PHUCKET, Thailand, the land of smiles

Phucket, Thailand, The Land of Smiles.

5am ! 5am I woke up ! Why so early ? Well, maybe it was on my mind I was going to be visiting a place I had longed to go to since my 20’s. So not to miss the opportunity to see this once in a life time of sailing towards my dream destination, I was up and on deck watching us sail in towards The Land of Smiles, Phucket, Thailand.

• As we sailed passed Islands and beaches, the view from the ship although a dull sky, ( well, it was only 6am ! ), was beautiful, as we sailed passed numerous small Islands smothered in palm trees and tropical fauna. I couldn’t believe my luck as I witnessed, not only the sailing towards Phuket, but standing on deck, as the ship turned a 360° circle, and very slowly docked at Sea Port Phucket. This was an awesome sight to witness from deck.

Thailand itself was a mixture of Island life, streets dotted with market style pop up restaurants, market food stalls however mixed in with Civilized roads and a mix of temples. After the after math of Port Blair, Phucket was so welcoming.

Grabbing a taxi on that first day meant 4 of us, were taken around two of the famous sites and a nice stop for Elephant pics, all for £13 each. After the haggling with a local cab driver, we went kn a 30 min journey, from the ship to Wat Chalong Temple.

A building outer walls covered in glorious colours and Thai designs, contrasted the gold statues of Buddhas that were situated inside.

Of course, the obligatory photographs were taken, a few silent moments to appreciate the beauty and splendor of where we were, then it was back inside the cab to make the hillside drive towards the Big Buddha.

Wow ! Breathtaking. Big Buddha, a concrete statue covered in marble, sits proud over looking Phucket on its mountain top. The sight, a religious place for Buddhists and monks, made sure all tourists were covered up to respect the religions rules.

Suffice to say, another amazing sight and experience which exceeded expectations. Thailand, so far so good.

After a stop at a nearby elephant sanctuary, a quick pic with a baby elephant placed nearby a road side had to be done ! It isn’t every day one passes crowds of elephants all kitted out for tourists to ride on. After politely declining, we took a quick picture and had a drink overlooking the beautiful bays of Phucket, before making way to Old Town Phuket.

Here I would have a spot of local shopping, eat a Thai noodle lunch ( £4 ! ) and of course, treat myself to a Thai shoulder and back massage. Bargain of the year, at only £9 for the whole hour !