The LONG Weekend

Our last weekend as a group was a long one, in both the literal and figurative senses. It spanned from Saturday morning to Tuesday afternoon as our teaching term was complete and the beaches of southern Thailand beckoned. The beaches won.

Although most of the group headed directly out to Ko Phi Phi, Sean, Erin, Josh, Katie and myself elected to spend an evening in Railay (pictured above) based upon Katie's affinity for the place. Well, I actually was more interested in checking out the mellow beach town after reading the glowing review from Lonely Planet Thailand in which they describe Railay as a locale that "could easily serve as a fantasy cover for a Harlequin romance." That was all I needed to hear. Upon arriving by long tail boat, we proceeded directly to the Garden View Resort ("resort" used very loosely) and were shown to our bungalows. Actually, we first had to reach the base of the hill on which the hotel was located via a winding rock path next to the sea and then had to ascend multiple sets of steep stairs and makeshift ladders before finally reaching the reception area. However, the physical exertion was well worth it when we saw that the rooms were clean and airy with charming porches on which we could sit and discuss politics and philosophy (or drink beer and swat mosquitoes). The only concern that we had with the rooms was that the bathrooms (which were lovely) required the user to remember the three-foot drop that greeted them at the entrance. The picture below doesn't do justice to the danger that such an unconventional bathroom setup presented to our group (we teach BASIC English, not advanced).


After a relaxing evening in Railay, we missed the ferry to Ko Phi Phi by 5 minutes. By that I mean that we woke up 5 minutes after the ferry left, which is shocking since we went to bed at 10 o'clock. After taking the scenic route via long tail boat, minibus and ferry, we disembarked in Phi Phi and were greeted at the pier by some charming gentlemen who had the inside deal on hotels, scuba trips, drink specials, massages, etc. Thankfully we were meeting the others at their hotel and did not have to determine which hawker was offering the "best deal" as it would have been extremely difficult since they were all offering the "best deal."

On the surface, Phi Phi has much more of a "let's get drunk on the beach" feel than the more subdued Railay. The omnipresent offers of 2 for 1 buckets make accomplishing such a level of intoxication quite easy. Although I much prefer the more laid-back ambiance of Railay, the scenery in Phi Phi was fantastic (as it is most places in Thailand) and we were treated to a fire show of epic proportions. The fire show was unique in that it strongly encouraged audience participation in such timeless pastimes as jumping rope and doing the limbo. Check that, jumping fire rope and doing the fire limbo. Although I am still awaiting a video from my Irish cameraman (which will be posted), I do recall that Sean and I had little trouble jumping over the rope, but a young lady (who shall remain nameless) opted not to jump because she was "scared." Of jumping that is, NOT the large rope engulfed in flames. Thankfully she emerged largely unscathed, save for the faint charcoal tattoo on her ankle. Nothing a bucket can't cure...


Our last evening was spent on Maya Beach, which was a short boat ride from Phi Phi. For those of you who haven't memorized the entire contents of Leonardo DiCaprio's IMDB web page (soooo, everyone), this is the beach location used to film "The Beach," Mr. DiCaprio's thoroughly mediocre 2000 follow-up to "Titanic." ("Titanic" was also mediocre, but it made a lot more money and starred Billy Zane.) ANYWAY, we were treated to a surprisingly tasty dinner, a beautiful sunset, and yet another bucket. Not surprisingly, it was an early night as everyone was running on empty after Phi Phi. Sleeping on a beach is scenic and peaceful, but it is by no means comfortable. And the tide comes in. Regardless of how sore I felt in the morning, I still got to fall asleep and wake up to the images below. I wonder what it looks like back home right now...


NB: Bonus for not falling asleep and making it through the whole post! Here is the link to my photos from the 5 weeks at the GVI House. I have written some captions for identification purposes, mild humor, etc. if you're interested. Lastly, at the moment I can't figure out how to post this in a prominent place on the blog so it will reside here for the time being.

http://picasaweb.google.com/alexander.tilton/PictorialAccompanimentToRamblingsFromAsia#