Phi Phi Islands - July 11, 2023

Today is the sunrise boat tour to James Bond Island. James Bond Island Tour with Simba Sunrise, yup, pick up at 5AM. Woof. The shuttle was a little late, because other people it was picking up delayed it. The ride was about 45 minutes. We arrived at the Royal Phuket Marina, where we had breakfast snacks and coffee. Our boat took off just before sunrise. It was so beautiful.

Once we hit open water, it was rough going. Jamie and I sat in the front of the boat and were bouncing everywhere. It was terrific.

Our first stop was Maya Bay, which is a bay surrounded by cliffs on 3 sides. To get to the bay we passed some beautiful areas.

I had never seen anything like this before.

I love the color of the water. It was like being in a fairy tale book.

Stunningly gorgeous. Maya Bay is a protected National Park and doesn't allow swimming or boats. Since it was so popular, swimming and anchors were destroying the corals.

Our boat dropped us off and we walked to the bay. The walk itself was pretty but then you round a bend and see the bay and it takes your breath away.

I loved this place. We walked around and explored the bay. Even had a picnic snack.

Can you tell I was happy? An hour went by really fast.

Our next stop was Pileh Bay, which is a gorgeous emerald lagoon. We dropped anchor and could swim or jump off the boat, which we did with the kids (our new Australian friends) in the group. It was so much fun. The water was perfect.

As we were drying off, we pulled up near Viking Cave. This cave is guarded with armed guards 24 hours a day. They protect looters from stealing the birds' nests, which are used to make Birds Nest Soup. We didn't see any nests, guards or birds but it was pretty.

We had our first snorkeling stop near Viking Cave.

I got to swim with a black tipped reef shark.

The next stop was Monkey Beach. We didn't get out of the boat but pulled up to the shore to see the troops of macaque monkeys. Monkeys aren't cuddly and will bite.

Our 2nd snorkeling stop was near Nui Beach Islands. This was more open water, which was rough, and the current was strong. We saw Nemo though!

Not the best picture but I loved this fish's colors.

Our final stop was Bamboo Beach. We had a drink and snack. We found lots of crabs as well.

We then headed back to the marina. Such a fun day. I am glad that it was overcast and rainy because I would have been fried otherwise. Some houses we passed going back.

Here is where we were.

We were tired, so we went back to the hotel to clean up and rest. View from our pool.

We meet Nine Nine (he is the friend we made from the Dublin Pub) at his favorite restaurant and had dinner.

After he drove us on his scooter, yes, all 3 of us on 1 scooter, to Bangela Road.

We always take the tuk tuks. They are fun, you can hook your music up and everyone has different light set up. Plus they are cheap.