Ko Phi Phi, Thailand {part II}

The last couple of days on the islands we

made sure to soak it all up.  I was excited

that we would be heading to Hong Kong, 

but I knew it was a big city and that always means

throbbing feet and a different type of vacation.

We decided to go explore the island we'd been staying on

the last day.  I'm so glad we did.  We got to see what

real village life was like outside of the resort.  I know resort life

isn't the way the island people live.  It was humbling

to see how the local people didn't have much in the form of monetary

means, but they live simply and with such gratitude for what they do have.

The side of the island we stayed on was not affected

by the 2005 tsunami, however the other side of the island

was almost completely destroyed.  While exploring the other side

we noticed all of the empty homes, sometimes with only

one wall standing or just the cement foundation was left.  I can't imagine how many lives were

lost or how many others were affected by loss of a loved one or ones.

Not only was southern Thailand  awe-inspiring, charming, 

and gorgeous but the people were so kind.

We made friends with the staff at the resort

and it was so beautiful to see them clasp their

hands together, bow their heads and greet us with

a sweet smile on their faces.

^^Mango with sticky rice and coconut milk...I had it almost every day.

 ^^Traditional Thai dancing.

 ^^Loved all the different types of flowers.

 ^^Thai's main form of transportation...scooters.  We saw some that had 3-4 people on them.

 ^^After a day at the beach we made it up the hill to see the sun set.

^^The staff we made friends with, bidding us farewell.

Up next...Hong Kong.