Koh Phi Phi, Thailand

Now we are on Koh Phi Phi (sounds like P.P. Island). The water is a little cooler here (only around 85-90 F) so you get a bit more refreshed while swimming. The water is also an incredible blue and turquoise color which is great to look at. Rob and I did come here for the climbing (imagine that) and that is what we have been doing the past 5 days. Well, the past 5 afternoons as it is too hot to climb in the morning (the rock is in the direct sunlight and it is really hot here). There is a great rock called Tonsai Tower and it has a bunch of moderate routes on it. I think the hardest we climbed in the 5 days is an over hanging 5.10D (way too much fun with a roof and huge holds to help you over it). Rob was the rope gun that he is and led the pitch while I followed it and cleaned it - again, way too much fun. The hardest I have led here was on the first afternoon and it was a bit of a balancy 5.10C (again really fun).
We are staying in a bamboo hut that is really close to the beach and really close to the rock. I actually recommend staying there because it is out of the party central zone and much quieter (and a lot less people as well). It is interesting because we have thatched walls and a thatched roof, but our stuff stayed dry when it rained yesterday so I guess it works well. Luckily the rain only lasted about an hour so it was not a big deal. The bad part is that it is super muggy after the rain and it makes a hot day that much hotter. At least it is nice to have the sun come back out after the rain clouds have passed.
One of the best things I have done on Phi Phi so far is I learned how to scuba dive this morning with Phi Phi Barakuda diving (there are so many shops it is hard to pick one). Talk about an amazing world to explore. The deepest I went on my two dives was about 12m and each dive was probably about 50 minutes. The water is super warm so I didn't even need the wet suit on the second dive. I saw a leopard shark (probably about 1.5-2 meters long) hanging out on the bottom of the ocean. I saw two sea turtles (one really big and one medium sized). It was amazing to be able to swim after them (or with them) for a couple of minutes. Turtles may be slow on land, but they move pretty fast in the water. I also saw a scorpion fish (poisonous, but they aren't aggressive and will not hurt you unless you touch them), puffer fish (it was really big, but did not puff up so who knows how big it would have looked), tons of angel fish of all sizes, a moray eel, and a bunch of fish that I don't know the names for. Needless to say it was an awe inspiring experience and very peaceful at the same time. The dive shop I went with was great and my instructor (I had my very own) - Ann - was great. She was very patient and kept me down as long as she could (and as long as I wanted to).
Phi Phi is on the recommend list, but it is a party island so beware. There are a ton of bars and lots of people in them (and this is low season) so if that is your thing then great. If not, I would stay away from party central and experience the scuba, snorkeling and climbing before heading on to your next destination. Just bring the sun screen because it gets hot during the day and the sandy beaches and beautiful water call to you.

Pictures:
1- Our bungalow that Rob and I shared on Phi Phi.

Other pics are view of Phi Phi. 2-4 are from the viewpoint where it started raining right after these pictures were taken. 5 is from the beach looking back towards Tonsai Tower where Rob and I did our climbing.