Arrival in Phuket - Blogabond

We had heard that Phuket was very expensive by Thai standards as the tourist industry is very developed there but, as we were there so see Joanne's friend, James, we thought we could up our budget a bit for a few days. We were wary when we arrived though and, sure enough a tuktuk driver pestered us and told us that we would not be able to get a songthaew because we had missed the last one to Ao Karon where we intended to stay. The tuktuk fare was much higher than anywhere we had been so far. Of course we knew he was lying, so we walked to the songthaew stop with our big bags, phoning ahead to book a room at Pineapple Guesthouse on the way. It cost us a mere 30 Baht for a half hour journey across the Island, although we weren't certain where we had to get off. Eventually the driver stopped and said “Ao Karon?” to us, so we got off. A couple of people hanging around on the street confirmed that we had got off maybe two kilometres too late. The tuktuk drivers wanted 100 Baht for this three-minute journey, whereas 100 Baht will get you right across Bangkok and back on a tuktuk. They were not prepared to negotiate a price. Enraged by their greed, we stomped off and managed the gruelling journey over the hill into the correct part of Ao Karon. Our hostel was OK, although the room was very hot. Later that evening we met up nearby to say hello to James, his girlfriend Wan, and her daughter, before heading home for an early night.

The next day I put in some blogging time while Joanne rescheduled our flights again. After paying $30 for each of us in Saigon, we had discovered that BA in Bangkok will actually change the tickets for free, so Joanne phoned them there, where they were very helpful and got the dates we wanted. New schedule follows this entry. That evening we went out for dinner with James, Wan, and her daughter again, to what they described as an authentic Thai place in Phuket town. Although Phuket is a very touristy island, the main town is really just a working city for “real” people. I liked the restaurant a lot; it was decorated with all sorts of unusual kitsch objects and the food was excellent. I opted for the local speciality on the menu and asked for it phet phet. When it arrived I realised it was the same strong dark salty fish I had chosen on the bus trip to Phuket from Ranong. This time, though, it was cooked in a really tasty very fiery sauce and the strong flavour of the fish actually worked really well, rather than being overpowering as it had been before.

Kitsch fish tank in restaurant

James owns a bike tour business and had suggested that we accompany him the following day, as he was running one tomorrow which wasn't full. We ascertained that it would not be too tough, because Joanne doesn't have much cycling experience, I'm no mountain biking expert, and we both felt our fitness level was well down from peak performance, and then we agreed that it would be a very nice thing to do. He said that he sets the level of the tour to the lowest ability in the group, unless it's a large group in which case he would take another guide with him and split according to ability. He didn't think his customers tomorrow were looking for much more than a gentle tour.

written by

The Happy Couple on April 30, 2009 from Ban Karon, Thailand

from the travel blog: Michael's Round-the-World honeymoon

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From all the places we visited in Thailand probably Phuket was our favorite one, the magic scenery just blow our minds away, you guys had an amazing honeymoon in deed. http://www.club.royal-holiday.com/index.php?fuseaction=home.Destin&id=124&activ=0

written by Tommy on May 19, 2009

Phuket is a great island, but what I don't like about it is the huge amount of tourists! I personally enjoyed Phi-Phi islands more that Phuket.

written by liya on May 20, 2009

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