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Koh Lipe is a small island where any part is easily accessible within a few minute walk. There is no dock and if your lucky enough to arrive to the main beach (Pattaya) by speedboat, like I did, then your boat backs onto the beach and you hop out. Otherwise you transfer from a ferry to a longboat which ferries you to the shore. It’s a little bit more of a process, that will leave your feet wet (but really who wears shoes here anyways), and I did this upon leaving Koh Lipe.  From the beach there is really only one major road that crosses the island with a handful of smaller roads that feed into it.

Main street

Pattaya beach

Arriving to Koh Lipe

The island is known for its beaches, and other water related activities. This is what I came for and pretty much what I did. Well that and eat some pretty delicious Indian food, which was a nice break. I also met some cool people on Koh Lipe,and little did I know at the time, that I would spend parts of the next couple of months travelling with some of them. It’s funny how you keep running into the same people backpacking. Below entails my couple of days in Koh Lipe.

Watch the Sunset at Sunset Beach and Sunrise at Sunrise Beach 

In addition to Pattaya beach there are two other beaches which are aptly named for what they are best for watching – sunrise beach and sunset beach.  I went to both and they are definitely worth checking out!

I watched the sunset at Sunset beach each day I was there and each day it failed to disappoint. If you haven’t figured it out by now, I like watching sunsets.

Sunset at Sunset Beach

The morning I saw the sunrise I awoke at about 5:45 AM, and we made our way to sunrise beach. Finding a suprising number of overly energetic, selfie-taking tourists, we made our way to a secluded area and sat there patiently waiting for the sun to rise. Then the sky turned red and then gave way to pink hues which illuminated the fishing boats parked off shore. The whole process was quick and reminded me how much faster the sun rises and sets near the equator then at home. After the sun was up we went back to the hostel, got ready, ate breakfast and headed out for our day of touring the nearby islands.

Sunrise at Sunrise Beach

Snorkelling Trip 

There are numerous companies which offer boat trips into the area surrounding Koh Lipe. Some are short, some are long, some go in the morning, some in the afternoon,. Really the possibilities are endless.   Thanks to some skillfull negotiating by one of the Dutch people at the hostel we managed to get a good deal for a trip. The only downside was that we wouldn’t see the bioluminescent plankton at sunset but O well.

Travelling by longboat we made our way to three snorkelling locations, which definitely topped the ones that I had seen near Koh Lanta.  In between the snorkleing we stopped at a couple of spots in the National Park, eating lunch at one of them. It was a pretty fun day!

Exploring the islands near Koh Lipe

DISCOVERY DIVE!!!!

Scuba diving is something that I’ve wanted to try for a very long time and since I didn’t go to Koh Tao, and was still getting over a cold in Koh Lanta, Koh Lipe seemed like the perfect place to do it.  Of course, this was after reading up on a few schools, talking to someone who had used one of them, and being told by someone else that while more expensive than Koh Tao it was probably the cheapest place I’d come across in my travels for a while.  So I booked it, got fitted for my equipment and early the next morning made my way to the beach to set off on what was an incredible day!

I was paired with a girl from Poland, who like me had never dived, and was a bit nervous. Luckily, we had a great instructor, Maria who was from Romania and had been doing this for a few years (Although she was about to trade in the beauty of Koh Lipe for the cold of Canada, I told her she was crazy).

We made our way out to an area close to where I had snorkeled the previous day and with a bit of fear I penguin jumped into the water doning all my gear. After learning some basic diving techniques and commands in shallow water we made our way out into the coral and spent the next 30 minutes exploring the reefs under the close supervision of Maria. We then returned to the boat, debriefed and then sailed off to our next destination. The second dive was much more awesome and I was much more comfortable with spending time underwater. Although I will say the sound of your breath is a bit eiry at times.  After diving for an hour and exploring the corals and diving through underwater tunnels we returned to the surface. I was exhausted but exhilarated at the same time and definitely left Koh Lipe understanding how someone can give up their lives and become a dive master in such a place.

Unfortunately since I didn’t bring my camera and was underwater I didn’t have any pictures to show, but trust me when I say it was an amazing day!

Leaving Koh Lipe is an adventure in its own. I was going to Malaysia next and had to clear Thai customs in Koh Lipe. This involved a small booth where a lone man takes your passport, picture and then stamps you out. You then are required to surrender your passport to the ferry company who assures you that you’ll receive it on the ferry. I guess their way of ensuring you don’t just stay in Koh Lipe.

After a while an announcement for the ferry is made and chaotic rush to long boats occurs.  As I mentionedat the beginning of this post you have to take a longboat out and then transfer to a ferry. This was an interesting process as you see a relatively organized flotilla of boats loaded with tourists with too many suitcases converging on this ferry where you then have to jump up onto the deck of the boat.  A similar rush to find a seat then occurs. After finding a seat the ferry engine starts and the boat begins to move. Did I mention passport, of course not. After what seemed liked an enternity and a man comes thru the boat holding up passports from different countries and a rush to find yours occrus. Luckily,  finding mine was made easier by the fact that I was the only Canadian on board. After being reunited with my passport I relaxed, and settled in for the two hour ride to Langkawi excited for a new country and new adventures!

From Khao Sok I made my way to Koh Lanta. This involved more travel badges (a.k.a. stickers) and a set of random bus stops and transfers.

Koh Lanta is less developed than many of the neighbouring islands (like Koh Phi Phi), only receiving power in the 90’s and a connecting bridge a few years ago. This was one of the things that I liked most about it, and led me to stay a week at a couple of places on the island.

I spent a lot of this time relaxing at the beach, and getting over the cold that I had been fighting since I left Koh Phanagan. The beaches were a nice change from the ones in Koh Samui as they were much less busy, devoid of hawkers trying to get you to buy sunglasses. In fact I actually saw locals on the beach having a picnic, it gave the place a bit more of sense of authenticity.

I also explored the island, discovering delicious fruits including longan (a type of Thai lychee), and eating a number of delicious Thai foods. The chef at one restaurant was concerned that I would not be able to handle the spicy glass noodle salad and following checking on me, made sure to tell me that she only used two medium chillis (I was fine). O, I also had my first experience with genuine Thai quality goods, with a pair of sandals I bought lasting a good two hours before falling apart…

Everyday involved watching the sunset from the beach, which was always amazing!

Sunsets – such a horrible way to end the day

Finally over my cold I decided that I would take in a longboat tour of the nearby islands. I did this with a bit of trepidation considering how sick I was the last time I tried to go on a boat trip, but was glad that I did. Leaving by longboat we made our way thru a number of the neighbouring smaller islands.

The best part of this tour was when we stopped at the Morakat Caves. Jumping from the boat we swam thru several hundred meters of a dark cave before reaching a clearing with a few meters of sandy beach that was surround by cliffs and only accessible thru the tunnel from which we came.

After spending some time there we made our way back to the boat took in two snorkelling sites, both only accessible from the boat. One of the sites was better than the other and had clear water that allowed for a number of colourful fish to be observed (Hi Nemo!).

We then made our way to a beach where we had lunch, lounged around for an hour or so before making our way back to Koh Lanta. Luckily I made it back in time to take in my daily ritual of watching the sunset from the beach.

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4-island snorkeling tour  – complete with swimming thru a cave to find paradise

Rested and convinced that I could stomach another boat trip I boarded a speed boat and made my way to Koh Lipe.

With rainy season starting in the Gulf of Thailand, and a monsoon about to bear down on Koh Phanagan, I decided to head to the other side of the peninsula and take in some of the islands in the Andaman sea. But first, I wanted to explore some of the worlds oldest rainforests.

Leaving Koh Phanagan by ferry, I noticed that my earlier observations that the full moon party was relatively tame was in error.  Occupying the seats surrounding me were a number of people with bandages or on crutches. No doubt another example of the nothing good every happens after 2AM…. After reaching Donask Pier I got on a mini bus and made my way thru the roaming hills and jagged mountains arriving in Khao Sok slightly after sunset.

Khao Sok is essentially one street. At one end is the highway and at the other end is the National Park. In between are a number of restaurants and hotels/hostels, but really there isn’t much else around, which there-in-lies the charm of the place.  It’s a nice break from the hustle and bustle of Koh Phanagan and the wilderness is amazing.

I ended up spending a few days there, with the first day spent walking around the edge of the parking and helping another Canadian who had lost his bank card get money so that he could get back to Bangkok.

The second day I made a day trip to the nearby Cheow Lan Lake, which is a 165km² man-made lake that was made following the construction of a hydroelectric dam. I took a tour which takes you thru the lakes by speedboat and then takes you on a jungle trek to some caves. I guess the routes vary depending on the season.

Our guide led us thru this exotic jungle pointing out spider nests, wild boar paths and evidence of monkeys but we saw little in the way of actual wildlife, besides a number of beautiful bright butterflies.

After treking for an hour or so we made our way to some caves and leaving our gear there waded into them. It was a pretty cool experience, made only better by the fact that the water was, well, cool! After treking back we swam at a floating village before making our way back to Khao Sok for the evening.

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Khao Sok National Park

I spent the last day getting laundry done, working on my blog, and figuring out where to go next – finally deciding on Koh Lanta, which was supposed to be beautiful but not nearly as busy as the neighbouring islands of Koh Phi Phi or Phuket. It didn’t disappoint!

We arrived in Koh Phanagan a few days before the full moon party and had booked a really nice AirBnB for this period. Our host, Alexander, picked us at the pier and whisked us a way to his villa a few kilometers north of the town. It was a quiet refuge from the town and its increased activity that happens in the days surrounding the full moon. Below is some of the things that we did during our stay.

Exploring the island with  the David Suzuki (and David Suzuki II) 

Koh Phanagan is a big island and we had wanted to rent scooters to explore it. However, none of us had ever driven one and Alexander convinced us that this was not the place to learn. Instead we decided it was the perfect place for me to learn to drive on the other side of the road.

Car rentals in Koh Phanagan are interesting. Insurance? They don’t offer it. Driver license? They don’t want to see it. All they really want is someone to surrender a passport so they have leverage if something goes wrong. After some deliberation, and searching, we found one that would let us pay with Visa, which fortunately mine provides rental insurance. Camille surrendered her passport and after a less than rigorous inspection we were off in our Suzuki Jeep, which we christened the David Suzuki.

We made our way to the north end of the island driving thru giant puddles and up and down hills, finally reaching some beautiful beaches. If the weather had been a bit better would have made for some excellent snorkeling places, but none-the-less they were a great place to stop and have a drink.

On our way back the David Suzuki started to smoke and we pulled over to investigate, only to find that we could not get it started again. After waiting for a while, no idea what was wrong, and some not so helpful instructions from the car dealership ( You bring it to the store), we managed to get it started and slowly made our way back. As we made a turn a couple blocks from the dealership it died and could not be resurrected, and so we pushed it into the parking lot of a 7-11. With the aid of Google Translates we were able to explain the situation, and after inspecting the vehicle and coming to the same conclusion as us, the owner gave us another jeep – the David Suzuki II. Luckily this jeep didn’t have any problems and when we returned it a couple of days later Camille was fortunate enough to be reunited with her passport and wouldn’t be left to become a muay thai fighter in Thailand.

It’s like they are on their honeymoon or something

RIP David Suzuki

Exploring the island by Jeep

Loi Krathong

The 12th full moon of the Thai calendar corresponds with the Loi Krathong Festival. In this festival lantern boats, usually made out of biodegradable materials like banana leaves and containing candles, flowers and incense, are released into the water. This is to represent letting go of all your hatred and anger and you’re supposed to make a wish for the upcoming year.

Prior to the lantern release a large night market was set up near the harbour. Here the streets were packed with locals and a number of curious tourists, shopping, playing arcade games, or eating street foods – including a number of cooked bugs! Two-thirds of us tried them (I’ll let you guess who didn’t based on the pics) – surprisingly good!

Suprisingly good!

Someone wasn’t having anything to do with this

What’s for dinner – bugs!

After eating we lit and released our lanterns into the harbor. It was a bit difficult considering the wind, and descended into a bit of a every man for himself – which is probably not in the spirit of the festival…

Lantern lit!

Lantern lit – kinda.

Releasing the lantern

Some of the lanterns on the ocean

Releasing lanterns into the ocean at Loi Krathong Festival

Following our participation in one festival we left and got ready for another full moon event.

Full Moon Party

When you read about Full Moon Parties you come across two big things. First it is this crazy night long dance party of tens-of-thousands of people in brightly fluorescent clothing.  Second, there is a lot of shady things that happen, a lack of security rampart with druggings, muggings, and other not great things, including the fact that there is usually at least one death per party. I’ll admit these things scared me and if weren’t for the fact that I was with people who I trusted I would not of have gone.

We took precautions, went with a bare minimum of things, and wore closed toe shoes and with some trepidation we boarded the songthaew and made our way to Haad Rin beach. You arrive a few hundred meters from the beach and make your way thru a maze of shops, restaurants and kiosks. The first thing that we noticed as we made our way to the beach was that it was not as dangerous looking as it had been made out to be. First every kiosk selling alcohol had closed bottles that the mixed in front of you. Second, there was a noticeable security presence. We decorated our faces with paint, purchased a bucket of Sam Song and coke (mixed in front of us) and entered the party.

Full moon party is a bit of a misnomer. It’s actually a series of smaller parties, each focused around a bar playing a different genera of music. Some have DJs, some have fire dancers, but all have drunk people dancing. We wandered from party to party for a while, occasionally stopping to get another bucket, before eventually finding a spot to sit and take in the full moon.

Hey its a full moon!

ready to go

preparation for the party

complete with bucket of alchol

Full Moon Party

We had intended on being at the full moon party until the sun came up the next morning. But by 4AM we were hungry and made our up from the beach. After we finished our food we decided that we were done and made our way home. Along the way a drunken Argentinian decided that he would “re-marry” C+L.  After arriving back at the AirBnB, and before going to sleep, I had a shower to remove all the paint. I’d still be finding paint for days to come…

I will say having gone, was it fun, sure but would I go again, or recommend you go out of your way to attend one? Probably not, but maybe I’m just too old for them (haha).

Thai Cooking Class 

We had intended on taking a Thai Cooking Class in Chiang Mai, but with the Kings funeral happening while we were there we were unable to.

We choose a really good one, if you’re ever in Koh Phanagan I’d recommend the Phanagan Thai Cooking Class. Our chef was great and had trained in one of the best cooking schools in Thailand and had worked in Australia and the Netherlands for a few years before returning home.

The class ended up just being the three of us (too many hung over full moon partiers) and following a trip to the nearby markets where we got to find some alternatives

We all learned how to make spring rolls, don’t ask me to make them for you because I doubt I can get the oil just right. Then depending on your choice you could make a couple of different dishes including Pad Thai (of course), pad-ew-mew, curries, papaya salad, and Tom Yum.

Chef Oy showing us how to pick the proper vegetables

Sous chefs with PhDs

spring rolls!

the final products

Working on our first Michelan star

Following our feast, and loaded with leftovers that could have sustained us for a week, we wandered the nearby night market before making our way back to the AirBnB, narrowly missing the rain.

The next morning Alexander dropped us off at the pier. I said my goodbyes to C+L, who were on their way to Bangkok and then Japan, while I was about to set out on my own and head to Khao Sok.

Riding off into the sunset on a tiger

We had decided to go to a full moon party in Koh Phanagan, and with a week before this occurred, we decided to go to Koh Samui first. From Chiang Mai we took a flight to Surat Thani, a bus to the port in Donask, and from there a ferry to Koh Samui. The whole process was painless, and aided by snazy stickers, which adorn both the traveller and their luggage. These are a constant throughout travel in Thailand, and serves to mark hopeless “farangs” allowing travel agents to guide you to your destination.

We spent the first two days relaxing on the beach or at the pool of the resort where we were staying. We also began our preparation for the full moon party and may have involved a bucket or two of the Thai whiskey. FYI: Sang som is much better than Laotian tiger penis whiskey.

Beach life

Anthong National Marine Park:

From Koh Samui you can take a boat cruise to the nearby Angthong National Marine Park, and most of the time you can spend the night camping there. This is what we wanted to do. However, the park closes for maintenance from November 1st thru mid-December, and since the boats don’t run in bad weather overnight tours stop on the 29th of Oct (we wanted to go the 30th). So we decided on a day trip, complete with kayaking and snorkeling. I was told that it was a very nice trip, and that the lagoon was beautiful, but for me it was probably the worst day of travelling yet.

When I was young I got horrible motion sickness but over the years I outgrew it and was mostly fine when travelling.  The trip to Anthong felt like I was making up for all those years. Even though I had taken gravel I spent most of the 2 hour boat ride being sick.

Equipped with something that was apparently stronger than gravel, I spent most of the return trip sleeping on the deck of the boat and felt decent by the time we returned to the hotel.

Clearly enjoying this trip

A memorable trip to Angthong National Park

Koh Samui is pretty well developed and we spent the next day taking in a couple of the more interesting things to see. Of course this included eating at another night market, but also included us doning some pretty sweet jackets and hats and hitting up an icebar. Afterall, wouldn’t want to get soft and forget what it is to be Canadian – O wait thats exactly what I’m doing 🙂 .  We also took in a ladyboy cabernet show. The singers were pretty talented, and it was definitely worth the 350 baht price (this included a drink)

Keeping our Canadian Heritage Alive

Polar Camille

Lady boy show cabernet

Koh Samui night life – icebars and ladyboy cabernets

The night before we left we also took in a fish and thai foot massage, definitely an interesting experience and it left my feet probably the cleanest they had been since I left home (it didn’t last).

Fish Foot Massage

The next morning, and after taking some gravel, we set forth on a ferry to Koh Phangan, with me hoping that this boat trip would be better than the last. Fortunately it was.

From Chiang Mai we decided to take a day tour to nearby Chiang Rai and the Mekong River along the Laotian Border.

The day was made by our tour guide, Danny, who picked us up at 07:30. During the 2.5 h drive to Chiang Rai and Wat Rong Khun (a.k.a the White Temple) he entertained us with stories about the region, which involved a lot of him saying “Danny, why you say….”  He also told us of what not to do when visiting temples by giving examples of the “younger generations” mishaps and how the monks frown upon such behaviour. Way to go Matt, I hope your obnoxious selfies were worth cleaning the Golden toliet.

The White Temple is an amazing building, and one of the major reasons, if not the only reason, to visit Chiang Rai. It’s also pretty new, with construction of the current temple starting in the mid-1990s. As a result there is some pretty interesting contemporary art inside the main temple – think superheros like Batman, or political figures like George W. Bush or Bin Laden (Photos aren’t allowed inside the main temple).

Our tour guide – Danny

Hands outside the white temple – spot the red finger nail

Golden Toliet

White Temple in Chiang Mai

With the designer

Wat Rong Khun (a.k.a the White Temple) in Chiang Rai

We spent about an hour exploring the temple grounds, which included a visit to the golden toilet and gift shop, after which we were whisked off to our next destination – a visit to the hill tribe village.

Honestly, the hill tribe visit was disappointing, and I didn’t feel that I came away with any better understanding how the Karen people lived, either traditionally or currently. Rather, it felt like a tourist trap, where we whisked down an aisle of shops where individuals were trying to sell us “handmade crafts” that looked suspiciously like many of the things you could find in the night markets in Chiang Mai.

After lunch, we were supposed to visit another market, but Danny convinced the group to visit the Blue Temple instead – and I was glad that he did! The Blue Temple is still under construction, and we got to meet the designer, but it was pretty cool. We also got a lesson on how in Thai culture your lucky colour is dictated by the day of the week you were born on (mine is light blue).

Blue Temple

From here we proceeded to the Golden Triangle – a region along the Mekong River that borders Thailand, Laos, and Myanmar.  Once the worlds largest opium growing region, nowadays its apparently much tamer and includes a special economic zone where you can visit part of Laos from Thailand.  Following a long-boat trip on the Mekong, we arrived on an island in Laos. Danny had us sample the Laotian whiskies – which included one that had ginger, one with a snake, and another that apparently had a tiger penis in it. They are supposed to have medicinal properties, but I don’t think you’ll see me trading Scotch or Rye whisky for it any time soon. We also had time to shop before returning to the boat to shop. Hello “Raybans” for 200 baht ( ~$8 Cdn ).

To pass the time on the return boat trip to Thai soil Danny solicited volunteers to sing for 500 Laotian kip (~ 8 cents ).  To cheering fans, Liam rapped the Fresh Prince of BelAir theme song, which in my eyes will forever make him Fresh Prince of the Mekong.

Fresh Prince of the Mekong

From here we proceeded back to Chiang Mai,arriving back around 10:30. We passed the time by napping and eating multiple types of exotic potato chips.

Since we could not check in to our hostel until the afternoon, we decided to make the most of the day we arrived in Chiang Mai and make our way to Bua Thong Falls. The composition of the rock makes it possible to climb these “sticky” waterfalls.

We got a songathew (truck with a covered rear cab) to take us the 1.5 h distance from Chiang Mai to the falls.

Once there we made our way to the bottom and proceeded to take turns monkeying around and climbing up the falls. The rock is pretty cool and grips your feet as you climb.

Having agreed to be back at our songathew in an hour we only got to climb the two lower sections, but there was a nice picnic area filled with locals and what looked like another set of falls.

We then proceeded to return to Chiang Mai where we could check into the hostel by now.

Bua Thong Falls was definitely a nice way to escape the heat and to start our stay in Chiang Mai

Climbing the Bua Thong Falls

Chiang Mai is a magical place. The old city was founded in the late 13th century and initially served as the capital of the Lan Na.  The old city is surrounded by a moat! Within it is a labrynth of narrow streets, and navigating them you constantly come across Wats, random shops, and one of the most amazing coffee shops I’ve ever been to.

Chiang Mai – A pretty magical place!

Just outside the old town is a pretty vibrant night market, which had some pretty great food, bars and shops.

Loving the night market

We happened to be in Chiang Mai when the Kings funeral was taking place. Many shops were closed, or closed early, and the convention centre in Chiang Mai, had been setup for viewing of the ceremony in Bangkok. On the advice of one of the people we were talking to at the hostel we were staying we dressed in black and made our way to take part in this amazing ceremony, which was both a celebration of life as well as a sombre occasion. Unfortunately, we weren’t allowed in, as we didnt have long enough shorts and weren’t wearing closed-toed shoes. Still it was amazing, and humbling, to see the lines of people in black, wishing to pay their respects to a king who was so revered and had been a part of Thai life for so long.

Lines of people waiting to enter the convention centre. Childrens orchestra playing in celebration of the Kings life.

Chiang Mai also served as good base to explore the neighbouring areas from. We took a day trip to Chiang Rai and the Golden triangle (Fresh Prince of the Mekong)   We also went to an elephant rescue (click here)  and climbed the sticky waterfalls at Bua Thong (Bua Thong – The Sticky Waterfalls).

All-and-all Chiang Mai is a pretty amazing place and I think I could have spent a few more days exploring the old city, as well as treking around in the forests surrounding the city. But I had decided to head south with my friends and hit up the beach life of Koh Samui.