Travels: December 2009

I finally have some time to sit down and tell you about our holiday in Thailand..... you would think I am busy or something!!
Thought I would start with some interesting facts about Thailand:

It is mainly a Buddhist country with countless temples.
Male children are required to become a monk to ensure the spiritual life of their parents. Most live as a monk for the minimal time required which is a week.
Bangkok is the only place where cabs have meters. In other cities, the fare must be arranged before starting off.
Baht is the currency used
It is a great insult to touch the head of another person
When people meet they do not shake hands. the customary greeting is the "wai", with the hands raised as if in prayer
Males use the term Sawasdee krab which is used for greetings , good byes and other salutations
Women use the term Sawasdee ka
"Boy-girls" as they are referred to here use the term Sawasdee Han
As the feet are the lowest part of the body, it is considered rude to point your feet at anybody, especially if the gesture is deliberate. As a result you seldom see people with their knees crossed, or if they are, they tend to keep their toes pointed carefully towards the floor.
Prices are extremely reasonable which makes shopping a pleasure even for me!
It is possible to get a massage by an elephant
Monkeys have been trained to harvest cashews
Elephants have been trained to paint pictures

We began this adventure with four days on Phuket Island which is located in the tropical waters of the

Andamen Sea. This is the largest and richest island in the Kingdom, and is the only island that has the status of a province.

We stayed at a lovely place right on the ocean called Laguna Beach Resort.

Our first day was spent lying on the beach and swimming. We lost complete track of time. For example we went to the beach bar to order some beer. The waitress commented "so you just want beer this early in the morning?" I asked her what time it was, thinking it was around lunch time. It was 10:00 !!!! I must admit this did not quench our thirst for a beer. We ordered two explaining we were on a different time zone.

After spending the majority of time on the beach, we did what every tourist inevitably does....we went shopping. Our children will be happy. We also managed to find summer clothes for ourselves. We went to a restaurant on the ocean and had a wonderful meal.

The second day we went on a sight seeing tour. You can see how the old section of Phuket reflects early Chinese and Portugese influence.
We visited Wat Chalong, the most holy and renowned monastery. We saw a shell museum. a light house museum , a cashew factory and shopped. We both agreed we had enough of museums although I will admit it was very enjoyable especially since it was only the two of us and the tour guide and we were able to cut and lengthen the various parts of the tour according to our preferences.

The third day we spent on a boat cruising among the limestone cliffs in Phangna Bay. This is located at the mouth of the river leading into the Gulf of Phuket from Phang-Nga Province. Here limestone islands rise from the sea. some of them 1,000 feet and contain caves hung with stalactites.
We visited a Muslim stilt-village on Panyi Island and Thum Lod Grotto. These peoplle are also also referred to as sea gypsies.
We saw the island of Khao Phingkan, also known as James Bond island because it was the location for scenes in Man With The Golden Gun.
We ended the cruise swimming and relaxing on the beach of Lawa Island.