to check it out. It was definitely an experience and I'd recommend going to anyone who is in Ko Phi Phi. The fact that guys are actually willing to get beat up just to save around $10 still surprises me but everyone is different, right?
Then, it started to rain. We thought hey we better get out of here so we can take a taxi boat back. Then it started to pour. Then it got worse as we were running to the main pier. Then the streets were starting to flood. The streets that were once full of people offering their services of a taxi boat were empty. I stopped in a store and Rick kept going to find out if anyone was left. There was one taxi boat driver who said he could take us but not until the rain stopped and for $1500 Baht so around $50 CAD. Rick haggled him down to just over $30 and we began to wait out the rain. We really didn't want to have to pay that much but we also wanted to go back to our resort. Finally the rain stopped and so began the scariest boat ride of my life. I was literally convinced we were going to die, Rick was reassuring me but after the ride, he informed me the whole time he was thinking about the easiest way for us to swim if the boat had tipped. Thankfully, we made it back safely. And we never stayed in the main town past the last taxi boat provided by our resort again.
The next day we woke up early and went back into town because we had booked a half day tour around some islands, bays and it included some snorkeling. This half day tour was such an amazing aspect of our time at Ko Phi Phi. First we went to Maya Bay (the beach where the movie, 'The Beach' was filmed). After which, we went to a few beautiful bays and some amazing snorkeling spots. I am not generally interested in snorkeling. I have tried it multiple times in the past and it has given me a lot of anxiety, I could never get used to the idea of being able to breathe through my mouth under water. But, Rick really wanted me to try again so I did and I finally succeeded! It was amazing. We had so much fun snorkeling together, I was even able to see my favorite fish, NEMO! Rick was super excited that I finally got the hang of it because he loves snorkeling and now he could drag me along with him.
Our half day tour ended at Monkey Beach. This beach is known for being rampant with socialized/wild monkeys. Tourists visit the island every day and feed the monkeys bananas, pineapples, anything. My friend had recommended that we go here so we were excited. When we arrived, there were a few other boats there visiting the island but no one else was getting off their boats. We decided to be brave and go try and feed some monkeys. They were totally willing to come up to anyone, as long as they had some food to offer.
After our day trip, we were exhausted so we headed back to our resort. When we got back to the room, we had the unfortunate experience of finding a tree frog on the walls of our room. We told the hotel staff and they removed it, unfortunately, that wasn't the end of my experience with creatures in this room. We later realized there was a major gap in our hut, hence the entrance of the tree frog. As well as so many mosquitoes that we were forced to use the mosquito net every single night. But that wasn't the end.
We relaxed and enjoyed the rest of the night eating at a restaurant near our resort. In the middle of the night, I woke up to use the washroom. As I was leaving, I noticed a massive spider (about the size of the palm of my hand) right on the floor beside the door of the bathroom. With this bathroom, you had to lock the door every time you used it if you wanted it to fully close. I panicked. Started screaming. Woke Rick up and he was freaking out because the door was locked from the inside so he couldn't get in. Once I finally escaped the bathroom of horrors, I had the worst night sleep of my life. I knew the spider was there somewhere and I felt so sick with fear.
The next day, Rick examined the other rooms and saw that only some of them had the gap which allowed all sorts of creatures in. We were switched to a new room for our last night in Koh Phi Phi and I was pretty happy about that.
The island had so many stray cats!
Waiting to be taken to our resort
By the time we got to the resort, it was after six o'clock so we decided to spend our first night on our beach. There were three other resorts on our beach and they all had their own restaurant. We were both tired from a long day of traveling so we went for dinner at our restaurant. While the resort in general was great, the restaurant left a lot to be desired. Safe to say, we didn't go back there for dinner after the first night.
Our resort had their own monkey
Our bamboo hut
The next day, we woke up bright and early to take the taxi boat from our beach into the main one BUT we missed the first one at 8AM. Noon it was! Instead we spent our morning enjoying our free breakfast from the resort, Rick snorkeled a lot and I sat in the sun and read. The reason we chose Rantee Beach out of all the beaches was because of the great snorkeling which was apparently right off the shore and what we had read didn't disappoint. Rick rented snorkeling equipment from our hotel and got right to it. He had an amazing time and I got to enjoy the sun. Win win.
We headed into the main town, Tonsai Village and our first stop was lunch. We went to a restaurant recommended by our guide book, Cosmos, and we were so far from disappointed. Rick had ravioli and I had gnocchi.. probably the best pasta we have both had in over a year. If there is one thing that Taiwan can't get right its pasta but boy did this place get it right.
Next we hung out at the main beach for a bit, enjoying the water and the sun. After the beach, we went for dinner at a great Thai restaurant and then headed to a bar. We took our time because we had decided to stay in town until a bit later and take one of the taxi boats back (not provided by our resort). We knew it would be a little expensive for Thailand standards, around $20 CAD, but we really wanted to check out this one bar we had heard about. The bar offers free buckets of alcohol to any one who volunteers for an amateur Muay Thai fight so obviously we had to check it out. It was definitely an experience and I'd recommend going to anyone who is in Ko Phi Phi. The fact that guys are actually willing to get beat up just to save around $10 still surprises me but everyone is different, right?
Rick made a lot of monkey friends
Buy one get one free!
Then, it started to rain. We thought hey we better get out of here so we can take a taxi boat back. Then it started to pour. Then it got worse as we were running to the main pier. Then the streets were starting to flood. The streets that were once full of people offering their services of a taxi boat were empty. I stopped in a store and Rick kept going to find out if anyone was left. There was one taxi boat driver who said he could take us but not until the rain stopped and for $1500 Baht so around $50 CAD. Rick haggled him down to just over $30 and we began to wait out the rain. We really didn't want to have to pay that much but we also wanted to go back to our resort. Finally the rain stopped and so began the scariest boat ride of my life. I was literally convinced we were going to die, Rick was reassuring me but after the ride, he informed me the whole time he was thinking about the easiest way for us to swim if the boat had tipped. Thankfully, we made it back safely. And we never stayed in the main town past the last taxi boat provided by our resort again.
The next day we woke up early and went back into town because we had booked a half day tour around some islands, bays and it included some snorkeling. This half day tour was such an amazing aspect of our time at Ko Phi Phi. First we went to Maya Bay (the beach where the movie, 'The Beach' was filmed). After which, we went to a few beautiful bays and some amazing snorkeling spots. I am not generally interested in snorkeling. I have tried it multiple times in the past and it has given me a lot of anxiety, I could never get used to the idea of being able to breathe through my mouth under water. But, Rick really wanted me to try again so I did and I finally succeeded! It was amazing. We had so much fun snorkeling together, I was even able to see my favorite fish, NEMO! Rick was super excited that I finally got the hang of it because he loves snorkeling and now he could drag me along with him.
Maya Bay
Our half day tour ended at Monkey Beach. This beach is known for being rampant with socialized/wild monkeys. Tourists visit the island every day and feed the monkeys bananas, pineapples, anything. My friend had recommended that we go here so we were excited. When we arrived, there were a few other boats there visiting the island but no one else was getting off their boats. We decided to be brave and go try and feed some monkeys. They were totally willing to come up to anyone, as long as they had some food to offer.
After our day trip, we were exhausted so we headed back to our resort. When we got back to the room, we had the unfortunate experience of finding a tree frog on the walls of our room. We told the hotel staff and they removed it, unfortunately, that wasn't the end of my experience with creatures in this room. We later realized there was a major gap in our hut, hence the entrance of the tree frog. As well as so many mosquitoes that we were forced to use the mosquito net every single night. But that wasn't the end.
The gap in our room
How Rick fixed the gap; curtains, blankets, and rugs
We relaxed and enjoyed the rest of the night eating at a restaurant near our resort. In the middle of the night, I woke up to use the washroom. As I was leaving, I noticed a massive spider (about the size of the palm of my hand) right on the floor beside the door of the bathroom. With this bathroom, you had to lock the door every time you used it if you wanted it to fully close. I panicked. Started screaming. Woke Rick up and he was freaking out because the door was locked from the inside so he couldn't get in. Once I finally escaped the bathroom of horrors, I had the worst night sleep of my life. I knew the spider was there somewhere and I felt so sick with fear.
The next day, Rick examined the other rooms and saw that only some of them had the gap which allowed all sorts of creatures in. We were switched to a new room for our last night in Koh Phi Phi and I was pretty happy about that.
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