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Wednesday 17 June 2009

Phuket: Day 1 - Old Phuket Town, Centara Villas Phuket

Our flight, MI752 took off at 9:05am. The plane was really packed but the journey was really smooth. The flight duration was 1 h 40 min.



Kid's meal

Adult meal: omelette with chicken

We arrived in Phuket at 9:40am (local time which is one hour slower than in Singapore). Once we exited the airport, we were greeted by our guide, Sam whom we engaged to bring us round Phuket. Since we could only check-in at 3pm, we asked Sam to show us Old Phuket Town and maybe do a bit of shopping lol. :P We were shown the old streets of Phuket Town where most of the Sino-Portuguese building are. They are similar to those we can find at Emerald Hill in Singapore. Sam later brought us to a shopping plaza in the town area. We roamed around a bit. Just as we assembled at 12:30pm, we realised my father was lost. He had gone off to have some Bak Ku Teh on his own while we window shopped. After almost 20 minutes later, we found him. Phew! He had made the wrong turn, went off in the wrong direction and couldn't find his way back again. He gave all of us a scare! Sam brought us to this fish ball noodle place, which makes fish ball noodles without MSG and preservatives, for lunch. I thought the fish ball noodles was superb and not oily at all. So was the fresh spring rolls which we ordered. :)




After lunch, my parents went to a Kipling shop they saw on the way while Marieann and I went to buy some souvenirs such as postcards, magnet and key chains. After which, Sam sent us to our hotel, Centara Villas Phuket at Karon Beach. While processing our check-in, we were served with a welcome drink and an ice-cold towel. Real refreshing! :) We are at the Spa Villa, Room 212 while my parents are at the Ocean Facing Deluxe Villa, Room 122. We took the mini-car to our respective rooms. The Centara Villas Phuket is built in a natural jungle environment and upon a hill so it is too hilly to walk for unseasoned legs like ours lol. :P Each room or villa is a separate unit and fairly secluded and private from one another. Each has its own private walk-way serving it. :) We could almost see the entire stretch of Karon beach from our room's balcony.


The drive way down to the entrance of Centara Villas Phuket

The bridge link from entrance to the lobby

The lobby

The Cliff Restaurant beyond the lobby

Taking the mini-car to our Spa Villa


The private walk way to our Spa Villa












View of the ocean from my balcony

After having rested a bit, the girls and I went to see my parents while the girls' father slept like a log. Their room is almost similar to ours except that it was slightly smaller and there is no jacuzzi. After the girls finished exploring their grandparents' room, my mother and I with the girls went to explore the grounds. We saw the two-tier swimming pool, the spa centre and the ocean-facing lawn. We took plenty of photos lol. :)

View of the whole stretch of Karon Beach from the pool area





Around 6:45pm, we went to The Cliff Restaurant for dinner.
We were served with complimentary soup of the day (which was Phuket Lobster Bisque) and bread before our food orders arrived.



My parents both ordered Tom Yum soup (B250). My mother ordered Roasted Duck Breast (B450) with ginger orange sauce with chicory risotto and broccoli. My father order Kao Phad (B160): fried rice with seafood. Both dishes were delicious.




I had Phuket Lobster Bisque (B175) which came with a piece of grilled salmon and Rock Lobster Tails (B560) which served pan-seared lobster tails with bouillabaisse emulsion and spinach risotto. I really enjoyed my lobster! :) The girls' father had Pumpkin and Prawn Risotto (B295): arborio rice simmered with pumpkin in chicken broth and served with sauteed prawns. The girls didn't order any food but had their fill just eating the bread and drinking the complimentary soup.




After a sumptuous dinner, my parents and my family returned to the rooms while I stayed on in the lobby to access the Internet. There is a problem with the wireless Internet in our room. I think there are too many trees and I couldn't use the lan cable too. The hotel personnel said they will sent a technician to look into it tomorrow.

Tomorrow we are going to Phang Nga Bay.

1 comment:

Bangkok Hotels Thailand said...

Many thanks for lovely family blog.Tourists know Phuket as a beautiful natural travel destination, especially renowned for its white sand beaches and indigo seas. Phuket is developed and equipped with facilities to cater to all types of traveler, offering an international airport, five-star hotels, entertainment venues, restaurants and eateries. It can be said that Phuket is a tourism hub on the shores of the Andaman. In addition to Phuket’s tourist destinations, it is also easy to travel to the surrounding islands and nearby provinces