Wandering

Something completely different……………. December 27, 2010 at 4:22 pm

Well, the imminent cold weather convinced me that staying in China was not a good idea. One, two, go – then I was in Phuket – an island off the south of Thailand. Having left my winter clothes in Bangkok I was only traveling with a couple shirts swim shorts, flip flops and a smile.

Once on the island I was greeted by Thai people speaking to me in Russian. Strange enough – after a bit of walking around and talking with the locals I found out that 50% of the population there were Ruskies. Again the culture difference was above and beyond what I was expecting. Most of the signs were in Slavic or Hebrew and many of the Thai tour people spoke 4-5 languages and would yell out whatever language they thought you spoke as you walked by. So, I was many different nationalities that week – funny looking white dude with sunglasses – could be anything.

Somehow I scored a reasonable hotel and hit the beach multiple times a day for swimming. The ocean water was the clearest that I have seen anywhere. One day I rented a motorbike and drove around the whole island. Again needing to remind myself at each intersection which lane to turn into since they drive on the left. Zoomin around the island allowed me to explore the high priced golf and country club housing subdivisions,latex gathering forests and other natural wonders. The place is more like a tourist spot with Thai people as the employees than Thailand itself. From what I have heard this area brings alot of money in for the country. They even had hotel tax added to my $11 hotel room.

: Count the elephants

: Romantic sunset w/equipment

: Tow vehicle

: Sweet Yard

During my stay on Phuket I was able to do some diving. The weather was not sunny however the dives turned out to be fun. The water clarity was not as good as I had expected by looking at the beaches but it was still a top ten spot to dive. Names of the places that I dove are -Shark Point – King Cruiser – Koh Dok Mai. After a late night party in Thai Vegas watching a Detroit Dj “Roger Sanchez” I decided that it was time to move on.

Next up on the to do list was Koh Phi Phi. It is a tiny place with beautiful scenery all around. There was a mix between gated resorts and party animal backpackers. The first night I was suckered into renting a bungalow for $20 then the next night I thought I’d stay in a hostel and save some money. For $6 I was able to stay in an room with 17 beds and 20 raging party animals. To say the least my beauty sleep was not fully completed.

One of the afternoons I did get to go on a snorkel tour around a few nearby islands. Turned out to be another highlight that is burned into my memory plank. The weather was clear and beautiful, the water as you can see doesn’t even seem real. Due to high temperatures in the previous year the hard corals had died but there were signs that they are coming back, which is good. If anyone has seen the movie “The Beach” we went there also.