Day Five.

 Chiang Mai to Phuket.

Today was fairly well lost to travel.
We rose early, still somewhat on Melbourne time and had breakfast before pasking our belongings for the trip to Phuket.
A quick wander through the busy, sometimes dilapidated looking streets that have so quicly become familiar and it was back to the lobby to wait for our transfer. On the way home we passed a makeshift shrine set on the hotel grounds where fruits and opened bottles of Coke were placed before an alter while monks chanted on a microphone and officious folk sat listening under a temporary awning. Weird.

The trip to the airport was the usual mix of excitement for a new place and pangs for the place we were leaving. Our guide's name was Poo (Pu? Pou? Puh?) which gave me lots of Dad joke material like “Hey boys, how do you get poo off the front seat of you van?”

Chiang Mai was really great.

#--- insert boring plane journey here ---- #

Phuket is more tropical and more trashy than Chiang Mai. I think of it as Thailand's Gold Coast. Intensely pretty but marred by all the cheap trinket shops and sleazy shop owners who try to lure you in  to their junk shops by trying 'G'dday mate' and 'Bloody cheap prices'. Woeful. Our hotel the Blue Marine resort and Spa is up on the steep hillside and our unit in the 8th villa is at the very top. That makes it good for tsunamis and good for views (complete with Queen Mary 2) but not so good for a simple stroll down to the beach. The steep descent needs a vehicle to be rung for in advance to see you to the lobby.

We spent tonight digging our toes into the sand and feeling the surprisingly warm waters before catching a Tuk-Tuk down to the main drag. We didn't last long seeing nothing of worth there and have come home early for a good rest before the day trip to Phi Phi island and some snorkeling.

Note the Queen Mary steaming out of port in quite a hurry.
~Glenn

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