Ko Phi Phi/Rai Lay (Krabi)

sawateeka! i got back to my room the other day & my backpack had arrived! so after a shower, i went back to kata beach and watched a beautiful sunset. i also walked the town a bit, it's right by club med actually, so a lot of tourists (i have not met any american tourists so far, only europeans, canadians, etc) at night i went to bed early after watching an episode of law & order: SVU (obviously with thai subtitles) so that i could get an early start on saturday.
after a coffee and banana in the morning, my thai friends at bamboo village helped me get to the bus in phuket town, so that i could catch the ferry to ko phi phi, 2 islands that are about an hour and a half from phuket. (the lady was so funny, she saw me & came up to me, put her hands on my shoulders and on the sides of my torso & hips, then put her hand over her head, indicating she wished she was as tall as i was... i'm about 5 inches taller than the typical woman here...)
after the hour and a half ferry ride to ko phi phi i got a room for two nights at 700 baht (around $21/night). a bed, fan, bathroom & showerhead. yesterday i took a day trip on a long tail boat, a tour around all of phi phi-- bamboo island (my favorite), monkey beach (lots of monkeys!), a few coves in the area... went snorkeling in the bluest waters i've ever seen, saw the most colorful fish. we were 13 people on the boat, from barcelona, portugal, italy, france, the uk. after the sunset i had dinner with a few new friends, silvia/barcelona and bruno/portugal. it was an exhausting day, but really amazing. i got to bed soon after because as i learned the previous morning, my "rooster alarm" goes off at about 3:30 or 4am :). i have awesome photos i can't wait to post. today i took a boat to krabi and another boat to rai lei. i'm staying with two canadian girls i met in a bungalow-type hut (with a/c-- yay!!!) in ton sai. this island is probably the most beautiful so far (aside from bamboo island) because there are a lot less people and the vibe a lot more mellow. most people come here for rock climbing, the views/rocks are amazing! i'll probably stay here two nights before heading back to bangkok, and then i'll be on my way to chiang mai to meet up with mara leimane. woo hoo!!
re: photos, i've only uploaded from my iphone when i have wi-fi available. right now i'm at an internet cafe, so i'll post a few photos next time i have access to wifi.
i'm having the time of my life!!!
bucas xoxo, lauma :)