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.

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

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.

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. 

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.

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.

Travel Travel Travel: Chiang Mai to Bangkok to Koh Phangan

We left Chiang Mai bright and early to get back to Bangkok where we then had to wait until 9:00 to start our 12 hour bus-ferry trip to get to Koh Phangan for the Half Moon Party. A mistake we made when planning this trip is we booked all of our accommodations first and then booked our transportation around the country; not knowing that it would sometimes take a full day to get places. Live and learn.

We decided to make the most of our almost full day in Bangkok. We went to the Siam Paragon shopping mall where they will watch your luggage for free, presumably so you are free to shop as you please but as soon as it was safe, we were out of there. We headed to the Jim Thompson House. When we had first been planning our time in Bangkok, we had originally ruled out the Jim Thompson House but after reading a bit more about it, we were both really interested and excited.

Eating in Bangkok

It was only 100 baht to get in but because we were both under 25, it was half price. We headed in and were told we had to wait a half hour for the next English tour which we were fine with. We decided to head to the restaurant, and I would definitely advise against this. While the admission price to Jim Thompson is cheap, the restaurant was so expensive! 300 baht ($10 CAD) later (for only TWO drinks), accompanied by rude and slow service, and we were on our tour. Now that I am reading this, I think living and travelling in Taiwan has made stingy...

The house was beautiful and the story of Jim Thompson was interesting. I am glad we changed our minds and ended up going here. If you are ever in Bangkok, I would highly recommend making a stop here. There are two souvenir shops here and they are very different. The one outside of the actual exhibit is ridiculously expensive for all different kinds of silk, purses, Christmas ornaments; not really worth it unless you are very into silk. However, the store inside is definitely worth a visit. They sell reprints of the original paintings that Jim Thompson collected for very reasonable prices.

After our souvenir buying, we were off to explore a bit more. We ended up just walking the streets for a bit before heading to where we were taking the bus to Koh Phangan. We decided to go there early to check in and eat some dinner. We booked our combination bus and ferry ticket through Lomprayah. After booking this but before the trip, I had read some horrible reviews online about Lomprayah and I was actually terrified for this trip. I insisted we buy a lock for our suitcase and was scared to fall asleep for the fear that someone would mug me. But this was not the case, it really is true that more people take the time to write reviews if they had a bad experience. Our experience with Lomprayah was not perfect (how could it be with an overnight bus ride and a ferry ride at 5AM?), but it was nothing even near the horrors I had read online and subsequently scared myself with.

Exploring Bangkok

Carrying around luggage made Rick crazy

Waiting for our bus

Finally on the bus

Sketchy rest stop

Long lines

13 hours later.. we were in Koh Phangan.

Thailand... Six Hours till Takeoff

I just finished packing our suitcase and decided to take a break before I pack my carry-on. Our flight to Bangkok takes off at 4:30 and arrives at 7:20. We will be staying in Bangkok for one night before heading to Chiang Mai for three days for elephants, ziplining and more. Then we are headed to Koh Phangan for the Half Moon Party. After that, Ko Phi Phi for four days of relaxation, beaches, scuba diving (for Rick), and monkeys! Then back to Bangkok for a few more days before we come back to Taiwan.

Getting super excited! All of our confirmations are printed out and ready to go. Suitcase is packed. It was really hard fitting two weeks into one little suitcase (FOR TWO PEOPLE) but I have to say, I am pretty proud of myself.  We didn't want to bring too big of a suitcase because of all the travelling we are doing so one little one it is.

Atlas is staying at a friend's house. It is kind of sad how much I am going to miss him.... :(

ANYWAY

Thailand. Two Weeks. I'll try to update as we go whenever I have time and/or WiFi. We both really needed this vacation to recharge us for working six days a week. By the time we get back, only two and a half months to go on our contract!!!!!!!!!!

Off we go, gooooood bye!

BOO

It is almost Halloween and I am getting pretty excited to dress up and do fun stuff with my classes! Lucky for Rick, my parents brought him his Thor costume. I was originally planning on being Minnie Mouse but I have recently decided to change my costume. I am going to be a minion from Despicable Me! I am so excited and I can't wait to see my costume when everything comes together. Since I already bought the Minnie Mouse ears, I am going to bring them into my classes for any student who forgets to bring a costume.

The past few days I have been trying to think of inexpensive, but still fun, ideas for the classroom during Halloween. At the elementary school, it will be easy because I am just going to make a Powerpoint about Halloween with a bunch of games in between the information. But at Gloria, it will be a little more difficult. Especially considering this isn't the first Halloween a lot of my students have had so impressing them on Halloween will likely not happen. Some of my older kids aren't really that interested in Halloween so we will just have a party and do some Halloween themed games. I'll post all about my Halloween week as it is happening. 

Another aspect of Halloween where we work is Trick of Treating. My older kids refuse to do it, they don't even want the younger kids to come to our class to trick or treat. But the younger students really love it. I would love to go trick or treating, even now. Who can say no to free candy? Rick and I bought a bunch of candy in bulk from Costco because we need candy for our own classes, AND for whomever comes to trick or treat. But we're getting worried we don't have enough. We decided that after Tuesday we will see how much we have and decide then to get more or not.

We are just putting the finishing touches on Thailand. We have all but one of our hostels/hotels booked. We splurged a little at one point on the trip but it was easy to justify considering staying at our hostel in Bangkok is costing $5/night. Once we get all of our places to stay finalized, I will start looking into booking trains/planes/ferries to get around the island. I can't believe how close it is. We are both getting so excited for our vacation. ONLY NINE DAYS TO GO!!

Day Four HK: Exploring during Typhoon Usagi

On our fourth day, Typhoon Usagi had hit Hong Kong... in the form of rain and wind. We decided since we will probably never be in Hong Kong again, we started our day in the rain! We had visited the Goldfish Market once already but it was late and a lot of the stalls were closed so we wanted to check it out when it was in full swing.

We spent over an hour just walking the streets of the Goldfish Market and checking out all the cool fish. They had so many different kinds of exotic fish there and for not that expensive. While there, Rick and I decided that we want to have a salt-water fish tank in our future house. Some of the tanks were just so pretty. We'll worry about the cost of these fish tanks later.

These fish were really cool! They all had these little spikes for fighting but the fish store had put foam blocks on them so they couldn't fight each other. The result was fish that couldn't swim, they could only float

Next we went to the Bird Market. It was super rainy at this point so there weren't a lot of birds out but we were able to see a couple cool things. Rick really enjoyed the crickets that were in bags for the birds to eat. We were really sad about the rain while we were there because a lot of the birds that would normally be out were inside.

Rick enjoying the birds that were out

Rain rain go away

By this point, we were hungry so we went into our guidebook for a restaurant recommendation. We found one for a great soup restaurant so we headed that way. This time, we weren't disappointed with the food. The prices were reasonable and the soups we ordered were really good. Score one for Hong Kong.

Happy to eat some good food!

Next we went to the Hong Kong Museum of Art. When we first planned our Hong Kong trip, we didn't want to go to any museums but we changed our minds due to the rain. The Museum of Art was really cool. We weren't allowed to take pictures of most things but the things we were allowed to take pictures of, we definitely did.

Rick enjoying the view

Bok bok bok

Ever since inside of a rabbit?

They have a cool section at the museum where you are supposed to be a pioneer. You're asked a series of questions and at the end, you tally your score to find out what kind of personality you have. Rick was "Romantic" and I was "Sensible." ... Who would've thought? Now it is clear who has the brains of this operation :)

Sensible, clearly!

Romantic!

After the museum, it was back onto the Star Ferry because I was very worried about the typhoon. If the typhoon gets to a certain level, Hong Kong shuts down the MTR and we would have no way back to our hostel. So back to Hong Kong Island and we stopped by the Bank of China Tower on the way. They have an observation deck there that is free. But, by the time we got there, it was closed due to the holiday. And the men there told us the typhoon was now at a Level 8! This meant they could now close the public transportation with no notice whatsoever. We booked it back to the MTR and made it back to our hostel safely!

Storm signal 8!!!

Preparing for the typhoon!

Once we had internet again, I checked the status of our flight. It was supposed to leave the next day at 9AM but it had been cancelled. We spent all night on the phone with Expedia (worst customer service ever, I will never book with them again) trying to get some answers. Originally we called the airline and they said because we booked with Expedia, they couldn't help us. The man I first spoke to told me that he didn't think a flight would be available until WEDNESDAY. As this was Sunday night, I was freaking out. Finally, we called Expedia again in the morning and they told me to just go to the airport. Thanks for all the help. 

We were put on hold... a lot..

We made it back to Taiwan but we had to miss our classes. I felt really bad for my co-teachers but there was nothing else we could do.

Happy to finally be on a plane!

And that ended our vacation in Hong Kong! Next vacation: Thailand!