Phuket, Thailand: "Wat" did you say?

Patong Beach, Phuket

Food on the go =)

Pretty much every rumor you've heard about Thailand is true.  It is the land of smiles, out of this world pad thai, stunning beaches, beautiful elephants, tourists wearing ridiculous pants, great deals and plenty of scams.  We landed right smack dab in the middle of one of Thailand's most famous nightlife locations, Phuket.  Being on a budget gets you to do some crazy things, such as signing up for a shared van ride to Patong Beach from the airport which involved a "reorganization stop" (code for a stop at a "tour agency" that tries to sign you up for more expensive accommodation, lots of package deals involving boats to other islands and surely involving many hidden costs.)  Fortunately for us, this was not our first time at the proverbial rodeo.  My advice:  say no, be firm, and then walk away.  No eye contact necessary.  Works every time.  Minutes later we arrived at our hotel with our pocketbooks and plans intact.  After a brief wander around the neighborhood we collapsed into air conditioned bliss.

Sending lanterns off into the night sky

Awesome green curry

We were somewhat leery about making Phuket, specifically Patong Beach, our first stop in Thailand, a country that we had fantasized about visiting for years.  This particular area is known more for partying and debauchery than anything else, but we have also learned that you shouldn't necessarily judge a place before you've had the chance to assess it for yourself.  So, we arose early and got to it.  It wasn't long before we could say one thing about Patong – it was interesting.  If you're into people watching, this is the place to go.  We found it somewhat endearing, and the food most certainly did not disappoint.  The green curry we had for lunch that day was amazing (a theme that would continue throughout Thailand!)  And the beach was lovely as well.  That night, we did what everyone else did and strolled through the food stalls and along that (in)famous Bangla Road.  The atmosphere was festive and the crowd good-natured, but after a few beers we called it a night (early, at 11PM, when everything else was just getting started).

Beach time!

Food, food, and more delicious food!

Matt and our first mango sticky rice

Sampling some local nightlife

On the local bus to Phuket Town

Matt pointing out the amazing air conditioning

The next day we caught the local bus and went inland to Phuket Town, a far more authentic experience.  It was hot, hot, hot and looked like it was about to storm that day, so we took a couple of short walks to check out the food scene (found:  delicious thai iced tea and gourmet grocery store.)  That night we reveled in our air conditioned pad (the dollar still goes pretty far in Thailand) and treated ourselves to wine and cheese, something that we hadn't had in months.  This, of course, was supplemented with some new snacks such as squid strips and delicious soy milk drinks.

 

Wandering around Phuket Town with the rain clouds

Inside the grocery store (Christmas stuff!!!!  So exciting!)

New snacks!  =)

Outside one of the temples in Wat Chalong complex

The following day we branched out and rented a scooter on which to tool around Phuket island, a wildly successful (but again very hot) endeavor.  It took a few white-knuckle miles (SE Asia is not known for necessarily following the rules of the road and there is an awful lot more foot/animal/cart traffic than we were used to in the States), but soon we were cornering and swerving with the best of them.  Our adventures that day took us to Wat (aka Temple) Chalong, which would be our first encounter with Thai temples.  It was breathtaking, with multiple gold and red temples and countless Buddha statues.  We wandered in and out of the shade (still very hot at this point) and tried to take it all in.  Every now and then (and always alarming when it happened) some fireworks would go off, given as offerings.  From the top of one of the central temples, we could see our next destination, the Big Buddha.  

Matt in line to fuel up The Hog

Buddhas covered in gold leaf

Stunning architecture

Amazing interiors

Climbing up to see some more!

Excellent views

A much needed ice cold something...  =)

The Big Buddha

The "Big Buddha," which is not a clever code name for anything other than a very large (but beautiful) Buddha statue stands proudly on a lush green hillside southwest of Phuket Town.  A narrow little winding road with awesome views took us to the foot of the statue.  Our scooter, while lovely, had to be coaxed up the inclines (i.e. we both had the lean a great deal forward), but we managed to stay upright and at least no one had to walk.  The reward was the perfectly white Big Buddha, and an equally stunning golden Buddha behind it.  The area also came with great little trails and even better views of the island.  After we had had our fill of the Big Buddha, we headed down to the southern beaches of Phuket, but not before stopping at a delicious roadside place for some pad thai (another routine that we would enjoyably repeat over the course of the next month of so.)

A place for the offerings near Big Buddha (and a place to pet cats)  =)

Overlooking Phuket's interior from Big Buddha

With the golden Buddha

Chimes in the trees (they sound so lovely!)

As we worked our way back up the western edge of the island, we were met with amazing views of hillsides and water.  That night, we decided to make the most of being misplaced (a couple of wrong turns and no map will do that to you) by stopping into a hopping little restaurant where not only were we treated to great directions, but also to a truly outstanding meal.  So far, the food in Thailand was shaping up to be some of the best so far on the whole trip.

It's a point-and-hope-for-the-best menu!  =)

Matt trying some new things =)

Four short days were all that we spent on Phuket Island, and the time only reaffirmed our desire to see more of what Thailand had to offer.  Next up, some boats and some new skills – it was time to see what lay beneath that blue, blue water that we had been lusting after.  Diving, here we come!  =)

Check out some more pics of food, temples, and adventures!  =)