Day 100: Phuket, Thailand

Sunday, 16 April 2017
At Sea — Andaman Sea

Stats @ Ship’s Time 8:15p (ICT) … UTC 1:15p (16 April)
Temp:85.3F (29.6C)
Position: 8.12.90N / 97.56.78E

Embrace the detours.
~ Kevin Charbonneau ~

With just 80 days left in our RTW voyage — hard to believe the time has gone by so fast — Mui and I are sending everyone Happy Easter greetings!  If not for the display of a giant chocolate bunny we saw at the entrance to the Grand Dining Room and the Terrace Café this morning, we would not have realized the significance of the day.

Today’s port of call returned us to Thailand — specifically to Phuket [silent h … pronounced poo-get] … an island so big that the Koh [island] portion of its name has been long since dropped.  I can’t really speak to Phuket itself since we went to the Phi Phi [pronounced Pee Pee] Islands today.

With the ship scheduled to dock at 8:00a, we had plenty of time to have breakfast at the Terrace Café before joining our tour mates at Baristas at 8:15a.  The boat tour (USD $115/person) was organized by Joseph & Yetty, who embarked Insignia in Singapore.  We were 12 in all — a comfortable number for the speed boat Joseph had chartered.

Meeting up by the gangway on deck 4, we disembarked around 8:15a and went in search of our guide, Jocelyn … a Frenchman who has been living in Phuket for many years now.  We looked high.  We looked low.  He wasn’t at the port.  When Joseph pulled out his notes to call Jocelyn, we realized what the problem was.  O had been reassigned to a dock other than the one they had initially told Joseph we would be docking at.  Jocelyn was waiting for us at Patong Pier.  Ooops!  Anyway, Joseph talked to Jocelyn and then arranged for a couple of taxis to take us to Chalong Pier where the speed boat was docked … about 30 minutes from where we were.

By 9:00a we were at the pier where Jocelyn promptly walked us to the Sea Runner.  Climbing down some concrete steps, we removed our shoes, and using another boat as a bridge, crossed over to our boat.  Jocelyn told us it would take us 45-60 minutes to get to our first stop — but it took us a bit longer because the captain had to reduce speed to smooth out the very bumpy ride.

Our itinerary said we would be exploring Maya Beach on Koh Phi Phi Leh, the second largest of the island groups that lie between Phuket and the west edge of the Strait of Malacca.  The beach came into prominence with the filming of a Leonardo di Caprio movie here in 1999 … “The Beach.”  I was aghast at the number of boats anchored close to the beach when we finally arrived at our destination.  Its increased popularity — attributed to the movie — did the place a great disservice IMHO.  In addition to dealing with the crowds, we would have to pay a THB 400/person (~ USD $12) admission to set foot on the beach and go for a walk.  No thank you.  When Jocelyn suggested we go to a quieter cove for snorkeling, we all agreed.  And off we again went bumpity bump bump in the Sea Runner.

At the snorkel spot, only two people went in to see what they could see … one of them was Mui.  One other person went for a swim … disastrous results.  Getting back into the boat, he banged his shin against the ladder and opened a large gash that started bleeding profusely.  So, as Jocelyn tried to staunch the blood flow and wrap the gash, the snorkelers were recalled after just 15 minutes in the water.  Disappointing for Mui I’m sure … although he did say there wasn’t much to see.

At this point, I was expecting that we would end the tour and return to Phuket, but we continued on.  I expect Jocelyn talked to Joseph and the injured party before making the decision to do so.  Anyway, we went into two more coves to see the beautiful beaches … also overcrowded.  But the color of the water was gorgeous — just like in French Polynesia.  In one of the coves, we stopped to check out a couple of macaques that were hanging out in the tree branches reaching out towards the water.

Our next stop was at Zeavola Resort at Laem Tong Beach on Phi Phi Don — the largest island in the group … populated by Muslim fisherman before the island was converted to a coconut plantation.  Disembarking into the water, we walked ashore to our table, which was set right on the sand.  A canopy offered shade and there was a nice breeze to keep us comfortable … the high temp was 91F (33C) … and that’s without taking the heat index into consideration.  With Jocelyn warning us that service would be slow, we sat down to a two-hour lunch.

Jocelyn ordered a bunch of appetizers to share — deep fried calamari rings & potatoes, fresh spring rolls, chicken satay with peanut sauce, and deep fried shrimp with sweet & sour sauce.  We ordered our main courses off the menu — the only item at extra cost was the lobster … otherwise all was included in the price of the tour.  I ordered the Guay Tiew Phad Se Ew Goong — stir fried flat noodles with prawns.  Mui ordered the Phad Thai Goong — stir fried Thai noodles wrapped in an omelet mesh and served with prawns … his dish was a better choice.  For beverages all but wine and champagne were included — I got a Chang beer … they had the small bottles here; Mui had Thai coffee.  Four of us shared a chocolate lava cake with vanilla ice cream for dessert … it was really good.  And back on the boat, Jocelyn offered everyone pineapples and bananas that were very tasty.

The return boat ride to Phuket was not nearly as bumpy, so we made good time.  With the added distance we needed to cover to return to the ship by 4:00p — our self-imposed deadline — we had asked that we be back at Chalong Pier by 3:00p … we were there shortly after 3:00p.  Jocelyn had a large van-taxi waiting to transport us back to Insignia, putting us back at the Deep Water Port — aka Port of Phuket — with an hour to spare before our 5:00p sailaway.

Today’s visit to Phuket was our third and final port in Thailand.  We loved our two days in Bangkok, and would go back to spend more time there and in the countryside.  Koh Samui might make a nice beach break should we find ourselves there on another cruise, but I would not make it a priority to revisit.  Phuket … hmmm!  Though we had a very nice tour, the overcrowding is such that this was the port I least enjoyed and I have no desire to return here.

We are gaining a whopping 30 minutes overnight to put us in the same time zone as Myanmar.  I’ll take all the gains I can get … as long as they are time gains ;-)

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