Along the Way: Giving thanks in Thailand: Phuket and Ko Phi Phi

Of all the U.S. holidays, I'm probably most thankful for Thanksgiving. It always means at least a four day weekend to travel and/or enjoy time with good friends and family. It's a brilliant beacon of light at the end of my absolute least favorite month of the year.

November starts the rainy season in Indonesia, meaning it's gloomy and wet much of the time. I don't mind it when I'm stuck in the office all day, but I'm already a bit tired of it dampening my weekends. So, when CT and I sat down to figure out where to plan our last minute turkey day getaway, we explored four priority questions:

-Where in Southeast Asia is it currently not the rainy season?

-Where are there still cheap flights available?

-Where can we arrive, preferably non-stop, in less than 5 hours?

-How many extra days will it be possible to take off in addition to the holiday?

All signs quickly pointed to a 6 day trip to Phuket, in the south of Thailand.

While in flight I read my Lonely Planet and made a list of desirable activities:

-island hopping

-snorkeling

-swimming in blue water where I can see my toes

-surfing if conditions allowed, which they did not

-parasailing

-kiteboarding

-hiking

-if the weather turns bad: cooking class and yoga (luckily the weather was gorgeous the entire time)

CT's sister informed us that the Amazing Race had also just been here, but they didn't do any challenges that we felt the need to repeat for the sake of our own adventures. Apparently they built some structure around coral and lined up the zillions of chairs and umbrellas on the beach. We decided going snorkeling and lounging in the aforementioned chairs was good enough.

We didn't book any hotels in advance, knowing we might want to limit our time in Phuket in favor of heading to the Ko Phi Phi area, a quieter but just as renowned set of islands 45 minutes away by boat. Phuket had all the watersport activities, but sounded an awful lot like Bali's Kuta (overrun, overdeveloped, less beautiful than reputed, and all about the intense nightlife). Ko Phi Phi seemed like it would be much more peaceful and beautiful and would have much better snorkeling and beach areas to explore. We were right on.

Here's some of the more memorable moments:

Me parasailing at Patong Beach, Phuket

I'm the tiny dot

Best bar idea I've ever seen! Roaming VW bus bar.

Phuket nightlife. This is a man, by the way.

My intro to kiteboarding lesson. Apparently it is key to learn to manage the kite before adding the board.

Ko Phi Phi definitely deserves its paradise reputation

Sunset over Ko Phi Phi after hiking to the lookout point

You are never too old for a beach bucket! They sell these buckets everywhere in Ko Phi Phi. Each is filled with some kind of bottle of liquor, a mixer or two, and a handful of straws. Each evening, people walk around drinking out of them as they explore, chill on the beach, or party in a beachside bar...