Phuket, Thailand: we have arrived.

After our early morning wake up call on Saturday for the sunrise day trip to the famous Phi Phi Islands, we chilled out by the pool before heading out to walk along Kata beach & to catch the glorious Phuket sunset. What a beautiful night…..capped off by yet another great thai meal along the streets of Kata Beach at Eightfold Restaurant- yum!

Its amazing what a full sunrise to sunset beach day can do to your energy level!! So, after a good night’s sleep, we woke up refreshed on Sunday and ready to ride the Elephants!! Yup, thats right…..Sunday morning took us to Kok Chang Safari for an adventure in elephant riding & feeding- fun times!! Kok Chang was yet another activity highly reccomended on TripAdvisor and although there were a few companies to choose from, we decided upon Kok Chang because it wasn’t an all day excursion. I mean really, how long can you sit on top an elephant anyway?! Kok Chang offered a 15, 30, and 5o minute elephant ride, inclusive of feedings and pictures during and after your ride….all at an extremely reasonable price! Another reason we chose Kok Chang is because the reviews that we read indicated that they treat their elephants very well, something I was a bit worried about after hearing some horror stories from other companies. We took the 50 minute ride and enjoyed some incredible scenery at the top of the hill- check out our pics below!

 Check out how little my foot is compared to his head! David is pretending that the rubber from the rubber trees is snot hanging from his nose….ugh, boys.

 

I don’t think there is any explanation necessary for these two hilarious pics! Fun times….can’t get over how strong these elephants are that they can hold our weight on his head alone!!

 

 

 

 

What an awesome morning! Even better was the way this company treated these gentle giants- made me feel much better about the whole situation for sure! Plus, they were hilarious the way they ate the bananas we fed them :).

After such a “strenuous” morning, we were in dire need of a massage so we indulged in a traditional Thai Massage at our hotel’s Baray Spa. It did not disappoint!! Thai massages are so awesome because they really dig into your sore and aching muscles- you wear clothes and there is no oil but man does it work like magic- highly recommend it.

This ended our stay in Kata Beach. We began our trek back up to the north end of the island to Nai Yang Beach where the incredible Indigo Pearl Beach Resort is located. En route though we stopped off in Patong Beach for some custom clothes. Like many other countries within Asia, Thailand is known for their custom tailor shops. There are literally hundreds of tailor shops around the island but the top rated one on TripAdvisor was Magnifique Tailors in Patong. So..off we went! Many of the shops have guys standing out front trying to convince you to go into their shops but this one was not like that (which was nice). They are busy enough through repeat customers and referrals…..a good thing because we knew nothing about them except for reviews we found on TripAdvisor. Magnifique did a great job making a nice grey suit, slacks, and a shirt for David and 2 linen shirts for me. Although it was rushed due to our schedule and there are still some adjustments needed on some items back here in KL, I still would recommend this place to fellow travelers. They are warm and friendly, have 3 adorable & nice dogs in the shop, and offer water, beer, etc while you get fitted. So much fun:).

We also stopped for lunch across the street at The Orchid Garden. The service was great, food exceptional, and made David cry….because of the spiciness- haha. Check out the pics showcasing before, during, and after his bite of curry:

Finally we made it to our next hotel- The Indigo Pearl Beach Resort at Nai Yang Beach.  Wow!! Everything that the Sawasdee Village Resort was, Indigo Pearl was not. I am so glad we chose 2 drastically different hotels. We loved them both for so many different reasons but the Indigo Pearl has a serious “WOW” factor to it- check out the detail in the lobby alone!

The Indigo Pearl sits on along the Nai Yang beach reserve on the north end of the island, which is also a national rainforest in Phuket so whats so great about this location is that it is uber quiet & exclusive to the very few resorts that dot the beach area. Its also only a 10 minute ride to the airport which is nice. As much fun as we had in Kata, we much prefer the quietness & relaxed vibe of the Nai Yang beach area……simple & authentic. Indigo Pearl is a larger resort, yet still holds on to an intimate feel. There are 3 large pools (1 family & 2 adult only) and they cater to families, couples, or work functions. This resort has it all!

Did you know that Tin Mining is a huge part of Phuket’s history? Up until the 1930’s tin was even used a a form of currency! The founder and Director of Indigo Pearl wanted to use this rich heritage to design the resort. Wow, he did an impressive job!! Every single last detail of this hotel has the tin mining influence stamped all over it- even down to the toilet paper holders in the bathrooms. Its got this industrial  & retro feel to it, still keeping in line with the thai influences of service & lush landscaping.

Sunday evening we met up with one of David’s coworkers who came in early. We dined & caught up- a relaxing evening.

Monday came early but we had work to do! One of the reasons we we were in Phuket was to check out the hotel for a bigger dealer conference they have to put on next February 2013. Since I was the one that helped to get this sales training trip sorted out, I got to partake in the decision making some. we stayed at Indigo Pearl because it looked to be the best option on paper, yet we still had to check out 6 other properties to consider for next year. I have to say…..nothing compared to Indigo Pearl EXCEPT a place by the name of Paresa Resort in Kamala Beach, atop the cliffs overlooking the beach. Holy mother of god….this place was PHENOMINAL. Simply exquisite!

It was not the right place for this larger dealer conference as its a boutique style hotel (only 48 rooms & no meeting room/banquet space) and more geared towards a romantic weekend away but wow, I want to stay here at some point in my life. Check out some pics I took of the view upon entering the resort as well as the OUTDOOR bathroom overlooking your private pool!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Monday evening was the first night all the sales team from the Middle East & Asia had arrived so I put together a drinks & dinner party at Indigo Pearl for them. We started at fun & funky snooker & pool bar- Tongkah Tin Syndicate for happy hour, then continued on to the Rivet Grill for dinner. Great fun chatting with the team over a game of pool followed by a delicious meal of international fusion cuisine :).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tuesday they worked so I played! I began the day with a workout followed by some nice pool time:). In the afternoon I was super excited to take a Thai cooking class since thai cuisine is one of my all time favorite types of food. I found a gem…..Kata Thai Cooking Class back down in Kata Beach. Kelly is the instructor and she was fantastic!! The class I took was 2 hours long and smaller in size- only 4 of us!! We cooked Pad Thai, Tom Kha soup, and Green Curry…..um yea, delicious!! What was really cool was that it was completely hands on. Kelly stood next to us & instructed while we each cooked our own 3 dishes & ate them afterwards! What fun….I highly recommend Kelly’s classes- I can’t wait to go back and learn even more dishes. All 3 we made we seriously easy- I think the hardest part would be finding the items in the grocery store, and even that is not hard! Check out my creations and all the super fresh ingredients we used:

 Tuesday evening the team met me down in Kata Noi Beach for dinner at the highly acclaimed Mom Tri’s Kitchen. This restaurant sits within the grounds of the Villa Royale resort, overlooking the Kata Noi beach.

Not only is the cuisine top notch, but people flock there for the scenery too (which is why we went). Hilariously enough, a HUGE storm blew in just as we were sitting down for dinner and was awesome to watch. As usual though, the storm was over 45 minutes late and they dried out our table so we could finish. The food was unreal- both international as well as local thai cuisine and the service was exceptional. Even more amazing were the breathtaking views and the sounds of the waves hitting the rocks along the beach below us. Its pricier by Thai standards (still relatively cheap) but worth it- Go here if you are in Phuket! Without a doubt, you won’t be sorry.

 

 

 

 

 

After dinner many of us wanted to check out the nightlife of Patong. You can’t say you’ve been to Phuket unless you spend time enough during the night hours for 1 beer along the streets of Patong for people watching. Here is where all the Thailand “lady boys” and “ping-pong shows” take place. I won’t explain either to you….google if you want, its disturbing. Both are not something I approve of & in fact its quite disgusting, but we did enjoy strolling along the streets taking in the scene for an hour or so. Plus….yet again the (only g-rated) bar we went into pulled out a “connect four” board to play…what is with this game here?!?!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thursday was my last day in Phuket so I finally took time out to simply get some sun on my pale body, stroll along the quiet beach, shop for new bikinis at the quaint little beach shops, read my book over lunch with my toes in the sand, and enjoy the clear waters of Phuket. I loved every moment of this trip and I hope that the sales team (thank you by the way- you guys & gals are wonderful!) lets me “tag along” for their next meeting!! Well, even if they don’t, its only a quick 1.5 hr flight away- yea for living in SE Asia :-).

 

 

 

Happy & safe travels!

Kimbra