snorkeling the Andaman sea islands, a birthday affair

it was difficult for us to leave the sleepy private beaches of Koh Jum, but after some time we decided it would be nice to see a bit more of Thailand before we headed away. Although we were sad to leave our quiet place, we realize that everything has it's own special aspect, and that is how we went into our next adventure: Koh Phi Phi. We took a lovely morning boat taxi across the Andaman Sea to the busy port on the much larger, much livelier island. The sheer amount of people and noises and foot traffic was an initial shock that we quickly got over once we found that they had pizza and an ATM (we had spent our last cash, down to the cent, on our previous island, where there were no ATMs. Close call!). 

Koh Phi Phi is a place of stunning beauty, that can not be denied. There are limestone cliffs shooting straight up for hundreds of feet from the clear turquoise water, filled with incredible tropical fish. Some of the best diving and snorkeling in the world takes place around these islands. It is warm all year round, there is incredible food, and it's still cheap here! But I must add, that there are lots of people. I was in the same place nearly four years ago and it was busy then, but it's gotten still busier! And I didn't realize that was possible. The crowds can be a bit overwhelming, the parties at night a bit obnoxious. The douche bags are out in hordes, ready to pick fights and throwing their empty beer bottles and cigarette butts all over the pristine, precious beach. While it is possible, of course, to turn a blind eye to these things and go about your own way, enjoying the island and it's many "plusses", for me the current clientele of this particular island takes a bit away from the natural beauty.  

With that being said! I am glad that we went (not only for the fact that we'd run out of cash) because it was a birthday stopover for me! I wanted to go snorkeling, and snorkeling we did... We rose before the sun was all the way up, for we were determined to be the only ones out on the water, we got a private boat with our new friends, Markus and Christine, and away we went, with masks, fins, and snorkels. The temperature of the air and the water is never cold, so the morning was excellent for being out on the open sea. 

we stopped at our first destination, one of the many islands we would visit that morning, and after getting geared up we hopped off the edge of the boat into a wonderland of fish! I could not have expected the amount and variety of tropical fish that I saw. Every direction that I looked there were hundreds of fish. The surface fish were so numerous and close that they were swarming around me as I tried to dive a little deeper to see the intricate patterns in the coral reef and the slower, larger, and just as colorful fish a few feet below. 

The following photos of the fish are not my own. My camera doesn't like water, I assume. But these are all species of fish that we saw an abundance of, as well as others! This first photo is what that first experience was like, after jumping off the side of the boat:

there was a real feeling of awe and wonder as we swam around the sea for hours and hours. It seemed that every place I looked there was a new remarkable sight that I wanted to share with Josh, and he the same, so we were just pointing every which way all the time we were under the water, until our fingers got wrinkly and our legs were tired from swimming. We were so happy to find all over the many islands that we traveled to the cutest ever clownfish, living in their waving anemone. They are so brightly colored and so cute, and so so little! 

we saw this specimen of a snake hanging around the little "nemo" fish. Not just any snake, we learned. But let me tell the tale. Christine found it first and was excited to call us over to take a look. This snake was very curious and popped his head out from under the coral, looking right up and Josh and I, less than a meter above, then he began to swim straight for us! As I began to kick my fins, fish-style, in an attempt to get out of this dudes way, he wrapped his body around Josh's leg, and at this point we all fled, unscathed. Good thing, because after we were on land, several hours later we inquired with a dive instructor on the island about these particular snakes, and they are rather venomous! One bite can be dangerous, but they are not generally aggressive and their mouths are very small. But on a positive note, it is quite rare to sight these guys, and the dive instructor himself was impressed and a bit jealous, I think....

We loved snorkeling so very much that we did it again the next morning, even earlier, at the famous Phi Phi Ley, the small island across the sea, famous from the movie: "The Beach". It is beautiful, photos can not do it justice! The fish were similar, but not all the same at the new spot, so we were twice as happy!

When we were not at sea, we explored the island, we enjoyed the variety of foreign foods, we relaxed in the shade, and hiked along a beautiful ridge to a chill, less touristy beach with a great view. 

We had a nice dinner of Italian food to celebrate my birthday, with good red wine even! I'm a sucker for Italian food.... We got a glimpse into life on that island, and made a point to relax in order to beat the heat. Here is some of what we saw:

lost in translation? maybe they meant frozen yogurt.....

a bit blurry, but this is one of a couple of sculptures carved out of a hollowed tree stump:

from us to you, with love!