Day 19 Heading Home

Amanda and Rob were a no show to breakfast so Noel rang them when we got back to the room as Rob had a massage booked at 10am and Amanda wanted to go to Jungceylon with me. Amanda just made the 10am shuttle and we headed to the Japanese Facial place and had a gold facial.

Noel went shopping while we were doing this and then he headed back to the hotel. After our facial it was eyelash extension time followed by a pedicure, foot scrub and manicure. By this time it was 3.00pm we were all beautified for home so we shared a Taxi with some other ladies from our hotel. Just enough time for a quick swim and chance to say goodbye to the other guests we had gotten to know and give away the pool noodles and nurf water guns.

 
We packed the bags and rested up for a while before our pickup at 5.00pm. The suitcases all came in at about 21kgs so no excess baggage charges which was a relief. A quick shop around the duty free before boarding. Amanda and Rob didn't pre-order in Adelaide and as we were transiting in Singapore they wouldn't sell alcohol due to the liquid limit, never had that before for duty free. We got to Singapore with little time for shopping we had to change terminals and they were already doing last boarding call. They still couldn't get alcohol as they won't sell it to you 15 minutes before takeoff. Lucky they have the little duty free shop in Adelaide.

We landed on time but the smart gates weren't working so we had to do the big line up at immigration which is very frustrating after no sleep. Only Adelaide can be harder to enter than anywhere else in the world even as a resident. Amanda and Rob got their duty free at last. Lucky customs was fast and efficient for a change and we were out of there within 10 minutes and at last our way home to the dogs and some sleep. Another great adventure in Thailand, we managed to come home with tans/sunburn.

It was another great holiday so until next it's me signing off from the blog with a big tick.

Day 18 Happy Hour

Today at breakfast we make big plans for beautification however as I was successfully changing our free motorbike hire for massages we decided that as today is bright and sunny we should hit the pool and go after lunch. After all our tans had faded over the last few days and you cant go home from 3 weeks in Thailand with only a spray tan.

The pool was refreshing as the sun had not been warming it up the last week but soon enough it was all very pleasant. The 12.00 shuttle came and went and we were still in the pool having a good old chat with some New Zealand guests. They live in Christchurch and had lost their home in the earthquake and how life is after. They are living with her mother and have been told by the insurance company it could take up to 10 years for them to get a rebuild.

I decided to have lunch by the pool which in the end was a wise decision. 1.00pm and Happy Hour began. Crazy Coconuts were our drink of choice. Several drinks later and by 2.00pm we had been in the pool 3.5hours. After I ate my lunch I was at least slapping on the sun screen but no one else was. Robs nose was gleaming red, at least Amanda went and got their hats after I commented on his nose. Noel had been spending the day in and out of the room so he wasn't as inebriated as the rest of us. Rob had gone in for a couple of hours intermission but Amanda and I stayed the whole time.

By 5.00pm I had had enough and Noel escorted me back to the room.  I had a shower ordered some dinner, slapped on the aloe vera and drank lots of water. Their will be lots of shore heads and sun burnt bodies tomorrow after 7 hours in the pool.

Not as bad I Amanda and I Rob and Noel hit Bangla Road, had dinner on the beach front at a seafood restaurant. Noel then tells me they played pool and had a few beers at some of the bars. He didn't get back until 12.30pm. I believe him.

So to sum up we did nothing we had planned so our last day tomorrow will be busy doing all those things we wanted to do today before we leave at 5.00pm for the airport and the flights home.

Day 17 Phi Phi

Noel and I got up for an early pickup at 7.00am for Phi Phi Island. Rob and Amanda decided not to come as they needed to do more shopping. We boarded the Phi Phi Island Cruiser and began the 2 hour Journey from Rassada Harbour. We were a bit worried about the weather as when we woke up it was raining but the seas were ok.

The boat took us past Phi Phi Lay(Maya Bay, Lohsa, Mah Bay Pileh Lagoon and Viking Cave). There was a ton of dive boats at Phi Phi Lay. Once we arrived at Phi Phi Don we boarded another boat to go snorkeling at Coral Bay. Even though it wasn't sunny the snorkeling was still really good. We saw heaps of fish including, parrot fish, trumpet fish, angle fish puffer fish, lots of reef fish and I was pleased to see lots of giant clams. After about 45 minutes we got back on the boat and headed to Phi Phi Don Pier and went for lunch at the Phi Phi Hotel which was included in our trip. The food was pretty good and there was lots of it, no complaints.

After lunch we walked around the lanes of Phi Phi Ton Sai Bay, so many dive shops I couldn't keep count. We stopped for a drink and enjoyed the atmosphere before heading back to the pier for the trip back to Phuket. The rain stayed away for most of the trip, we only got some slight spitting after lunch. 2 hours later we were back in Phuket and heading for the hotel for a nice hot shower.

Rest and relax for a while before Trivia Night at the hotel. We started the trivia night with dinner at the restaurant before the game began. We actually came equals third and our best round was actually music were we got nine out if ten. They had a tie breaker and the question was how many people survived the Titanic. We didn't really know and grappled between 475 and 725 and in the end picked 475 (wrong). In the end it was 705 and we came third the team who one picked 725, had we gone with that we would have had to have another tie breaker. The winning team won tickets to the magic show or Phi Phi Trip, second one massages at the spa and we won the days motorbike hire. We we see if we can change it to two bikes for one day tomorrow or massages.

A really fun night finished off a great day.

Day 16 Patong

Looks like it is going to be a wet day today so a nice quiet Sunday is in store. After breakfast Rob came over to our room to do some movie swapping with Noel on the media centers during which time it started to pour really hard with rain. It rained so hard it was coming in trough our door under the veranda. It's amazing in Koh Samui and Krabi we had perfect weather but since we got to Phuket it has been overcast and a least one rain shower a day/night.

 
We all decided to get a taxi to Jungceylon and have lunch at our favourite Japanese restaurant although today the service wasn't so good. After lunch I went for a Thai herb hot compress massage for an hour which was fantastic but I did smell like a herbal tea bag at the end. Noel checked out electronics and Rob and Amanda were up for some serious shopping. They didn't make the 4.00 shuttle so the shopping must still be in progress.

When Noel and I got back he headed down the hill to take some laundry and I watch the last episodes of Revenge. It Has rained nearly all day so I hope it is a bit better for our trip to Phi Phi tomorrow. Some of the other guests invited us to go to Phuket Town for the night market but as it is raining I think it wont be much fun so we might just go to Karon Beach for dinner and watch a movie tonight before our very early start tomorrow. We are getting picked up at 7.00am.

Day 16, tick

Day 15 Patong

Slept in a little today after last nights Naughty Night Out. After breakfast we just chilled in the room before Noel and I got the shuttle into Patong. In Patong we checkout a few of the stalls and went down a few side streets looking for a Thai urn. We found one in a shop called Siam Ceramic Handmade. The shop owner was lovely and he shop was very helpfull pullign down all the urns we wanted to see very carfully. You don't want to break anything in here. The urn is made of Bejarong Porcelain and all hand painted including 18c gold. The one we bought is from the Phum Khao Bin collection which is a trellis pattern with rice motif and dates back to the reign of King Rama V (1869-1910).

After our special purchase we had very nice Indian for lunch then made our way to Jungceylon for a massage and supplies. When we got back to the hotel we hit the pool with Rob joining us before today's rainfall.

 Amanda and Rob are going to Phuket Fantasea which Noel and I have already seen. It is a great show held in a stage called the Pavillion of the Elephants. The show blends Thai culture with illusions, 4-D effects and elephant performances. They should have a great night.

Noel and I had no real plans so we headed to Bangla Rd and had dinner. After dinner we wandered up Bangla Rd and a pommy dude was spruking tickets for Genesis. Genesis is a magic show with the magician Joe Labero. He offered us one ticket for half price and a free drink each so we decided to see the show as Noel had been interested anyway. We still had some time to kill before it began so we had a couple of drinks in a bar watching all the passers by which is fasinating on this road. The show was running late due to technical difficulties so we went for another drink and offered for about the 50th time tonight Ping Pong Shows but a new one tonight a Banana Show. There has been lots of power problems in Phuket in the last couple of days so a half hour delay isn't tot bad.

The show began and to quote the brochure we were taken on on magical journey into a world that transcends the boundaries of the imagination where the unbelievable transpires. Well I don't know about that but the show was good and it also included some dancers and a juggeler who was actully pretty good. His name was Romano Frediani and he was very entertaining and a great juggler. The brochure reckons Joe Labero was voted the Illusionist Showman of the Decade but if that's true why is he playing in Phuket with dancers who look like rejects form across the road at the Russian Moulin Rouge? Actually it's a good show and we both enjoyed it even if the dancers weren't in sync. There was a few other couples from the hotel at the show so we shared a Tuk Tuk back to the hotel just before midnight.

Saturday Night in Phuket, tick.

Day 14 Naughty Night Out

Today started with a swim and reading by the pool. We have been getting lots of blackouts with all the rain so it's a good chance to catch up on some reading. I went to Jungceylon to do some shopping and get a massage while Noel rested up. He is getting a cold so best he rests so he is fit for tonight. You can't get pseudoephidrine (not sure how to spell it) anymore in Thailand so he has to suffer. Lots of people on the hotel shuttle said they are also going on tonight's tour so it should be fun.

The afternoon was spent with us all at the pool and relaxing in the room before an early dinner in the hotel restaurant ready for our big night out which is organized by the hotel.

The naughty night out started with a drink in the lobby and meeting the other people on the night out. There were 30 people joining in, mostly all Aussies in so it should be fun. After our drinks they gave us a rebootizer antioxidant drink for the morning hangover. Ding ding goes the bell.

 We piled into the minivans and headed for Bangla Rd. First stop the Bucking Bronco Bar. First drink was included plus you could get 5 shots of tequila for 100 Bart, we got two rounds. Good thing they gave us those rebootizer drinks. Quite a few of the boys had a go on the bucking bronco but only a couple of the girls were brave enough. Everyone was in good spirits so it was onto the next venue.

 Next stop Suzie Wongs, this was more what you expected for girly bars. This place is also known as Spanking Devils Playground, I will leave the rest to your imagination. The first drink is included at each venue, ding ding.

 
Next stop was the Ping Pong Show. To be honest the ping pong show disappointed me but I was impressed with the darts and cigarettes. She was pretty good with a pen as well. There was more but if you want details you will have to ask.

A third of the group including the four of us decided we didn't need to go to the night club and after the last show our brains already had had too much information so we decided to go back to the hotel. By this time it was raining so the walk to the pickup point was rather wet. Looking like we wanted to enter a Wet T-Shirt competition we made our way down Bangla Rd with Pong our host for the night to the pickup point.

 If you ever come to Patong and wanted to see what Bangla Rd is really all about we can recommend the Naughty Night Out tour. You get to see it all knowing you are safe and not getting ripped off.

Day 14 or should I say night 14, tick.

Day 13 Patong

After breakfast we all headed to the Jungceylon shopping centre where Amanda and I had a Japanese facial massage. These are so great, they take an hour and you get the works. I almost fell asleep it is so relaxing. After the facial I went downstairs and found my massage lady from yesterday and had a tiger balm back and shoulder massage. This woman is the best. While the girls got beautified who knows what the boys got up to, 2 hours by themselves in Patong I don't think we want to know. We all met up for lunch at the best Japanese restaurant in town before heading back to the hotel.

Back at the hotel it was time to hit the pool and just relax. Amanda and Rob moved into their new room which is big enough to have a party so they are happy. The room is also now poolside. The General Manager spoke to us today and it looks like we will get our upgrade for free for stuffing us around. She is really nice unlike the pig Owen we delt with yesterday.

 We also booked our Phi Phi Island tour today for Monday so hopefully the sun is back as it has been overcast today and a bit of afternoon rain. We also booked the Naughty Friday Night in Patong tour so stay tuned for a review of that.

We headed to Bangla Rd for dinner sharing a decked out Tuk Tuk with some other Aussies complete with boom box and flashing lights, Tuk Tuks have gone to a whole new level since we were here last. We ended up at an Irish Pub of all things for dinner and After dinner we did some shopping. Amanda bought up on pashminas, Noel some polo shirts and I got a new table cloth. We got them at the same shop so the lady was very happy she got good business from us tonight.

 
We had missed the hotel shuttle so we decided to walk up Bangla Rd and wait for the next one. We walked length of the road which always amazes me no matter how many times I do it, I can't count the times we were asked if we wanted to see a ping pong show. (We will save that for our naughty night out) We still had a little time to kill so we stopped at a bar and watched the numerous variety of people walking by.

Got back to the hotel to blog, Facebook and have a couple of drinks before bed. Nice quite day in Thailand. Day 14 tick.