BANGKOK
We flew from Kathmandu to Bangkok, and used Starwood points for 3 days of luxury at the Royal Orchid Sheraton Hotel by the river. What a treat after 4 months of travelling and staying in many
budget hotels, and under some very simple conditions.
Bangkok is the capital of Thailand and has over 8 million inhabitants, so it is a vey busy city. It is quite modern, has an abundance of massage parlours and restaurants, and an efficient train system. We had never seen this sign before in an above ground subway, ironically fot Vancouverites it was also called SKYTRAIN!
We slept in, enjoyed the pool,
shopped for Christmas presents for the family and relaxed. The only sightseeing we did was from a public boat going up the river. This is Wat Arun, Temple of Dawn, a Buddhist temple.
We walked the streets, but didn't visit any temples or other landmarks. Dorte has been to Bangkok before, and Andy was 'templed out'.
PHUKET
As we had not made any reservations for the rest of our trip, we were 'free' to go wherever we
wanted from Bangkok, and as we both love the ocean and hadn't seen one for 5 weeks, we found
a good deal with Air Asia, and flew to Phuket for 6 days. Phuket is an island paradise in the south-western part of Thailand on the Indian Ocean; sandy beaches, crystal clear waters and sunny tropical climate.
We stayed at Patong beach in a budget hotel in the northern end of town, and were pleased that
we were well away from the main tourist area, the go-go bars and other 'temptations'! We found our 'own' beach, Kalim beach, which was small and away from the main beach and with no trinket
sellers, no jet-skis and not many other people.
We spent the days sleeping in (we must have been very tired still!), writing on the blog, researching Vietnam, swimming in the 29C ocean, and reading.
You can buy gazillions for your scooter at little stalls all over town - life is simple.
We enjoyed dinner, drinks and sunsets from a beach restaurant, and walked the beach after dinner enjoying the occasional fireworks and the many beautiful fire-lanterns launched by tourists.
We did not do any tours here either, just relaxed, and we didn't feel guilty at all.........
