A pizza connection in Phuket

After some delightful days in Singapore, it was time to get to our last an most relaxing stop in our travels: Thailand. We decided that after three months of traveling and touring, it was time to take a break and relax on the beaches of a beautiful tropical island. Phuket was our choice.

Phuket turned out to be much more populated and touristy than we had expected. Plenty of foreigners infested all the streets, "lady-boys" attracted some eccentric audience, bars were everywhere and alcohol was certainly not missing. International food was more readily available than local food sometimes, and pizza places were certainly dominating the market. We took advantage of that, and made friends with our hotel host and his friend, a Pizzaiolo from Rome. He taught me how he made pizzas, and his secret recipes for sausages.

We took advantage of the location to go for some excursions. We saw Phi Phi island, and its surrounding beaches populated by monkeys. We snorkeled in the blue waters of the Indian ocean, and eventually we scuba dived too. It was amazing to see how much life thrives among the corals. It's a real pity that the Thai government does not do much to preserve its natural resources from wild western investments and savage tourism.

After scuba diving, Suzie felt a bit sick. We went for a check-up at a local hospital and they thought it was nothing. She kept feeling worse during the night and so we went to the specialized hospital early in the morning, where she was visited more accurately. The hospital was more like a resort. It made most of its money from esthetical surgery to western clients, that came over to Thailand due to the competitive prices. Suzie got her own luxury room, way more luxurious than any hotel we had stayed in the whole trip. Personal TV, internet, satellite channels, nice meals, and even a masseuse were included in the price. I slept on the couch for a couple of nights. It was comfortable too. Suzie turned out to have a decompression sickness, so she went into the hyperbaric room twice. I really hoped the insurance would cover that because the hospital thing was going to cost more than the whole three months traveling in Asia. Thankfully, after a lot of checking procedures, they did.

So the last week of relaxing holidays turned out to be shorter than we hoped. I flew to Sydney on the day we had planned, while Suzie enjoyed a couple more sunny days in Thailand before joining me in our new place. I cannot believe the holiday is over. It feels like it has been a dream and I am now back to reality. All I can think of right now is organizing our next trip!