Mmmmmm! ...... Well!!! ...... Quite
a lot more! Possibly
about where to go on the beach? .......
Actually the only place to be is in front of the white Beach
Patrol and Rescue tower (you can't miss it!) and
on the terrace of the
Hotel "The Beach" just a few meters to the right
(second building with the sea behind you). This is where you can see all
the beautiful
boys
that
you met the night before (now in a vertical position!) playing
volleyball virtually every afternoon, and remember
it's hot work punching a ball over a net
dressed only
in a tight fitting tanga slip
so
don't forget to invite someone "Short
and Hot" to the terrace for something
"Long and Cool" !!
I
spent many an enjoyable day wandering back and forth from my vantage point
(watching
the boy's!) on the beach to the terrace and believe
me the food and ice cold drinks were not my only
reason!! (I don't know who takes on the young
waiters there but he certainly has an eye for talent !!). I heard later
that the owner is the same owner of "Black and White" The Music
Factory!! .... which possibly explains why he has some really
cute waiters working on the terrace bar.
One
thing that is very noticeable in Patong Beach is the cleanliness of the
beach itself ..... and one very early morning
I found out how!! Beach Cleaners
complete with brushes, shovels and rubbish bags clean up everything from
paper and cans left behind by the tourists to flotsam, seaweed and driftwood.
Getting around . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . .Luckily
the traffic in
Patong Beach isn't anything
like it is in this photo that I took (on a
quiet day!) outside the World Trade Center in Bangkok!! .... (although
a helicopter would be handy sometimes to quickly cross the main road in
Patong Beach when you see some really cute number on the other side!!).
The Tuk-tuk ......a
great little "open air" taxi that whisks you from
virtually anywhere ...... to where you want to go,
very reasonably priced (ask first!) ...... and hold on to your seat (or
better still the cute guy sitting next to you!) or you might end up sliding
(with your legs in the air!) out the open back!
Motorbike Taxi!! .....For
that short, quick ....... and often fun journey!.......
with the added "extra" of being able to hold
on to the driver (purely for safety reasons
"of course"!), and the price, (it cost's more to walk!). If
you are either "renting" or just riding on a motorbike/moped
it
is compulsory to wear a helmet so as you can see
in this photo!! (naughty, naughty mister policeman!!).
........ and don't worry about being able to find either a Tuk-tuk or a motorbike taxi ....... they will find you!, so if you think that everyone seems to be "tooting" at you as they pass ........... it's not that "hot ass" that you are parading along the pavement (Well!! ... not always!).
A longer journey ..... like getting from the airport can be taken in an "airport limousine" (sounded sheik but it looked more like a taxi to me!) and it is important to ask what the complete journey will cost before you get in, but look around because some are considerably cheaper than others.
DAVID OUI TAXI SERVICE
Car and Motorbike/Moped rental .....
A great way of seeing much more
of the country than only the area between your
accommodation and the beach is to rent. But!! ....... I would personally
advise you to look
for a reputable rental agency
as it seems that virtually anyone can rent out anything on wheels! Insurance
is very important
as accidents can sometimes get you into some really deep water! I
rented a great air-conditioned car for a couple of days at "VIA RENTACAR"
189/6 Rat-u-thit Road, Tel/Fax 66 (76) 341660 (5 minutes walk from the
Paradise Complex on your left just past the crossing of Bangla road). They
had very competitive rates and the insurance was official. You can even
e-mail
the boss (Mike White) for more information in English before you set off
if you want.
The Boy's won't be the only
Hot things you get (whoop's!
.. I nearly wrote "in your mouth"!)......
what I mean is The wonderful Thai food!
and believe me, ....... It's
Hot!! ..... but
you can always ask for a less pungent dish if you are a beginner (like
me!). Being very adventurous (as I am) I
tried Thai at every opportunity
(Ohhh! naughty, naughty!! ... I'm still talking about the food!)
and I spent many an enjoyable and very interesting evening in the open-air
"Food Market" just
a few minutes from the Paradise Complex.
........ and if you are still
feeling like a bit (and
who isn't!?) in the early hours of the morning when
you stagger out a club there is a
great 24 hour Thai food market
next to the 24 hour
supermarket 50 meters
on the right when you leave Paradise. We all seem to either read about
or hear from friends about not "eating on the street" but
when I think back at what I had in my mouth whilst I was in Thailand!!
(I'm
still talking about food!!) .......... and I'm still
here (with my mouth watering!).You
will also see that some of the best things to take a nibble of can be found
on a motorbike!! (the food, Oh!, oh!). Ok!, standards are possibly different
to "back home" .... but did you really want to travel thousands of kilometers
to end up in Mc'Donalds? ...... Be
adventurous!! ... Enjoy!! and
believe me Thai food is a lot cheaper than
eating European food ..... and a lot more
fun!
Neil October 1999