Sunday morning we got up early and rented a kayak. Destination being Maya Bay, where ‘The Beach’ was filmed. Two minutes into the paddle Tyron started whining, convinced that we were not going to make it. It was a beautiful paddle along the towering cliff face in the deep blue water. Once we had come out of the bay we were paddling hard against the current straight into the wind over the chop, all whilst dodging speedboats, longtails and cruiseboats whose Asian captains drive worse than they do scooters. Tyron was now certain we were all going to die, but still claims he held it together as not to scare Maja. Despite all the chaos we eventually made it to the island, and paddled into the calm and beautiful Maya Bay. Having spent the two last hours paddling, our plan to get there before all the other tourists had failed. To the left of the main beach was a smaller, deserted beach which we claimed for ourselves. Crystal clear water, coconut trees and white sand, just like something out of a postcard. We pulled our boat to shore and Tyron headed straight for the water with his fishing rod, and within seconds he pulled out a magnificent species which we couldn’t identify. Then the boys got out their masks and dived straight from the shore. The dive was amazing; beautiful coral, reef fish and even two baby black tip reef sharks. They dived up against one of the cliff faces and found a deep cave under the surface of the water and being able to see light on the other side they decided to swim through it. They were amazed to find that on the other side of the cave was the open sea, and that they had swam right through the cliff with only one breath of air. Later when the main beach looked quieter we paddled across the bay to check it out, but didn’t spend long as we had a long paddle back. Coming out the bay we found that the wind had died down and most of the tourist boats had passed so the return trip was very chilled and enjoyable. Jono decided to fish off the back, while Tyron and Maja paddled. Almost home we decided to check out some of the beaches in the bay of Koh Phi Phi. Once again Jono and Tyron dived on the shallower coral where Jono got attacked by what he claims to be a savage, man eating packet. As he surfaced, eyes fixed on the coral below, the plastic packet covered his snorkel and wrapped itself around his back. Still not knowing it was just packet and unable to get it off, he thrashed around in the water, half choking and freaking out, much to Maja and Tyrons amusement. The beach next to this one is called Monkey Beach, and we decided that we wanted to film some swimming monkeys. We paddled close to the monkeys sitting on the rocks and Jono coaxed one into the water with a slice of bread. Not so confident when he saw how fast the monkey came swimming towards us he started shouting to Tyron who was standing in the water next to the kayak; “Tyron! Pull us out! Pull us out!” Tyron pulled (as fast as he could backwards with flippers on his feet) but the monkey was still faster than us. He caught up sooner than expected, so Jono tossed one slice in the water thinking it would keep him occupied while we made our getaway. The slice was gone in two seconds flat and with his eyes glued on the loaf of bread sitting on Jonos lap he decided to board the kayak. Jono was having none of this and decided to give the monkey a beat down with the end of his fishing rod. When the monkey then grabbed onto the rod Maja started shouting “For god sake Jono! Just give him the bread!” to which Jono replied “but I still want to make myself a cheese sandwich!” One more hiss from the monkey who was now showing his teeth, he ended up throwing the entire packet of bread into the water. The monkey swam away victoriously. Tyron managed to capture the whole thing on cam.
The next morning we packed our backpacks and jumped on the ferry to Krabi. At the pier in Krabi we didn’t waste much time. Within half an hour we were on a longtail boat on our way to Railay beach. The longtails have a minimum price, so the more people travelling together, the cheaper it is. At the travel agency there were three other girls who were going to Railay beach as well. They were bargaining like mad with the thai lady to get a discount on the longtail trip, but weren’t too interested in sharing it with us. When the thai lady explained to them (for the third time) that it would be cheaper for them to go with us, they, very reluctantly, agreed and payed, still not even turning around to greet us. These girls weren’t just rude, they were also ‘huge’ (I’m now quoting Jono… I was going for something more like ‘rather chubby’, but Tyron would back Jono up on this one since he asked politely if we were going to Railay beach or on a hippo safari). Anyway, when we got to the boat the girls battled to board because when they stepped on the side the boat threatened to take on water. After some rearranging of the position of the boat they managed to get on board and claimed one bench each. There are only four benches in a longtail boat. Jono and Maja hurried to claim the last bench, leaving Tyron to choose between the first chicks lap or the nose of the boat. He sat down in front and this turned out to be a wise decision when one of the girls started blowing her nose, and Jono and Maja, who were sitting down wind, were no longer sure if it was only saltwater spraying in their faces.
Half an hour later, and irritated with the fatties, we reached Railay beach. We found ourselves some cheap bungalows high up, close to the tsunami evacuation point. These cute little cabins were a steal for R 57 a night, and the resorts restaurant had a fantastic view accompanied by amazing thai food. After dinner we walked down to the beach. Railay east has a beautiful beach, and since it is now the low season there are very few people here. We’re not complaining! Railay is famous for rock climbing, and nearly everyone there were walking around with climbing gear. We didn’t do any rock climbing, but we enjoyed the beach, and the guys went for a walk through the forest and explored a cave. They also managed to find a beach with what seemed to be a hippie colony, where they were invited to come and see live music at a bar. The invitation was written on a leaf, and handed out by a guy wearing only a sarong and dread locks.
We only stayed at Railay for two nights, since Tyrons stay in Thailand is coming to an end. We caught a longtail to another bay where we were supposed to find our bus to Surat Thani. This all of a sudden seemed a bit difficult since no one could really tell us where to find the bus station, as it turns out they really don’t have a bus station. We bumped into a guy from the Netherlands who was running a travel agency in the middle of nowhere (Jono was convinced that he was actually a serial killer hiding from the police). He informed us that the bus companies have a pickup service but it was a bit difficult to say where they picked people up. Jono and Maja went on a mission to get food, but had to return defeated with only a packet of chips and a bottle of water. Then, out of nowhere, one of these truck-made-in-to-a-bus vehicles pulled up and insisted that they were the pickup service. The serial killer was persistent that this was not the right shuttle and that we should not get on it. Still, we jumped in and hoped for the best, all except Tyron who pointed at a Thai sign at the back of the car and made a guess that it actually said ‘Fuck you guys, we are taking you to the bush’. After about 45 minutes (and Jono guessing that they we’re actually going to drive us all the way to Surat Thani) the car finally stopped at the bus station. We had just enough time to buy some breakfast (Tyron, that lucky bugger, ended up with congealed pork blood), before we jumped on the bus to Surat Thani.
Three and a half hours later the bus stopped at ‘the final stop’, and we were the only people on the bus not knowing it was the final stop. We got off when the old bus driver shouted rudely at us, but only after Maja had told him “Shh! Relax!!”
Tyron had to stay one night in Surat Thani since his flight to Bangkok leaves from here, but the city is actually a bit of a dump, so Jono and Maja said goodbye to Tyron and jumped on the first ferry to Koh Samui.
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