the misadventures of two madmen

as i woke this morning and walked onto ther wooden deck the sunrise was just coming up over the island. it was a nice start; and confirmed that this place we are in, is in fact not a dream (though it seems so). we hired a wooden long boat to take us to ko phi phi lay (maya bay) today (we managed to do so through an older thai gentleman who we refer to as the "doctor" as he wears a long whhite lab jacket). the great thing about being in a boat like the one we hired is it further adds to the picturesque beauty of this place. the problem, as we found out, is that crossing the indian ocean in a fifteen foot wooden boat is no easy tasks with ocean swells. coy and i bounced around in the boat trying to keep the balance of the boat right. there were a couple of times we thought we were going to capsize. our hired guide did not appear worried, and quite skillfully rode the waves to our amazement. once we crossed the channel we reached it: maya bay... surely the most beautiful place either of us have ever seen. it's a bay/alcove with crystal green water surrounded on all sides by towering limestone cliffs covered in palms and dense forrest. it's sitting square in the middle of the indian ocean; it comes from nowhere. it's the type of place you don't even want to tell anyone about lest it become too well known. there really is no way to desribe it. we grounded the boat, grabbed our fins and snorkeled around a bit. wow. wow. i hope the pictures can desribe this place to half the extent that it was. next we explored the caves/beaches of the backside of the island and the southwest side of our island (tonsai bay). this was the area ravaged by the tsunami two years ago, but the thatched hut village has been rebuilt and we explored the shops hunting for more sunscreen, insect repellant and an atm. this sun really drains you. coy and i have each managed to shred our feet a bit on the corral and rocks. we're glad we brought the anisceptic and bandaids. hope you enjoy the pictures. by the way, we have now eaten fried rice every meal since arriving.