Same same, but different...
My first trip out to Thailand was to celebrate one of my best mates 21st birthday - this was my first glimpse into backpacking and really fed the appetite which has led to me going back 4 more times since.
Bangkok was a place I’ve never experienced before, it was MENTAL (good mental)! Tuk Tuks lining the streets and from my point of view no rules for the road either. The Koh San road carried on with this theme but included loads more people, the streets lined with stalls selling anything and everything (and cheaply too, however this was in the good old days when it was 75Baht to the pound), there were massage salons a plenty, pad thai on tap and Singa beers to wash it down. We included a bit of culture by visiting the floating markets (stalls on the river) and Wat Pho Temple with the reclining Buddha…safe to say this was nothing like I had ever seen before - a completely different world to home and travels up until this point. One that made me really see HOW different people live, work, eat…it was eye opening to the best degree.
But lets be honest we were really here to party…!!
So off we went with our tube of Pringles on an overnight bus down to Krabi to get a boat to Koh Phi Phi. The bus journey was one I wouldn’t like to ever repeat, but found myself doing plenty of times in the future!
We hired a hut right on Long Beach for a bargain £3/night - it was your basic set up, but I was pleased to see an actual toilet for that price (although it was self flushing) and we even had a fan. The air con rooms were a ludicrous £5/night - we weren’t made of money! The best bit - waking up on the beach and seeing THAT view (see the thumbnail pic!) - we were in heaven.
I will never forget our nights out in Phi Phi - sitting beach side on the traditional triangle Thai cushions sipping a Mai Tai, listening to Bob Marley, dining out on some deep fried goodness and inevitably finishing off the evening with a nutella pancake.
As we stayed on Long Beach we had to get a longtail boat into the main hub of Phi Phi. This was fine going out, but after a few beers and having to jump off the boat (there was no jetty) and timing it with the waves crashing in was a bit more tricky and more often than not ended up with one of us mistiming it and rolling around in the sea. Sadly that person would get no help whatsoever because we were all too busy laughing and fearing that we would do the same when it was our turn…
After celebrating the big 21st birthday, it was clear that the next day would be somewhat quiet. My friend who’s birthday it was was known for clearing her stomach after a night out and this time was no different. When we first arrived, we were the only people in the huts, so when sat on the balcony admiring the view quietly and my friend feeling somewhat fragile but not having time to get to the toilet, she decided a quick vom over the balcony to the side would be the best secondary option. This is when we met our new neighbours. What a welcome.
This trip made me want to see more, do more and for longer and this is when the planning for my year of backpacking began….