09/02/2010 Phuket Town & around

We got up and found some breakfast at a reasonable price about 120 baht each for bacon eggs toast juice and coffee so that’s ok. We than busted a deal on a scooter supposedly 300 baht a day but got it for 200. Well that was all well and good until about 15 minutes later. When we hired the bike she only had one helmet and said that’s ok you don’t have to wear helmets. I gave the helmet to Tracey to make her feel safer. Off we went and made the decision at the end of the block to turn left and there was a local police patrol and yes we got pulled over, and were informed that the driver has to wear a helmet but it doesn’t matter if the passengers head gets smashed in an accident. Obviously we tried to talk our way out of this one but it was “make money out of tourist day” and he fined me 300 Baht and if it was not paid by 3.00pm that day they would be looking for us. Seeing as we thought the motel was overpriced I did consider it may be a good option to not pay the fine and get a free night in jail but seeing as Tracey did not want to commit any crimes so she could end up in jail as well it would not be an acceptable option.

So off we went to pay the fine. The police station was set up to take all the money off the tourists for their fines. I met another Aussie guy paying his 300 baht fine for parking in the wrong place. After we had made our Police donation we headed off on our expensive bike hire. We cruised off to the actual town of Phuket to check out the sites. Nothing too exciting. We went into Old Phuket Town and they did have some old buildings. We checked them out and bought a local fruit ice block as it was really hot and I mean searing hot, you had to walk on the shady side of the road or you were frying. We stopped for a cool drink in a really trendy little shop which was owned by a really nice lady who was actually Thai but she could speak Italian as well as English and Thai. Her shop was really nice with great cakes coffee etc. She was very helpful and suggested we check out this other beach that was less busy and probably cheaper. Her idea of being less busy was only slightly correct. We checked it out as well as some cheaper accommodation and made the decision that Phuket is way overpriced and sucks so we were outta there. Went back and booked some boat tickets To Phi Phi. Well seeing as we could not get any contacts to book a room we had to go with the agent in Phuket and cost us 2,000 a night way over budget but we had heard good things about Phi Phi so we took the rooms.

We had dinner at a nice restaurant and grabbed a couple of beers from 7 / 11 and went down to the beach to listen to the free music blaring from the bars opposite and to watch people launch flying lanterns. They try and sell them to you but we just watched everyone else fly theirs. They fly for ages. Cruised the strip and headed home.

SO IN SUMMARY PHUKET SUCKS. It’s overpriced, the beaches are ok but you have to fight your way through the millions of umbrellas. IF YOU WANT TO GO AND GET SMASHED I GUESS IT WOULD BE OK BUT THE DRINKS WERE BASICALLY AUSSIE PRICE. *** SO DON’T GO THERE UNLESS YOU WIN THE TRIP***

Bel Aire Resort, 59/1-3 Sainamyen Road, Patong Beach, Kathu, Phuket (1800 Bt)

08/02/2010 First day in Thailand Flew to Phuket

Off to the airport and as usual we were early, but we made sure we had our last included breakfast before we left. Fly time was actually probably only an hour and we were in a new country. We didn’t book anything so we got an over priced room from the hawkers at the air port. Priced at 1800 thai baht . The exchange rate is about 28 thai baht to the Australian dollar, so this is expensive but we had to take it. Well what can I say the room was ok but nothing flash and did not include breakfast! We did manage to have a swim in their rooftop pool which was slightly larger than our spa !!!! Well our initial impressions of Phuket were not great as we were staying at Patong beach which is supposedly the popular area. The place is just a mad house busy busy busy and not that great on the beach as there is bloody plastic beach lounges and advertising umbrellas all over the beach. We did manage to find a little restaurant on the beach for some dinner which was ok and reasonably priced. Once back on the strip it is just crazy stuff. I guess if you want to get smashed and like that sort of thing it’s fine. We decided if we were going to stay we would find a better beach and some cheaper accommodation as it was way overpriced.

Bel Aire Resort, 59/1-3 Sainamyen Road, Patong Beach, Kathu, Phuket (1800 Bt)

07/02/2010 Conquering Grahame’s fear of Cable Cars

Well today we had the usual munch out on breakfast and headed off to the Cable Car. Apparently this is the longest single wire cable car in Asia or something like that. Man this thing is long and the last bit up the mountain is actually pretty scarey. I was not feeling great when you looked down and wondered what would happen if the cable broke. I kept this to myself as last time I asked a similar question it did not end well.

When you get to the top they have different lookouts and an air bridge that was a little unsettling to walk on as the thing moves around. Check out the pics. We hung around there had a drink, took all the pics and decided not to have a massage. The trip back down was only slightly less scarey but thankfully we made it back in one piece along with the hundreds of other tourists. They had a pile of shops and stuff at the bottom so we wandered around and discovered you could rent a Segway. Well Tracey jumped on hers and she was off. These things are cool. We were waved back as you were only supposed to go with a guide. Woops !!! So we went back and followed the guides and of course Tracey got her monies worth by zooming all over the place. So if you see these things for hire have a go it’s good fun. After that we decided to check out another waterfall which involved climbing up millions of steps. We were rewarded when we got to the top as there was swimming holes and you could slide down the rocks, which was pretty good. So we hung around there for hours. We meet a couple who were teaching in Singapore.

Even though it was down hill we were still sweating by the time we made it to the bottom. So we headed back to the resort for another swim. As we were leaving the next day we had to take the super duper car back. This was a bit of a task as we had to take it back to the port which was around a 25 minute drive as they wouldn’t pick it up from the airport which was about 5 minutes from our hotel. Of course they said they would give us a lift back. So we took the car back and yes they will give you a lift back but you have to pay and as they have your car deposit nothing you can do. Luckily the guy drove us back in a new car as he was driving like a man possessed. I am sure he thought he was in the Indy 500. We made it back to the resort in space shuttle time. Got what was left of our deposit and nervously went off to bed.
Langkasuka Resort, Langkawi, Malaysia

06/02/2010 Lake of the pregnant maiden

We got up and had our included breakfast which was a buffet style with bits of everything but they would also cook you eggs anyway you like. We went for an excellent omelet, expresso and fruit. We headed off for our boat tour. We arrived at the port with the other pile of tourists for our departure time of 10.00a.m. We were put into our group and jumped into our boat. I was happy to see our boat had 2 motors. Well that didn’t help us as we broke down and all the other boats zoomed past us. The driver kept trying to get the motors to go. He eventual he got 1 of the motors going and we crawled our way to the first stop the other boats had zoomed to. It did remind me of a similar incident where the tourists headed out for a 3 hour tour, a 3 hour tour. Anyway after some time another boat came along and we did an exciting in ocean transfer. We finally made it to our second stop. The Lake of the Pregnant Maiden. The new boat driver said be back in no more than one hour. No problem for our group of intrepid travelers. On the wharf the monkeys were waiting. Tracey did have a slight encounter with the furry little creatures. There must have been a monkey baby boom on the island as there were babies everywhere. Cute little buggers but the mothers did get a bit narky if you went too close. They were so darn adorable but we were not permitted to adopt any as apparently their parents wanted to keep them and they were not from Haiti.

We headed off on the trek over the many stairs to get over the hill to the other side of the mountain for a swim in the lake. Apparently women are supposed to get pregnant after swimming in the lake. Well I think it probably has something to do with making out but who I am I to argue. Of course the lake is set up for the tourists and has a huge floating platform for you to jump off. After jumping and swimming we struggled our way out of the lake and up the many stairs back to the other side of the island. It was sad to see the monkeys eating the tourist rubbish.

We found our boat load of tour pals waiting on the wharf. We sat there waiting and waiting and waiting for our boat to return. The other thousands of tourists keep coming and going but we were still waiting and waiting and waiting. Finally one of our group managed to get a text message to our boat operator. Guess what another boat had broken down. Some time after that a boat finally arrived to pick us up. We zoomed off to feed the Sea Eagles. The boat driver chucked a pile of food in the water and the Eagles zoomed down and grabbed it with there feet and keep flying. Pretty cool. We than headed over to the supposed snorkeling beach. Well that was pretty crappy and the waste of paying for a snorkel. So we just had a swim while dodging other tour boats and the parasailing. Trace had a sunbake and I wandered down to the wharf. On the wharf I could see hundreds of fish so I went back got Tracey and snorkeled in. Well we quickly discovered why they said not to snorkel there, The place was covered in prickly black sea urchins. There were heaps of them I had never seen that many not even on the Discovery channel. One wrong move and we would have these things stuck all over us. I decided this was probably not a great way to end our trip so we carefully removed ourselves urchin free and headed back to our boat for our uneventful return back to shore. When we arrived back at the shore they had our pictures on plates, seeing as we didn’t have any plates we bought the one with me on it ‘cause Tracey looked a bit weird not realizing that the photo was being taken. We headed back to the resort for more pool time and that’s about it.

Langkasuka Resort, Langkawi, Malaysia

05/02/2010 Traditional Games

Second day we jumped in the mighty beast to do a lap around the island. Monkeys on the side of the road kept us amused and they really like banana’s. It is cliché but its true!

We decided to check out the waterfalls on the trail but after much walking they were more like a water dribble than a water fall, they forget to tell you in the tourist information that they are only flowing in the wet season! We checked out the local craft centre and did see some of them actually painting but this is obviously a tourist trap so most things were pricey. They were playing a local game called Congkak with marble sized stones but we couldn’t figure it out. We bought some drinks and postcards. (Hey big spenders) There is a wedding museum that is worth a visit out the back. It had displays of the different local weddings and customs. We stopped to check out some fishing boats and they were selling tickets for a 3 hour island tour which we booked for the following morning. We paid extra for snorkels to use at the so called snorkeling beach but don’t waste your money on the snorkel - more on that later. We called it a day and headed back to the resort for a cool drink and a swim.

Note: Congkak is a Malaysia traditional games & also played in some other neighborhoods in the region. It is a game for two persons. The end of the game is to get as many stones as possible and the participant which could have virtually all of the stones or all the stones at the end will exist as the winner. There are numbers of rounds that the player have to play, there are no time limit but the player will have to kill the opposition by acquiring virtually all or all the stone. http://www.traditional-game.com/congkak/Malaysia-traditional-game---Congkak.php

Langkasuka Resort, Langkawi, Malaysia

04/02/2010 A resort by the sea

From Penang to Langkawi by ferry. We rolled up on the free bus at 8.10a.m. Ferry leaves at 8.30 a.m. We were lucky to get tickets as we didn’t book and the ferry was packed. Trip was pretty flat no worries about sea sickness. I have surprised myself as I usually don’t travel well on the ocean. Got to Langkawi about 11.00a.m with my stomach intact.

Hawkers were waiting on the exit and supposedly had cars for 30 or 40 ringgits. On the way out they show you a nice shiny little car, but after we paid a beat up car arrives that ended up being 40 ringgits a day about $13.50 Aussie. I didn’t care as long as the air-con worked as it’s bloody hot and the sun has a real bite 2 it. Langkawi is a big island so it’s worth getting the cheapo car. Plus our resort was a 25 minute drive away and it cost half a day’s hire to get a taxi there. The roads are really good and they had a brand new 2 lane highway most of the way to our resort. We chugged our way to the resort. Trace had got a room for 125 ringgits ($45 aussie) . When we got to our room it was massive, 2 huge rooms, 2 big T.V.S 2 Fridges, separate shower and a spa bath. Woo Hoo !!! We discovered when we went to book another night that they had no cheapo rooms left and they gave us the super deluxe suite. We wanted to stay another night and they wanted 3 times the price. Tracey managed to get them down to 180 ringgits so the room still averaged out at about $50 Ausssie with breakfast, pool and private beach. We just hung around the pool and had some cheap seafood they were cooking by the pool. 300 grams of prawns and 200 grams of calamari plus 2 drinks $18 Aussie. That would do just fine.

Resort was grog free. No I don’t mean you get it for free they did not sell it. We guessed they had a lot of Muslim visitors and they didn’t want to offend them. The good news is the island is duty free so if you head into town you can stock up cheap. I had a few Carlsberg special brews that were 8.8% at 63cents Aussie. Man you only needed a couple of those. 500ml Heineken were about a dollar aussie.

Langkasuka Resort, Langkawi, Malaysia

03/02/2010 Another Hill Climb

We caught a local bus to the mountains and caught the funicular railway up to the top of Penang Hill. From the top we went for a walk around the hill station at the top which included a mosque, a temple and a church along with an old hotel. We had lunch at the hotel looking out over Penang and called Darren and Peta from here.

Caught another bus back to town and another north to Ferringhi to check out the beaches up there and the night market. Ferringhi is full of resorts catering to the 4 and 5 star holiday market but we saw a few cute little bungalows on the beach.
Spent an interesting couple of hours at a bar on the beach watching the local holiday makers take horse rides and banana boat rides in their burkas and hijab before catching the bus back to Georgetown.

Sunway Hotel, Georgetown Penang, Malaysia