DAY 45 - FINALLY, HEADING HOME

Left the hotel at 7:30 a.m. for our 10:30 flight from Bangkok to Hong Kong.  Unfortunately, then had a 5-hour layover till our 7:50 pm departure to Vancouver.  The airport in Hong Kong is very impressive, beautiful facilities, but massive - 530 departure gates!  Opted to spend the wait time in a comfy lounge; Linda went for the complimentary massage, the rest of us chose to indulge in a couple of glasses of wine to relax before our 12 hour flight to Vancouver (2-1/2 hrs shorter flight coming in this direction, due to winds - every bit helps!).


Didn't manage to sleep (or eat much) during the flight...  Looking forward to getting back to our usual routines and catching up again with family and friends.

THE END 

DAY 44 - MBK Mall

MBK is the largest and most visited mall in Thailand.  West Ed Mall has nothing on this place...  Seven stories, 2,500 stores or kiosks, and almost all prices are negotiable - a real shoppers paradise :D

View from overpass, opposite MBK

For our last dinner in Thailand, we went to the Next2 Cafe in the hotel.  "Cafe" is misleading... We had the buffet - which was absolutely incredible - the food could fairly be described as fine dining and the selection was like nothing I've ever seen before.  Perfect final celebratory meal for a great trip!

DAY 44 - GRAND PALACE

Checked in with the concierge for directions on getting to the Grand Palace and his advice was to "take a taxi" as it would be too difficult for us, not speaking Thai, to get there by river transport.  Guess he was worried we'd get lost or get scammed.  With a population of 15 million, traffic in Bangkok can be horrendous, especially during rush hour.  Everything we'd read online recommended getting around the way many of the locals do - by skytrain or by one of the many river boats.  Deciding factor for us was time - up to an hour by taxi versus 20 or so minutes by the river, so away we went.  Ended up on a long tail with only 5 other passengers on board - paid a little more ($3 vs 90 cents each) but worth it as there were no stops & we were there in 20 mins.  This is a very busy river with tugboats & barges, long tails, and large & small river cruise & commuter boats going up & down and across the water in every direction.  Makes for a lot of wakes but our driver expertly navigated through at top speed with hardly a splash inside our boat.  Having experienced the long tail ride around Phi Phi Ley, we weren't at all nervous on this trip.


Made our way through a large, busy market then on to the palace (followed some Caucasions who looked like they knew what they were doing & were similarly dressed - only someone going to the palace would be wearing long pants & sleeves in this heat, lol).  The palace grounds are filled with the most incredibly ornate pavilions, chapels, statues & galleries.  We rented personal audio guides and listened to the commentaries as we made our way through.  Would have loved to linger at each of the sights but the combination of crowds and no breeze for relief from the heat meant we had to rush through in about 1-1/2 hrs.  Easily could have spent 3 or 4 hours looking at everything there was to see...

Dress Code.  'Do Not Trust Wily Strangers" LOL

Six pairs of "demon giants" guard the entrance gates to the temple

L to R:  Phra Sri Ratana Chedi; Phra Mondhop; Royal Pantheon; Hor Phra Ratchakoramanuson

Phra Asada Maha Chedi
One of the 8 Khmer-style Prangs dedicated to different Buddhist precepts

Royal Pantheon
Blue-tiled prasat enshrines statues of the 8 kings of the Chakri dynasty

Mythical creatures surround two Chedis (honouring King Rama I's
father and mother) in front of the Royal Pantheon

Grounds of the Royal Monastery are surrounded by 178 mural panels depicting scenes from the Ramakien epic.
These were first painted during the reign of King Rama I (after 1782) and have since been restored several times.

Hor Phra Khanthara Rat
Small pavilion housing the Buddha image 

This is what happens when you don't visit with appropriate clothing.
They have a selection of aloha shirts and wraps you can borrow before entering :)

Express Boat

Caught the express commuter boat back to the hotel, zipped in to change into less clothing & headed over to MBK mall by skytrain.  Their skytrain is much like ours but cleaner, higher tech and, best of all, AIR CONDITIONED!!

DAY 43 - LA KORN (goodbye) PHI PHI / HELLO BANGKOK

Nathan's 26th birthday today; thinking of him & missing the boys lots.


Left Phi Phi Don before 11:30 a.m. for the one hour speedboat trip back to Phuket.  Nicer boat than the one we arrived on.  Glad we shelled out for the comfort and reduced travel time by speedboat versus taking the ferry back.  Air conditioned, comfortable van picked us up at the pier and drove us out to the airport.

The one hour trip took us through Phuket and the surrounding area.  The sights are quite striking - shiny new homes and businesses are built right beside dilapidated, barely standing shacks.  This is typical everywhere we've been.  It may simply be the owners can't afford to repair their homes or businesses but I suspect it may also be a cultural thing - their living conditions/surroundings don't seem to be important to them.   As Canadians, we've grown up learning not to litter and that we should not harm our environment.  In Thailand, with the exception of resorts and such catering to tourists, there is litter everywhere - on the beaches, floating on the ocean, on the streets; empty lots are used as dumping grounds for garbage.  So many beautiful things about this country; hopefully "progress" will continue and take the country in the right direction.


When we arrived in Bangkok, the Shangri-La had a driver meet us at the airport.  Rode in a super-deluxe van 30 km into the city; the view in every direction was of towering high-rises.  The hotel and our rooms were outstanding!

Rice paddies - flying in to Bangkok

Gorgeous view to our right of the bustling Chao Praya River (River of Kings)

View to the left
Skytrain crosses the river just left of these towers

DAY 42 MOSQUITO & BAMBOO ISLANDS

Early start - Danny & I met up with our long tail boat operator at 7:30 a.m. and headed over to Bamboo Island first, 5 km from the northern tip of Phi Phi Don.  Water was much calmer than the trip over to Phi Phi Ley.  Bamboo Island was very pretty - almost deserted; a couple of other snorkelers there and a few Parks workers (this is part of the Koh Phi Phi Marine Park).  The island is only 500m across and has beautiful beaches virtually all the way around and coral surrounding it.  Walked the beach and snapped a few pics then left for Mosquito Island - named for the shape, no problem with mosquitos because, like most of the other islands, there are tons of bats here.  You never see them, but you often here them.  The sound at times reminds me of automatic sprinklers everywhere.  Another description that is right on is the sound that you would hear if there had hundreds of those metal New Years noise-makers twirling on a stick!

Bamboo Island

When we first arrived at Mosquito Island, there was only one other long tail boat so it was really nice - quiet except for the sound of the bats when you had your head out of the water.  The water was super clear - saw lots of really neat coral and huge shells, many of the same fish we'd seen before but more of them and bigger.  Tons of black sea urchins and some striped ones.  I saw a moray eel - not sure how big as it was winding in and out of the coral - never saw the tail end of it and, truthfully, wasn't crazy about getting in too close.  We hardly had to swim, there was so much to see just slowly floating around.  The camera, unfortunately, was a bust.  Battery died after 2 pics - neither of which turned out :(

DAY 41 - BEACH DAY

Spent the day hanging out at the beach, recuperating from the long, busy day yesterday.  Danny picked up a bag for my camera so we can try to take some underwater photos next time we go snorkelling.  Tried it out a bit today in front of the resort - hope we can get the hang of it in time for tomorrow!  The snorkelling in front of the resort isn't too bad - fair bit of coral but the water tends to be a bit murky with the tide and all the people churning up the sand.  Those "cute" little black and yellow fish that delighted us so much when we first arrived have become a nuisance.  It'd be fine if they just swarmed you, but the problem is they start nipping at you.  Have to admit, when they start swarming me now, I look around for any unsuspecting newbies in the water and lead these fish over to them :)

Most of these in front of the resort were about 3-4" long

This is the same kind of fish that I think actually bit me (approx 5-6" long)

Bite mark - inflammation area was just smaller than a quarter 

Headed up to the Sunset Bar for a pre-dinner drink and to try to capture that "perfect" sunset on film.  Too hazy to ever catch a sunset actually sinking into the horizon...

Sunset

Sunrise - as beautiful as the sunsets

Went back to Jasmin's for dinner - had some excellent deep fried shrimp (you can just TELL the shrimp are the freshest possible!), some vegetable tempura and some fried rice - nothing too spicy, trying to keep things easy on the stomach for a while :)

DAY 40 - PHI PHI LEH BY LONG TAIL BOAT

Arranged with the dive shop to have a long tail boat take us out on a 4-hour tour of Phi Phi Leh - an uninhabited island about 1 hour from here by long tail boat (likely at least half that time by speed boat).  The boat was far more rustic than I'd been expecting...  But as the resort contracts with these guys to take resort guests out on tours, I felt confident they had to be sea-worthy and I'm pretty sure these guys know exactly what they're doing.  Our resort is located on the northern end of Phi Phi Don, east side, in the Malacca Strait.  We travelled down the length of the island then over to Phi Phi Leh.  The tour takes you first around the back (west) side of the island, open to the Andaman Sea.  There were no whitecaps on the water but some pretty big swells which made for an interesting ride in our rather shallow boat :o  When we rounded the island back to the east side, the water was much calmer and I think we were all pretty happy that part was over.

That's Phi Phi Leh in the distance, east side view

Most of the island is sheer cliffs towering above with only
a few beautiful bays for access.

First stop was Maya Bay - made famous by the movie "The Beach" with Leonardo DiCaprio.  It really was a breathtaking spot, unfortunately, you have to use your imagination to edit out all the people - the place was just packed with people on the beach and all the tour boats.

Entrance to Maya Bay, as seen from the beach. 

Maya Bay - the sand is even whiter and softer (texture of flour) than on
Phi Phi Don where we're staying.  Just too many people!

Next was a tour around Loh Samah Bay.  Again, a gorgeous little bay with fabulous crystal clear water and incredible mountains surrounding it, but packed with people and boats.

Last stop was my favourite - our driver was going to have us snorkel with the rest of the crowds but Linda asked him to take us right into the beach.  There was only one other long-tail boat there at the time so it was pretty nice and quiet.  We got our snorkelling gear on and went out just far enough so we wouldn't be in with the crowds.  Really wish I was up to speed on names of tropical fish.  We saw loads - lots that we've seen in salt water tanks at home but couldn't tell you the names lol :)

Stopped at this beach then swam back out to the bay to snorkel.
The water is crystal clear and the colour is incredible.
Saw lots of different fish - Danny even saw an eel!

The trip back was a little calmer

DAY 39 - DAY AT THE BEACH

This place is just AWESOME.  Love the water, love the sand, location is perfect!  There are no roads on this island - you can only get here by boat and get around by foot or by boat.  Well, there are a few locals that zip up and down the beach on scooters, this is Thailand, after all!  Had a lazy day on the beach and couldn't be happier :)

Another gorgeous sunrise

A photo of SOME of the stairs up to the Sunset Bar
It's not the GrouseGrind but in this heat, trust me, it's a grind getting to the top!

Good to see they have a plan...

Long tail boat, similar to one we've booked for tomorrow

DAY 38 - SUNRISE TO SUNSET

First full day on the island and it's totally living up to expectations!  Was up before sunrise, sitting on the deck when I heard that same loud buzzing we'd heard the night before - it sounded like it was everywhere at once.  Could not figure out what it could be - maybe some kind of electronic thing to repel mosquitos or snakes?  Then noticed the sun coming up...  Snapped this shot with my little automatic.

Spent the morning hanging out at the pool, waiting for our new bungalows to be ready.  MUCH better :)  We were upgraded to beach-side bungalows within easy walking distance to all amenities.  Maybe having Priority Club Member points helped?  Or maybe Linda just has a special way with hotel staff :D

Set ourselves up with beach chairs and walked WAY out in the water.  The sand here is powder soft - just awesome.  We were only about chest deep when we saw a whole bunch of these yellow and black fish, some black ones, some white ones, and a few turquoise ones.  These fish are obviously used to people walking around out there - they were swarming us, looking for food.  Also saw a couple of black sea urchins - one small, one larger (about 12" spine tip to spine tip) and some anemones on the coral.  Very cool.  Can't wait to get out on a snorkelling trip.

Around 5:30 we headed up to the "Sunset Bar" on top of a small hill behind the bungalows.  We're on the east side of the island so this is the only place to catch the nice sunsets.  It was pretty hazy so we're planning on going back as often as we can till we get to see a really great one.

Once the sun had set, we were just finishing our glass of wine when again we heard the same buzzing we'd heard the night before.  It got louder and louder till it sounded like we were surrounded in it.  Asked our waitress about it again (her english was very good).  She explained that they were bats!!!

The "noise" on the video is not static - that's the sound of the bats that had swarmed into the tree right above our heads.  The lights out in the sea are fish boats - out for shrimp and squid.  There were more than 30 boats there by the time we left.

DAY 37 - KOH PHI PHI

We left Anantara Resort with some regret given the excellent service we enjoyed while staying there. The resort ordered us a very nice zircon van which took us to the airport. Samui has the only fully open-air airport in the world. Given that, insects thrive and the billiontude of small ants is amazing. The flight to Phuket was about one hour and not very eventful. When we arrived we noticed an over abundance of police and military personnel at the airport. The driver who met us and took us to the dock to catch our speedboat to Phi Phi told us that the Thai Prime Minister was in Phuket on official business and the police and military needed to demonstrate how busy and efficient they are. (Side note:  whenever one of the Royal family travels by road, the police close the entire route off to all traffic until they've passed by.)  Once at the dock, about an hour from the airport, we boarded a speed boat which took us across the Adanman Sea to the Holiday Inn on Phi Phi Island (a one hour trip).  We saw many fishing boats and numerous ferries during the crossing which was very calm for the most part.

Leaving the pier in Phuket

One of the many fishing boats we saw while crossing

When we arrived at the resort it was low tide so the boat could not get that close to shore. This is the first time we have ever had to wade in water up to our knees to register at a hotel. Numerous hotel staff waded out to the boat to ferry our luggage into shore.  The water is a beautiful aquamarine colour and perfectly clear and as warm as bathwater!  When we were in Samui, the ocean temperature was about 28C - I think it's even warmer here!

Phil & Linda wading into shore from the speed boat.
Resort staff following behind with our luggage.

Lots of Long Tail Boats moored in front of this resort

The rooms we were assigned were at the far end of the resort and you had to be part billy goat to climb the hill to get to them (they took us up in a 6-man golf cart).  Well, we didn't bother unpacking....  Linda and Danny were on the phone pretty quick to let the front desk know that this wouldn't do.  While we did have a bit of a "sea view", these units were nowhere near close enough to anything and required climbing several flights of stairs to even get to the one pool that was supposed to be "close by".  They promised to move us the next morning.

Had dinner at a little restaurant next to the resort - Jasmin's - had an excellent write up in TripAdvisor.  Well deserved.  We had some cold drinks and a bunch of appy's.  The food, especially the shrimp, was excellent.  While we were sitting there, there was suddenly a very loud buzzing noise which seemed to surround us.  When we asked our waitress about it, she smiled and repeated "no good" "bad".  Obviously, her english wasn't strong enough to explain further so we just smiled and carried on.  Caught the golf cart back to our bungalows and we cooled off by taking an outdoor shower (another first!) before calling it a night.

DAY 36 - THAI COOKING CLASS / WINDING UP SAMUI

Well, my dear, sweet, darlin' of a husband took a Thai cooking class today and we then got to enjoy the result with a private lunch for two!  No one else had signed up so he actually had the chef's undivided attention :)  The 3 dishes he chose to make were Green Papaya Salad, Tom Yam Goong Soup, and Pad Thai.  Absolutely delicious (but all very spicy).

They gave him an apron as well as a
"Certificate of Achievement"
lol 

Took another stroll down to Fishermans Village for dinner - so many great restaurants to choose from!  On the way back, stopped at the Coconut Bar and had one last drink to Koh Samui, on the beach.

DAY 35 & 36 - ANNIVERSARY / POOL DAY

Day 35 - Anniversary

Celebrated our 17th anniversary today with a special 7 course "wine pairings" dinner at the resort's Full Moon Restaurant.  We had done this before, in Vegas, and were thoroughly impressed so decided it would be worth it again, for this special occasion.  Won't go into all the details, but the head staff were busy elsewhere with a special event so we were served by what I can only guess are less experienced staff…  When they poured the wine for each course, it was a FULL glass.  Picture it - a tiny little bit of food + one full glass of wine.  And not much delay in between each course….  Well, we'd previously discovered it's not easy (or cheap) to get a nice glass of wine here in Thailand so, of course, I couldn't let that wine go to waste…  I wasn't staggering or anything by the time we left but we did have to make a hasty exit following the dessert (chocolate 3 ways - which I didn't finish!!!!) and plenty of wine left unfinished.  

Balcony at our first room, overlooking the lily pond garden.
  Decided to switch rooms on the 3rd day as while the room was nice,
it was just a little too cramped - especially the bathroom

View through sliding doors to the bathroom (from the bed area) of our second room.
Requisite rose petals for the double bath provided daily :)

DAY 36 - Pool Day

Another lazy day at the pool. The sun was the brightest we have seen so far in Koh Samui and as we are leaving Monday, it has a chance of being the best weather for our stay. We bought lunch from the beach vendors - two women who carry their charcoal cooker and all foods to the beach every day. The spring rolls and chicken satay are surprisingly good. At 90 Baht ( $2.90) it is a bargain compared to the resort which charges a minimum of $10 for any food. The beach vendors wear long pants, long sleeve shirts, gloves, hat, and scarfs, all while cooking over a charcoal bbq. There must be some type of immunity to the heat that we foreigners will never have.

Beach vendors set up shop outside the resorts and/or
wander up and down the beach with their wares.

Took a taxi down to the Chaweng Beach area for dinner - very busy, lots of restaurants and shops catering to tourists.  Had a really good sushi meal then browsed through a couple of the shops.

Dashboard of the cab we came back in...

Icons for sale!  Not sure what the fascination / significance of the icons
is...  We've seen them everywhere, including on spirit houses.