Thailand. . . at last.
Phuket and  Ko Phi Phi       January 6-16

    

     Sa-wat-dee!!!

We can't even begin to explain how elated we are to be back in our favorite country ( ok, second best, next to home of course. . . ). Thailand is full of rich culture, exotic foods, friendly locals, outstanding beaches, ancient ruins, cheeky monkeys, ping pong shows (ewww), lady boys, connect four and so much more, but we should save some things for later. . . as we will be her for another month or so, what ever tickles our fancy.

It's funny how a little thing like crossing world time zones can completely screw up your day. We were  thoroughly relaxed as we headed for the airport in Brisbane, Austrailia because we thought our flight to Thailand was only 6 hours, not so bad. Stage left, enter time change factor. That cozy 6 hour flight suddenly turned into 9 hours, plus a 3 hour layover in Singapore, and then at last another 3 hour flight to Phuket. How did we not see this one coming???? He he he. No worries though, once we arrived in Phuket. . . . Sabai Sabai.
 

We decided that since our first trip to Phuket was, well, let's say undesireable at best ( ie, Stevo getting robbed by a motorcycle bandit, Brad and I searching for him for 8 hours on mopeds, and us finally filling out a missing persons report to the Thai Police. . . don't worry, we got him back.  But then Phuket seemed to lose some of  it's luster for us. . However, it was kind of ironic that we were staying at resort called Goldigger's, don't you think?) We figured, what better way to get over that tragic day then to return to the scene of the crime and start fresh. We even stayed at Golddigger's Resort again!!! How silly are we? Goldigger's is located at Nai Yang beach, which is our favorite beach in Phuket. This charming beach town is overflowing with character and an abundance of massage parlors, quaint little restaurants on the beach, and sweet and genuine local Thai's. No wonder why we came back; we missed that special sparkle of Nai Yang.

Travelling takes a lot out of you. We candy-coat the blog at times, but planning everyday and constantly being on the move is exhausting. Be certain that we are not complaining, for it's that constant stimulation that we are both so entirely addicted to, but we needed a break. When we finally got to Thailand we posted up shop for week at our favorite little spot and just chilled. Eat, massage, swim, read, massage, eat, sleep, wake up and do it all again. Notice how drink wasn't included in that last part??? We decided that we had enough drinking for awhile. We haven't had a sip of booze since New Years Eve. . . a resolution of sorts. How long will it last you say? We'll see my friends, we'll see. After a week of relaxation it was time to set sail to the islands of Ko Phi Phi Don and Ko Phi Phi Leh.

Ko Phi Phi is what dreams are made of, especially if your dreams include Leodando DiCaprio. I'm a married woman, so of course mine do not. . . he he he ha ha ha. The infamous movie "The Beach" starring Leo was filmed on Phi Phi Leh, and has become a type of  mecca for travellers ever since. We found Phi Phi disgustingly overcrowded but it is obvious why. Everyone wants to take in the beauty of the jaw dropping limestone cliffs, turqouise water and prisitne beaches, we sure know we did!! The snorkelling here was top notch, actually some of the best and most diverse that we have ever experienced, seriously. We took a day trip aboard longtail boat (no Shannon, not a Schooner, he he) around all of the surrounding islands.  They served us breafast and lunch, took us to 7 unique snorkel spots and beaches, and finished the trip at shark point for sunset where we snorkelled with about 10-15 black tip reef sharks. It was invigorating and slightly frightening at the same time (I was constantly thinking about that part in the damn movie "The Beach" where the guy that got his leg bitten off by a shark!)

The Thai people have an amazing sense of humor. They are silly and fun and we love hanging out with them!

Just my attempt at trick photography, Brad is the true photographer.

See what I mean? Long Beach at Ko Phi Phi.

Just to give you and idea. . . 200 baht = 6 US dollars. And yes, that is for 1 hour. And yes, they are the best massages on earth. And yes, they are highly addictive.

This is our little friend Fee Fee. He likes you.

Patong beach. Care for any dried squid or anchovies? Yeah, us either.

Maya Beach, Phi Phi Leh

Phi Phi Don at sunset. Look at those. . . um cliffs.

Longtail boats quitely resting ashore before the next wave of tourists clammer in.

Serenity on the Andaman Sea.

We give this guy serious props! It was at least 95 degrees and that must be at least 2,000 pounds of concrete. Can someone please get this guy a cold Singha, Leo, Tiger, or Chang??

Who are those weird people trying to get into our photo. Creepy tourists.

Happiness surrounds me.

Even Ducky was just maxin' and relaxin' in Thailand. . . he's on the wagon too.

Love from the sexiest little beaches ever, The Savvy Nomad Family

P.S. Where are truly curious as to how many people are reading our blog. The only way for us to know who reads it is for you lovely people to leave us comments, so we are asking you guys a huge favor. . . If everyone who reads this would please leave us a comment on this blog post we would soooo appreciate it!! We don't expect you to write anymore comments, just this one please, so we can get an idea who is reading our blog. It's super easy. Just click on the comment button below, and leave us a comment with your name included. Thank you sooo much! We love all of you dearly and will be back in the States sometime in mid March.