What's Next?

I know, I know. It's been more than a week since I last posted. I'm happy to be home and I do want to keep up the blog. I still have KL and KTV highlights to post, not to mention holiday happenings in the coming months. If you're reading, bear with me. I've got a few things to catch up on in the City by the Bay, but I hope to be blogging again soon.

Just Phuket (Part 2)

Now that I'm able to load images, here are some of the top 10 highlights (and lowlights) of our Phuket vacation.

1. The beach. My love for the beach is well known. Add a good book and a great friend into the mix and I'm in heaven.

2. The pool. When we got tired of the beach, we came here. Not to shabby, eh?

3. The elephant ride. Honestly, we thought this was going to be a lot cooler than it was. I mean, we knew elephants didn't walk quickly but we were not prepared for the slow (and steep!) journey we experienced. We half-joked that our elephant and its mahout (aka driver) were both about 300 years old, but it was true. They were both up there in years and the whole thing made us feel kind of sad. On the one hand, we can say we rode an elephant in Thailand, and how many people have that opportunity! On the other, we wished we'd asked how much to just take our picture on top and then left.

3 1/2. Needless to say, given Jen's distinct dislike of monkeys, we did not patronize the monkey show on the same property. It was all I could do to convince her to take this photo.

4. The views. Since we had plenty of time on the elephant (30 minutes seemed like an eternity), we had the chance to see some beautiful scenery. This was actually taken at a separate vista point, however.

5. Bangla Road. This is where the major party scene is. About a 15-20 minute walk from our hotel in Patong, it was close enough that we could enjoy it but far enough away that we could get away when we were over it. Sure, there are some normal bars and clubs with live music (see number 10), but there were also a lot of seedy entertainment options. Bangla Road was both a highlight and a low light because we literally saw a little bit of everything. Let's leave it at that on the blog.

6. The architecture. These old shop houses were located in Phuket Town in the center of the island. We weren't overly impressed with Phuket Town (shopping not nearly as good as Bangkok or Bali), but we thought these buildings were beautiful.

7. The food. Of the countries I've visited, I think Thailand has the best food, hands down. Poolside food isn't typically great but this pineapple rice was amazing!

8. The Thai massage. Simply wonderful. If you've never had one, it's much more physical than a normal massage you'd receive in the U.S. It was our first time and we were in the same room (kind of like a couples massage but not like that either!). You have to wear these big fisherman's cotton pants and they put a towel over your bare skin while massaging, beating, kicking, elbowing and slapping the stress away. Whatever, it worked. It was kind of funny when Jen's leg fell off her Thai lady's shoulders and the woman giggled, "strong woman!"

9. The ridiculously inverted cost of some things. For example:

- 60-minute Thai massage: $250 Baht/$300 with tip (approx. $7.50/$9)

- Driver for most of the day: 400 Baht (approx. $12)

- Drink at a show: 500 Baht (approx. $15) Note: drinks elsewhere were less expensive, only 50 Baht on the beach so only $1.50 but still!

10. Funny things and inside jokes. 69 Baht foot long. Gross Street. Elvis and Tom Jones memorial cover bands (um, last time I checked Tom Jones was alive?!). They were funny to us, anyway.

Unfortunately, one thing we didn't get to do was take a boat to Phi Phi Island. It rained a ton on Sunday morning when we wanted to go, and we just didn't want to risk the chance of the boat not making it back in time for our flight on Monday. We both said if we ever return we might actually want to stay in that area for a different experience, but it was great fun overall.

Next stop: Jen's currently in Cambodia, and this weekend we're going to Kuala Lumpur (it's my last weekend in Asia!).

Phuket Part 1

Yesterday was yet another public holiday in Singapore: Deepavali, the Hindu festival of lights celebrating the Rama's homecoming after a 14-year exile. It was my last three-day weekend, and Jen and I were determined to take advantage of it, so we set out for Phuket, Thailand.

Phuket is an island well-known for its beaches and its party scene. Both lived up to the expectations and we had a great time. Unfortunately, however, I'm having trouble with Blogger images so I'll save the meat of my post for tomorrow. TTFN!

Jen's first day

Jen arrived in Singapore safely and on time around noon. She even let me hug her! We did a little walking tour around the Arab Street/Raffles City/Riverwalk area then had dinner at Boat Quay along the river. But before dinner we checked off one of the top 10 tourist destinations in Singapore - something I surprisingly hadn't done yet.

We had a Singapore Sling at the Long Bar in the Raffles Hotel, where the drink originated. It must be the start of a great long weekend!

Sweeney Collins Neal Preview

I'm super excited about Jen's trip to Singapore. So much so, that I thought I'd preview her visit (she's en route somewhere over the Pacific now) with a few past antics. Enjoy!

Final four!

Halloween: Martha & Amy

Captiola 2.0

Apparently we were into exercising that year!

And don't forget the Christmas celebrations! (I believe LMB titled this photo "KCN Seriously")

This is the night I accidentally broke her rib in an enthusiastic hug. She's fine now, don't worry...but she might be reluctant to hug me upon her arrival. :)

Fun Videos

Not much to report here personally, but I thought you'd enjoy these videos. Feel free to watch them, rate them if you want to on YouTube, and become of fan of this Facebook fan page if you like it: http://www.facebook.com/HPTouchPrintGo. Even if you're not on Facebook you can take a look at the page and see what's been going on here. I think they're really cute, and I hope you do, too.

Durian: Delicious or Disgusting?

I've referenced the durian off-handedly a few times since arriving in Singapore but until yesterday had yet to try one. Known for its formidable odor, the durian is one of those things most people either love or hate. Here's the picture available from Wikipedia:


My colleague Christina loves durians and she promised to pick out a "good one" for me to try. Always so thoughtful, she brought me one on Sunday and here's a look at my first taste.

Ok, so I wouldn't go far as to say that I hated it but I didn't eat any more than that first bite. What I DID hate was the resulting smell in my apartment. I'm sure you noticed that I tried my first taste at the pool. That's because they're so ridiculously odoriferous that I did not want to open it in my home. Despite the fact that the durian was in a styrofoam clamshell wrapped in Saran Wrap and a plastic bag and behind the closed door of my fridge, it STILL smelled up the place. Brian had enough and said, let's get this thing out of here ASAP, so that's when we went to the pool. Luckily the smell is almost gone now, thanks to a little baking soda and an air freshener.

Brian declined to try the durian. Wonder why?

BTW Brian left this morning (boo) and is somewhere between Tokyo and SF right now. Sad to see him go, we had such a great trip, but I'll be home in 18 days. Jen arrives Thursday and I'm looking forward to her visit so much!