joeyGjourney: Ringing in the New Year

Amanda was feeling better by 12/31/07 so we booked an afternoon boat trip on New Year’s Eve. The beaches were not as cheap as the rest of T-Land, but for about 14USD this trip included a sunset boat trip, snorkeling, hiking, kayaking, swimming, fruit, & food. All of this was around and on a smaller, nearby island, Phi Phi Ley. This island is home to lots of neat things. It has the “beach” and Maya Bay where the Leonardo Dicaprio movie (what a cowinky-dink name) The Beach was shot. There were lagoons, reefs, monkeys, and caves (where the locals climb poles to get the famous swallow nests that fetch over $1,000 USD; they are coveted in Chinese soups). Here come the pics!

Like lookin' in a mirror

Karst cliffs

In and around Phi Phi Ley

A cave where they climb up to find swallow nests

Finding Nemo

Fishes

Motoring around Phi Phi Ley (it's a protected park)

Island (not) in the sun

Where's Leonardo?

After the boat trip, it was a power shower and off for a late dinner. We then migrated to some beach bars and intermixed with the locals and tourists, all of which were in a very festive mood. We watched a smattering of fireworks (which look cool against the big rugged cliffs) and saw many people lighting these neat lanterns with fire and sending them off to the stars. Awesome sight once 3 or 4 dozen of them were floating upward into the night. The drink of Phi Phi is The Bucket. Every storefront sells them & the beach bars seem to exclusively sell them. They involve a plastic toy bucket (all sizes – some up to 5 gallons). Then there are a slew of bottles in the bucket. They provide the ice, open all the bottles, and let them gurgle empty into your bucket. Throw in a few straws and that’s your devilish drink. Everyone was getting crunk on them. The one I got had a bottle of Red Bull (once again – Thailand is home to Red Bull and construction workers apparently pound them more than the bar/club-goers), a bottle of Thai whiskey, a bottle of Vodka (I think), a can of Coke and a can of Sprite. I’ve handled the Hand Grenade on Bourbon Street and cruised through a few Orange Crushes in Dewey, but the Bucket is for the brave only. I finished about ¼ of it. Looking around, I didn’t feel too embarrassed because not many other people seemed to get past the ¼ mark either. Walked Amanda and her stomachache home and I people-watched around the main hubs before calling it a night (and a year!)