Patong Beach

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Ok so a few days to catch up on…

Probably best to describe our routine, or lack thereof. Sleep in. Wake kids from coma. Go to breakfast (which is always outstanding). Have a swim, or snorkel over coral off the jetty, or down to Patong beach for a swim in the lukewarm Andaman Sea. Lunch has usually been at the pool bar…enormous hamburger or similar. More swimming. Lying on sun beds around the pool. Seek shelter during afternoon thunderstorm or just stay in the pool and wait it out (it’s funny watching the Europeans, particularly the Brits, sitting in the rain under their pool umbrellas waiting for the rain to stop). Happy hour at the pool bar between 5 and 6…favourite so far is a Mai Tai although they make them with tangerines instead of orange juice because there are no oranges in Thailand…bet you didn’t know that….who said vacations can’t be educational?

Dinner is usually in a restaurant in town which is a 5 minute tuk-tuk away. After dinner is when the shopping heats up, in the cool of the evening. Lost count of how many dvd’s and playstation games we now have. Can you have enough…probably not. Lou now has 3 or 4 handbags God bless her. Sam has 4 complete soccer outfits of his favourite players and a new pair of Chucks (this is teen-speak for Converse sneakers). I’ve been watch hunting. To do this properly there is a lot of nudge nudge, wink wink. The stuff at the front of the shop is, well, only a front. You have to ask out of the corner of your mouth, “do you have a secret room”. You will then be taken to a locked room usually hidden behind a mirror or false wall. Behind the door is usually an Aladdin’s cave of replica watches, handbags and the like. It’s important not to lose your head at this point…trust me, it’s hard. Say you want a Rolex (or 2 or 3). There are actually 3 grades of quality…2 are no good, usually made in China, and the best grade, usually from Korea where the fake-Rolex-making is apparently taken more seriously, is actually very hard to detect as a fake, even by experts. After a while you can spot the good stuff from the crap. Above all, remember the words of Fox Mulder…trust no-one.

Some other notable events…Sam and I had our first double-barrell Thai massage while Lou had her nails done. The masseuses had identical moves, not unlike a synchronised swimming routine. We both particularly liked the part where they stood on our legs, grabbed our arms and bent us backwards so that our spines were inverted. Sam still has a sore back. I reckon they have spent a bit of time watching world championship wrestling…I’m sure I spotted a step-over-toe-hold…or was it a figure-four-leg-lock. Later Sam decided to go for a swim at the beach with his Ipod in his pocket…I guess that’s what travel insurance is for, right? We also had our first encounter with a roaming pack of lady-boys which completely freaked out the kids, especially Lou (“they had boobs!”).

As I'm writing this I'm sitting in the Lobby Bar listening to the band mangle the words to well known songs. Right now it's "Your sixteen, you're pitiful, and you're mine".

Overall we are having a wonderful time although I am now looking forward to getting back to the office…..NOT.

Hope everything is fine back in Oz. We miss everybody and wish you were all here with us.

Cheers xxx

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