Phuket -Southern Thailand 10/07/10

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I have a confession to make. I am writing about this part of our adventure in Thailand, from the lounge room of our home in Perth. Yes I was that slack and laid back in R&R mode that I just stopped adding to the blog. But rest assured my memories of our adventure will never fade as I now use them, when getting shitty at work, to go to a happy place! So I now continue our adventure in Thailand....
Haad Yuan will always be tough to beat. Just like Hue was in Vietnam, after we had such a great time in Hoi An. And since it had been 7 years since Maureen and I were last in Phuket, we didn’t quite know what to expect. 'Same same but different', as the saying goes.
While we were at Haad Yuan we searched the web for accommodation in Kata . We used to stay in Karon years ago and from time to time we would walk down to Kata and thought that it would be a nice place to stay when we came back. Well soon we would be back and after a bit of time on the web, we came a cross a place called Rico’s Bungalows that was a offering deals that appeared too good to be true but it fitted our budget and we figured that we could always find another option if push came to shove.
It was sad for us to end our stay at Haad Yuan. For me personally it was the most relaxing stay I have ever had even with children thrown in. I simply could not fault this island hideaway and will be back, you can count on that.
Our journey to Kata started at 5am in the morning and the day before I had booked a long tail to take us to Haad Rin. From there we were to catch a taxi to Ton Sala. Then, its a ferry back to Don Sak, a bus to Surat Thani and then a mini bus transfer to Kata in Phuket. A long day by any stretch of the imagination
Everything up to the mini bus transfer went according to plan and from then on things turned to shite. We waited at the tour company's office for hours and then when the van did arrive and we got on board, they took us for a drive around town only to return to the office. Ground Hog Day!
When we finally started the last leg of the journey it was nearly 2pm. If anyone knows the distance between Haad Yuan and Surat Thani then you would understand why we were pretty peeved off by now.
I always look for positives in everything and we did get to meet a nice guy from Wales on the van who helped make the journey pleasant with his travel stories. He took the time to learn to speak as much Thai as he could while he was here and he helped us find a taxi once we arrived at 6pm in Phuket town. The tour company felt that they had completed there part of the transaction and couldn't care less that the local buses had closed for the day and wouldn't even bother telling us where to find a taxi to Kata (which was about a 30 minute drive). I believe in karma and what goes around comes around so I know they'll get what's coming to then.
We caught a taxi to Kata and unfortunately the taxi driver had no idea where Rico's Bungalows were and we had not taken down any directions from the website. So we spent a bit of time looking for the place and had to pull over a couple of times before we finally found the place. The day was a complete write off and we had had enough by then what with the crappy tour company and stupid taxi driver after such a long day so it was nice to find that Rico's was a great place to stay!! We were met by a lady called Gail who showed us to our room. When we arrived to our booked room we noticed that the ‘free’ extra bed was not set up yet so she decided to gives us the larger room next door which has the permanent second bed. Gail ‘rocked’. It was a fantastic room and we had this at a complete steal at $27 dollars a day! It was a green season deal and the room was beautifully furnished with modern decor and the beds were very comfortable and just what we needed after a hell day. Always look for the positives in everything!
We loved our time in Kata and Rico's played a big part in that. The place had a great swimming pool( always a clincher with kids), is only a couple of minutes to the beach and has everything needed, close by. It was the little things that we liked about Rico's and we also got to meet a great couple from Switzerland who had such funny travel stories that cracked us up but more importantly sowed the seeds in us to travel more. They were older than us but you would not have known this and I reckon its there attitude to life and the fact that they have traveled the planet that makes them seem so relaxed, young at heart and easy going about a lot of things. Phil and Miriam if you are reading this, thanks for the great memories.
We visited a few of our old stomping grounds and also noticed the changes around Karon and Kata since we were there last but I guess that’s progress. We spent a bit of time at the beach and although the ocean was rougher and the current stronger than Haad Yuan, we still had lots of fun there. Tane and Ella got into the boogie boarding, making castles and finding little crabs in the sand. Life is great when you take a step back and just watch your kids doing kid things.
Did the usual shopping for rip off surf wear and indulged in the obligatory Thai massages. As you do.
For Tane’s birthday we went to Dino’s , which is a theme park loosely based on Dinosaurs and the Flintstones and has a great mini golf course, just don’t eat there as the prices are ridiculously expensive-ridiculously expensive with an exclamation mark. Maureen won the tournament but Ella, who has no idea what end of the putter to hold, got three hole in ones. I think we have another Karrie Webb in the making there and I can already see myself in my Range Rover Sport. That night finished off with hamburgers and chips for all (at another restaurant).
The Thailand leg of our adventure had now come to an end. My first time in Koh Samui was amazing. I loved the island hopping and being beach bums suited the family while Kata brought back fond memories and familiar sights . But it was different to Cambodia and Vietnam. Those countries were the exciting part of our adventure. The hectic pace and new places made everything so exotic and surreal where as Thailand we knew pretty well and also understood that this was going to be the relaxing part of our adventure so that was a different type of enjoyment but an enjoyment nonetheless.

Now, its off to Bali. A few days to ourselves in Ubud before catching up with some good friends in Legian for a few days more. Oh life's a bitch isn't it!!!

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