Phuket-ting Day 6 Bye bye bye

We felt really out of sorts ... walking a bit not knowing what to do until time to say bye-bye ... then it's off to the airport ... waiting around ... sad to leave such a beautiful place ... the airport is crowded ... lots of shops ... I got my coffee and a book ... Bangkok Boy ... about a young fellow from a village and how he became a lady boy (he is straight) ... gigolo ... dancer ... dad ... divorce ... dad ... cycle of looser ... and finally finding salvation and hoping to built a new life as a ghost guide in Bangkok's red light district ...

Well time to go onboard for our flight to KL LCCT ...

THANK YOU PHUKET!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Phuket-ting Day 5 - Part 2 - a Downer

This is it! To get to the hotel, you have to pass by one of 2 streets crawling with "boys" some of whom are old, some are lady boys and there is one place ... umm ... anyway the hotel is indeed huge ... and when we reached the restaurant ... it's over-rated ... it has buffet ... but not that much variety unless you count the veg, fruits n cakes ... and it caters to tour groups aside from in-house guests ... so u can imagine the service and quality ... taste wise is very average ...

A real letdown since this was our final night here ... ah well ...

Phuket-ting Day 5 - Almost time to say bye bye

After last night's killer good time ... this morning as we had no breakfast package anymore with the hotel, we decided to take it easy ... lounging around on our tiny balcony enjoying drinks and just seeing the town come to live ... and feeling sad that tomorrow we will have to fly home ... WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Then we took a stroll all around the block of our hotel ... before heading towards the mall for lunch ... deciding on an Asian eatery ... the above was a delicious fried koay teow ... moist and full of "liao" and not so much koay teow ...

And we decided on healthier beverages of fruit juices blended ... no extra sugar ... before proceeding to shop for souveniers ... in the mall and outside ... checking out many small roadside set ups ... As we headed in the direction of Marriot Courtyard ... we come up this fish spa thingie ... as we both have never done this ... we decided to give it a go ... it was a hair salon cum massage with a restaurant and guest house next door ... it was quite ... unnerving feeling little fishes tickling and sometimes a little painful when the fish nip at my leg hair ... I got tons swarming around me while my darling had negligible ... does that mean I have a lot of dead skin cells? Is it a sign of age? Ack!

We passed by Marriott and went into the Hard Rock - nice but too expensive to buy - almost RM200 a t-shirt with THE WHO. There are even more nice eateries there ... but as we are stuffed ... we decided to go down the direction of the beach ... and maybe have a little snack on street food again ... the above shows the main road ... the blue roof is where we will go for our dinner tonight as it advertises largest buffet in Patong ... fingers crossed!

Phuket-ting Day 4 Part 3

This photo can be Day 5 since it was taken in the wee morning of Day 5 but ... as it is part of Day 4 activities ... anyway after getting the free bie ride from Tiffany's show back to our hotel ... we decided since it was Wednesday ... let's go parteeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee ... a quick shower, change and we headed to the beach and ... joined the DJ on the beach session ... walking around the whole closed up space ... we bought our first bucket of vodka ... sat down and using straws slurped it up ... to our surprise ... it was finished ... Cory headed off to purchase the next bucket ... and we were so thirsty ... it was finished ... by which time we were both tipsy for sure ... and decided to stumble home ... but detoured momentarily to the local McD ... need something to stabilize the stomach ... in the hotel ... we sat in front of tv ... munching unsuccessfully before tumbling off to bed ... hehehehe perfect ending to a perfect day ...

Phuket-ting Day 4 Part 2

So we had a quiet time walking from one end of the road to the other, shopping through all these lower end type of shops for cheap touristry items ... and after such a hot hot hot day ... we saw this really charming spa ... not with massuers-cum-prostitutes ... but real massage ... next to the mall ... and we had a nice treatment ... best to date!

After the shopping at about 5:00pm, we made our way back to our side of the island for a rewarding shower ... with the next activity at 8:45pm ... we decided to head down to the mall for a meal on our bike ... and ended up at Jungceylon's chinese restaurant ... check out the cool looking steamed rice ... it is also the only restaurant so far where the food is neither greasy nor the taste over-powering ... like too salty or sweet or ...

We had a bit of a panic attack as we tried to find our way back since the main road was one way ... turn after turn seemed not to bring us to the beach ... and when we reached the main road of the beach ... massive jam .. thank goodness the van was late ... otherwise ...

What's tonight's program? Tiffany's lady boy show. We arrived, got our pre-booked tickets ... and saw this bar in the waiting area ... and guess what? We went to the bar! Naturally. I had a Jim Beam (ugh!) and Cory had a Heineken ...

And we nursed our drinks until the doors finally opened ... to welcome us into the darkness ... a bit of a problem arose ... apparently it was free seating ... but the tickets had numbers ... and some seats come with free bottles of water already deposited ... but all that could not beat the china tour group ... they were yakking to each other from one side of the theatre to another ...

Was the show good? Yes, I enjoyed the various dances and costume changes ... although there were obvious signs of weaknesses ... it is not up to the standard I was expecting though ... the Phuket Fantasea performers seemed to have rehearsed and performed more smoothly ... in addition, there were some acts that were pretty colorful ... and not suitable to children ... like the song BARBIE GIRL ... where this drag queen had gigantic fake tits ... squeezing and all that ... or when they come down and rubbed their tits to some of the guests' faces!

Ah well ... we still have another plan for the night even though it was 11:00pm already! HEHEHE! This is a good vacation, right?

Phuket-ting Day 4 Part 1 - Bike Day

Ah! Nothing better than a good dose of alcohol to make the sleep great, eh? We woke up to a beautiful day and headed out for a quick breakfast. Then it was off to ... RENT A BIKE. With Bike at THB250 a day, we are ready to grab our map and go go go!


We wanted to explore the old city center where locals go ... along the way we saw this and immediately u-turned back in ...

Nice place for lunch, isn't it? They even have foie gras on the menu ... we also did the food court thing inside with some PORK ... what else? Hehehehehe!

Though this shop looks nice ... but not much else inside ... and the prices ... sad to say are more expensive than Malaysia!

After that we travelled more ... until we hit the old town ... we stopped at a few local markets but most were either closed or of things we definitely will not shop for like crash helmets, pajamas, cheap roadside stuff that we can get in our own countries ...

The some-what famous clock tower right smack in the heart of the town ... where we stopped to go into a clothing boutique only to have them tell us sorry ladies' clothing only ... and on we proceed for more shopping adventures in Phuket!

Phuket-ting Day 3 Part 4

This is the final view from the boat as we approached the pier ... jumping off ... and to our surprise, that's where the lady who took photos as we boarded has set up shop ... THB100 for the photo in a frame ... not too bad, right?

Then after another looooooooooooooooooooong bus trip, we reached our hotel ... quick shower ... and we headed down to the beach direction ... choosing to have food at the highly advertised seafood restaurant that was so big ... it has 1 wing on the beach ... 1 in AC room that looks posh and another open hair next to AC ... and it was packed with hundreds of people ... we ordered prawns, crabs and morning glory ...

And was disappointed actually ... not a single dish taste nice ... and the chilli prawn n crab ... had the same watery sauces ... sigh ... so I am not going to give you photos before we tucked in or even the name of the shop ... grrrrr.....

But hey ... after dinner ... we took a stroll ... did our foot reflexology (terrible masseurs as they got up to answer mobiles and even wear rings while massaging) ... and went down to the beach for the THB89 per cocktail ... we ordered a mojito and a long island ... Cory had the banana pancake and mine was ... pork ribs BBQ ... so yummeeeeeeeeeee ... it was lovely weather to sit on the beach ... feet on the sand ... and listen to people talking, music from boomboxes ... and the occassional fireworks and paper lantern ... sailing gracefully into the night sky ... ahhhh what a vacation ... half way through ... another 50% to go!!!!!!

Phuket-ting Day 3 Part 3

After strolling through the sea-gypsy village it was time to continue our journey ... this time checking out grttoes ... here's the one where we went through ... and that is the second boat in our group coming through after us ...

And yet another island in the seas ...... lots of such beauty that after a while u get numbed to it all ...

And finally our 4th attraction ... James Bond Island ... people take photos of this from all directions ... we approached it from this side ... but landing is again at the back where there is a nice patch of beach ...

It's a small island where we were ... with some interesting rock formation ... good thing we landed around 5:00pm ... because all the retail shops were closed ... so no hassling from anyone at all ... hehehehe .... o yeah ... when we landed to get onshore because we sat at the end ... we had to climb up and walked on the side of the boat to the beach and JUMP!

And same same when it was time to go home ... me being overweight ... I was worried I would tipped the boat ... hehehe ...

And here is the brilliant sunset as we sailed back to our port ...

Phuket-ting Day 3 Part 2

We sailed for ... minutes after minutes ... passing by mangroves until we hit a wider patch ... then comes view after magnificent view of these islands that popped up all over ... some have virgin beaches ... that you just wanna hop off and picnic!!!!!

As ours was supposedly a half day tour, we didn't get to snorkel or picnic by beaches (1:00pm to 8:00pm tour is half-day????????????) ... so our first stop is the so-called sea gypsies village ... floating village ... first impression is cool ... check out all the colours

We sailed around ... until we came to the port area ... and that's also where they have their fish farms ... the farms looked kinda ... icky ... there are also some shops selling souvenirs with no one minding and you can just take whatever you want ... hahahahahaha...

Of course if you do the full day tour ... u get a meal ... we reached about 4:00pm ... still everyone stopped and ordered food from the restaurant ... with its blazing pink table clothese and over-the-top pricing ...

For us, as we had our McD ... we shared a vegetarian fried rice ... but had our individual lychee juices ... that was yummeeeeee .....

Phuket-ing Day 3 Part 1

Day 3 in Phuket and what did we wake up to? Yet another beautiful day. Check out the photo above. Beautiful, right? We sat there and just chilled out breathing in all that lovely salty tangy air. I missed, MISSED MISSED living by the sea. Medan n Berastagi - doesn't cut it for me

As our trip supposedly starts at 1240pm ... we decided to do a late breakfast/ early lunch at .... McD!!!!!!!! Where else but McD ... hehehe ... I was surprised that there isn't many choices for breakfast as I would have loved some local noodles or some such ...

Which was a good thing ... we waited for our tour until a little past 1:00pm and was getting worried ... especially since we had to wait outside the low-end cheap shopping area that had no shelter and the sun was hot ... the bus was large and surprisingly packed ... we drift in and out of sleep the next hour or more until we reach our first attraction ... the cave with monkeys and a temple ...

There were quite a number of different deity/ statues within for praying and photographing ... and as the most famous is the reclining Buddha ... here it is ... there was even a wheel-of-fortune ... which Cory tried ... and got a note about many things including the fact that this year is not good to do business but should just follow someone n strike out only next year on our own ... hmmmmmmmm ...........

One of the many limestone formations within ... looks like a brain? After waltzing through the caverns n taking more snapshots ... and watching a few monkeys fighting for food n snatching from humans ... something I experienced at the Penang Botanical Gardens when I was a kid ... we exited ... and I just had to take a pic of this chap finishing his/ her drink ... hehehe ...

Then we piled into the bus ... and more forty winks ... until we reached the jetty and were ordered to hoof it ... collecting our life jackets ... we reached this stone platform and walked down the gangway onto a floating platform ... watching boats of sleek beauty cutting through the water ....

All aboard!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And it was our turn to head out to the next part of our journey!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Phuket-ting Day 2 Part 2

So after an afternoon slowly sweating away ... we finished our beers ... stopped by to buy more snacks like green mango and guava with spicy sauce ... little pancakes with coconut cream and candied ginger juliennes ... and a pork sausage in sweet dough ...

We showered, we rested ... and what's next as the sun sets? MALL TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


We looked at the map and just walked. It seemed far away ... because we made too many stops to look at the cheap stalls and the crazy amount of chicks clawing for attention ... for you to "massage" ... hahahahahah!

We walked through the entire mall restaurant after restaurant and decided since it is Valentine's we go for the whole hog. We stopped at this charming eatery that had a bakery inside and outdoor dining - Mediteranean foods with a huge wine list - I had the pasta with pork sausages - we drank Brut!!!!!!!!!!!!

And finished off with a cup of hot java - shared between us. It was a lovely night after which we slowly waltzed back to our hotel ... again stopping by to see cheap stalls while telling no to the ladies! Hehehehehehe!

Our awesome starters - beef carpaccio! Yummeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!

Phuket-ting Day 2 Part 1

Taking our own sweet time, we chilled out in the room until late morning before we waltz down to the pool and a hearty ala carte breakfast. Then reading books, watching tv and doing the gwailo thingy, at noon, we came down for our transfer to .... PATONG BEACH ... Party Central!

Check out the beautiful sand and the blue clear skies and peaceful waves. It was SUPERB. We checked in at the Silver, came out and did a walk around the block before heading straight to th e beach for our first ALCOHOL of the season - Heineken beers!

And some yummylicious food - really scrumptious rice, vege, and PORK KNUCKLED - stewed. We sat under the temp shelters that dotted the beach for this. Aside from that, we had fried oysters with egg and a skewer of chicken and meatball - all deep fried, naturally. It's unhealthy food season time, man! And it was just plain awesome. It was nice to sit and while away an afternoon with someone you care about and just ... doing nothing ... worrying about nothing!

What shall we do for the evening, eh?

Oh yeah! Valentine's Day too!

Phuket-ting Day 1 Part 2

Okay so it is after midnight and I am posting this. Why so late when it is obvious I have had a long day thanks to flights? Well it is because we just finished watching Phuket Fanta-sea! Yup! I remembered seeing it once 11 years ago (yes 11 years ago) when I was working for SSV and did one of the excursions in a rush. So this time around, it was nice to go with my "loved one" and arriving early ... our hotel provided us with a free transfer to the venue ... the whole place can be termed kitschy (is that right?) ... but you know what, I LOVED IT! It was bright, it was colourful, it was lit up, it was gaudy, it was like a dreamland

We took our photos and wandered through the shops

We went to our restaurant and had plenty of food. On our shared table was an Arabic couple who were happily eating food without bothering if it was halal or not!

Then we came out and strolled around and saw some gigantic "lele" fish, a white tiger, some other lovely attractions and was soooooooooooo tempted to buy something but ended up buying nothing even Cory

Then came the show which lasted for nearly 2 hours. They could have tightened the show a bit by condensing the dances. Each dance doesn't have to be so long during the showcase except for the aerial display ...

And when the show was over, out we came and enjoyed our final stroll before heading to the car park to await for our transport. It was a lovely lovely lovely night

And to top it off, the Trees Residence was a great place for finishing off the night in pure comfort!