Jomtien - a few days by the beach

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Jomtien, just south of Pattaya, isn't the sort of place we'd normally be drawn towards on a trip like this. There were, however, some very specific reasons to visit, and it led to a slight change in our anticipated itinerary which worked out very well indeed as you'll find out in future posts! Getting there was easy once we'd found a driver who would accept the ride. Bolt proved to be frustrating as a few drivers accepted the job, then cancelled it as soon as they got stuck in traffic on the way to our hotel. This seems to be the downfall of the system, but a lovely lady driver on the best alternative, Grab, came up trumps and we were soon on our way. As well as the agreed price you have to pay any toll fees but we didn't mind. It's marginally more expensive than the bus, but door-to-door and Bangkok bus stations never used to be much fun anyway!!

On arrival at the D Varee Jomtien Beach Hotel, it became noticeable how much domestic Thai tourism there is at the moment. The hotel was quite busy, especially as it was the weekend, but that did not affect the careful and friendly service given to each guest. We were on the 18th floor which sounds really high, but there is a rooftop bar on the 38th floor to put it into perspective! Guests get a free welcome drink at the bar but it was a bit disappointing - a non-alcoholic apple spritzer. A freebie is a freebie though and it was very refreshing. Despite the height, getting a great view was difficult because of the safety ledges, and even more so at night when lights of every colour of the rainbow reflect off the glass barriers! The view from the room was incredible though with a full elevated and unobstructed vista of the whole of Jomtien Beach.

Our first night in Jomtien demonstrated why we were really there. Brighton were playing Leeds at an acceptable time in the UK+6 time zone! Even better than that, there is a bar in Jomtien run by a Brighton fan. The Seagull Bar Jomtien has Brighton & Hove Albion memorabilia on every wall and it was a great place to watch the Seagulls soar to the top of the Premier League (albeit only for five minutes!). A 1-0 victory was greeted by loud cheers in the bar. Mark, the owner, and Russ were then interviewed by BBC Sussex Sport after the game in a bid to show the global appeal of the football club!! If you are really interested, you can listen to the broadcast paying particular attention from about 18 minutes onwards. Making new friends is great, but we also met up with an old friend who we last saw before we were married! More about Scott later!!

The next day we took a taxi to Nongnooch on Scott's recommendation. We were not really sure what to expect as, other than saying it was worth it, our friend didn't give a lot away. Well, imagine Kew Gardens in London being invaded by giant plastic dinosaurs with busloads of screaming Asian tourists snapping photos of everything from their tour buses. Yeah, something like that! It was tacky, but in a strangely appealing way!! There was even a section of red phone boxes and a not-very-accurate replica of Stonehenge fronted by polar bears. The rain was really heavy at one stage so we took refuge in a very Cambodian looking temple before sitting in a cafe for an hour. The worst part was where the elephants are kept for feeding and riding. Not our thing at all and we steered well clear. All in all though, if you are in the area you really do have to go there.

Other than that, we spent quite a lot of time walking along the front, eating and drinking when required. We did end up at the Pattaya Floating Market and expected great things as they were charging an entry fee. This has to be THE biggest disappointment/rip-off we have experienced in all of our travels. It has become very run down with probably only about 20% of it functioning and certainly nothing floating that could be described in any way as a market. Unless something dramatic changes, our advice is to keep well clear.

From Jomtien we were travelling further down the coast and on to the island of Ko Samet. That's for another day so let's go back to Scott. Russ and Scott served together in the RAF in the early 90s on a tour of Cyprus. They were known for their rather tasteless selection of shirts (which doesn't seem to have changed much unlike Scott's hairline :-p ) and a photo of the two of them then and now has been included so you can judge for yourself! Having not seen each other for almost 30 years, it was great to go out to a nice fish restaurant and have a few beers for old times' sake. Let's hope it's not quite so long before we see each other again.

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Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Floating market
It looks like it might float away or fall in.

[RENanDREW]

Football love
You almost lost me at 'Pattaya'! :( But I kept reading :) Now that's a fabulous view, and so weird that you had a better view from your room than the poorly designed rooftop bar - sounds like a wasted opportunity!