Friday, August 27, 2010

honeymoon getaway: episode 1 part 2 (Phuket-Phang Nga Bay)

hola2....got a little bz lately & went back to my hometown last week to break fast with my parents...so, part 2 is here...

day 3...today we got up a bit early as we are going on a tour to Phang Nga Bay...after breakfast, we waited at the lobby at 8 am and our pickup van came, we then continued to the assembly point to Phang Nga bay....can't remember the name of the place....we cruised the bay of Phang Nga on a speed boat....damn it was fast....we visited a few islands, the Dog Island (an island where u can see a stone with a dog look on top of the hill), James Bond Island (i guess one of the 007 movie was filmed there), we then went for a canoe ride which was quite fun....my wife really enjoyed it...after that we went to KohPanYee or PanYee Island...it's actually a Muslim village built on top of water....kind of like a water village....our lunch was at Koh Phan Yee...no worries to eat here as it is a muslim village...after lunch, all aboard...we then head to an island where those who wants to take a dip into the sea can go on, for those not interested including me, we juz relaxed on the beach....nothing special or interesting here....the water isn't that intriguing plus i wasn't well prepared to take a dip into the sea....after about an hour, it's time to head back to phuket....the tour was fun, exciting & worth the penny...it was quite cheap though... :P off back to the hotel....








The dog island


James Bond island


James Bond island


Canoe ride








Lunch at Kohpanyee


Kohpanyee Restaurant


Cave explore


arrived at the hotel, took our bath and off we went down to the spa to get ourselves pampered...the package included spa as well, so we used it...unfortunately a booking is needed and the next session will be at 8.30....so went out for a walk at Patong, withdraw some money and looked for the rest of souveniers that we need find....about 8.15 we head back to the hotel and in no time our spa session started....the session was for an hour and it was very soothing...after a whole day on a boat, the spa really rejuvenates my body...nothing beats a relaxing spa after an outing for the whole day...after the spa, it's time to fill up our empty stomach...man we're really starved....we had our late diner at Savoey Sea Food Restaurant...menu for the nite was lobster, tiger prawn, squids & a couple of vege dishes....it was the best seafood we've tasted so far....2,622.00 thai baht for the dishes, about RM260....not bad yet satisfying....there was also a live band performing (not really a band, a duo performing)....it was a really good diner....after diner, we took a nite walk around Patong, seems like most of the shops & restaurant are closed, except for the bars, discos & night clubs....and they were really happening...nice view too... :P before going back to our hotel, we went to Hard Rock Cafe to have a drink while enjoying the live band...after about half an hour, we head back to the hotel to wrap up for the day....


At Burasari Spa








Our diner menu at Savoey


After diner drink at Hard Rock Cafe








Hard Rock Cafe


day 4...time to head back to kl...how i wish we could stay there longer....so much more to do....so much more to see...so many other places to visit....the place & people are nice too...after breakfast, we head to the lobby to checkout and our ride was already there waiting to send us to the airport....we arrived at phuket air port however our flight was delayed...we reached LCCT at about 4.30 pm....overall, we were very satisfied with our honeymoon trip...phuket was fun & interesting....we'll definitely make a 2nd trip to phuket....



We'll be back Phuket

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

honeymoon getaway: episode 1 part 1 (Phuket Fantasea)

sawasdee kah....juz got back from phuket honeymoon yesterday....the whole trip was really marvelous...from day 1 till the last day....the flight, hotel, service, food, people, places, everything was superb....day 1 our flight AK 826 to phuket was 12:40 pm....we reached phuket at about 1 pm local time (2 pm malaysia time)....kind of easy to calculate what time they are as they're 1 hour late than us, GMT+7....phuket international airport was quite nice, not as high tech & fancy as klia but was just nice & perfect....there were free maps & brochures of phuket & even free sim card!....really cool...all i had to do was just top it up at any 7-E...and there are numerous 7-Es at
Phuket...we then exit the airport to the lobby to look for the representative who'll bring us to the hotel....and there we saw 1 guy holding a plycard "Burasari"....and off we went to Burasari at Patong on a toyota camry...the journey took about 30~40 minutes....the driver drove quite fast...nothing much of a scenery on the way though but 1 thing that caught my eye, a factory outlet of nike, adidas, rip curl and a few more others...and according to the driver, things are really cheap there....too bad we couldn't find the time to go there but our next trip to phuket,
we'll definitely be there....

upon entering patong things gets more happening...sceneries are more interesting...and in no time, we arrived at our hotel, Burasari Resort & Spa...the hotel was just perfect...the set up, the landscape, the scenery, the service, the people....u couldn't ask for more....we took the honeymoon package and it includes a welcome honeymoon cake & fruits, elite thai room honeymoon set up, a romantic candle light diner, spa for 2, return airport transport & cocktail drink for 2 (which we didn't have it)....we checked in to our hotel room and took some time to
relax....after that we then went down to the reception to get the username & password for wifi at the hotel and it's free!...and did i mention that the internet speed was superb unlike at any hotel at malaysia....their internet speed technology are better than malaysia....even their cyber cafes have 12 Mbps internet speed!!....


Our hotel, Burasari Resort & Spa


The hotel lobby





Our hotel room











Our honeymoon welcome cake


after getting the username & password for the wifi, we then head to the Patong town to jalan2 for a while and to get me a pair of slippers...the slippers cost me 200 baht which was approximately 20 ringgit...wow!...that was quite costly....due to exhaustion, we then head back to the hotel and get some relax and prepare for our romantic candle light diner...at about 8 pm, we then head to Floyd Brasserie for our romantic candle light diner....Floyd Brasserie is the one & only Keith Floyd's restaurant at Asia...FYI, Keith Floyd is a celebrity chef like chef Wan here at Malaysia...for starters, we had Floyd's Royal Fish Cake & Danny's Phuket Lobster and Fish Soup, the mains we had Sea bass Fillet & North Sea Salmon, and for desert we had Mango Sticky Rice & Deep fried Banana with Vanilla Ice Cream with Maple Syrup...the portion all looks little but i tell u it was really packed and we were really full....after that we went out for a little walk and head back to hotel to call it a day....


Candle light diner at Floyd Brasserie


Starters: Floyd's Royal Fish Cake


Starters: Danny's Phuket Lobster and Fish Soup


Main : Sea bass Fillet








Main : North Sea Salmon


Desert : Mango Sticky Rice


Desert : Deep fried Banana with Vanilla Ice Cream with Maple Syrup


day 2...after breakfast, we went out to have a walk at patong to look for some souvenirs....we walked thru the streets of patong under the average hot sun, went to the beach, and at first thought of going to the phuket zoo....but at 2nd thought, we decided to skip it due to we might not have enough time to get ready for the night's visit & tour to the Phuket Fantasea at Kamala Beach....that's our top priority....so then, we continued to explore patong and also went to one of the shopping complex there...bought a few t-shirts over there and had 3 scopes of ice cream at swensen's....and we then continued in search for phuket souvenirs....we then bumped into a shop selling souvenirs, bought several key chains (standard items as souvenirs), photo frame, a plaque and a few other things...before heading back to the hotel, we went over to hard rock cafe to buy a few t-shirts....another good thing about Burasari is that it's just a walking distance to almost everything, the beach, 7-E, hard rock cafe, halal food restaurant, and many more....mission accomplished for the day, we then head back to the hotel....my wife relaxed at the room while surfing the internet facebooking and i decided to take a dip at the swimming pool....


Patong Beach


Hard Rock Cafe Phuket


at 6 pm, we're at the lobby to head to Phuket Fantasea...the distance was 9 kilometres and in less than half an hour we're at Kamala Beach to go to the Fantasea...upon arriving, we were mesmerized by the beautiful & exotic scenery & landscape of the theme park....even the ticket counter was WOW!!!....even before entering the theme park the entrance was so beautiful that
it is a must to take a few snaps of pic before entering the theme park....and the place was like an ocean of people...we then went in & there was a security check....as soon as we stepped into the theme park, we were speechless by the sight that we saw....the whole place was really & extremely beautiful...i'm out of words, probably u guys can just browse thru the photos or even go there yourself...after enuff of sight seeing & picture taking, we then head to the restaurant to have our diner...it was buffet served and they even have a halal food section which i was really impressed....8.50 pm we then head to the Golden Elephant Palace where the theatre show is at....and the place, it was really stunning...before entering the theatre, we had to hand over our cameras & cell phones and the whole process was really smooth & systematic....the staffs were very helpful & friendly....2 thumbs up...we took the Golden seat due to all other seats were fulled....when we entered the theatre hall, it was like we were in a jungle....the whole set up was really marvelous....at about 9.10 pm, the show started with the marching of the cast to the theatre stage which were elephants!!!....and together with the actors....elephants were marching right behind us and up to the stage!!...i'm really out of words...the show was about the culture of Thailand & about Prince Kamala....how the life & culture of Thailand....the battle between Prince Kamala and the bad guys...the props were superb....the animals that was in the show wasn't only elephants but even chickens, pigeons, lambs & tiger...the show lasted about 1 hour 20 minutes and it was the best theatre show that i have ever watched....out 5 stars i'll give 10 stars...we then exit the theme park and at about 11.30 pm we reached our hotel room with an experience we will never forget...anyone heading to Phuket for vacation of holiday, Fantasea is a must to visit and trust me, the fee is worth the penny...we'll definitely go to Fantasea again if we go to Phuket again...

to be continued on part 2.....stay tuned...

The ticket counter


Outside the entrance


Entrance to the theme park


Inside the theme park