Well, Phuket certainly looks better than Chiang Mai, and the air is better, too. But then, so was Bangkok's. I found myself saying something that sounded like an oxymoron: "I'm so glad to be in Bangkok, where the air is cleaner." Apparently the weather was supposed to change enough to clean some of the smoke out of Chiang Mai. I haven't checked, though.
I chose Phuket because I thought I'd stay in town, take a bus to a different beach each day, and act more like a tourist. Instead, I went to Kata Beach, got up every morning and put on my bathing suit, hung out at the beach all day, then went to sleep early. Repeated as needed, which was every day.
The beach was busier than the kind I'm used to in SE Asia. There were two long lines of lounges and umbrellas. I, of course, spent my time on a cloth spread on the sand in the shade of a tree. No way I would pay 100 baht for a place to lie down.
The umbrellas actually added something to the atmosphere, though. When I was out in the water, and turned to look back at the beach, the umbrellas made a nice mauve and navy blue line along the base of the trees, as if an artist had drawn them there for effect. This impression was aided by my being blind as a bat without my glasses.The water was a dark blue-green, clear, with waves and swells big enough to jump around in, which was what I did most of the time.
One interesting thing was that there was a beach restaurant that was cheaper than any of the away-from-the-beach places. I found it late in the afternoon of my last day.
2 comments:
I can relate to the beach thing - odd how the days roll together - we have been moving fairly fast down the Australian East Coast - and have found that between driving and swimming we have no time for sightseeing!
I'm always losing track of what day it is, and suddenly realizing I have to leave tomorrow because my visa is expiring or I booked a bus in advance.
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