When talking about this trip, we must first say that we were excited to go outside the great country of India for the first time in our life beyond a honeymoon trip. Yes, Thailand is a traveler’s paradise. The journey has begun in search of the small island of Phuket, full of emerald islands and roadsides full of celebrations, where the people who grew up in different colors, shapes and diverse cultures meet, regardless of caste, religion, country. The giant bird called the airplane, which I believe is one of mankind’s greatest inventions, is approaching the emerald island of Phuket. The blue sky and the blue sea full of islands are equally pleasing to the eye. The view of the small islands keeps getting clearer.
Although Phuket is a relatively small airport, there is no shortage of tourists. From the airport, the mini bus ride to the hotel began to reveal the beauty of Phuket. The landscape is almost similar to our Kerala. Forests, lakes, cleanliness and colorful streets make Phuket very beautiful. Bananas, rubber and coconuts are all found along the way. Arrived at the hotel in the afternoon. After eating European food from the nearby hotel, we went down to walk the main roads in the evening.
After following the roadsides, we arrived at Bangla Road, the main thoroughfare of Phuket.
Bangla Road, which stretches to Patong Beach, is known for the most diverse Thai massages in the world and is known for sex tourism. We have already received information from those who have gone before. Everywhere on Bangla Road, the throng of locals and foreigners to enjoy the pleasure of Thai massage is visible. Beautiful street lights and colorful billboards kept lighting up Bangla Road.
It must be said that people from all over the world be it Europe, India, China, Russia, America, Japan or Africa have made Bangla Road a haven of diversity. Tourists can enjoy anything like ping pong show, lesbian show, live sex show etc. You don’t have to look for this anywhere, it is something that you will understand very quickly if you go there. All these people are there to attract people. It is enough to go with them. There is no doubt that Thailand will take us to the extremes of comfort if we go with money.
We reached Patong Beach from Bangla Road. We decided to enjoy a nice evening walk on Patong Beach, which is dripping with baby blues. From parasailing and jetskiing on a huge parachute, Patong Beach began to see a variety of activities in the evening. A busy but heartwarming evening everywhere. Enough of the walk on the beach and back again to Bangla Road. Bangla Road had become more active by then. The scantily clad youths call out to tourists. In the adjacent bars, scantily clad apprentice beauties kept the evening onlookers entertained with their dance moves. People from different countries were enjoying everything. These sightings on Bangla Road will continue till around 3 am. We returned to the hotel around 2pm. Because the next day is the trip to the most beautiful island of Phi Phi in Phuket.
The next morning we woke up excited. Phi-Phi Island, Khai Island and Monkey Island, an ape-only playground, are all highlights of today’s itinerary. Waiting for the driver at the hotel. We waited in front of the hotel long before the time announced. That’s when we became friends as Mr. Dongre, the hotel’s security guard. Dongre was a very valid Indonesian. When he went to church this morning, he gave us the prasad he had brought. We happily ate it. He asked us where we were from and how we were doing. As soon as he said he was from India, he started singing a Hindi song he knew. “Ye dosti .. hum nahi todenke “. I was surprised! How does an Indonesian know Hindi song?. It was then that I remembered the popularity of our films and the sensation that Sholay had created throughout Asia.
Mr. Dongre also described his family. He has 2 wives and 5, 6 children. They all live together. The point is that the big responsibility of both the families is on his shoulders. Knowing this, we did not forget to give him a good tip before starting the journey. The driver has arrived with the vehicle almost at the specified time. Thai people are very punctual. Although there was a lot of traffic all along the way, what surprised me was the precision with which they followed the road rules. No matter how fast the vehicles going in a row do not overtaking unnecessarily or deviate from the lane.
The rules are strictly followed. One fact our people who frown when they hear the word Thailand is that sex tourism is a part of their culture and a major source of income for their country. I have left there many times thinking how good it would have been if our people had learned the rules and cleanliness of the Thai roads. Reached the starting point of the journey to Phi Phi Island by 8 am. As we had already booked online, our name information was recorded there. A lot of people besides us have come for this trip.
It includes Indians, Japanese, Chinese, Europeans and Africans. Everyone can see the excitement on their faces as the trip is on a speed boat. The captain of our boat, Mr. Mai, kept giving instructions. He kept explaining the rules and precautions to be followed in the speed boat in his native English. Mai clearly told us the number to call and what precautions to take if stranded on the islands. There was so much security and sincerity in Mai’s speech. I guessed that what makes Thailand a favorite country for tourists is the behavior of people like Mai and the friendliness shown to tourists.
The speedboat began to speed towards Phi Phi Island. The boat, which started moving slowly, has reached its full speed. Olam was lagging behind the speed of the boat that was tearing through the blue sea. Before reaching Phi-Fi Island, Mr. Mai instructed the boat to stop near a very small island. Snorkeling is an option for tourists. Snorkeling kits and life jackets were provided on the boat. He also instructed to jump straight into the sea. Being a good swimmer, I completely rejected the life jacket. If I don’t put the snorkeling kit on my face, I will lose the view of the colorful fishes, so I jumped into the blue sea wearing only it and started swimming.. Everyone is very excited.
Most of the people on the boat are from Europe and are of the swimming side. My wife drank a little water at first, but she was not prepared to lose so good an opportunity. She learned very well to row in the water. I had already told her not to be afraid of drowning any more, for I had a little pride in being a good swimmer, and another that resembled the figure of Tarzan, the stalwart of health. There was one more helper in our boat.We became friends with him very soon and we addressed him as Tarzan himself.He kept encouraging people by jumping into the water himself and performing various water sports.He was always ready to save those who were struggling to swim and drowning.
When we got back to the boat, we didn’t forget to take a selfie with Tarzan. We spent almost half an hour snorkeling and swimming there. Now it’s time to go to Phi Phi Island proper.
The boat sped off again towards Phi Phi Island. The waves that are dripping in the sea will fly over the emerald islands that are visible yonder. The thought has happened. The boy left the shore of the sea on his bike and ran away. To be honest, it was quite an adventure. He did everything from sliding in the sea on his bike to painting circles. It should be said that he did not fall down because he was holding on tight. Meanwhile, the control of the bike was handed over to me. I took advantage of the opportunity and flew it. After enjoying for 20 minutes, the bike was brought close to the shore.
The beauty of the setting sun made the shores of Khai Island even more beautiful. As the time grew darker, its beauty increased. Mr. Mai arrives with instructions through Mike to get back to the speedboat. Everyone came to the boat in a row and put on life jackets. On the way back, the boat approached Monkey Island, but was not allowed to land there. Maybe because there may be an attack of monkeys.Monkeys can be seen roaming freely in Monkey Island. After spending some time there, the boat came back again. Everyone is in a hurry to get into their vehicles and get back to the hotel. Because everyone needs to reach the sights of Bangla Road in the evening. Yay back to Bangla Road’s celebratory nights. Every evening is a party night in Thailand. It is clear to us from the evenings in Thailand that how Thailand, a meeting place of diverse people, has become the biggest tourist destination in the world. From seafood to selling one’s own body is part of Thailand’s festive nights.
We had already decided to make a difference from the island tours the next day. For that we chose a land route. The Big Buddha Temple where the huge Buddha statue stands, the ancient Phuket Town, Chalong Temple, etc. are the landmarks of Thailand to see. Early in the morning, a short man with a soft smile is waiting for us in front of the hotel. He is our guide today. He directed us to the mini bus. The Japanese and the Chinese who were already on the bus said hi to us. We each returned a hi. The guide said that the bus was going to the Big Buddha first. My mobile camera kept recording the views in video mode as the bus passed the hills and mountains.
From a distance, the sight of the huge Buddha statue standing majestically on the top of the big hill at a relatively good height was clear. Vehicles can reach almost up to the Buddha statue. After that, you have to climb the steps on foot to reach it. Excited to see the Buddha statue up close, we rushed up the stairs. I looked around while climbing. The whole of Phuket in front of my eyes!. Yes, Big Buddha stands that high. From there we can see almost the whole of Phuket. Adjacent to the Big Buddha, there are many ways to sell lakhs of food. Many small street vendors are waiting for the tourists as well. We packed enough bread, cheese, sandwiches, biscuits and fruit. Today is the day that reflects Thailand’s climate.
In the hot weather almost similar to Kerala, the perspiration was less but the fatigue and headache were mild. But in the excitement of seeing the sights we had forgotten all that. No one can blame any Malayali for thinking that he is going through Kerala, passing through forests and mountains on his way to the Chalong Buddha Temple, saying goodbye to the Big Buddha. Because the weather and natural beauty are almost similar to the Malayalam country, the sound of the tree branches rubbing and the chirping of the crickets. We have reached the Chalong Buddhist Temple. Two or three temple complexes with special shapes can be seen next to the Chalong Temple. Although there are a few differences, all of them are similar to the Buddhist temples that we see in Bhutan and China.
Buddhist monks walk around the mani and kiluki Buddha statue and are engrossed in prayer. I have seen the same sights in the Buddhist temple of Manali before. Similar to the fireworks in our country’s temples, occasional gunshots and puffs of smoke are coming from the Chalong temple. Perhaps Buddhist temples also have such offerings or rituals. Each country has its own culture. Traveling through new lands gave us new knowledge. As we see in many big cities, Phuket also has an ancient city. Ancient buildings full of murals and beautiful streets. It goes without saying that the murals show the artistic flair of the Thai people. Among the roadside vendors, there are souvenir shops, shops that sell decorative items and juice shops. It’s almost dark. I’m tired today, because it was mostly a sunny trip this time.
On the way back from Chalong temple, we saw a few more people standing and asked the guide what was going on. It was a group of people frolicking with a baby elephant. We didn’t hesitate at all and waited in line for our chance. The baby elephant was constantly taking photos with people, buying fruits and doing mischief. The Thai master who taught the rules kept giving instructions to the baby elephant. When the opportunity came, we also went to the baby elephant with a little fear. The baby elephant started stroking our face and body with his trunk and stopped to pose for a photo. We said goodbye to the baby elephant like everyone else and started our journey back to the hotel room.
On the last day of our trip, we will travel to Coral Island. Coral Island is famous for parasailing and sea walking. The beaches and natural beauty similar to Phi Phi Island make Coral Island a favorite among tourists. The speed boat rushed to the destination carrying the tourists in different groups in each separate boat. Then another interesting incident took place. Bands of different colors were worn on the arms of each group to identify the groups of passengers for each boat. Those with a red band would board one boat and those with a green band would board another boat. Akiti understood when he went some distance. The boat we boarded has changed! If the band of others is red, then the one in our hand is green. I told my wife slowly in a voice reminiscent of our Mukeshetta. After understanding the incident, we saw that there was no other option and informed the captain of the boat. That’s when I noticed another thing. The guide in our boat, Mai Alla Mai, is in another boat that is creaking close by!. Knowing this, the 2 boats were brought close to each other in the middle of the sea and we were taken to the boat where we were supposed to go. We also had to put up with Mai’s teasing for this.
The boat is approaching Coral Island. Next is the opportunity for parasailing. The speed boat will be attached to the parachute and will be driven at high speed, and will fly with the parachute and people very high in the sky. We will also have a very talented parasailing instructor with us. This is how parasailing is done. Along with the sight of parachuting people on the speedboat, the people were also hearing the noise of the people. Sea walking and scuba diving trainings are also available in Coral Island. Parasailing takes place in a boat anchored just off the shore. Another speedboat arrived to take them there. Chinese, Japanese, Europeans and Indians all enthusiastically boarded the boat with the same goal. At the starting position of the parasailing, they all stood in the same position waiting for their turn.
