Phuket :: James Bond Island

My 007 moment

Phang Nga is a shallow bay with 42 islands, comprising shallow marine waters and intertidal forested wetlands. A distinctive feature of Phang Nga Bay is the sheer limestone cliffs that extend vertically out of the green water.

I was told that the best means of enjoying the spectacular scenery is to take one of the boat trips (which is included in the tour). I was a little sceptical when I first read the itinerary which says “We are using Long Tail Boat and Life Jacket provided to all passengers”.

I had a flashback of my Vietnam trip where we had to jump into a tiny boat and row it ourselves. Thank god it was not like that.

The long boat

It is next to impossible to visit all 42 islands and James Bond Island and Koh Pannyi are just two of the more famous spots in this bay. So, we head to James Bond Island!

For safety purposes, please wear jacket LIFT! lol

Ready to go!
Near the jetty. Very peaceful

Once we were on the big sea, it was a rough ride throughout the 1-hour journey

We even went into a cave

And we finally arrive at James Bond Island

This famous island, named Koh Ping-gan, was converted into “James Bond Island” through its starring role in the James Bond movie 'The Man With the Golden Gun'. The entire area surrounding this island with its signature rocky pinnacle is indeed spectacular. I was just a tiny bit disappointed to know that I can’t swim there.

The spectacular rock

Another view of the rock

There were plenty of shops selling souvenirs

After an hour of taking pictures and shopping around the tiny island, we proceed to an integral part of that tour, which is lunch at Koh Panyee, a nearby Muslim floating village.

The floating village

Ok, the picture above (of the floating village) is a small tiny part of it. The actual village is huge. Lunch was served there, and i was so happy to see fried chicken! It was a good lunch.

We spent another hour walking around the floating village and then head back to the boat.

Another 1-hour ride back to the jetty

When i got back to the van, i realised my body was covered with salt! Its from the sea water splashing on us during the trip.

***

When i was in Vietnam, i found Halom Bay extremely breathtaking. And i thought it would be difficult for Phanga to beat that. I must say, Phanga is special in its own way. And i truly enjoyed the trip.

~Cheers!

Phuket :: Day Two

According to my itinerary:

Day Two: Visit Phanga Bay on the main land and James Bond Island. Visit Thum Lod, Dog Mountain, Elephant Mountain, Koh Panyee(Muslim Village built on still over the sea). Lunch served at Panyee Island.Return to Phuket on time. We are using Long Tail Boat and Life Jacket provided to all passengers.

Mr Samphan, our tour guide told us to be ready by 8:00am at the hotel lobby. I woke up at 6:30 am to get ready and went for breakfast. At around 7:30am, a hotel staff approaches us saying our pick-up has arrived. (So early!!!!)

I had no choice but to ask them to wait. Breakfast is one important meal for me during vacation because I know I will not be able to eat lunch or dinner that much. Halal food abroad usually means seafood (just like dinner the night before), and I don’t eat seafood.

I quickly finished my breakfast and jump into the van and off we go. It was quite a distance, and I slept all the way!

They woke me up when we arrived at a temple. And I was extremely puzzled. A temple? Where are the islands? Why are we here?

Later on I was told that the Phanga Bay is about 12KM away, and every trip stops at the temple first. (They just never bothered to include it in the itinerary).

In case you don’t know, I do enjoy visiting temples, get to know about culture and check out the intricate architecture of temples and spiritual buildings.

The temple we went was Suwan Kuha Temple or also known as Wat Tam (the cave temple). I have been to the grand palace in Bangkok, and I can go on and on talking about the massive complex. But for Wat Suwan Kuha, all I can say is: Its a temple in a cave!

There were plenty of monkeys at the entrance. The interior of the cave is rather attractive. The main highlight of the temple is a15-metre-long reclining Buddha.

A cute (but very aggressive) monkey!

The monkeys are very well fed. Tourist just love to buy food and see them eat.

The 15M reclining Buddha

Nice natural architecture

All of the little black dots are BATS!

Check out the colors!

The sign says "Don't write anything on the rock, Please"

The entrance

Ok, the visit was nice. Now can we go to the James Bond island please?

~Cheers!

Phuket :: Patong Beach

Patong is known as the most famous beach in Phuket. And now I know why.

Summary: Stunning white sand beaches with the atmosphere of the Caribbean.

All of the reviews are correct and in most cases, far better than what has been written. It is a very clean, and well maintained beach. There are plenty of activities to do. On top of all, the water is green and the waves are huge!! Besides, it seems like a safe place to leave your thing and go for a swim.

Of course I didn’t bring any of my valuables to the beach. Which also means, I don’t have any pictures of the beach. I thought I’d just google the pictures and post it here (in case you need the visuals!)

Ok, the above pictures were taken at some really good angles (and maybe during low season). When i was there last week, the beach look a little like this:

Pic credit: Ruionkoh

It was beautiful and i truly enjoyed being washed and pushed by the huge waves.

Note to self: Watching Tsunami videos before going for holiday is not a good idea! Never do it again.

~Cheers!

Phuket :: Day One

For those that know me, I love travelling. So when I got a fantastic deal with a tour to Phuket, I jumped at the opportunity to join. It was a 4days 3 nights trip and quite honestly, I needed the trip. Things have been pretty crazy at work (which is good!) and I need to recharge.

I did a bit of research before we went and found out that Phuket and the surrounding islands of Thailand are simply amazing –that got me super excited as I am a self-proclaim beach person (who doesn’t know how to swim!).

So, lets check out my trip:

Day 1

My flight to Phuket was at 6:50am and arrived there approx 9:00am. We found our tour guide and he was just funny. His name is “Samphan”.

We were suppose to head straight to the hotel and have the entire day to ourselves as the tour will only take place the next 2 days. However, Samphan decided to move the last day’s programme, which is ‘Phuket Discovery Tour’ ahead. The hotel wont let us check in that early, so it seems like a good idea.

According to the itinerary:

Phuket Discovery Tour: In and around Phuket Town. You will see the Chino-Portuguese Style Building of Phuket, followed by visiting Saphan Hin Park, Cashew Nut Factory, Gems Factory, Birdnest Shop, Chalong Temple, Sea Gypsy Village, Rawai Beach, Prompthep Cape where you can view the panorama of its stunning beauty.

My professional review: Crap.

First stop was a T-shirt factory where the owners speak good Malay/Indonesian. The T-shirts I must say are of good quality and SUPER CHEAP! There was only one problem, the designs. I end up buying 1 t-shirt and a fridge magnet.

T-shirts

Next stop, a shop that sells junk food (I was not bothered to know what it was called). And along the way, Samphan pointed the village, the Phuket town etc etc. Basically it’s the non-tourist area. Samphan keep asking “Can you see any European here? Where? Where?...... [pause for 15 seconds] Where? Where? Can you see European? NO!”

Me: Ok, I got the point!

Next stop: A honey shop. We were greeted by a 78-year-old Malaysian who is currently living in Phuket. He brought into a presentation room and start talking about their product. Honey, Royal Jelly etc.

Next stop: A super huge gem shop (not factory!). By this point of time, I was getting restless as I couldn’t wait for the tour to end and jump into the pool.

Once everyone is back on the van, Samphan told us about our next stop(s!). I suggested to skip some, and he asked everyone else in the van. It was truly a miracle as everyone agreed to head straight to the hotel. Thank god!

The hotel is pretty decent. Clean room, spacious bathrooms and nice pool. On top of that, its just a 5-mins walk from Patong Beach.

The hotel's walk-in rates (cheaper online!)

We didn’t waste much time and head straight to the beach.

It was spectacular.

~Cheers!

Heavenly Retreat

Coming Soon

Happy Birthday Liena

As we grow up, many things changed in this chaotic, unsystematic, dramatic, and adventurous life. Of all the people I know, there are extremely very few who stick to their roots as much as I wanted to.

Deep underneath the colourful history, there is one shining and true example of a soul-mate, the one in which most people naively address it as their "best friend".

To me, the person is Liena.




Happy Birthday to the cupcake of my eye. You made my life happier, and may the many years to come brings you loads of happiness (with me around, of course!)

~Cheers!