Just One More Day!

A two night stay on Koh Phi Phi was unfathomable to me - I couldn't possibility leave this island. Time was lost but tranquility found. One night after having a chat with an ex-pat about their constant visa runs (travelers from most countries get a month) I decided to find out what date it was and that is when I realized I was now an illegal alien...

I arrived on a bus from Cambodia into Thailand and after the many dates and journeys I had done in the last 6 months my memory escaped me and I didn't realize the different rules for US citizens traveling overland (no we are NOT the most beloved country in the world) so the rules were different for me...

I was a convict on a 36 hour visa run to Malaysia whereby I was stopped and detained. Fines paid. Paperwork filled out. Thorough warnings verbally and physically ingrained in my passport. I hopped in the back of a pickup truck bound for Malay and as soon as I touched foreign soil found another truck to jump in going back to Thailand hoping to hide from the same immigration officer. Dodgy I know, but all I wanted to do was get back to my island home!

After making friends with ex-pats who lived there and fellow travelers I found myself...10 days later still unable to leave Phi Phi. I finally decided it was time to move on but I will never forget the fun I had and the people I met on that beautiful island. Will be visiting again soon...

I told you it was paradise...

24 Hours of Paradise

Camping on The Beach was something I thought was going to yet another cheesy tourist experience by way of Hollywood invasion. Rarely do I admit this, but I was WRONG. First take a look at this picture to get an idea of the euphoria I was feeling...

After my initial excitement transcended into a state of island relaxation, my 15 new friends and I spent the evening on the beach as the bioluminescence sparkled in the moon's reflection on the warm emerald water. Post buckets of SangSom (Thai Jet Fuel in whiskey form) we danced to music on the sand and sometimes in the ocean! Later we were fascinated by a killer fireshow (see pics below) an amazing art form practiced along the beaches of Thailand. 

Never made it back to the tents...woke up like this...

Saw the sunrise on the beautiful waters of Southeast Asia...

Took some last photos of my vain self haha

And staked my claim on the finest beach in the world...COLE BEACH