Saturday, July 29, 2006

Life after the Tsunami (part III)

..Continued from Part I and Part II.

Sorry to keep harking on about it, but it's not the kind of thing you can get out of your head that easily, even with 10 bottles of Heineken. We had a bit of a party at our house last night, and I was talking to some people I'd not seen in a while, and naturally the tsunami came up in conversation. Where were you on December 26th 2004?

I still feel a kind of odd guilt that neither I nor my family nor any of our friends suffered at all. I lost nothing, lost nobody, carried on working, we had a baby boy 2 weeks later (I think having a baby puts a lot of things into perspective). It is amazing to be so close to disaster and yet not be involved. Had I been young, single and free I would have gone and volunteered as a diver. A friend of mine helped fish bodies out of the water. But I had a 9 month pregnant wife to look after and work to do. At the dive shop we became inundated with emails and phone calls asking about the latest situation. I talked to Sky News, talked to the BBC, wrote emails, updated information on our web site, tried to make sense of things. At the same time, we lost business, but many divers who were already booked did come and dive, even just a week after the tsunami. Many called ahead to check on the conditions, being rather scared based on what they saw on CNN. I gave honest advise and many thanked me afterwards for not bullshitting them. In that way, I guess I did something to help.

We got some new neighbours recently, an American family with 2 kids of similar age to ours. They come to our house to play sometimes. I only met David (dad) for the first time last night, as he works in Khao Lak, long hours, and quite a drive - it takes a good 90 minutes to get there from here. David is the local director of a charity foundation called 4Kali, set up by the Breisch family who lost their daughter (Kali) when the tsunami hit Khao Lak.

It was a long time ago, but also very recent. In Phuket now you can't tell anything happened. Patong beach looks better than before, Karon too. It's emotional scars that take longer to heal, even when you've lost nothing.

(Follow up on 5th August) - there's an article today in the Phuket Gazette about local people suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Worth a Read:

• Phuket Gazette - Article about PTSD

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

Hotel Recommendations: Dusit Laguna

I had not originally intended to add any Phuket hotel information on here, but after thinking about it, whether you are a package tourist, a flashpacker or a family looking for a relaxing holiday, you're going to need a hotel! So, as time goes by, I will add some recommendations ranging from backpacker rooms up to 5 star luxury. Phuket has it all.

We'll start with luxury. I've met up with some friends this week who I used to know some years ago in Utila (Honduras), where they ran the infamous Bundu Cafe. After having a child, they decided to head back to the UK, where they now run a cafe in Loughborough called the Baobab Cafe (www.baobabcafe.com). When they told me they were planning a trip to Thailand in July, I first advised them about the weather, then about hotels. The weather in Phuket during July is normally decent, and so far they have had sun, sun, sun. For hotels, they wanted something pretty luxurious and away from the main beaches...

The Laguna Phuket complex is huge, consisting of 5 hotels - Laguna Beach Resort, Dusit Laguna, Sheraton Grande, Allamanda Laguna and the Banyan Tree. All are top class, not cheap, and extremely nice! Well, my friends are staying at the Dusit Laguna (see location on Google Earth), and when we went to pick them up on Sunday for a drive round the island we entered a different world. Everything from the reception to the pools to the staff are clean, friendly, comfortable, and my friends are being pampered to the max. In high season these hotels are bloomin' expensive (by my standards), but are always full. In low season (now) there are good deals to be had.

The various hotels are built around a lagoon complex, with a wide variety of restaurants, shuttles between the different hotels, and you are steps away from Bang Tao beach. Laguna is also conveniently close to the airport.

So there you have it - you want some luxury, try the Dusit Laguna. It's one of those hotels that you can recommend with no hesitation. Absolute top drawer.

Dusit Laguna Resort - Booking and Reviews

Dusit Laguna Rates and Reservations at Agoda.com
Dusit Laguna - Hotel Reviews

Dusit Laguna Photos

Dusit Laguna Dusit Laguna Room

Dining in Style at Dusit Laguna Get yourself well and truly pampered


Links for the other excellent Laguna Resorts:

Laguna Beach Resort
Sheraton Grande
Allamanda Laguna
Banyan Tree

Another very good place on Bang Tao Beach:

Best Western Resort and Spa

Phuket Hotels - More Information - Online Booking

Phuket Hotel Info and Booking at Agoda.com
More of Jamie's Phuket Hotel Reviews
Jamie's Top 10 Phuket Hotels
Thailand Hotels at Agoda.com

Monday, July 17, 2006

Up Radar Hill Again

Sunday was such a great sunny day, I felt the need for some fresh air having been cooped up in an office all week with grey skies and rain for company. Best place to get the wind in your hair is the hills. So we took a drive up Radar Hill again in the sunshine. Phuket is very green at this time of year, and heading up the hill you are in the trees. We stopped the car to listen to the sounds of the jungle and to watch a snake wind across the road - a pretty big one, bright green with a brown tail - wife said very poisonous. From doing a bit of research I think it was a white lipped pit viper, rather dangerous indeed! We have had small snakes in our garden before. I would not like to find one of these. It must have been a meter long with great big teeth...

The views from the hill were fab under blue skies and with the greenery shining after all the rain we've had lately. From up here you can see over Patong Bay, over Chalong Bay and also Bang Wad Reservoir. (See location on Google Earth) And the air is clear and fresh, perfect for clearing out your lungs. Get up a mountain today!

View of Bang Wad reservoir and dam from the hill

View of Patong from the hill

The road up Radar Hill

Green Season in Phuket

You can read more about Radar Hill here...

Monday, July 10, 2006

Offshore Islands - Koh Rang Yai

Koh Rang Yai is a small uninhabited island about 5km off the east coast of Phuket, featuring a kilometer of sandy beach on the west with views back to the mainland. There is no accomodation on the island, but there is a nice restaurant which is open all day. There is also a pearl farm, and some tours do come to the island...if you want to have the place more to yourself, get there early, or in the late afternoon.

You hire a longtail from Laem Hin to reach Koh Rang

Nice, isn't it?

To reach Koh Rang Yai, you'll need to take a longtail boat from Laem Hin jetty, next to Laem Hin Seafood (yum yum). We rented a boat for 800 Baht for the 5km trip, with the boat waiting for us at Koh Rang for a few hours. On the way, you pass Koh Maphrao, a much bigger island and also worth a stop off.

Koh Rang Yai - Location on Google Earth

Ok, so there are a few beach chairs, but not many people...

Koh Rang Yai is a little paradise. Take a walk along the beach if you want to get away from the few beach chairs that exist. The water on the east coast is not always really clear, but we found the beach ideal for swimming and splashing around with the kids. You can sit in the shade of the coconut trees, play with the sand and ash down to the water for a refreshing dip. There are shower facilities there, so you can clean up before getting back in your longtail for the ride back to Laem Hin.

Palm trees on Koh Rang  The kid having fun with the sand on Koh Rang

(Photos © by the Monk Family 2006)

You can see some new photos around Koh Rang Yai here: Speedboats and Helicam - a trip I took in March 2010.