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 James
Bond Island famous landmark, called Koh Ping-gan, first
found its way onto the international map through its starring
role in the James Bond movie "The Man With the Golden
Gun". And this is where they seem to take all of the
tourists - all at one time. The entire area surrounding this
island with its signature rocky pinnacle is indeed spectacular,
but most of the tours bus visitors up the main highway for
an hour on the same well-worn itinerary. An integral part
of that tour is lunch at Koh Pannyi.
Koh Pannyi (Sea Gypsy Island) is a remarkable village,
the whole of it built out over water on stilts and with a
giant rock monolith guarding its rear. At lunch time, up to
3,000 tourists on the James Bond Island tours are brought
in to eat and shop for handicrafts. As soon as the tourists
leave, the community closes up its restaurants and trinket
shops and transforms itself from a tourist trap into a quiet
community of fishermen.
Sea Canoe in Phang Nga Bay and Krabi is an amazing
experience and there are lost worlds awaiting discovery. It
wasn't many years ago that aerial surveys first revealed the
Hong, or "rooms", that lie inside some of Phang
Nga's islands. These fabulous microcosms, hidden realms rich
in unspoiled flora and fauna, are collapsed cave systems open
to the sky and surrounded by towering limestone walls. Try
sea-canoeing, where you paddle sturdy inflatable boats through
caves into the mysterious hearts of islands such as Koh Panak
and Koh Hong.
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Massage
