Ko Lanta & Ko Phi Phi

The end of our diving courses signaled many things to us: the ability to dive anywhere in the world down to 30m; the completion of 10 dives in 8 days; a not so healthy savings account; and the time to move to a new (and cheaper) location. Without knowing costs and living in a perpetual state of naivity regarding the country, we decided that Ko Phi Phi would be a good choice. This dream was shattered within ten minutes of conception by one of the dive masters who described how Ko Phi Phi once desimated his bank balance and so we should head to the nearby island of Ko Lanta instead. In order for us to complete this journey, Luke and myself would have to part ways once again; his visa had officially ended 4 days previously so would need to cross the border to Burma and come back again to renew it, and I would go directly to our tin-pot paradise.

I boarded my boat at 9pm with the intention of gaining a few hours sleep before reaching Surathani at 5am. Upon handing over my ticket, the lady advised that there were no beds left so I would have to sleep downstairs. Without thinking, I engaged in the hopeless art of arguing over what I was due in the way of a bed, and forgot that the concept of trade description was not a translatable phrase in Thai. I kept my backpack next to me, used the day-pack as a pillow, and tried to achieve a state of sleep by thinking about the orthopedic advantages of sleeping on a hardwood floor. I badly needed the supporting sound of dear ol' Jack Daniels to sing me lullaby. We arrived ahead of schedule and everyone disembarked with the grace of a stoned sloth. Looks of confusion, disawareness, and a hint of fear, animated everyone's faces as we were herded to our respective points for onward travel. Mine involved a tuk-tuk ride to a bus terminal, a 4 hour bus ride, followed by an hour on another boat, and a final tuk-tuk ride to the Pearl Beach Bungalow resort on Long Beach, Ko Lanta. Luke arrived somewhat more weary and about 8 hours after me - his journey made mine seem like a walk in the park.

In acceptance of our geological and geographical surroundings, we succumbed to the sand, spent hardly any money, and did very little for the first couple of days. After that we conceded to the draw of further ruining once untouched tourist attractions, and booked a boat trip around Ko Phi Phi, to include a visit to the now famous beach that featured in the film of that namesake.


Much of this area was destroyed by the tsunami so it is hard to judge the place without rewarding a few handicap points, but even with those, I wasn't impressed. I'd heard the film company had done much to improve the 'perfect' beach, and from watching the film and now seeing it, I would agree. In fairness, my impression was greatly ruined by the swarms of taxi boats clinging to the shore line like flies to sugar. Almost as soon as the tsunami retreated, a new and less sympathic wave broke through and consumed the area with new devastation. Not seen on the television, this wave was funded by the government and carried the unremorseful cargo of people, development money, and all the supplies needed to usurp the power of nature and leave a more permanent scar.

The highlight of this trip was a short snorkelling expedition in one cove away from all the other boats. The depth was only about 3 m but the visibility but must have been nearer 20m enabling us to see a massive variety of fish, from some recognisable faces from Ko Nang Yuan, to a few new additions, such a sea snake and a couple of 'Nemo' families (Clownfish). When diving or snorkelling it is easy to shut out (or not hear) all the life above the surface and feel truly at peace with the fish below. The contradiction of this pleasure is that, my being there is still as an unnatural visitor to the fish's domain, probably upset them, and will only serve to increase the number of people going there. So, what is the answer? Go the 'Daffy' route from 'The Beach' - try to get everyone to leave this paradise as it should be and turn your back on heaven? Or, do what you can to protect it from becoming just another 'ride' in the proverbial park and be a eternal hippy of Greenpeace protecing the globe with a helmt of dreads and a sword of weed?

Back on Ko Lanta, we saw out the rest of our days relaxing on the beach and our evenings relaxing in the beach front bars, until that fateful day arrived - our time in Thailand had come to an end and we watched the sun fading into ocean knowing that the next day we would see it from another country

I felt like a boxer watching the towel being flung into the ring, and knowing that I still had plenty to give in this fight. I wondered if any of my punches had actually connected and thus if I would feel that I fought proudly in this country. Would my visit to Thailand be looked back on with the eyes that I saw places like Nepal or would a rose tint need to be carefully applied before satisfaction could be attained. Then, as if the solution was that of an incomprehendable mathematical equation, I realised that I didn't need to go tomorrow. My time-table was my own creation and could be continuously adjusted as I saw fit. I played out the advantages and disadvantages of staying. The more I thought about it the better the idea sounded as it would give me more time to see Thailand, explore Malaysia and arrive in Australia at the same time as my girlfriend so we could see everything together. And so, I made my decision with enough time to spare to catch the towel before it hit the canvass and throw a vicious right hook into the jaw of my plans. This fight was not over.