the end of the world

ko phi phi is legendary for its beauty. the islands surrounding it include maya bay, where leo filmed "the beach," as well as mosquito island, monkey island, and bamboo island. our second morning, allan haggled with a tour guide and rented our own longtail boat for the day. we waded in the surreal green waters of maya bay, amid scores of international tourists. it made me realize why the characters in "the beach" went to such cruel lengths to protect the secret. i went snorkeling by the reef on the south side of the island and went swimming through schools of tiny silver fish off of monkey island, but nothing was quite as beautiful as bamboo island. the sand was lightning white against a soft, cool green ocean. longtail boats bobbed up and down, flaunting their ribbons like young children. we ran onto the sand and walked along the rocks, passing bamboo huts and a giant swing made of rope, until we came to the edge where you could see mosquito island and ko phi phi in the distance. later in the day, jenny and i saw tents and asked some thai guys about staying overnight.

"sure. you want to reserve now?"

we said no, but when we got back, we made arrangements to be dropped off on bamboo island for 2 nights. when we arrived and moved into our tents, it dawned on us that we were the only people staying in tents. looking around, we realized that everyone leaves bamboo island right before dusk, as we had the previous day. soon enough, that moment came and the tourists packed into their boats and headed for their resorts. gunner, allan, jenny and i walked around the island, letting the sun sink behind the trees and allow us to cool off in shade. the sun began to dip lower and lower into the sea, setting part of the sky in a pastel smear and the other in a light grey mist. we gathered on the curve of the sand, like we were facing the end of the earth and watched the sun fade and the stars wake. i never took that moment for granted- not for a second did i doubt how fortunate we four were to have seen such magnificent beauty and to own it, personally recount it without the pollution of crowds.

we walked back to our tents, but heard the rangers talking and laughing. we joined them and played cards, smoked harsh cigarettes rolled in bamboo paper, and exchanged languages. Ekk and Rit taught us Thai, introducing Mon- the cook- who brought us a mammoth papaya as a gift. we drank Mekong whiskey from a bright orange bottle; when the night wore on we went swimming in the ocean and the water glowed with algae. we walked naked on the beach, talked for hours and finally fell asleep in our tents, despondent when we heard the sound of the first longtail boat.

it was gunner's last morning, so we walked around the island- partly to explore and partly to hide from the tourists who were beginning to populate the sand. we walked past our sunset spot and came across a fisherman's camp, where he sat grilling a kuhl stingray over a fire. we examined the ray with its grey body and turquoise spots, and the fisherman climbed into his longtail boat, pulling a basket of crabs from the water. with sticks, we drew pictures in the sand and negotiated the sale of 2 kilos of crabs for a few baht and what time we would return with our money. he ushered us over to his wife, grinding a powder of chile and lime, and shared a taste of his stingray with us. it was good and chewy. we went back, crossing rocks that looked like they had been drizzled with chocolate syrup and caste from marble cake, and saw gunner sail away. watching him load into the boat, i realized that he was going back to "the real world" and my time in this paradise was rapidly ending.


we feasted on crabs and fish with the rangers. they insisted on cooking for us and sharing beer and wine with our group. we laughed a lot that night and sang "the winds of change" and "the gambler," rivaling the roosters for gawking, off key noise. we woke up early and watched the sunrise. the boat back to ko phi phi arrived later that day and i threw my bags into the boat and watched ko mai pai get smaller and smaller in the distance until it disappeared behind the curve of the island, like it never happened.