Wedding vibes in Phuket

The previous post in this series is here..

Day 8 of our trip saw us say bye to Chiang Mai and go to Phuket.

Air Asia was interesting. The lines were long but moving along. When it was our turn we found the one checked bag was 4 kg overweight. The lady at the counter said we would have to pay 40 bucks anyways, so might as well adjust and check in the carry on bags for that price. So we checked everything. This was a direct flight and we were hoping that our bags show up with us when we get to Phuket.

We got picked up at the airport and had an almost 2 hour drive to the JW Marriott Khao Lak resort and spa.

After checking in we realized it was already time to join the Mehendi party.. so we cleaned up, took some pictures and walked to the beach where I was treated to smiling familiar beautiful faces. The whole gang was there and we were just so happy to be there! Accidentally ended up twinning with my buddy, the grooms dad! He keeps his social media profile at near zero levels.. but at least I get to post one photo! We were also so happy to see the bride and groom! These two kids made us so happy with the way they kept it cool for all of us!

There was a fire show and dinner and we called it a night when it got a little chilly. We had our first argument on the trip after 8 days when the smell of the mehendi shut down my nose and lungs and San refused to wash it off before coming to bed citing that the redness of the mehendi had a higher priority over my lungs.

One evening back with her friends and my lungs went down on the priority list.

Had to resort to a vicks inhaler to just breathe again and sleep. The next morning she was very happy with the end result and given she was smiling from ear to ear, I temporarily let go of the animal cruelty..

Many of my friends from Cupertino also told me to put my camera away and just enjoy the wedding.. so I took a few photos with my iPhone and that was it.

Here is a video highlight reel..

My screen time for this week is through the roof.. but it looks like I will finish writing about the Thanksgiving trip before Christmas and that is a good thing!

Saying bye to Chiang Mai from an underrated hotel

The previous post in this series is here..

It was day 8 of our trip. We were finally going to wake up late or that was the plan. The breakfast folks came and knocked at 6:30 AM. Given we had gotten used to waking up very early the entire trip, I got up and decided to walk to the local 7-Eleven. San decided to take it easy.

After eating breakfast and having Chai we had time to spend till Joy and Goy were going to show up to take us to the airport. We put our luggage at the lobby and did a photoshoot for San. The hotel we stayed in was called Sunny V Hotel and how it gets only 3 stars is beyond me. It was fantastic and grand and the staff were super nice.

After taking pictures we took a photo with Joy and Goy. We defintely miss the guides and drivers the most after this trip. Genuinely nice folks. Would definitely recommend Joy to others for sightseeing in Chiang Mai.

Then we were off to the airport..

A video highlights reel..

We loved our time in Chiang Mai. The place and the people made an impression! Traveling the world may not be everyone’s cup of tea and not everyone is fortunate to do what we do. When we go places our perception of ourselves and others changes. We can see that people are people. Sincerely wish more people in the United States get to travel the world and change their worldview.

Our next stop was Phuket.. the highlight of the entire trip!

Our last evening in Chiang Mai- Massage first, dinner next

The previous post in this series is here..

It took us a good two hours to come from the National park back to Chiang Mai city center.

San wanted to get a facial done and Goy was on the phone for us talking in Thai to get an appointment. There was a place near the night market called Peak Spa which was high end but strongly recommended by the couple. So we booked the earliest appointment possible at 7. They also called and confirmed that our laundry was delivered to our hotel. So we breathed a sigh of relief. We were dropped off at the Spa after Joy showed us exactly how to go from the center to the spa and back.

We had 40 minutes to spend before the facial and massage. Given San was going to be busy for an hour, what was I to do? Booked another massage.. this time it was the same one hour at double the price. Truth be told when you lie face down on a neck pillow and your eyes are closed and you are half meditative, the ambiance of the room doesn’t matter. Still booked it and it was a good decision.

We walked to the food court and San ate some Mango sticky rice. She had decided the previous day that she had to have it. After that I was sent to search for an earring she had lost post massage the previous day.. sadly could not find it.

We walked to Peak spa and came across this market that had a zillion elephants and other trinkets. They were also announcing a kick boxing match on the speakers.. it was interesting but our time was up. We showed up at the massage place, had the facial and massage in the same room and after an hour, started walking back to the center to find dinner. We checked out a few placed and decided Curry Express was the best bet. Had a fantastic dinner and decided go head back to the hotel.

We found another Tuk Tuk and were ready to crash in the hotel. Our legs were tired.

A very short video of the night market.

The next morning we were to start late and head to the airport starting at 10:30 AM