Mulloskeys Adventures Abroad

Seeing how my mom was already in Asia, it made sense to make the most of her long journey and treat her to some of the world’s best food, beaches and culture: Thailand. While we finished up our contract at ECC, she flew ahead with her friend to explore some of the rural areas before meeting us in Bangkok the day after New Year’s to fly to the islands.

Nerd alert: At the airport I saw my first Airbus 380. It’s the largest passenger plane in the world!

Erin and I used our air miles to book our flights. The flight would cost 30,000 miles for the two of us. Unfortunately there were no more coach flights available. However, for whatever reason, first-class would cost us 35,000 miles. Flying in Asia is already superior to North America in terms of comfort and service. Of all the airlines we have used, Thai airways really is the jewel of the skies. Now by happy coincidence we would be flying first-class on (in our humble opinion of the one’s we’ve flown) the worlds top airline. I know many of you have done it before, but domestic Air Canada first-class compared to International Thai “Royal Silk” first class is like comparing a Super 8 motel to the Four Seasons.

Humour us. We will probably never (read: will for sure always be too poor to ever) get to do this again. And if anyone appreciates the combination of luxury and travel… it’s us. Mostly because, though our travels have been widespread, luxury doesn’t enter into the equation. Express check in, priority baggage and first class lounge are all staples of the ticket. I was sure as hell going to get my money’s worth (or meager 5000 extra air miles worth) . The lounge even had massage chairs , personal showers, and sleeper rooms. Naturally, I used the ‘business centre’ to check the hockey pool.

Boarding at our leisure, I triumphantly took that early left turn down the red carpet ramp to waiting champagne, hot towel and the wall street journal (which I only pretended to read briefly for the effect).  Our seat was so huge that, when fully reclined (yes fully… like into a bed!!) my feet still could not touch the seat in front of me. Oh yeah,  and the seat had a built-in massage function. I laid down full out, being massaged for 6 hours … and read my food options from a printed menu (high-grade cardstock) of what I might eat for my 4 course meal.

Here is one of the menus to give you an example.

The roasted sesame encrusted smoked wild trout was a nice starter on the first flight.  The salmon mouse pictured below was from the flight back to Seoul. Did I mention they lay a table cloth in front of you before bringing the tray? Fresh baked bread was politely tonged onto your side dishes. And we got real wine classes that never emptied.

For desert, accompanying our blueberry yogurt flan and cheesecake was and assortment of liquors and cognacs (which I now LOVE). Finally the hostess, would circulate the first class cabin with a cheese and fruit cart!!!! It took all of about 2 hours to feel better than everyone in the back of the plane. I remember saying to Erin “When are they going to close that curtain? When we land they better let us off before the commoners”.  Haha. How am I ever going to go back?

Will travelling Thai Airways first class really be half the content of this post, and 9 full days on the beach the other half??  You betcha.

The first night on Koh Phagnan we piled into a cheap bungalow. A couple of beer Chang and a pad thai later, and we were in bed. The next day we went waterside and hopped in a taxi (actually the back of a pickup truck with benches) and headed north. We had no reservations and had our fill of calling around. It was time to hit a beach and walk from place to place. Watch your head… the roads are bumpy. Every fare is negotiable.

We found exactly what we were looking for at Sandy Bay Beach Bungalows on Haad Yao. It was the perfect balance of quiet but still with some places to go for food, drinks and massages when we wanted variety.

The first 3 nights were in this cool place that had an outdoor bathroom.  It was a private garden surrounded by a 6-foot tall stone wall with no roof…. complete with all amenities. A bit unnerving at night, but taking a shower, or a shit, in the open air is simply marvelous.

I came to get something in the room one night and found a huge cockroach. I’m sure that is normal for the island but not for me. I freaked. All my bags and clothes were on the floor. Under them a 2nd cockroach.  I was sure not to tell the ladies about it, nor actually sleep for the remaining nights in that cabin.

It was peak season. We had to wait for our own beach hut for one more night. Up the hill we went as my mom took the one beach hut available. This place was really cool, with a wicked view. The porch was rickety and after the following shot, she refused to step one foot on it.

Finally, our (my) dream has come true. A beach bungalow right on the sand with a hammock on the porch. HEAVEN! And the bungalow had a fridge. We wisely bought our booze from the store up the road, saving what surely would have amounted to hundreds of dollars for the week. Pics and video barely do it justice.

Massages, massages. Naturally, this was a daily affair. We tried almost every place on the beach until the creme de la creme revealed itself to these oiled and soothed critics. The hard part was deciding when to go. Before sunset? After? Lunch time? There is no bad time really.

Our first 2 breakfasts were right on the beach. The tide is high in the morning and goes out towards the evening. Warm, clam and perfectly clear water lapped at our toes while we sipped our morning coffees and fruit smoothies.

We tried to eat a late brunch and big dinner. Lunch was mostly snack time for Erin and I. It was a chance to get out of the sun for a while and chill on a cool thai pillow.

It seems the idea of fresh fish displayed and barbequed beach side has become a phenomenon for every restuarant on the beach. No problem here. And again, everything was negotiable. As a cook and foodie I loved being ably to examine the fish, talk about seasoning, chose my own combinations of veggies, and bargaining every step of the way. Plus I had to “enjoy watching the cooking” to make sure the chef wouldn’t spit in it for me being such a hard ass. Every other night we just went to our favorite restaurant on the hill for traditional thai food.

Breakfast was a surprising highlight. One of the reasons is because Erin and I spent the first  2 hours every morning on the computer trying to find another job in Korea. We were starving. The “High Life” restaurant is a must for any Haad Yao-ers. Though the portions are not at all like the photos (clearly taken off the internet), and the service slow and occasionaly moody, the view is second to none.

This made my mom really happy. She kept saying she felt like she was in the classic movie “South Pacific” which I couldn’t muster the will to lie and say I would watch sometime. Regardless. It was awesome. The best part was the infinity pool. I had never been in one, and certainly doubt I will be in one this awesome again. Every morning since its discovery, and I mean every morning, we ate breakfast and said hell to the waiting 30 minutes before swimming and dove in.

 

What week stint on any island is complete without a trip into town. If you are one of the 2 readers of this blog, you know how much we like going to markets, if not solely for the food. Should some haggling for merchandise transpire along the way, whats the harm except for more weight in our packs.  Warning – do not try and bargain with your mother beside you. Try acting disinterested to a clerk and your mom saying “But you said you really liked it. It looks great on you”. Welcome to fullpriceville, population me.

(Side bar: the humidity on this trip gave my hair the volume it so desperately needed).

Being near our favourite restaurant on the island, it was time to finally start treating oursleves. No more ‘roughing’ it like the last 8 glorious days. Our last visit to the island was over 3 years ago. Lots has changed, regretably for the worse. The more people who come here, the more built up and commercialized it gets. The change is remarkable to any repeat visitor. One thing hadn’t changed. Milky Bay Resort food was still top notch, its decor even classier. It was worth every one of the $80 (an extravagant luxury meal price) for several drinks and 2 courses each. No tax and tip.  Here are the food and drinks:

Three years after our first Thailand trip and I am still wearing the unique Thai style pants/shorts I bought. Similar ones purchased in Cambodia and Indonesia just weren’t the same quality. So when a woman approached us on the beach with 30 pair to sell I had to splurge. I bought 4 for about $10 after negotiating. The next day, she walked by with 30 new ones… with cool elephant print and other thai patterns that I had never seen before. Argggh.. I had to buy those as they were even better. And when am I going to be in Thailand again, right? I bought 3 pairs for $10 (the pattern ones are more expensive).  Wouldn’t you know it…  two days later she comes buy again with hand made patchy shorts!!  A hippie’s dream wear. I couldn’t believe it. They were the most amazing things I had ever seen. Where were these yesterday I lamented!!! Of course, they were more expensive because of sewing each square. I bought 2. When am I ever going to wear those first 4 pair? Here they are in all their glory:

It took until the last day for the sun to provide a decent sunset. Thoughh up all day, there had always been clouds on the horizon to interrupt its retreat from the sky. Cool low clouds from the east provided an eerie yet spectacular glow over the whole bay. Our great 9 days on Phagnan was over. One night on its neighbor Kho Samui would follow before we returned to Bangkok.

We spent our last night on the much busier and more developed Samui. It was really my intention to simply show my mom some elephants and a nice waterfall before she went home. Plus it broke up the ferry ride back to the mainland. We dropped our bags and headed for the waterfall and elephants. This was our 3rd time on an elephant. Erin got to ride the big male. My mom and I went together on a younger one. The best part is halfway through the trek, the guide gets off and you get to sit behind its head and ‘drive’. I’ll let pics tell the rest of the story. I’m so proud of my mom for riding on the elephant’s head… scarier than it sounds.

  

Follow that up with a beautiful waterfall – brilliant.

We had an amazing last night and dinner on the beach. I won’t bore you with more pictures. Let me say just one thing. Banana Pancake.

The next day it was time to board our ferry and head out.

The warm ocean air whipping through my voluminous hair was only the second best part of the boat ride. About 30 minutes in I felt wet on my toes. Unable to figure out what the eff was going on I finally bent down to look under my seat. ‘Who’s my best buddy? That’s right.. who’s a good boy?  You are.. yes you are… yess. you are….’

Bangkok airport is the busiest in Asia. Being crowded by a bunch of tanned Europeans is not the ideal place to bid farewell to a tearful mother.  It was hard to say goodbye. But it was an amazing trip.

Now Erin and I head to Bangkok and a desperate attempt to find a teaching job in Korea. Of course, it wasn’t all work and no play…stay tuned.