Arggg. After one day of sleeping in and then relaxing by the beach, the cursed alarm was going off when it was still dark outside. Come to think of it, it was going off before I usually wake up for work. This didn't seem to be a problem for our still slightly jet-lagged compadres, but it caused me to do the half awake shuffle to the front of the hotel. The minibus was waiting to take us to the marina so we could spend the day filled with island hopping, snorkeling and swimming in secluded coves. Seemed like I was going to need more energy than I currently had so I did the first rationale thought that popped into my head - fell asleep immediately before we hit the bumpy road to the docks.30 minutes later I woke up to the smell of salt air, a little bit of fish and was that more pipe smoke? Our "captain" for the day looked like he was cut straight from the pages of a whaling periodical in the 19th century. The Aussie accent and the smoke added to the intrigue. After grabbing our fins and snorkel masks we boarded the speed boat for the one hour journey to the Phi Phi islands. The first mate, who was Thai, informed us we would be having chicken and donuts for breakfast, which would be ready shortly. Usually I can tell when these guys are joking, and maybe I was still half asleep, but sure enough, grilled chicken and donuts started to be passed around. I took a donut first, but it wasn't long before it was followed up with some chicken. Surprisingly a pretty good combination, maybe KFC and Dunkin Donuts need to join forces.
We had been promised a relatively smooth ride, but the wind and waves had other intentions. About half way across the channel we were all soaking wet from head to toe. To top it off, one of the motors shut down because the fuel line had gotten pinched. The crew made jokes though and watching everyone scurry around without falling in was pretty entertaining. At one point a pocket knife was produced, but not needed. I was half waiting for some chewing gum, duct tape and paper clips to be used next, these guys were like Asian McGyvers. Soon we were off again on one prop and still in time to beat most of the crowds to "The Beach" from the movie "The Beach." Wow, it was worth the trip, your own secluded cove with amazingly blue water. We did a quick hike from one side of the island to the other so we could all dry off and then it was back to the now fully functioning boat.Next stop was our own private swimming hole with some flying leaps off the front of the boat. It was kind of like a cauldron, only a few feet deep on the sides, but then over 40 feet in the middle. After that, the hunt for Nemo was on in our first snorkeling adventure. Alas, no clownfish were found, but the crew loved throwing bananas into the water and watching all the tropical fish swarm, piranha style around it. One minute there was a full banana in the water, the next minute, whoosh, gone. It was almost like a magic trick.
All this swimming was starting to wear us out, but luckily we arrived at the next island for lunch under a thatched hut on the beach. No donuts and chicken this time, but some more great Thai curry's with the always popular french fries on the side. Full and happy, we sprawled on some beach chairs for awhile to rest our sea legs. The rest of the afternoon was more snorkeling and more beach hopping with a slightly less bumpy ride on the way back. Or as the captain called it, our free butt massage. Before we knew it, we were back in the minibus, the ladies were dreaming about their next real massage and I was just plain dreaming again. Perfect day.
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