ole' Pukie Pukerton

Damn motion sickness, damn it to hell.

I beat the odds and managed to not get sick on the way out to the island called Phi-Phi this morning, but the return trip was not nearly as favorable. I did manage to keep my insides where they belonged for the boat ride, but after leaving the boat and boarding a death-mini-bus, the winding hills of Phuket were more than I could handle, and probably more than the motorbiker who is covered in my vomit could handle as well. The Australian couple I met on my one day trek to the smaller island cheered me on as I finally eased my sickened stomach and managed to horrify a local motorist from the passenger side window of our bus. I still feel a little bit sick as I'm writing this, but I think some food and sleep will get it out of my system. Just another sea-sick story for me to tell and get laughed at about! I'm sure Adam and Dad will love this post, as they always seem to get a kick out of me getting sick on boats and I'm sure you can relate Mom as you tend to get sea-sick as well. While I'm talking about you all, let me say that I miss everyone, and I hope things are good, especially with your move Adam.

Today I went snorkeling off the coast of Phi-Phi island, and it nearly made my head explode. Diving down amidst the coral reef and thousands of tropical fish was so peaceful. At numerous points I was swimming in one direction with thousands of fish swimming directly at me in the opposite direction, as if I had gone down a one way road. After snorkeling we had lunch on the island and then had a chunk of time to explore at our own pace. This was a beautiful island, with huge rock formations shooting up from the ocean and reaching high up into the blue, cloud filled sky. On the far side of the island, the evidence of Tsunami destruction was very aparent, as many buildings were half-standing, and volunteers replanted coconut trees across the barren landscape. It was a strange mix of beauty and horror, as thoughts of what it must have been like for the people of the island to have their homes destroyed mingled with those of awe and disbelief at the fact that a place this gorgeous is in fact someone's home.

I took a bunch of pictures, which hopefully will do Phi-Phi some justice, although it doesn't seem possible. On the boat ride over, my camera battery died, and after a half-hour of pouting and being just plain angry, we got off the boat and I found a small vendor who was selling exactly the type of batteries I needed. It was a pleasant surprise, and saved the day for me as I would have been mad pretty much all day if I hadn't been able to take a single picture.

The tops of my feet got burned beyond belief today, complete with a really cool flip-flop tan line that makes me look even more like a jackass tourist. I've still got the whole "arms only" tan going, or "farmer tan" if you will, but it's starting to even out. One solid day of lounging will take care of that problem though, and I'll be burned all over!

As of right now, we don't have too much planned for the next couple days, besides going to the pool, sleeping, and going to the beach. I'm sure we'll find something crazy to do though, perhaps motorcycles again. We got our first traditional Thai massages last night, which was both relaxing and painful! At one point the woman was literally punching me in the temples and John got twisted to the point where his torso almost separated from his legs. I think one of my internal organs was crushed as well, but it's not feeling like it was a vital one, so I'll stop complaining. I felt good today though, so they must have done something right. A one hour massage set me back $7.00 US, definately a worthwhile investment.

I think it's time for some food. This will be my first meal since tossing my cookies, and I'm hoping it will stay down. Definately won't be going for any spicy Thai masterpiece tonight, probably more along the lines of a salad or a fried cockroach or something. You know, the usual. Wish me luck!