Island fever

Five days in Thailand is good. But ten would have been better. (Vacation goals.) So once again, we tried to squeeze the most out of our trip to this tropical place while still taking time to relax.

Our first 24 hours were spent applying sunblock, sitting on boats, traveling to various islands, admiring some impressive rocks, and seeking out any place where we might be served a platter of authentic pad Thai.

Part of breakfast at the hotel

What's inside? Rice and coconut. We think.

Despite getting sunburned, being scolded by one very temperamental tour guide, losing track of which islands we were on, and not finding our beloved pad Thai on the first day, we still had an excellent adventure and we would go back and do it again if we can get the chance.

First stop: floating village 

Invasion of the tourists

What's going in that mosque?

What's going on in that school?

One thing we decided we needed to see in Thailand was Khao Phing Kan, or as Americans may call it, James Bond Island. Wikipedia will tell you that this place has become “a popular tourist destination.” But we will tell you “that is an understatement.” It’s more like a place where tourists are dumped in droves and left to swarm around and desperately clamor for a photo that captures the beauty of the place but eliminates other disgruntled foreigners trying to do the exact same thing.

The famous protruding rock at James Bond Island

Rocks and cliffs

And cliffs and rocks!

Boats! Boats! Boats!

Don’t get me wrong…James Bond Island was cool to see. But not the coolest sight of the day. Perhaps even more memorable was the canoe tour through bat caves. Or standing on the beach at the base of a solid rock cliff so tall we couldn’t imagine how trees could grow up there. Or watching tiny fishing boats with disproportionately large engines navigate their ways around the water and in between the tourist commotion.

Rock with an elephant shape on it. Right in the middle. Don't look too hard.

Cave so low, we had to lie down in our kayak to get through it.

Bats! Bats! Bats!

Monkey. See?

Our boat. Bringing on the tourists.

Lunch on the boat. Mmm. Mmm! Then I ate some chicken wings.

After the island tour, we returned to our hotel in Phuket. This, I learned, is not pronounced with an “f” sound, but rather, the “h” is silent and the correct pronunciation is “poo-ket.” Thanks for nothing, Hooked on Phonics. (Or is it poo-nics?) We began our first search for pad Thai but wandered in the wrong direction of one of the town’s larger restaurant areas. After examining the menus of at least three other nearby restaurants, we ended up feasting on dinners composed of rice noodles, chicken, and some green vegetables that somewhat looked like sticks. Not pad Thai, but still, not disappointing.

Then of course, we had to try some of the native junk food of the land. Because no foreign experience would be complete without chips and chocolate to fuel the rest of the trip’s adventures.