Exploring Island Life on Phuket

Phuket is the biggest island in Thailand, located in the Andaman Sea off southern Thailand. The island is mostly mountainous with fabulous sand beaches, most of which are on the west coast. Our hotel is a small Swiss-run establishment with a lovely garden, and a short walk from Nai Yang beach. Nai Yang is a quiet strip of sand on the north-western tip of Phuket, and while there is a lively strip of bars and restaurants and other tourist amenities, within minutes you can disappear within the jungle to a completely isolated beach. Waking up in Phuket on the first morning of our vacation was wonderful: it was my 31^st birthday and I couldn’t think of anywhere I’d rather be. We celebrated by eating strawberry ice cream for breakfast and running across clean sand the consistency of coarse sugar. Long Thai fishing boats and fishing accoutrements such as lobster traps lined the shore. Crabs scuttled along the beach sideways. Both of us threw ourselves into the surf, delighted by the warmth of the water and shocked by its saltiness.

Motorbiking the Island. We dove into a plate of king prawn and calamari in delectable Thai sauce in a cove of coconut, banana and redwood trees. Thinking the island was quite small, we decided to rent a motorbike for the week and selected a shiny red Yamaha from a Thai woman named Ayme who operates a shop on Nai Yang beach. We didn’t know it at the time, but Phuket is actually 539 km2, or 3 times the size of Salt Spring Island in BC. We learned that it’s definitely big enough to get lost on, but small enough that you can find your way eventually. Our little red motorbike defined our vacation: it gave us freedom to experience all the island had to offer and connected us with the local way of life. We drove past rubber plantations, where small cups were collecting precious sap from the rubber trees, past masjids and temples, past buffalos, past outdoor muai-thai boxing gyms, past enchanted Thai gardens, past flower, fruit and vegetable farms, past endless construction sites for new hotels. In fact, rubber and tourism are Phuket’s main economic engines. Thailand is actually the biggest producer of rubber in the world, and the dive industry is its main claim to tourism.

Moslem Fishing Community. Most Thai people on Phuket are Buddhist, but at least 30% are Moslem. The Moslem community is mainly descendant from the island's original sea-dwelling people. We encountered them in our motorbike travels. One morning we found a roadside café run by multiple generations of chador-clad women. We thought they were selling fried chicken but it turned out to be deep fried, breaded banana, and pakoras with home-made tofu. We ordered a big plate and I can’t say I liked either but it is amazing what sweet chili sauce can make palatable. We stopped at a local market to buy fruit: tiny oranges, bananas, mangos, dragonfruit. Every kind of seafood was on display on wooden tables manned by muslim merchants in conversation with each other. Smooth Thai tunes lilted over the market as we snapped pictures and shared a delicious tumbler of fresh sugarcane juice. The wind in our face from the ride helped us beat the incredible heat of the early afternoon. And there was always a beach within minutes to stop at and get into antics like sand burials and body-surfing. P.S. I love the brilliant fuschia encasing of dragonfruit but make sure you don’t eat it. It looks a lot better than it tastes! We got our taste of a ride in a Thai boat one evening. As the sun set, we slid past families of monkeys playing on the shoreline while the lawnmower-motor strapped to the boat growled noisily.

Thai Massage. One aspect of Thai culture I was keen to try right away was traditional massage. Tariq was not as enthusiastic, but I coaxed him into giving it a try (unfortunately there were quite a few Thai “lady-boys” who were keen to solicit his business). His first treatment was a back, neck and shoulder massage. He said it was a terrible experience because his masseuse’s hands were too big and strong. Being a German and liking a firm massage, I didn’t really get that, but to each his own. Thai massage does involve a lot of strength on the part of the practitioner. It is more energy-focused than anatomical. My first treatment was a reflexology foot massage. It was great - in a sado-masochistic way. The massage involved a towel and a stick. Sadistic because the stick caused me excruciating pain, and masochistic because I had been willing to pay for it. A karaoke version of Beautiful Sunday, the distraction of a framed lobster on the wall, and various anatomical charts hanging around the room somehow reassured and convinced me that this would all be worthwhile in the end. Afterwards, I comforted myself with a bright pink manicure and pedicure for a mere $5 USD. Later in the week, I tried a Thai oil massage, which was a jasmine-scented hour of bliss and artful, continuous hand-movements. I also tried the traditional Thai massage, which is done with a towel, and a practitioner that twists you into various positions. The practitioner I had was a cheerful, middle-aged Thai woman that deftly cracked every bone in my spinal cord through some gentle rocking and one sharp twist. Afterwards, I felt the way I did when I was doing yoga regularly. I recommend trying it!

Local Lives. Just “being” in Thailand was so exciting for us, for the first few days we spent most of our time drinking pina coladas to the sound of the waves crashing on the beach and the wind in the palms. Every breakfast at our hotel was a smorgasbord of mango, pineapple, papaya, watermelon, and bananas. We observed with fascination local styles and pursuits. Our hotel was close to the Phuket airfield, where locals parked their pickup trucks to have picnics and ice-cream and watch the jetliners full of tourists take off and land. I enjoyed the sight, too, but it was sort of like contemplating your own demise… knowing that we would be back on one of them at the end of the week, leaving this beautiful island. As we rode along on our bike, we saw Thai girls driving with stilettos and pink helmuts, while other locals had side-carts attached to their bikes to carry kids, dogs, lobster traps, fruit, crates, shopping and anything else you can imagine. Teenage boys played football on red sand pits along the sides of the roads, while young boxers practiced their knee kicks and punches.