Oh, the Places You'll Go!: Phuket...it's a Shore Thing


Just a Swingin'

Thailand: Take-Two. So after getting to experience the exciting hustle and bustle of Bangkok a few weeks ago during one of Will's work trips, we couldn't wait to slow things down a bit and take another trip to a much tamer, much more tropical side of Thailand. This time we were flying off to the sunny shores of Phuket (pronounced Pooh-ket), an island in South Thailand. Although Will has been traveling pretty much nonstop since we moved over here at the end of January, ~~most~~, all, of his trips have been business-related. Having accompanied him on a couple of these work trips so far, I can vouch for the fact that in between all of his meetings, classes, and presentations, there is very little time for him to do any significant sight-seeing (or relaxing for that matter). And then along came Phuket. This was a belated anniversary trip for us that we've been trying to reschedule since March and just now found a weekend that we could squeeze it in...and I have to say that it was well worth the wait! We actually stayed in a little hotel on a little beach even further south of Phuket on the very remote island of Racha Yai. After a quick two-hour flight into Phuket and a fun 40-minute speedboat ride out to Racha Yai, we found ourselves in a perfect little paradise all our own. Well, all our "own" plus the hotel staff and a few day-trippers that came out to snorkel and scuba in these crystal clear waters. Being that it was the "off-season," come to find out, the hotel was quieter than usual, and we took full advantage of the situation. We had the beach to ourselves, which meant having full control over the beach chairs and the bartender. The great staff there did a great job of catering to our every need. We learned early on to make fast friends with the restaurant crew, and so every meal and drink came served with personalized touches, compliments of our new friends! They showered us with undivided attention and made great suggestions on what to see and do around the island. Thanks to their advice, we rented a scooter to scoot around in for a couple of days whenever we felt like venturing out for a fun little island adventure. One of these little adventures of ours consisted of pulling over at one of the scenic look-out points, where we thought we would just take a couple quick pictures of the sea and shore below. One of the locals, however, had a completely different idea in mind. When he spotted us taking pictures of everything but each other, he stepped in an offered to take a picture of the two of us together. We've never been great at getting other people to take pictures of the both of us, so we jumped at the chance to have him snap some picture proof that we were actually there! Little did we know that a quick picture would turn into a 30-minute photo shoot though, in which he insisted on making us pose in every gimmicky, prom-like pose imaginable. Will and I were laughing so hard through the entire "shoot" that we could hardly hold ourselves together enough to maintain the carefully choreographed poses he'd meticulously placed us in. He was obviously taking his self-appointed photographer job very seriously so we went along with it as long as we could possibly stand it before our cheeks starting to twitch from smiling and laughing so hard. Back at the hotel, our nice manager friend offered to take us snorkeling for our very first time ever, which we thoroughly enjoyed despite a somewhat leaky mask. The combination of crystal clear waters and bright, colorful fish made for some very successful snorkeling. I also got to enjoy my very own private fishing trip after shamelessly begging and pleading with one of the staff members that I just had to go! When asked if I should rent any equipment for the fishing trip, he smiled and said that everything we needed was already on the boat. This "equipment" that he had for us, was simply a spool of fishing line, a hook, and a plastic bag of squid to use for bait that he'd caught by hand earlier that morning. Apparently that's all we needed because just a few seconds after casting the reel out (I mean dropping the line in the water), the fish started biting! I reeled in, ahem, spooled in my first catch in years! After a couple more little catches, we decided to turn back with the tide and head for the hotel where Will and I enjoyed the rest of the day relaxing on the beach, playing cards while the afternoon shower passed through, and ordering specialty drinks and eats from our restaurant buddies. There's just something to be said for getting an authentic Thai massage on an authentic Thai beach and then eating authentic Pad Thai from an authentic Thai Chef. It was definitely an amazing experience for us both, and if any of you ever find yourself on this side of the world, we highly recommend making a pit stop in Phuket while you're here!