We reluctantly left the comforts of Noi's house and Phuket to catch a flight out of Mylasia on the 20th. We opted for boat travel because the area has stunning islands and we were down right sick of the Thai tourist bus travel and all the headaches that accompany it. We took a ferry named the Fjord Prinsessen (a Norwegain boat no doubt) to the famous Ko Phi Phi where we snapped some photos of the resort filled beach and headed on our way south to the less touristy Trang Islands, more specifically Ko Muk.
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| View from our Bungalow |
Ko Muk means pearl in Thai, and it is quite lovely...white sandy beach, turquoise water, soaring limestone cliffs, only four resorts...ours a cheap bungalow on the beach. It was so quiet and peaceful...it seamed the little hermit crabs had control of the beach, wandering in all directions in a variety of amazing shells, leaving beautiful 'art' of their tracks in the sand. The next morning we kayaked around the south side of the island, snorkeled a bit and were off again on the Fjord Prinsessen to Ko Lipe and the Turatoa National Marine Park.
The beaches of Ko Lipe are the photos you see of Thailand's paradise islands...crystal clear water, bleached white sand, and a long tail boat...Ko Lipe is also a typical Thai 'paradise' complete with mini marts, loads of resorts, and bars...lots of them. They say Ko Lipe is just now being discovered...We say it was found and maybe should be forgotten.
The marine park was stunning. Never have we seen such clear water with such beautiful coral of all shapes and sizes. The fish were so curious surrounding us when we weren't looking and then scattering when we turned around. There were amazing little sea creatures too, anemones, urchins, shells, starfish...and such amazing colors!
