Songkran on Phi Phi Island!!!!

When I finally arrived on Phi Phi Island I went to the guesthouse I was staying at and was pleasantly surprised. It was a little difficult to find because it is a new guesthouse but once it was found I was happy! When I came with my Dad and Debby we stayed on the complete opposite side of the island on the different beach. I heard it was a party island but it didn't seem to crazy when we stayed... but now I was on the other beach and holy cow! Yes this was the party spot! I was by myself and had a single room so I sat in the lobby for a bit to see if anyone would invite me to dinner, surprisingly it worked!!! Travelling by myself has taught me that just a simple hello and wearing my blue jays hat can help me make friends. I met some guys from Winnipeg and we went for dinner then drinks. I hadn't met too many Canadians yet during my time in Thailand so it was refreshing to talk Canadian weather and food. I called it an earlier night since I was still on yoga time, except now I am on the party beach and there is a beach party every night. I can hear the music from my room.... It wasn't too loud, but I could not imagine the hostels that are right on the beach!! They are probably shaking from the music! The next morning I received a text from my friend Jenna who lives in Bangkok. She had seen my snapchat picture saying I was on Phi Phi Island and said she was coming in two days with her friend from home! No way!!!!! I spent most of Tuesday just laying on the beach, drinking beer and reading my book. The beach near me is beautiful and the water level was perfect to swim in, unlike the other beach which always seemed to have a really low tide. I fell asleep on the beach and woke up just in time for the sunset, which was stunning. I have had the chance to see many sunrises and sunsets and they still amaze me every time. As I was packing up my things a girl noticed my maple leaf towel and asked if I was from Canada. Her name was Reagan (21) and she is from Vancouver! She had also just arrived and has been traveling Asia by herself now for 3 months. She asked if I wanted to go grab some dinner! Wow being Canadian was really helping me on this trip! She was was really nice and on our walk to dinner promoters of a bar stopped to talk to us. They were telling us that the parties tonight were going to be crazy because it was the Thai New Years Eve and we should wear bathing suits. We separated after dinner to get ready and met back up at the bar we got stopped at. The bar was called Stockholm Syndrome and was awesome! Every half hour a horn would sound and they would give people free shots. They also had beer pong tables and great music. We met some guys from England named Chris, Barry and friends (I forget the rest of their names). They were staying the same hostel as me and were hilarious! They were typical boys doing stupid stuff to get laughs. Everyone was carrying around water guns and buckets of water so we were soaked from head to toe! Then most of the crowd started heading toward the beach for the big party. It was insane!! I have never seen so many people on one beach! There were 3 different bars that had a set up dance floor area and loud pumping music. Reagan and I danced the night away until our whole bodies started to look like prunes from being wet for hours! The next day April 13 was the big Songkran festivities. Songkran is all about the throwing of the water. Everyone I saw on this day had a water gun or a bucket, hose anything you could think of to get people wet! The custom originates from the ritual of cleaning the images of Buddah using blessed water. To soak other people is seen as a way of paying respect and is supposed to bring good fortune. People were also coming up to us and putting a 'chalk' on our faces. It is a mixture of water and powder and placed on you to show you have been blessed. Some of the chalk that was put on me smelt very nice too so I think also some families had put something else in it too. From the moment I walked out of my hostel I got soaked! It was the most incredible day of my life. Most businesses were closed but the Thai families that owned them were outside of their shops with buckets of water and chalk blessing people. Everyone was smiling and laughing and having the best time ever. I met a girl who works on the island and she said her roommate woke up that morning like it was Christmas! He was up bright and early filling his water gun and waking everyone else up in the house. The Thai kids were hilarious too chasing around tourist with their water guns. All day I had a chalk in my eyes, pruned fingers but a permanent smile on my face. It was amazing to see everyone celebrating this day together on the streets of Phi Phi Island. Reagan and I had heard of a pool party the day before so we decided to head in that direction. Once we got to the Ibiza Hostel we could hear the music loud and clear! This pool party was incredible! I don't think I have seen so many people in one pool before!!!! We got a bucket of rum to share and sat down to take a break from getting sprayed at by water guns. Another group of guys from England approached us and bought us some drinks. There were so many groups of English boys on the island, it's like a thing I guess for boy from England to do haha. They were all really nice guys and we decided to meet up with them later after a quick nap because we had now been drinking from 1pm-8pm and we were exhausted! Well the next thing I know, I wake up in my room with 6 missed calls from Reagan and I look at the time and it is 1:30 am... haha opps I had slept the whole night away! But also a great time to wake up because when I went to go get some water I bumped into Chris and his friends who had pizza :)  I sent Reagan a message apologizing for not meeting back up and went back to bed after stuffing my face with pizza. Jenna was on her way to the island the next day and I knew she would want to party so a good sleep in was needed to prepare me for the night. Jenna arrived around noon with her friend Liv who is so nice! They met up with Reagan and I for lunch and turns out that Jenna is staying in a hostel really close to mine! It was really nice to see a familiar face, especially Jenna's because I have been travelling and hadn't seen her in a while. We all laid on the beach for most of the afternoon. At the time I was reading the book Me Before You, so I could never put it down! It was the most amazing book! Then we went to go shower and get the sand off of us before heading out for the night. We went to a restaurant for dinner called The Rock. It was on top of a large rock... obviously, and had great food! Then we went to Stockholm again for starter drinks. Well we got buckets right away at 8pm and played beer pong, and the rest is history. We lost Reagan, then I lost my flip flops and some of my memory haha. We all woke up the next morning feeling really rough. Jenna came back to my hostel because it had better a better aircon so after we had breakfast we went back and napped. We were supposed to do a booze cruise on this day but cancelled and rescheduled for Saturday. We took it real easy!!! Worked on our tans, then Liv and I went and got pedicures. It had been 6 months since my last one, so it was time hah. I also bought some new flip flops so I could give Liv back her extra pair. We went for dinner and then to a fire show. They are very popular and always different so I really enjoy watching them. It's incredible when the little kids come out and do amazing things with sticks on fire! We went to bed early so we would be in good shape for the booze cruise. I decided to get up a little earlier so I could do the hike up to the lookout point. I knew I had to leave early Sunday morning so this was the only time I would be able to do it. It was already 35 degrees out by 10 am and the hike was more than I was expecting.... First it was about 400 steps until the first lookout point... but it wasn't the best. Then you had to walk about another 30 min up a trail to the second lookout point. I was covered in sweat and out of breath when I got to the top but because it took longer than expected I could not stay too long because I was meeting Liv and Jenna for breakfast before we left for the booze cruise. Two girls were taking pictures and I kindly asked of they would also take my picture for me at the top of the lookout point.. well this girl was serious and posing me it was hilarious! But she got some great pictures! Then I hurried down for breakfast. Going down is always much easier and faster. I had the most delicious eggs benedict for breakfast and then we walked to the pier to start the best day ever! Jenna and Liv had pre-booked us tickets for Captain Bob's Booze Cruize. It is a very popular company and known for being one of the best on the island! The cruise goes from 1pm-8pm and makes numerous stops at beautiful locations and free drinks the whole time! Well you pay for your ticket but then its free right haha. We went to the pier and waited for our boat to arrive. Other people started showing up and a group of people from Canada was on our boat!!! They were from Hamilton which was so strange because that's so close to Cambridge! So everyone gets on the boat and the rules were simple. Music loud, drinks in hand and have a good time! Our first stop on the cruise was Shark Bay. We did some snorkeling here but sadly did not see any sharks. Then we put on our lifejacket diapers and just sat in the water drinking beers. Cooper and Brendan were the DJ's of the boat playing the best music from new tunes to 90's and it was amazing! Our next stop was Monkey Beach. Usually they would stop and feed the monkey's but lately they had become very aggressive and bit someone the day before so we just stopped and stayed in the boat and watched them jump from tree to tree and hang out on the beach. Next was Maya Bay and I had gone here with the scuba boat with my dad but only quickly for lunch. This time we got to get off the boat and explore and go to a lookout point and walk to Loh Samah Bay! The guides of the cruise were awesome! We had a guy from South Africa and a girl from Australia named Eliza. We hit it off and she was super cool and only 19! I could not believe that she moved here with her friend and just applied for a job and has been here for 6 months now, amazing. They had a Go Pro that we could take pictures with. We did a super cool jumping picture with everyone on the Maya Bay Beach. By this point in the cruise everyone was starting to feel drunk. Next we went to the lagoon and holy was it beautiful. We were the only boat in this cove surrounded by huge walls of rock and it was magical. We did some more snorkeling here and saw crazy amounts of fish and the water was so clear! We stayed here for a long time we dancing and chatting with the others on the boat. I started talking to this guy Sami from Switzerland and he was so nice and really fun. After the cove we just went out into the open water and watched the sun set. It was so beautiful and everyone was jumping into the water and just having the most amazing time ever! It was dark when we got back and I was starving! They had given us a sandwich on the boat but I forgot to eat mine so Sami took me to get some dinner. Then I went back to my room to change and everyone on the boat planned to meet at Stockholm for drinks later. Well classic Melissa again went and passed out!!! I woke up to Jenna and Liv banging on my door I woke up confused and drunk so i quickly changed and went to the bar because poor Sami had been waiting there for me! We started at the one bar and waled around the streets stopping at different ones we had never been to before. Everyone on the boat had really bonded and I made friends who will be some of my friends for life now. That's the great thing about traveling, you get to meet people from around the world you would never had gotten the chance to meet, and now they are my good friends. And now I also have friends all over the world to show me their home country when I go to visit! This was a great last day with amazing people and I was sad to leave the next morning. I was also hungover and packing and carrying a heavy bag to the ferry then to the airport was not fun! Overall one of the best weeks I have had in Thailand. I know I keep saying that but they keep getting better and better, it's going to be a hard place to leave.