around the world in 28 days

Thanks to everyone who helped us celebrate Joe’s 30th birthday before we left on our trip. Today we’re celebrating the real thing…

We spent our first night in Thailand in Phuket, an island on the Andaman Sea. Phuket was a good place for getting oriented and figuring out the ‘systems’ (i.e., where the heck do you go to catch the sarong taa, or inner-island buses, that take you to your beach?). We ended up staying on Kata Beach at the Kata on Sea Bungalows (for less than $40/night – not an unusual price). That night we walked down to the beach, which was beautiful, but not spectacular. We also had our first Thai meal, cooked by a woman and her son out of a small shop that seemed to double as their house. (See pics below.)

One thing that didn’t escape our notice on Kata Beach was the sex trade. Once the sun went down the place seemed to get seedier and seedier, with some lecherous men walking the streets. It didn’t feel unsafe at all, but it felt kind of dirty. To be fair, I should mention that once the sun went down I suspected any and all males walking around by themselves to be ‘looking for love.’ ) I should also mention that I’ve heard there are some really nice places on Phuket where this is not the case.

A note about the dinner… It was delicious! I got pad thai, and Joe got panang curry. Both dishes were great, and unlike when I cook them, they were cooked up in a flash. I couldn’t believe how fast the chopping, cutting, and cooking were all done. That lady was a pro. However, the standard of cleanliness left a little to be desired. In between my dish and Joe’s she cleaned the wok — that is, she bent down to a bucket of water sitting on the ground that seemed to have some soap in it, got a little out with a small bucket, put it in the hot pan, dumped it, and proceeded to cook Joe’s meal. While we were eating we also noticed a small dog walking around their restaurant/home. I had to force the thought out of my head that the ‘sink’ could also double as his water dish. Did I mention that the food was delicious?? Because it was. We woofed it down (no pun intended), and to date we have not gotten sick from it.

From Phuket we finally picked an island to hop to – Ko Yao Noi. It’s a very small, sleepy Muslim island that doesn’t get as much tourism as the others. We were looking for a place exactly like this. We are staying in a little bungalow on the beach – right on the beach. Today, for Joe’s birthday, we rented a tandem kayak and rowed our way out to a small island that for a while we had all to ourselves (see pics). It was a great day. We swam in the water, rowed around to another part of the island, and ate a lunch that was packed for us by the hotel.

Ok, this post is getting really long, so I will stop here and let the pics speak for themselves. Hope everyone’s well!

Has anyone gotten postcards from us??