Sunday September 29th: After a moderate evening out downtown Pattaya, we were up and about at 08:00 and down for a decent breakfast beside the hotel pool.
Again, I was greeted by some of the hotel staff who have become good friends over the times I've stayed here ... a mini home from home. Lots of hugs and smiles (from the female staff of course).
Evening: Popped into town to eat. Outdoor restaurant that serves excellent Thai and 'international' food. Nice to dine al fresco but it has it's drawbacks when the weather is unsettled. Thailand is still suffering the combination of the wettest month (September) and the after-effects from Typhoon "Usagi" which has been ravaging parts of S.E.Asia.
We had just finished our meal when the rain started and got worse, and then got worse, and then a full tropical storm set in forcing us to shelter for an hour. God did it rain!, thunder, lightening the lot!! Fortunately, we were in a restaturant with a covered area that just happened to have a bar as well. Well you just have to don't you.
Got back to hotel a touch soggy and watched the remains storm from our room.
A panoramic view of the Citin Garden Resort pool and garden from our room.
Monday 30th: Spent most of the day looking for a suitable apartment. As expected we found one pretty quickly which was clean and well-serviced.
Around midday we popped in for a foot massage. 1-hour for 100 Baht each was, as usual, extremely relaxing and theraputic.
Weather in afternoon hot and sunny around the mid 30's.
Note: At this point I feel obliged to point out that any pre-conceived thoughts about so-called "massage parlours" is dispelled. Yes, as in other countries (including UK), the sleazy side of these places do exist. In Thailand they exist but by far the vast majority are genuine businesses run by fully-qualified and certified masseurs.
Most even have signs on the doors to make tourists aware that no sexual acts are tolerated. This sign below is common on many massage places. The reflection in the glass is pure TT.
Monday 30th evening/night: Had dinner at the hotel beside the pool. Good food. Considered going out but decided against it. Maybe a good move because another tropical thunderstorm erupted around 20:30 and hammered away for a few hours with torrential rain. Nice and snug in on hotel room balcony. The remnants of the recent typhoon are still evident.
Tuesday October 1st: Earlyish breakfast. Warm with hot sunshine again today; 33º at 08:30.
Picked up the keys for the apartment which is on the top floor; 4th, in a fairly new block. (there’s no ‘ground-floor’ in Thailand, it’s the 1st).
Plan to move in Wedensday or maybe Thursday.
Wednesday 2nd: Got a lift courtesy the hotel mini-bus to our apartment and moved-in late morning.
Decided to rent a motorbike for a month and found a place doing a very reasonable monthly deal.
Renting a bike pays for itself very quickly. Apart from the sheer convenience of getting about.
As is known, I’m an experienced biker in UK with my 600cc Honda, but here in Thailand it’s a different matter altogether. I cannot put into words how manic it is here. Frankly put, the vast majority of Thai riders are dick-heads and just drive with total and utter unawareness of anything else on the road; and that includes pedestrians.
This is the reason I let Aom drive most of the time because if I were driving I’d end up punching 50% of the clowns. The worst by far are the younger females (sorry, no sexism intended… it’s a pure fact here); they just pull out without so much as a glance But in spite of all this it’s actually mainly fun to scoot about.
According to Aom hardly anyone has a licence as the police presence is almost zero. Crash-helmets are a rarety and 3 or mor on a 125cc is commonplace.
Rest of the day was doing a bit of food shopping and stocking the fridge. No beers for 3 days now although the apartment is in a road inundated by bars; in fact there’s a bar downstairs in the entrance to the apartment. Maybe some other time.
… oh dear, that previous statement didn’t last long as when we popped out to pick up some bits I succumbed to buying some beers in the local 7-11. Consequently, I write this crap sitting on the balcony with a glass of said whilst my dear Aomlette is cooking dinner. Life’s so much of a hassle here… ho-hum!
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