Our final day in Chiangmai was good. I wanted to go out into the mountains and get away from the city. The tallest peak in Thailand, Doi Intanon, is reachable by car, and only a few hours outsdie of Chiang Mai. We woke up and had a more western breakfast. I didn’t want anything too exotic, as we would be in a car all day, no where near a restroom.

We took a truck to Chom Thom, actually, they are called Sawngthaew (wich literally means ‘two benches’) as they have two plank benches in the back with a canopy. The ride went through the country. I liked this, as it gave me a chance to see the real Thailand. Once we got to Chom Thom our guidebook said it would be easy to get to the mountain. It wasn’t. Well, kind of. More expensive at least than it should have been; 2,000 Baht, about USD $40.00. We stopped at a beautiful waterfall on the way up, and the sun came up just in time to see the water glisten. The air here felt great! It reminded me of Seattle, damp, cool, and clean.

I thought the truck we were in was going to explode, as the 2 hour climb was very steep. We made it to the top of the mountain to have no view, as we were in the middle of a giant cloud. This was okay, as the weather made me feel trancendant, like I was in the heart of nowhere. At the summit, a short walk from the parking lot, there is a shrine. It was very cool and etheral, tucked away in the mist.

Julie did some last minute shopping before we went back to the hotel to prepare for our flight to Phuket the next morning. We took two flights, one to Bangkok, the next to Phuket. Our second flight was delayed for about 2 hours. When we arrived in Phuket we took a bus to Kata in the southwest, to stay for a night, as the ferry to Phi Phi only leaves in the morning on the off-season. We were taken to a tour agency on the way to Kata (barf). I guess it is typical, however, they couldn’t sell anything to Julie and I, as we gave them the cold shoulder. The hotel in Kata was nice, I finally got a decent shower, meal, and a good nights rest.  They also had a pool that Julie and I waited around in, after the sun went down.

We left Kata early this morning to catch the boat to Phi Phi. The ride was fast at just under 2 hours. The hotel/Bungalow we are staying at had a long tail boat ready to take us to our beach. The bungalow and beach are perfect!

We have white sand and blue water everywhere.

Today, we went to a very private/secluded bech about a half of a mile through the jungle. I saw a monkey on the way! We laid around on the beach for about 4 hours. The only others there weretwo European girls. It was so relaxing to swim in the clear, warm water, lay in the sun, and reapeat.

Right now I am just chillin’ on the deck of our bungalow listening to the crash of waves and tropical bird song. Bliss.