We went to Phuket for the beach. But we loved our time with friends the most.
Thankfully, Angela and I didn't die on the rented motorbike before we were able to spend time with Ray and Melanie, new friends who work with Angela at Grace, and Bertha and Joao, new friends we met at a port on the east side of the island. Though there were a few close calls. Below is a brief video of riding the motorbike on the island. It doesn't include our journey south to our second hotel.
Now that you've enjoyed the video, I'll describe the excitement of riding the motorbike at night through the busiest part of Phuket. Then I'll tell you about the joy of friends. I'll try not to get too long-winded.
Our motorbike was a Honda Click. It's a fully automatic bike at about 110cc. It does great on level surfaces and downhills. However, it does not do so well on the uphill part.
After two nights at Chez Charly Bungalow, Angela and I canceled our hotel north of Phuket and headed down south to Karon Beach area. We were having such a good time with Ray and Melanie that we left a little later than planned. The peaceful serenity of the north beaches quickly turned into the hustle and bustle party life of the south beaches, specifically, Patong Beach.
Imagine going up a steep hill at 20 km/h, passing a big truck going 10 while being passed by a bus on the other side -- all on a one lane road. Well, Angela and I don't have to imagine it, because we lived it. And survived it. And were too scared to pull out the video camera during it.
There was more like that, but the highlight of the roadtrip of about 50 kilometers was when we realized we missed a turn, our correction took us directly to a police check. Occasionally we see these in Chiang Mai. In the States they check for sobriety or seatbelts. In Chiang Mai they check for helmets and vehicle registration. In Phuket they check for foreigners driving rented motorbikes -- or so it seems. Thankfully, we were able to wiggle our way out of that one since I had my Thai driver's license, but it was another nervous moment in a stressful night of travel.
But you don't care about that. You want to know about the friends.
Melanie and Ray have become some of our favorite people to spend time with in Chiang Mai. It didn't hurt that they have great connections in Phuket with access to a near private beach and hors d'oeurves at 5 each day. We laughed a lot and genuinely had a great time with them. We're so thankful to be blessed with friends like these here in Chiang Mai.
Then, on our second to last day, we were able to make some new friends. On holiday, Joao, from Brazil, and Berta, from Spain, showed up at a dock on the east side of the island. Angela and I made a quick stop there just out of curiosity. I asked the most farang looking couple where they were coming from. After chatting for a bit, Joao offered to buy us a coffee. For the next two hours, we enjoyed great conversation with great new friends. Plus, we're excited about having connections in three more countries.
The beaches were also wonderful. I'm currently taking the skin off my recovering body as proof of how much we enjoyed it.
Now it's back to work.
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