World cruise 30

March 8

We're in Thailand ... Specifically at the resort island of Phuket. Margaret went off to tour around, have lunch, and ride an elephant. Film (or at least photo) at 11.

I just took the basic half-day tour then shopped around, well, mostly looked around, at the sort of instant market that had materialized right outside the fence next to the ship. It was amazing! Pop-up canopies, lean-tos propped on tuk-tuks, anything that would make a spot of shade over a table, and you had a stall. Some were pretty large and elaborate with racks of clothing.

As for the tour, our first stop was at a fantastic Buddhist temple called Wat Chalong. It has an unusual layout for a temple, but I didn't take off my shoes to go in.

Much of our tour was driving by beaches and resort hotels. We saw Karon, Patong, Kamala and Surin beaches along Phuket's west coast. Our guide described the amount of damage in each area from the December 26, 2004 tsunami. Interestingly, it was different in each area due to the physical geography of each. For example, Karon beach has a sort of stable sand dune allthe way along which absorbed much of the force so it only went 100 meters or so inland. Patong, on the other hand, doesn't have that protection and is a larger area and flatter, so the wave went farther and did more damage.

Then there was a stop at a cashew nut factory. The area's top 3 cash crops are rubber, coconuts and cashews in that order. The nut is not inside the fruit, but at the bottom of it. It is removed and then boiled to make it possible to remove the nut from its hull. No wonder they are so expensive!

Finally, we drove back to the port, passing a number of interesting spots including examples of Sino-Portugueseq architecture in Old Town which were impossible to photograph from the bus and this magnificent Chinese temple.

I promised film at 11. Here it is.

March 9

Yea! Hooray! A sea day! Sleep in, putter around slowly, talk to folks, and watch the water go by. This day, however, Margaret and I spent some time getting ready for our 2-day private tour in Myanmar which begins bright and early tomorrow.