Wandering Goose: Finding Friends on Koh Phi Phi

Koh Phi Phi is one of those places that you have so much fun at, that you can't help but go back if you get the chance. After our first visit to Penang we headed to Koh Phi Phi, and returned there before making our way to Penang for the second time. This was in part because the island is just a really fun place to be, and part because when you have friends halfway around the world, you can't help but meet up with them.

Our first trip to Phi Phi we woke up before the crack of dawn to board a bus that would take us from Penang, across the Malaysian-Thai border, and on to Krabi, where we boarded a boat to the island. Up until this point, we had been in areas where we might find a few dozen other travellers, at most. This boat had more travellers on board than we had seen in the entirety of our trip up until this point, and most of them were in the mood to party. See, we timed our arrival on Phi Phi just a few days after one of Koh Phangan's full moon parties, and many of the full-mooners make the trip from Phangan to Phi Phi to keep the party going. The beaches were busy, the bars packed and lively, and the island's energy was buzzing and alive.

Koh Phi Phi teems with energy, and we were lucky enough to have some friends on island to spend our days with (as well as travel north to Chiang Mai and Pai with). We met some incredible people on this idyllic island with whom we spent our days pool partying, deep water soloing, scuba diving, chilling on the beach, filling up restaurants, and imbibing in some adult beverages with. Matt, Harry, Travis, and Cory, along with Justin and all the others we met along the way proved to be the highest quality of travel companions, and they made the experience along this leg of the journey what it is. We also had the good luck of having a friend living on island, Claire's friend Tim, who she did her Scuba Instructor program with, who was able to give us the goods on Phi Phi and through whom we met some awesome people living on island.

Now, the second time we went to Koh Phi Phi was a little more of a spur of the moment decision. After leaving northern Thailand and parting ways with the wolfpack Claire and I had a mind to find her grandfather, who spends the winter months in Thailand, and we had a lead that it might be Phuket that he spends his time. So after a feeble few days of searching for Claire's "guido" (a chapter in the story we seriously wish could bear the title "Finding Guido") that included Chinese New Years celebrations in Phuket Town (complete with a street-side performance of a Thai Highschool Hardcore band) and a visit to some of the local beaches (complete with a jellyfish sting for Claire, a dinner provided by 7-11, and a painful three hour odyssey of trying to find a taxi that would be willing to take us back to Phuket Town) we decided we needed to end Thailand on a good note, and we headed back to Koh Phi Phi to meet our friend Donald. And what began with a pool party our first time around, began with a pool party again... and on the story goes. Photos from Koh Phi Phi are courtesy of Claire's (now missing) iPhone, and GoPro screenshots. Because Graham was having too much fun to think about pictures. Enjoy!