"A little of everything" a Phuket Travel Page by yukisanto

When you think of Phuket, the beach comes to mind. After all, this island from the Kingdom of Thailand is synonymous with pristine beaches. Remember Phi Phi islands? They achieved global fame overnight, singled-handedly due to Leo DiCaprio’s The Beach. Who could also forget that Phang Nga is also now known as James Bond island, so named when the movie was made there years ago.

Not forgetting that Phuket is also well-known for its nightlife at Patong, you now have an island that seems to cater to every person – be it the weary traveler seeking a rest in the serenity of the islands off Phuket, or the funseeker who likes to party and everyone in between. If you don’t know, this place is quite the gay-friendly type too, with all those bars.

What struck me when I was traveling around this island was its resemblance to Malaysia than to Thailand. The architecture, the environment, and some of its people’s attitude towards life as well. Phuket’s economy is driven largely by tourism, and to a smaller extent, export of agricultural products such as rubber and oil palm.

There is a large marked disparity between the foreigners who live there, and the local population. The former live in villas, bungalows etc which cost millions in baht, which is something a local can never even aspire to attain. Prices of land and property have increased, driven by this demand from expats. At least a fifth of the people who live there are expats, ya know. Somehow, I don’t think the locals will benefit from the boom in the property market though.

Chapter I: The islands

The day trips to the islands off Phuket made up the most part of our stay. We would head out to the islands for a day, and return only to the hotel in the evening. Each package cost about 1300 baht for a full day, the equivalent of SGD65, and since this included everything such as lunch, it was a decent deal.

Usually such trips would involve island hopping, and one of the islands would be the main attraction of the trip (like Phi Phi or Phang Nga). At the other islands, you’ll get to swim, canoe, snorkel etc

Sedimentary and igneous rock strata made up the islands. Due to the nature of sedimentary rocks, the islands were filled with caves which we went exploring in. Some caves were dotted with numerous stalagmites and stalactites, while others had interesting features carved out of their surface.

Chapter II: The beauty of Phuket

Phuket itself has several breathtaking spots of nature. Standing at the various viewpoints such as Laem Prom Thep, you see the wide expanse of the Andaman sea, shimmering like a sparking sapphire in front of you. When you are standing at the cliff, with the waves crashing below you, that feeling can only be described as one of awe.

With several national parks, Phuket’s flora and fauna are not lacking either. We didn’t hike in the park, although we went on an elephant trek.

The beaches too are beautiful. I’m not talking about Patong beach here, but of Kata beach, Layan beach etc

Chapter III: Shopping

Now you must be wondering how much can you shop on a tropical island? Well, pretty much actually. Interesting T-shirts, handicrafts, beach wear, Thai foodstuffs etc can be bought at the street stalls and markets. I love shopping at their dept stores too, for stuff which are cheaper compared to SG. Yes, Phuket has dept stores such as Robinson and even Carrefour, it is not that primitive an island. Sorry to break your stereotype of a pristine tropical island untouched by modernity and consumerism…

Prices on average are higher than expected, probably since they have to import everything (now doesn’t that sounds familiar?). Still, you really have to bargain, or you’ll simply get ripped off. My fav item that I bought? The sarongs. Lol

Chapter IV: Culture

Despite Phuket being rather liberal with regards to certain aspects of social life, and tolerating other cultures, most locals are still rather very much immersed in their own Thai culture. You see this in the reverence they give to their temples, and in the way they interact with each other. Juxtapose this with the scene at Bangla road (where transvestites and local SPGs etc abound and tons of foreigners hang out to drink) and it’s really baffling to see both cultures exist side by side in harmony.

At the Aussie pub I went, the customers were all foreigners. The live band played English music. The menu was in English and the conversation was certainly not Thai. Hard to reconcile the fact that I am in Thailand.

At least for food, the Thai influence prevails. We went around sampling the food stalls on the streets, although we did go to Black Canyon Coffee, a western café, as well.