I finally made it to Phuket!

After 2 unsuccessful attempts to visit Phuket (the first time round, if I had made it, I would have been there when the tsunami struck so I'm thankful I didnt go that time!) (the second time has been documented here and here), I've finally visited Phuket.

Spent the long Thaipusam weekend there with Rommel, flew there via AirAsia and stayed at the lovely (but expensive) Impiana Phuket Cabana Resort & Spa. The hotel was cosy, had friendly staff and the perfect location as it was one of the very few hotels right on Patong Beach itself. Close to everything that's important (the beach, the bars and restaurants and the shops).

We took the 1-day tour of Phi Phi Ley, Phi Phi Don and Khai Nok Island.

This is the sight that greeted us at Khai Nok Island....


While the hotel's Patong Beach frontage was pretty good too (although this was taken at 7.30am when the crowds had not overtaken the beach yet!).

Maya Bay (where the Leo DiCaprio film, The Beach, was filmed) was also pretty but there were just too many tourists for me to handle. It was seriously crowded and noisy and we only got about half an hour to play there so it wasn't much fun.

Food-wise, we had the ubiquitous phad thai at some small back alley cafe on our first day.

And I also ordered the stir fried minced pork with basil leaves because at home, it's always chicken. One of my greatest joy was finding this place just down the road from the hotel which had Japanese soft cream! Too bad I suffered from tummy upset for the remaining 2 days of the trip so dairy produce was off limits (I'm lactose intolerant).

More pictures on Facebook.