New Zealand was what we were looking at, while planning this past summer vacation. When we saw the low temperatures of South Island, we changed our mind to warmer climates. Oh but its gonna rain in June! was what we discussed and so, finally we booked our flights for a ten day outing in Thailand.
My idea of a holiday in Phuket would not have been just to idle in Club M. Phuket instead of sightseeing. But in order to keep the kids happy, we booked two interconnecting rooms in beautiful Club Med, on the Kata beach.
The resort is said to cater to multinational cultures. But we could sense the under-currents when the 'GO's or Gentle Officers of the resort quickly slid to escort guests of their own nationalities/ skin tones...!
Four nights of all sports you could imagine, fun, food and round-the-clock drinks. The kids were escorted to clubs of their own age groups. Stage performances every night. A spectacular performance by our kids too, after practice of just a few hours. Rip roaring laughter with cross-dressed males on stage were the highlights.
The Kata beach was just across the road. With a drink in hand, you could head out for a lazy hour or two on the many chaise-lounges lining the beach. If you are okay with the afternoon sun, head out for the many water-sport activities of the resort. A disheartening thing I noticed was a small drain trickling dirty water quietly into the sea, in a far away corner of the beach, not very noticeable...
Time to leave to the next and best part of the holiday - Bangkok! We had wondered what to do for six days in Bangkok but with the teen madly after shopping, we could have spent a few more days here. Conrad furnished us a beautiful two-bedroom suite. We prepared our own dinner in the kitchenette on many nights. That is, on those nights when we had not eaten a yum Thai meal outside.
The malls were close by in swanky Sukhumvit. Siam Paragon, MBK malls were huge and glittering. Had an altercation with a cheating cab driver and the moment he said he would not charge by the meter, we got off, allowing him to swear vehemently. Siam Square was also close by to our residence. Bought a pair of ultra-comfy sandals from Isetan.
The Sea World was better than any underwater sea-life we have seen in the world! Bigger and better than we had expected! A must see, with a trip behind the scenes too, you can even admire the sea life from the other side of the display!
But Asiatique was by far the best hang out for me. A good choice of food and clothes. A long dress and a short one at just S$12 was too surprising. A man jumped the queue while we were buying a snack. Upon telling him so, he arrogantly said he did not understand.
We could not make it to the Chatuchak weekend market, mainly due to paucity of time. We had to do the most popular attractions - the Emerald Budhha with the Grand Palace, the Reclining Buddha, the ride on the Chao Phraya River, phew...the temperature was not soaring but the sun had a way of sapping out all moisture from the body, while we toured around the majestic Grand Palace.
The show-stealer? The super glittery spectacular, Siam Niramit show. Thailand being infamous for some adult stuff, we were in for a pleasant surprise when we entered a village themed pavilion. Greeted by statues of elephants, we took a ride in their artificial canals in real boats. We tasted Thai delicacies, vegetarian ones of course. They stopped feeding the guests, just after the first bite though! Some had coconut milk and some had mango. But these things were just the prelude. There was even a traditional dance before the actual show.
The Grand finale was full of Gods, Apsaras, elephants in gold costumes, Kings and queens decked in all splendour, and the lighting made it surreal. The show was over by 10 if I recollect. Money and time well spent!
Our flight back was in the late afternoon. Since I did not want to regret it, I quickly slipped into the mall attached to our Hotel and got a one hour massage done.
You are so close to Singapore, I wanna come back for your spas and your foods Bangkok!
My idea of a holiday in Phuket would not have been just to idle in Club M. Phuket instead of sightseeing. But in order to keep the kids happy, we booked two interconnecting rooms in beautiful Club Med, on the Kata beach.
The resort is said to cater to multinational cultures. But we could sense the under-currents when the 'GO's or Gentle Officers of the resort quickly slid to escort guests of their own nationalities/ skin tones...!
Four nights of all sports you could imagine, fun, food and round-the-clock drinks. The kids were escorted to clubs of their own age groups. Stage performances every night. A spectacular performance by our kids too, after practice of just a few hours. Rip roaring laughter with cross-dressed males on stage were the highlights.
The Kata beach was just across the road. With a drink in hand, you could head out for a lazy hour or two on the many chaise-lounges lining the beach. If you are okay with the afternoon sun, head out for the many water-sport activities of the resort. A disheartening thing I noticed was a small drain trickling dirty water quietly into the sea, in a far away corner of the beach, not very noticeable...
Time to leave to the next and best part of the holiday - Bangkok! We had wondered what to do for six days in Bangkok but with the teen madly after shopping, we could have spent a few more days here. Conrad furnished us a beautiful two-bedroom suite. We prepared our own dinner in the kitchenette on many nights. That is, on those nights when we had not eaten a yum Thai meal outside.
The malls were close by in swanky Sukhumvit. Siam Paragon, MBK malls were huge and glittering. Had an altercation with a cheating cab driver and the moment he said he would not charge by the meter, we got off, allowing him to swear vehemently. Siam Square was also close by to our residence. Bought a pair of ultra-comfy sandals from Isetan.
The Sea World was better than any underwater sea-life we have seen in the world! Bigger and better than we had expected! A must see, with a trip behind the scenes too, you can even admire the sea life from the other side of the display!
But Asiatique was by far the best hang out for me. A good choice of food and clothes. A long dress and a short one at just S$12 was too surprising. A man jumped the queue while we were buying a snack. Upon telling him so, he arrogantly said he did not understand.
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| The Asiatique had such fun sculptures and more... |
We could not make it to the Chatuchak weekend market, mainly due to paucity of time. We had to do the most popular attractions - the Emerald Budhha with the Grand Palace, the Reclining Buddha, the ride on the Chao Phraya River, phew...the temperature was not soaring but the sun had a way of sapping out all moisture from the body, while we toured around the majestic Grand Palace.
 |
| The opulence of the Grand Palace is only to be seen to be believed |
The show-stealer? The super glittery spectacular, Siam Niramit show. Thailand being infamous for some adult stuff, we were in for a pleasant surprise when we entered a village themed pavilion. Greeted by statues of elephants, we took a ride in their artificial canals in real boats. We tasted Thai delicacies, vegetarian ones of course. They stopped feeding the guests, just after the first bite though! Some had coconut milk and some had mango. But these things were just the prelude. There was even a traditional dance before the actual show.
The Grand finale was full of Gods, Apsaras, elephants in gold costumes, Kings and queens decked in all splendour, and the lighting made it surreal. The show was over by 10 if I recollect. Money and time well spent!
 |
| Scenes from Ramayana the great Epic, painted on the temple walls |
Our flight back was in the late afternoon. Since I did not want to regret it, I quickly slipped into the mall attached to our Hotel and got a one hour massage done.
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| Churning of the ocean beautifully brought to life at the Suvarnabhumi Airport |
You are so close to Singapore, I wanna come back for your spas and your foods Bangkok!
