Saturday, July 22, 2017

Beach Time in Khao Lak, Thailand

 



     Today we woke up very early to catch out flight to Phuket on our way Khao Lak.   We got through airport security and were waiting for our flight.   After we got on the plane and flew for about an hour and ten minutes we were there.   When we first got out of the airport, it was so humid.   We had to look for our driver but finally found him and he took us to our hotel.  It took about an hour to drive to Khao Lak.  When we arrived at our hotel Moracea, my Dad got our room keys and we were ready to go to our rooms.   The rooms were very nice (Hibiscus Deluxe which were located on the hill with 2 rooms per floor, 2 floors per building).  My sister and I shared a room and my Mom and Dad had a room.  There was a door that connected them.   Ally did a video tour of the room on Instagram, so you might want to check that out.  Especially the large window sitting areas we used every afternoon when it rained to read in.  After we were done checking out our room, we got our swimsuits on and went to the pool.  We hung out at the pool for a while and then got to go to the ocean.  One of my favorite parts of that day was when Ally, Dad, and I went out into the giant waves and jumped and dived into them.   After we got all dried off, we went back to the room for some hang-out time before dinner.   For dinner we ate at the hotel, I got all-American food:  a cheeseburger, French fries, and a Fanta!   I was so excited because I hadn’t eaten American food in so long.  Mom and Dad got Thai food and it was all very pretty and tasty.  After we finished dinner, we went back to the room and watched a really cool movie, Karate Kid II.
     The next morning, we were really excited because we got to sleep in! My Mom and Dad woke first then me after that Ally. While I was waiting for Ally I got to watch morning cartoons. After everybody was up we went to breakfast (which is included in our stay).   For breakfast, I got pancakes!  They had a few Thai dishes, Western, including an omlette bar...and Ally's favorite granola and yogurt bar with lots of kinds of dried fruit.   After breakfast, we took a stroll back to our room.  We got all of our stuff ready and walked into town.   The first stop was the market (only about 10 minutes from out hotel) because we needed some snacks to hold us off until dinner.  We didn’t eat lunch very often.  It was cool because all of the basic needs were in one town, like clothes, food, restaurants, and stores.  After we left the market we bought a boogie board because they had some pretty killer waves.  After we left town, we went back to the hotel and got on our swim suits.  We were really excited to try our new boogie board.  We ran down to the beach and played there for quite a while.   That day Ally and Dad went out to try the boogie board and Mom and I built a sand car on the beach.  After Ally and Dad came back, they were ready to take me out so I went out and played in the waves.   Playing in the waves was super fun, but a storm started rolling in so we had to go back to our room.   In our room, we had snacks and hung out for a very long time.   After we went our hotel, we walked back into town and went to a cute little restaurant called Qcumber.  I just got a bowl of cereal, but after that I was in for a treat.  McDonalds!!!!    McDonalds was in a big building.   My mom and Dad let me go because I couldn’t find many things I would eat at the Thai Restaurant.  My Mom loved her Papaya Salad.  Dad had more curry and Ally a a Nutella and banana sandwich. After that, we went back to the hotel and off to bed.
The next two days were pretty much the same.  We woke up, ate breakfast went to the beach, went in when it rained, and went out for dinner.  One night we went to Smile.  We were greeted by a French guy who showed us all the specials and then we went in to eat.  Yippeee!  Chicken nuggets.  My parents had dishes that were a mix-up of french meets Thai.  For example spring rolls that also included cheese.  On our final day Mom and Dad booked us massages at our hotel (between 10AM-2PM it was 20% off, so a 1 hr massage was about $28).  I got an oil massage it was very relaxing.  My sister and parents got a massage called a Balinese.  They really liked it.  Before our massages we had very cold water to drink and after they gave us ginger tea.  It was really strong and I didn’t like it.  They also scrubbed our feet before the massage and it tickled me.  Our last dinner was a beach side restaurant called Krua Thai.  My Mom was a little worried about us getting there as it was a 15 minute songthaew ride there and the end was a muddy road.  For dinner I had spaghetti with tomato sauce and garlic bread and a shake.  This was a very fun place because it was right on the beach there were several swings including one that allowed you to swing out right over the water.  For dessert we had a banana crepe with ice cream…it was so good!  My parents loved this place.

  
We spent our final night in Thailand in Phuket at the Marriott Phuket Beach Club.  We had to wait several hours to get into our room. While we were waiting we got lunch and went swimming in a big pool with a water slide.  When we got in our room we ordered room service and I took a bath in the gigantic tub.  Mom was also excited because she could do laundry.  Early to bed though because we had a very early flight in the morning to Cambodia.

Mom's Extra Commentary:  Khao Lak is about an hour north of the more famous tourist destination of Phuket.  Khao Lak was the region hardest hit by the 2004 tsunami, but you wouldn't know it today other than the International Tsunami Museum.  Also when traveling to this area...one thing to note is scuba diving is shut down during rainy season.   Khao Lak seemed much more affordable than Phuket.  The Marriott Phuket Beach Club was beautiful, but very, very expensive...food were western prices+, nothing is included as it is a residence.  We had been spoiled until now as every hotel before the Marriott and every hotel after includes breakfast buffets.  We did get a welcome drink, and fresh ice water by the pools, as well as a stack of coupons to off-set things a bit...or get them back to at least American prices.  At least Andy got the room with points.

5 comments:

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Unknown said...

The swing looked like fun. I love hearing about all your eating adventures. Hope you cook me some Thai dishes when I visit soon. Love, Nana

Unknown said...

Love your blogs Alec!!! Keep them coming!!!

Unknown said...

The adventures keep coming - love it! And I'm with you alec - and need some good old American good every now and then.

steve said...

Good job on the Blogs. Keep up the good work! MacDonalds is everywhere...