I apprehended a lady the night before on the street as we looked for food. She was the one who sold me boat tickets on all my previous trips. Gave us a 900 Baht return ticket for 800 Baht each! So we saved RM20! The boat journey was shorter than I had expected. Only 3 1/2 hours as opposed to 5 hours years ago.
Upon reaching the island, long-tail boats would approach the ferry to transport passengers to the respective resort of their choice. I asked to be taken to Andaman Resort which the ex-pirate had set up in the 1990’s. Direk was not on the island. He used to sleep outside after quarreling with his wife. On my previous visit, he was sleeping outside for the entire duration of my stay……
Horrors. His wife had taken over the running of the resort. Settled for a 400 Baht bungalow. The adventure begins with food. Prices had gone sky high. Gone are the days where you can eat yourself silly with the amount of cash that you carry. Coconut shake was great!
Proceeded to check out the rest of the island to see what has changed. the Chao Le (sea gypsies) village is still there, with the school & the compound right by the beach. Walking back, we decided to swim before it gets dark.
Ventured to Mama’s Cafe in the middle of nowhere for dinner. Great food. Great coconut shake! Not so great prices.
Set out to take pictures when Moggie’s DSLR refused to co-operate. Turned to other means of entertainment. Observing the Chao Le kids in the village! The other end of Koh Lipe is Pattaya beach, which is where the action is. The restaurant in Lee Pae Resort served very good seafood & the fried fresh Emperor Snapper I ordered was a great bargain at 150 Baht per fish! This fish is retailing for RM9.00 per 100gm in Sabah! No coconut shake here. The catch is, it’s a 1.5km walk from our resort. And the walk is guided by nothing but the constellations above……& the RM9.90 super bright 12-LED water resistant torch to see creepy-crawlies as we walk pass the fields & jungle.
Not only is this island blessed with fantastic beaches & crystal clear waters, it breeds unusual fauna.
After much trekking & hiking around to take pictures, nothing beats snorkelling in the cool waters for little treasures! (Ask me what they are when you see me next!) Before long, the journey back to Pak Bara was inevitable. There’s something about this place that I keep coming back to, not to mention the discovery of coconut shake that I will love for you to try & it’s just blissful……
