Paradise in disguise- THAILAND

Naturally, we used this as an opportunity to take a longer trip and began our week and a half long journey through Thailand.

Crystal Clear Water
Our first stop was Koh Phi Phi. This is without a doubt the most beautiful place I have ever been, and probably in the running for the most beautiful place in the world. Light sandy beaches, rocky outcrops, limestone cliffs, dense jungle, bright turqouise water, colorful fish....need I continue? The Beach (that movie from a few years ago with Leonardo DiCaprio) was filmed here. It's even more beautiful in person. Unfortunately, Koh Phi Phi's beauty isn't a secret, so it also has a packed tourist town. We decided not to stay in that touristy area, and took a longtail tuk tuk boat to a different bay and stayed at a little bungalow there. The beach where we stayed is actually one of the prettiest and best for snorkeling on the island.

Long Beach on Ko Phi Phi
'Long Beach,' the name of the area where we stayed, also provides great views of Koh Phi Phi Leh. Koh Phi Phi is made up of two islands- the larger Koh Phi Phi Don, and the smaller Koh Phi Phi Leh. If you've seen The Beach, they start out at Long Beach and swim to Maya Bay on Koh Phi Phi Leh. There's no way you could actually swim that, but that's ok.
We spent most of our time relaxing on the beach and swimming through the warm crystal clear water. We also did some shopping, lots of eating delicious Thai food, kayaking, and snorkeling. We kayaked over the area where a group of black tip sharks usually roams, but we weren't able to see any from the kayak. Even though black tip sharks are supposed to be nice, I still wasn't in the mood to go swimming with them. We snorkeled in Maya Bay. Unfortunately, there is a lot of visible damage to the coral, but the fish swimming around it were beautiful. My favorites were the brightly colored parrot fish. My least favorites were the zillions of tiny jelly fish that you can't see but can definitely feel.

On the beach
This island was severly damaged by the tsunami. The main part of town is on a flat isthmus connecting to limestone mountains, so the wave just washed right over it. We were talking to a shop-owner who had been there during the tsunami. He said the aftermath was unbelievable. Even though many buildings survived, Thai government "rescue workers" came and bulldozed perfectly repairable buildings, some of which had not yet been searched for bodies. The government also prohibited people from choosing their own building company to rebuild their shops, so in order to get anything done you had to find a way around the law. Most of the island is totally rebuilt with just about no evidence of the tsuanmi, but there are still areas with rubble and debris left over. There are also tsunami evacution trails, though these pathways are so cluttered with other crap they are rendered pretty useless.

Riding on the Longtail Tuk Tuk Boat
Overall, Koh Phi Phi was absolutely beautiful and beats Mexico, Hawaii, the Caribbean, and Indonesia as my favorite island-y destination. Go there next time you have a chance.