Day 27 - Fun times in Koh Samui with friends!

I was actually fairly excited to leave Phi Phi because we had already seen both sides of the island, snorkeled, done the nightlife and wore ourselves out at the Natacha Hotel (about $15 USD/night - bare bones!).

We retraced our steps and rode a ferry to Krabi, took a Greyhound bus to Surat Thani and were waiting at the Koh Samui dock when we bumped into the couple we had met on Phi Phi at the Natural Resort!  I was really happy that they were going to Samui too and we made plans to meet for dinner and a little adventure out on the town.  We were taking a page from another couples' books and had not booked any accommodations as we were only in Samui for one night, then ferrying over to Koh Tao the next day, whereas our friends were staying at a pricey resort.

We split a cab with L & L, our new travel buddies, and after wandering a bit found the Backpackers Hostel, which had only been open for a few months.   It was absolutely meant to be; we were walking down the street with our bags and randomly struck up a conversation with a traveler who had been staying there for 2 weeks.  We booked ourselves two beds in the 10 bed dorm and got ready for a night out!
In high spirits we got after it...we had dinner at a fairly nice restaurant, then drinks at Solo Bar, a bit of a walk to Ice bar (-7 celsius temperature), then grabbed some buckets (no Red-bull!) at a small place across the street from the Green Mango club.  Once the Green Mango got busy (around midnight) we wandered over and danced, danced, danced.  We all took a turn on the small scaffolding/stage that was there - Ty even did a front flip off of the stage and... nearly landed it.  

Solo bar - spendy

Green Mango - empty at 9, packed at 12

Cheap-bucket buddies

Interesting scenery in front of this cabaret (sexpat central)

Ice bar finery

                      

                                                             Crazy skilled Magician

All ice!

Before making our somewhat drunken way home we came across Burger King (which I hadn't had in ages) and had a snack there.  L & L grabbed a cab and took off for their resort and Ty and I used my HTC phones GPS to find our way back to the Backpackers hostel at about 2:30am...yikes!

Day 25 - Tonsai Pier and Maya Bay

After a few gorgeous (but spendy) nights at the resort it was time to explore the other side of the island and get a taste of the nightlife.  We packed up our bags and went down to the beach and the pool for a quick dip before our ferry.

Our cabin at Phi Phi Natural Resort

Taking the two minute walk to the beach

View from the lobby

After a bit of a cluster-f getting on multiple boats of different sizes (and hauling our luggage in 30+degree weather) we were back on solid ground and had to check into the Natacha hotel fast so we could sign up for the afternoon snorkel trip.

Fav new snack: a chocolate pancake!

Our afternoon/evening snorkel tour of Koh Phi Phi island included Monkey Beach, a view of the Viking Caves, Maya Beach (from the movie "The Beach") and the highlight...an evening snorkel session with bioluminescent plankton!

                            

We snorkeled up to Monkey beach

We were warned not to approach them as they bite!

Gorgeous cliffs all around us

This guy wasn't as aggressive

These two were jumping on the tree and baring their teeth if you came close...yikes!

                                                                     Scavenging...sad.

The monkey on the right was just a baby!

View leading up to the Viking Caves

Viking Caves - about 5 locals live there to protect the area, using solar panels for electricity

After a bit of a rough swim and crawl over coral/rocks we arrived at the famous Maya Bay, via the not-so-famous back way.  Apparently the cast and crew of "The Beach" did quite a number on this beach, bringing in palm trees and changing everything - and then left a big mess behind.

Apparently they stopped the overnight camping due to damage to the island

This is where they filmed the bit on the Marijuana fields

Our group - 2 Swedes, 2 Americans, 4 Canadians and 4 Brits!

After reading reviews online I was glad we decided to do the afternoon visit to the beach, apparently during the day this beach is mobbed with people (about 20 different tours visit here throughout the day).  By the time we arrived there was just one boat left and we had the beach to ourselves!

After several tries...

After a few more...

As the sun was setting

The wind had come up while we were enjoying the beach so we hurried back to the boat for dinner; a freshly caught and cooked fish and fried rice!  It was already quite dark and I think most of us were ready to head for home but when we saw the plankton light up from our boat's motor we willingly jumped back in!

It was a great experience floating out there and watching the plankton react to our movements; I even forgot about the sea lice (which we had also encountered earlier in the day).

We were back at the hotel by 9:30pm and made plans to meet up with the other Canadians and the Brits at a bar for a drink.  It was quite a dead scene when we arrived; the drummer was warming up (thud, thud, thud...etc) but we had a good time with our new friends and even stayed out quite late once the party got going!