Our second day in Phuket found us riding the hotel shuttle bus into Phuket-town, hoping to walk a bit and check out the beautiful Wats (Thai Bhuddist temples). We find these temples so exotic, yet so peaceful. However, things got interesting as the shuttle pulled to a stop in front of a "tourist office" in town (we thought we were being dropped at a hotel) and we were greeted by enthusiastic taxi drivers/ tour guides who offered to squire us about town for a mere 300 bhat for the day (~ $10 US). We thought... well, okay, air conditioned ride beats roasting heat and getting lost.... so we agreed. Then our trusty guide asked "What you like to see - you want shopping, yes?" Well, uh....no, not really. But somehow we failed to convince him and our first stop was a large tailor shop to order a custom-made suit for Chris. Now we felt just awful as the saleswoman tried so hard to show us the fabulous material and patterns we could choose from. They could make a suit by the end of the day and send to the hotel before we left the next day for about 10,000 bhat (~$330 US). Only problem was, we didn't come to Phuket to buy a suit! Sensing our hesitation, our eager saleswoman asked, "How much you want to spend?" Roxanne, being unable to lie, answered "Well, actually we didn't plan to order a suit at all, so we don't want to spend anything." So much for tact.... so out the door we went, feeling rather small, but hey, we didn't want a suit!! Next stop was the "handicraft" market - this place was full of gemstones and jewelry, textiles and wood carvings - with everything "50% off" Again, Rox's cheap accountant ways and distrust of any sort of large jewelry outlet in a foreign country (too many fakes!) disappointed the hard-working salesfolk, but we did pick up some pillow covers, a doll in traditional Thai dress for Brenna and a couple of carved elephants. So, it wasn't a complete loss! Next, our driver proposed to take us to a shopping street full of inexpensive clothing stalls, but we pled hunger and asked him to take us to lunch instead. He dutifully took us out to the waterfront, where we proceeded to this open-air seafood spot where you pick your dish from the fresh catch. Brenna was completely turned off by choosing her food and refused to eat anything but a plate of french fries. Chris and Rox went with the flow and chose a half dozen tiger prawns, a large lobster and pineapple fried rice (Rox's favorite),washed down by tepid Coca Cola in a glass bottles. Delicious, fresh and a great view to boot!
After lunch, our trusty guide aimed us back at the shopping district even though we asked about the wats/ temples/anything cultural or historic....please.....His reply was, "You want Chinese temple?" Well, umm, not really - we have gorgeous Chinese temples in Penang. We want to see some Wats!! To which he replied, " They not open." Huh? He was so determined to drop us at Robinsons. We just didn't get the logic- how would he earn a kickback from a department store? We changed tactics and let him drop us at the corner, paid him and told him we'd walk back to the shuttle stop by 4 PM. The lunch was worth the aggravation. So, with two hours left, off we went in search of the nearest temples. The Chinese temple was actually very interesting - similar to Penang Chinese temples, but different at the same time. Then we decided to give one of the Wats a try and walked a route that would take us into an older neighborhood with "Sino-Portuguese" style shophouses (according to our guide book). The shophouses were lovely and very similar to Penang's architecturally and we stopped in a great antique shop along the way. What a temptation that was, but again, "skeptical Sally" was afraid of getting duped and the only thing we really loved was out of our price range (although considering what you would pay for it in the US, it wasn't bad - maybe next time). So, on to the Wat we went. Unsurprisingly, it was not only open, but welcomed visitors (obviously the monks offer no commission!). The complex included a primary (elementary) school and active monastery. It was quite lovely and certainly worth the walk.
After our long day in the city heat, we stopped for a cold juice and then hopped the shuttle to the hotel where Rox had scheduled a "balancing" facial and foot massage at the spa. It was a terrific way to cool down and revive tired feet. Dinner at the Thai restaurant completed a lovely, but tiring day. We had a great time in Phuket and plan to try the water activities like snorkeling and kayaking on our next visit!
No comments:
Post a Comment