Beyond the Sea

Hello, this is Erin writing. Dan and I just got back from our 2 week break, and it was amazing! I don't think I have ever been this tan in my life. The sun shone at least once every day, and the surroundings were gorgeous. Luckily, I didn't burn. Dan wasn't as lucky, but I made sure we had plenty of aloe before we left so he was ok. During our trip, we traveled to the south of Thailand, to Koh Phi Phi, for a week and then hopped on a flight to Bali in Indonesia! Hopefully the pictures will explain how beautiful it was. Its times like that that I'm really happy I chose to live here for a year.

Before we left, I made a big purchase- I got a new camera! Since we were planning to be in the water, Dan and I also decided to get an underwater case for it. It's a fancy piece of machinery, but we spend a lot of time using it while in the ocean. Our second day on Phi Phi, Dan and I went scuba diving! I would love to do it again. Since we are not certified divers, we went with an instructor. She was great, but on the first dive she told us not to take the camera with- and rightfully so. It took a lot of practice just trying to get used to breathing and keeping at the same depth. On the second dive neither Dan and I felt comfortable enough to take it with us. While diving, we saw huge pieces of coral, tiger fish and a moray eel! Crazy. No snakes though, thank goodness (thanks again, Mom). While we could not capture that part of our adventure, we spent a lot of time snorkeling and put the camera to good use there.

This photo is Dan levitating under water. His talents of levitation have expanded beyond land. :)

The photo above is my favorite photograph from snorkeling. The picture is of a field of pink and white anemones, with some "Gill" fish (from Finding Nemo). The water was so clear, it was amazing. This was taken in Candidasa, Bali. It was my favorite spot snorkeling because the visibility was so clear and I have never seen so many fish before in my life! At one point, I was completely surrounded with little blue fish about as long as your index finger. We also (from a slightly longer distance) saw a bigger school of fish as long as your forearm. That was a little more scary, but still pretty impressive. Unfortunately, the site was also the most dangerous. The undertow and current were pretty strong, so after about 45 minutes I had to climb back in the boat.

A great many sunsets were seen on our journey. This is one from our hotel in Candidasa.
Another sunset photo, this time in Kuta Beach. It was a busy part of the island in Bali, but the sunset was spectacular. If you could see what we are looking at (beyond the camera), all the locals came out to play soccer on the beach, while kids played in the tide pools. Very charming.

More fish! This photo is from the reef outside our hotel in Candidasa. Surprisingly, there was a lot to see in our little bay :)

Dan and I went on a sunset tour on a fairly cloudy day in Phi Phi. This photo was taken on the smaller island, Phi Phi Lei. The island is not inhabited, except by maybe about 6 locals. The cliffs are mind blowing. To get there, however, was slightly dangerous. If you can see behind me, there were quite a few waves and the wind was pretty strong. Since the swells were so big, we couldn't use the "main entrance." Our boat parked in a harbor, and we had to jump ship and swim to a set of ropes that brought us to some stairs so we could climb up the back side of the island and arrive at the beach from behind. It was by far and away the most beautiful beach I have ever been to, and lives up to it's reputation. The movie "The Beach" with Leonardo DiCaprio was actually filmed in this bay. Luckily, since the weather was a little questionable, there were not many people there. I think that made the experience even better.

Phi Phi also hosted a great number of fire shows at night. Dan, being the photographer that he is, loved the chance capture it. Personally, I think he did a great job. These guys used fire lanterns and torches with both ends lit. It was pretty impressive, and they went through about 5 gallons of lighter fluid to keep everything lit for a show that lasted at least 30 minutes. The smell was intoxicating.

While in Bali, Dan and I decided to see who could take better pictures of the gigantic waves with their camera. Since I had the waterproof camera, I was sure I had an advantage. This is Dan's photo of me getting rocked by the waves as they threw me around the beach.

This is my photo of me getting rocked by the waves. I'll let you decide who won that competition haha.

(Sorry these photos are much smaller, but it was going to take forever to reload them as larger versions). Our hotel in Candidasa was beautiful, and Dan and I had the suite room. We were not big spenders, we just happened to meet the right guy who arranged our stay. We considered ourselves pretty lucky. The pool was located next to the restaurant, and both areas looked onto the ocean.
This is the "garden walkway" that leads to that pool / restaurant, and this is the view starting at our room.
Finally, our suite room! It had a sitting area inside as well and the biggest bath tub I have seen in my life. Around sunset, they would fill a teapot with hot water so you could have coffee on the verandah. As you can guess, it was like having coffee in a forest, so we had to use lots of bug spray before stepping outside. Luckily in Phi Phi, I found 15 % deet Off and the mosquitoes didn't dare touch me after that.

And that's our trip! On Tuesday we start classes again, and I'm looking forward to seeing my students again. Its strange to think that our time in Thailand is half way done. I have a feeling these last 6 months will go by very quickly. Plus, Dan and I have so many things to look forward to! Around Christmas, Dan's parents and Becca will come to visit. Shortly after that my mom and a few family friends will make the trip as well. And if my luck holds out, Mariel will travel with me for a bit before I head back home in March! So exciting. That's it for now, but hopefully more updates to come again soon :)