Hi everyone, hope all is well. Before I crack on, can you do me a small favour - We think we might be missing a blog update from Cambodia - if you cannot see Belle's accounts of Phnom Penh (including our visit to the killing felds) please can you let us know and we'll re-post. Cheers

Right then, on with the story:

So with my metaphorical 'I'm a qualified scuba diver' cap, badge, t-shirt and rosette emblazoned on an already inflated head and chest, it was time to catch the ferry to Koh Phi Phi - largely brought to fame by the filming of 'The Beach' with that ponce De Capricorn and more recently as being one of the worst affected islands during the boxing day Tsunami of 2004.

Phi Phi is made up of a couple of islands, however only one is inhabited, Phi Phi Don. This was where the ferry dropped us, and as you approach both the island and furthermore the port itself, you can't fail to be impressed by the breathtaking surroundings.

Phi Phi Don is an island that only has a small habitable area barely above sea level, which at it's widest point cannot be more than 500m from the eastern beach to it's western counterpart. So although somewhat unnervingly in a position to again be mercifully devastated by another Tsunami, the town is a brillianty tight vibe with narrow walkways containing a glut of nice bars, restaurants and boutique-esque shops. Like certain areas of Ibiza, this place was full of the beautiful people (especially those dame Scandinavians with their bronzed tight bodies and flowing blonde hair: ba**ards!). Yes, it was a place for the coolies!

We found our first nights accommodation by arranging it with a chap on the ferry over, and despite it being a nice 'bungalow' which we initially thought was too pricey, it was too high on a hillside for this pair of overweight backpackers - we moved to a B&B right in the thick of the action for the next three nights.

Whilst there we generally did what everyone does on the Phi Phi which was to enjoy the 0mph pace of things by laying on the beach (and watching the sea in case it suddenly disappeared!), enjoyed afternoon drinks, strolling around the shops in the early evening, and supping buckets* sat in the sand on one of the beach side bars with pals we'd met in previous locations around SE Asia.

*Bucket: Blackpool beach sand buckets filled with half a bottle of a spirit of your choice, a mixer, plenty of ice and two straws - rocket fuel).

The highlights though had to be our trips to Koh Phi Phi Lea (the sister island to Phi Phi Don which saw Leo strut his stuff). We hired a longboat taxi early in the morning who took us around the island, and it has to be said this place is fantastic. 'The Beach' was the last stop and was also pretty impressive (although I think there's some camera trickery in the film to enhance the beauty). We managed to arrive early enough to be faced with a quiet beach, but this lasted only about 15 minutes before the place was overrun by package tourists, including the Nikon clad Japs, on scheduled boat trips. Nevertheless, our taxi driver said we should be privileged to see the beach so quiet even if it was for 15 mins, so we were happy!

We also went on a dive trip around the island which was pretty good (well for one of us at least) on account of the pretty good visibility that day and the abundance of good marine life.

So after a four nights of Phi Phi, and most of the habited area of the island resembling a construction site following the Tsunami (things move slowly here, not helped by the island having no motorised vehicles) it still remains on the of the best places we've been and a place we will come back too in years to come [and as it turned out, in three days time!].