Day trip to Phi Phi Island

Our day trip started with a speed boat ride for an hour out to Phi Phi Island. (This is pronounced "Pee Pee") :) There were probably about 25 people on the tour with us, I think we were the only Americans, as it would be a long time getting to Thailand from America. As it was, it took us basically two days of travel to arrive in Phuket. It was the most exciting boat ride we've ever experienced! I think the only time he dropped below 100mph was when he stopped altogether! We were traveling at top speed bouncing across the waves of the Andaman Sea, some of which had to be at least five feet high! We were all holding on for dear life, not wanting to fly from the boat. Eric had to hold onto Shannon as several times she came flying off the seat as the boat flew from crest to crest. From the pictures, you can see we sat in the bow of the boat, this was infinitely better than the back because there were many people losing their breakfasts and lunches throughout the whole day! We had no problems until he stopped and the boat was rolling on the waves. We traveled around the area and saw really breathtakingly beautiful sights. The Viking caves were impressive, although we weren't allowed to go into them, they aren't safe anymore, Monkey Beach was fun, we threw bananas out to them and I have never seen bananas peeled and swallowed so fast! We stopped at a couple beaches to swim and snorkel on the reefs, just incredible to be surrounded by such bright, colorful fish. The sand on one particular beach was whiter and softer than I've ever encountered before, the water so crystal clear and blue, just beautiful! They dropped us on Phi Phi Island for an hour to eat and shop. This was one of the places most affected by the tsunami of 2004. We purchased a memorial pamphlet that showed the devastation the tsunami wreaked on the island, definitely sobering. We finished our day with more snorkeling on another beach and then were beaten again by the waves and the captain's sense of urgency in getting us back to port! The next morning my muscles were so sore I couldn't sit up in bed, I had to roll out! Just so we're clear, it wasn't the snorkeling that beat us, it was the constant bouncing in the boat that did it! All in all it was a great day, sore muscles and all!

Patong Beach Market

We took a taxi from the Marriott to Patong, cost about $25 USD. We spent the afternoon walking the open air market on the beach. Erika got a screaming deal and got her hair braided for $16. It took two women one hour to braid it all. I have never seen braiding done so fast before. Her hands would appear to just wiggle a bit and the braid was done. It also stayed in for the rest of the vacation and she took it out after about two weeks. Eric and I visited the Fish Spa. You have got to look that up on the internet! It used to be used to help people with skin diseases. The fish just eat off any dead skin. I squealed and squirmed the whole time; it was like putting my feet in an ant hill and letting them crawl all over me. It didn't hurt at all, it just wasn't a good feeling having those fish swarm my legs and squirm between my toes! While we were looking for some food to eat we came across some snack food: Fried grasshoppers and larvae! I kid you not! We even saw some woman eating them! Yuck! This was all fun until sundown, then all the freaks came out. I don't mean weird looking people, I am talking of the kind in whom you pay for their services!

JW Marriott, Phuket, Thailand

Well, we have finally reaped the benefits of Eric living in Japan for one year without us. We used his Marriott point to stay in this incredible 5-star beach resort, that words cannot even describe, but I will try. Our "room" was a two bedroom suite with a fully stocked kitchen, dining room, living room, deck with beautiful furniture and a master bath to die for! The resort was very isolated from everywhere else which was a negative, but they had shops and restaurants, 3 huge pools to choose from, a kids center, and golf carts to take you where you needed to go. It was breathtakingly landscaped and decorated and there were lots of lovely people waiting on us hand and foot. Every evening there was a silent "Sunset Ceremony" performed by the masked dancers. There were activities to sign up for, for both kids and adults. Erika and I did Batik painting on a t-shirt. For me, this was one of the highlights of our trip. They turned out beautifully and actually not too shabby for a first attempt. We stayed here for 6 beautiful days. We did take a couple side trips, by taxi, that were a lot of fun.

Layover at Tokyo and Bangkok airports

We had a 5 hour layover in Tokyo and survived! We found an area that was doing a free "cultural experience" and couldn't resist. All the decorations/ornaments in the photos are done from paper! I know it doesn't look like it, but it is. What looks like wire is actually wraps of paper. They were so beautiful I wanted to share them with you all. The rest of the time we killed by playing Boggle (Eric, Erika and I) and Taylor and Shannon played their DS. On arriving in Bangkok, there were such interesting sights, I had to share these with you also. The Thai people love their king. In every shop there is posted (usually in gold and very large) a picture of the king with a caption "Long live the king!" The picture I took covered almost the entire front of the airport, about 3 stories tall I think.