Phuket, The Pearl of The Andaman

When you here Phuket you think of the idyllic beaches, blue water and heaven on other.. then you say well Photoshop exists. But seriously Phuket is really the Pearl of the Andaman Sea. Disclaimer, you must however know how to navigate and maximize on the heaven own there:)

Well I will give my 2 cents on how to explore Phuket. Unless you are booking an all inclusive resort most chances are you will land in Patong Beach. When you think of beaches you think sun, sand and sea but i think there so much more to the beach than that. Patong Beach can be a bit too much for some tastes. The beach is overly crowded with thousands of tourists and Bangla street is a never ending go - go bar festival. This is not to say it does not have its own charm..I had some of the best view point while staying at Patong Beach. For all the cool activities at almost no cost, Patong is definitely the place to be.

Having a Thai woman spread fresh aloe vera on your back so you don't get burned was so refreshing. It actually cools you down :)

Bangla road on Patong is madnesss but it was fun:) Think of happy hour from 9.00am to 7.00am everyday. 

So how to enjoy Phuket at its best is by renting a motorbike and cruising through the great landscapes of greenery and beautiful beaches. South of Patong are some lovely beaches:- Karon, Kata and Kata Noi Beaches. These beaches are less crowded and are great to just seek and soak in some sun while listening to the crushing waves. There's also a great view point where you can see the 3 beaches aerial view

 North of Patong there are some great beaches Kamala and Bang Tao. i spent most of the time on Kamala beach, it is much quieter and has really long stretch of the beach. Pinacoladas and pad thai was enough to keep me entertained.

Paradise Beach was a really small beach, barely 150 meters long. It is very quiet and well shaded. There are no activities on this beach. 

While backpacking your accommodation is expected to be anything but fancy haha. I have always wanted to try out the capsule hotel rooms. I was in luck  Capsule Hotel And Sauna opened just 10 days before I got to Phuket. For only THB350 (US$ 10) per night you get a double capsule room, a locker, DIY breakfast and unlimited use to the 3 saunas and ice room. I felt really spoiled. Tha bathrooms have driers and are very modern.. 

Christmas was a lovely day here in Phuket, awesome friends, Korean food, it was a day and night to remember. Yoga on the beach is the best thing ever. Exploring with underwater photography and posing and long lazy beach strolls..

Happy Travels

- L -

Sin City Bangkok meets History in Ayuthaya

When I choose a destination there certain things I have to particularly make sure their covered. Good street food, good night life and many other travels. On this trip I chose Bangkok to be my stop over in between other cities and other neighboring countries. I have been to Bangkok before so time I chose to have my $25 apple martini on the Sky Bar. The view was definitely one to kill for:)

On one of my days in between my non touristic days, I chose to take a day off alone to Ayutthaya the historical city. While traveling alone as a backpacker everyone at home assumes I will be spending the whole vacation by myself, in reality the days you get to seat alone or just enjoy doing your own thing without having the same conversation with different people is very rare. Don't get me wrong I am happy to have all this new people I meet but when its time to take a time out, I usually have a great time :). I therefore too a train out there and got a tuk tuk guy to take me around for half the day. 

My evenings in Bangkok ranged from wild drunken nights to mellow walks on the river or just a street and back massage for less than $5. 

You know when the statement its a small world comes to play; I bumped into a friend who I had last seen 3 years ago in Malaysia. It was great reconnecting and having some good Bangkok time together shopping and having our traditional hookah evenings

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We all know Bangkok is well known for lady boys, street boy streets and go go bars. I may have passed on the ping pong show but that didn't mean  didn't get my chance of having to see tiny Thai girls working the poles as we passed by the bars. 

 Bangkok was so different as I reconnected with friends from places I had visited before and made life long friends. having amazing street food and just chilling all day is just the best way to spend my vacations:)

 Happy Travels
- L  -