Phuket, Thailand - The Island of Fulfilment (Day 1)

Phuket is an island located at the south-west coast of Thailand, just above another beautiful island Langkawi, Malaysia. It is famous and really up to its reputation for its long sandy beach, emerald sea water and a vast amount of activities to fit the needs of people from all walks of life. It is true enough that the moment you set foot on this charming island, you would never regret any single effort you have put in to get there. We have had the privilege to visit this gorgeous island during those cloudy and rainy days (09/09/11 - 12/09/11), and the enjoyment from this trip has easily convinced us to start this post, something we never do for such a long time, to share with you guys and at the same time, remind ourselves those great moments of our youthful time.

Tips:

• Season: In Phuket, high season is November-May and low season is  June-October.
• Weather: Though it is cloudy and rainy in low season, less tourists will be there and you can find almost everything cheaper by half.
• Beach: I highly recommend Karon Beach for those who like to enjoy a relaxing and quiet surroundings. For those who enjoy party, Patong beach could be your choice.
• Hotel: We visited Phuket in low season (September), and managed to get a cheap price for three nights hotel stay with a total of ~US$41 only via http://www.agoda.com/.
• Miscel.: A lot of useful info and latest news at Phuket could be found at Jamie's blog: http://jamie-monk.blogspot.com/2006/08/phuket-hotel-recommendations.html.

Day 1 (09/09/11):
On the flight from Singapore to Phuket, soon enough we realized that we were on our way to "paradise".

Phi Phi Island - View out of Airplane Window

So my advice is, and I bet you have found this advice some where else on the internet, do whatever it takes to get a window seat. Otherwise, you are going to miss all those magnificent views out there. Take your chance to get a bird's-eye view on the Phi Phi Island as well.

Karon Princess Hotel's Reception

Upon arrival, Karon Princess Hotel, a beachfront hotel located at Karon beach, was our first destination. A taxi from the international airport to Karon Beach took us 700 baht, and 600-700 is a reasonable price here for that distance.

And the room.

The hotel itself was clean, comfortable and pretty affordable, though we found out that the service was not so good and the staffs there were not very cheerful, either. Nevertheless, the hotel was facing the Karon beach, just opposite at the other side of the road, made it a beautiful spot for enjoying your meal while overlooking the ocean. The hotel rooms did not face the beach though since they were a bit further down the small valley road, yet the beach was near enough and almost all the time we did not stick to our hotel rooms, thus it was not a concern.

Karon Beach - View from Hotel's Front

It was a sunny day, the weather was just cool and we could enjoy the breeze everywhere all day long. We never expected such a beautiful weather at the first place, since we were afraid of the rains in this low season. Luckily, the weather was in our favor for at least the first two days.

And here comes our group of travelers, having lunch at a Thai restaurant near to the hotel. Our first meal was really satisfying, the food was yummy and affordable. The atmosphere was quiet with not a lot of tourists around, a peaceful lunch indeed.

After lunch, we have some free time before the elephant trekking in the evening. Swimming was definitely one of the best options whenever we have some spare time gaps. As we were standing here at Karon beach, with the fine sand under our feet and the strong wind bringing the aroma of the sea water all over the place, we were all feeling a strong sense of gratification and peaceful moments.

Karon Beach - A quiet and relaxing beach.

In the afternoon, we visited Safari Elephant Trekking, a well-reserved place with greens covering up a large area. Here was just like a small village, with a lot of nature to enjoy and refreshing air to breathe.

She wanted to take a pic with the buffalo, he scared her and ... the buffalo as well:))

My Beauty:X

After walking around this area for a while, it was our turns to "ride" the elephants. When I stepped on its back, at first I was afraid it might hurt and raged up, yet I realized how rough and thick an elephant's skin is.







After the elephant trekking, we moved on to watch an elephant show. Watching such a funny show performed by the elephant which we once thought as rough and boring animal, we totally changed our perception of them. Now we think they are very cute and lovable, and they could do more than what most people think.

Basketball, Soccer, Dart, etc.

Step on and blow into my girlfriend's ears:))

Four of us with them:)

Back from Safari Elephant Trekking, we took a good rest at our hotel before departing for Phuket Fantasea Show, located at Kamala beach to the north of Patong beach. Situated in a park, Palace of the Elephants was a big theater where the show was performed. It was a fun experience, yet I found out the story was hard to follow and the contents were not very interesting. Nevertheless, we did enjoy the show and the atmosphere. There was no pic taken during the show since camera was not allowed. The fun part was that we stayed back after the show to play those mini games in the park, and tried to win a prize. Eventually we got it after the attendants were tired of our poor performance and eager enough to go home that they gave us more balls to throw (at that time, the park was almost empty with no tourists:))

 (Tips: At the end of the show, rush your way out of the theater and try to grab your cameras before the crowd reaches there.)

Palace of the Elephants - after the show

We stayed back and tried to win a prize through these mini games.

By the time we reached our hotel, it was already almost mid-night. We decided to get a good night sleep and prepared for our promising trip to Phi Phi Island the next morning.

End of Day 1.

(To be continued...)