Phuet - Part 2
Trip Start
Jan 28, 2008
1
26
42
Trip End
May 27, 2008
Phuket,
Thailand
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Day 3 was spent much like day 2, around the pool in the morning then the shuttle to the same mall in the afternnon. This time however we ventured further. After risking our lives crossing 6 lanes of traffic (there was a crosswalk but it doesn't seem to mean anything) we took the local bus to what is supposed to be the best beach- Patong Beach. This was the beach that got all the write-up as a result of the tsunami hitting Dec. 26th 2004. Much has been rebuilt and the buildings that were right on the beach have been replaced by a park. Very nice but very busy too!
Almost as soon as we got off the bus we were approached by two young Europeans (one sede, one brit) looking to earn some beer money by getting us to attend a presentation. I'm guessing it was to sell time sharing at a refurbished hotel across the road. Very nice now but there were pictures of debris and boats in the lobby from the tsunami. Anyone wants to buy an apartment that might be flooded again?
A walk along the beach, approached several times for a massage, a look into some souvenir shops and a restaurant and we decided that we like our resort better and we'll stay even if we have to pay cab fare to see other parts of the island. Bus trip back to mall and a not so great Italian meal then home. Got back just before the storm this time. it sems that this will be a nightly occurance. Oh wel, better than when we're out in the open.
Day 4 was a scheduled tour to Phi Phi Island. Pickup ay 7:45 for a 9:00 am sailing. 45 minutes by high speed cruiser with 28 or so others from around the world, Italy, Australia, Germany and probably Taiwan. Ok snorkelling at the first stop but better at the second with more varieties and even some colourful coral. More amazing however were the almost vertical cliffs (karst topography- see my University education in geography wasn't entirly wasted. Even stalactites hanging over the water. One peaceful lagoon was used for the filming of The beach withLeonardo Dicaprio. Amazing sight with the lagoon almost entirely surrounded by 500 foot cliffs. Another stop was at the Viking Caves so called because they found Viking signs there but it was more recent, graffiti from a homesick Norwegian sailor. The only people that live there live in the caves and on stilts over the water. They gather swallow nests for use in Egg Drop Soup. The only problrm with the tour was we didn't bring our camera. We didn't reaize the size of the boat. We've booked a similar trip for Friday without the snorkelling stops. The boat will be larger also so we won't get as cose to the islands.
Days 5 and 6 we stayed by the resort. This is supposed to be our relaxing part before we tour China with Kim for the next 3 weeks. 7 cities in 3 weeks. We figure we'll need the rest first. Tonight we'll take a cab to a restaurant on the west side of the island hopefully remembering our camera for what is supposed to be great sunset shots.
