Looking back - Phuket

Hi all, I have, unfortunately, decided to put some kind of compulsion onto myself to write about the trips, whatever trips they may be, onto my blog (since this is a travel blog). Sorry if you find it a bit ridiculous, but I just thought I'd prefer having them blogged to losing significant thoughts and un-photographed memories of some of the trips I have made. So in this post today, I shall write a belated report on my very short trip to Phuket I made last year. So, read on if you think it worthwhile...

Like other short trips I have made, my trip to Phuket (see map) last September was unforgettable. All the more, it was barely 2 days after the Royal Thai Army ousted the Thai government. Others said that the overthrow was a subsequence to the year-long political crisis which involved the then Thai President Thaksin Shinawatra and his political opponents. As for me, I am not quite sure myself what triggered or what happened before the Thai military coup though I thank God for the coup d’état’ was bloodless.

I remember at that time many government officials around the world immediately issued travel warnings for Thailand. The Australian, New Zealand and Denmark government were amongst those who strongly advised their fellow citizens to avoid going to the country. They also violently urged ‘their people’ who were already in the country to leave while a must-visit were limited only to those with family agenda or on other important purposes.

The Hong Kong Secretary for Security had also appealed to its Hong Kong residents in Thailand to take care of themselves, their property and their personal safety. And the Prime Minister of Malaysia, Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, on the other hand, requested his fellow Malaysians who wished to enter Thailand to continuously monitor the country's situation before going.

So with such upheaval, I was certainly concerned if it was really safe to travel in Phuket (even though it was for only 3 days). There were thoughts of cancelling the trip or postponing it to a ‘better time’. But because the Singapore government did not rule out its citizens from making their way to the country, I continued making my way there, taking Singapore’s non-ruling out as green light, assuming that Thailand is considerably a safe place to visit.

# My First Impressions

As a first timer to Thailand, I must admit that I was a little nervous about my stay there. Though I may be familiar with the frequently represented Thai food like Tom Yam Kung and Pad Thai, and roughly know where Thailand is on the world map, Thai language and culture were something I have always been totally unaware of. So I left myself a bit to learn about Thailand when I got there.

It rained a bit when I arrived in Phuket. The ground was wet but the climate remained as hot as that in Singapore, perhaps even hotter up there in Phuket. The 2-hr flight journey on budget JetStar was rough with some continuous air turbulence as the flight routed north along the west coast of Peninsula Malaysia. Phuket International Airport was, to my surprise, in the middle of a rural community and so, it was surrounded by villages and a vast number of hills that looked somewhat pristine and like untouched wilderness. It was weird nevertheless but things did look promising. Plus, there were no signs of the coup.

As soon as I exited the arrival hall, I was picked up by a few local men, as requested. But I remember feeling anxious at that time as I felt somewhat lost given the sudden help with my luggage from 'some other' local men hanging around outside the airport. I could not really tell then who amongst them were working for the travel agency I was with.

But no problems with that and all soon. No men seemed to be overdoing things and so the trip continued on safely. The 'few local men' and I soon left the airport for Patong Beach via a 15-seater van. Well, in case you're wondering, I was on the trip with Kenji and some other people I do not know. So there was Kenji plus 13 other people I was travelling with in the van that drove us all to our accommodation in Patong Beach.

Patong Beach, for your information, was where I was lodged for the next 3 days. Patong Beach is located south of the airport, and north west of Phuket Town, about 3 km in distance. As I made my way to Patong Beach on that day, I passed by many mosques and Buddhist temples, and it did not take me long to find Phuket somewhat familiar.


Phuket, to me, was in many ways identical to the rural areas of Malaysia. Phuket was mountainous and developing. There were lots of greeneries and heaps of land areas. And again, they all looked somewhat untouched and pristine. I was overjoyed.

# Spending My Days There

I didn’t do much on my first day in Patong Beach. I spent my time resting on bed soon after I checked in (and that is very typical of me!). But before long, I found myself sank in to a Tsunami guide book which was deliberately placed on the bedside table in my room (which I suppose acts as a guide book for all guests to read).

I found the book rather interesting and thought of it as very informative. The book had also given me mixed feelings as I saw some real-life photographs of the 2004 Tsunami that damaged Phuket and some other regions of south and south east of Asia. 2 of the photographs that were in the book seemed captured just before the approach of the first wave though.

It was heartbreaking I thought when I looked at some pictures of people who just stood by the beach, staring suspiciously at the retreated sea water, instead of running away from it. The last section of the book, however, contained some scientific explanations on Tsunami. That section nevertheless reminded me so much of my 3rd year uni Tsunami essay (which I didn't excel in apparently).

So having rested enough and getting all oriented with my immediate surrounding environment, I spent the next 2 days venturing around Phuket Island. I went on a day-tour in Phang Nga (outside Phuket) on my second day there, and walked around Patong Beach on my third.

In Phang Nga, I took the water tour via canoe where I was canoed deep into the Phang Nga Bay (and later helped the guide canoe the boat back as he playfully told me he got a bit tired - luckily I know how to canoe a boat!). We then boat-ed to James Bond Island, had traditional Thai seafood as lunch at a stilt-built Muslim fishing village, and then took a 30-min elephant ride in the jungle before touring a jewellery-making factory.


The next morning was spent packing bags, walking along the beach, checking out one nearby mosque and walking around the resort accommodation, particularly in search of nearby halal food stalls for the breaking of fast later. After that I spent the rest of the day resting at the lobby as I was fasting (it was the 1st day of Ramadhan then) and I had not much energy to spare as my flight back to Singapore was only at the end of the day.

# The People of Phuket

For Phuket, what moved me during my 3-day stay there were the people. Although Phuket may be considerably sleazy (everywhere in Patong Beach I went, I could see slim, tanned prostitutes with fat, old, white men walking together, or some, travelling together on motorbikes), it is nevertheless one place I found to have the friendliest faces around. To me, the people of Phuket never seemed to fail putting on a smile. They also spoke with much grace and have good mannerisms. What's more, with the different religious groups existing on the island, the people of Phuket nonetheless seemed to live harmoniously together as one community.

The following might not be an illustration of the above at all though I strongly think I should put it up somewhere on blog: I remember appreciating one of the tourguides for his sensitivity with regards to my religious belief. The van I was on (on the day I arrived, remember?) had apparently stopped by a huge Buddhist temple for a short tour. The temple, located close to Patong Beach, was probably one of the highlights of Phuket Island and was holding a kind of religious celebration on that day.

Instead of asking everybody to leave the van to check out the temple, one of the agents who happened to be a Buddhist, probably upon seeing me with a headscarf and knowing that I am indeed a muslim, told me that I could stay in the van if I wished to not look around the temple. I was amazed at the amount of respect, understanding and sensitivity he had for me. I thanked him for it, of course, but still went out to look around the temple as I enjoy seeing different religious architecture such places could offer.

Overall, Phuket, to me, was awesome. Phuket seemed perfectly normal and ostensibly safe to visit despite the Thai military coup being in operation. Like I said, thank God the coup d’état’ was bloodless. On my part, I am glad I went. Though it was a very short trip, I still get to see some parts of Phuket and met some of its awesome locals who did not fail to move me...perhaps, just like those locals I met in the other short trips I have made.

PS. Many locals I met kept thinking I was their fellow Thai. From the tour guides on the day tour to the elephant-keepers, they asked me, incessantly, in Thai language, if I was Thai and then changed to English as soon as they realized I couldn't understand them. I remember telling one of them how honoured I felt being mistaken for a Thai. Ha ha. What a sucker!

**For more of my Phuket trip pictures, do check out the post Postcards from Thailand**

Map Reference:

Phuket maps, Thailand patong beach, kata and Karon, Available [Online]: http://www.gothailand.com/phuket/indexmaps.htm