In March 2001, At 25 yearts of age, I discovered Thailand. I extended my 2 week holiday to 5 weeks, most of which I spent on Phuket Island. Later that year in Sept 2001 I returned, this time for 3 months, which, after numerous calls to my airline posponing my retun flight to the UK, turned out to be 9 months . The trip was somewhat tainted with sadness as I'd lost my father not long beforehand. This added to the experience in a strange way?

The island is beautiful, I have some wonderful memories. I know bad things go on there - tuk tuk mafia, greed, touts etc But nobody can deny the sheer beauty of the place. As I go through my work-a-day world in the UK I often call up pleasant mental pictures of the stunning beaches and the good times I had there. There is a beach called "Hat Surin" between Kamala Bay and a place called Ban Tao, I think? I used to ride my scooter down there for a morning swim in the ocean and return to the same beach in the evening to watch the sunset. Phuket expats may know the beach I am talking about? memories, ah the memories.

So, like the Australian Tourist Agency's commercial: "So where the bloody hel_l are you?"..

Time for a revisit methinks, to Phuket as well as the surrounding provinces on the Andaman coast, which are equally stunning, if not more so.