When Jij last posted, we were about to board a VIP bus to Phuket. If a VIP bus has cracks in the window, broken seats, and a crazy driver swigging unknown beverages from mini glass bottles (Jij promises it was a red bullesque drink, I have my qualms!!) then that's just what we did. Our VIP service included no real seats for Jij and I so we were stuck sitting in the very front of the bus, next to the driver!!! Jij has some major skills in zen as he was able to get some sleep while in the front. I just sat there, holding on tight, praying, creating my action plan of how I would save Jij and I from projecting through the massive bus window when we crashed!! Luckily a few hours into our drive, at our first stop, two guys offered to swap us seats. They were seated in the very back getting their knees rammed by the two broken seats in front of them and wanted to be up front so they could smoke! Theirs was a more appealing predicament than ours! The rest of the ride was great save the fact that the 13 hour ride took a mere 18 hours!

None-the-less, we learned some valuable lessons and arrived in the remarkable Phuket! It took a situation like that to light a fire under my @!$, not an angry fire so much as sparking my desire to join in on the game of negotiation. So when the tuk-tuk driver told our friends he would take them from Phuket Town to the beaches for 380 baht, I just laughed and moved on. The next driver quoted 200 baht. I said I knew how to get there by bus for 30 baht (obviously not wanting to take the bus). We agreed on a price of 100 baht. Once we arrived to the beach town of Katon the tuk-tuk driver took us to a resort that is in his circle of money. Our plan was to stay at a guest house for around 300-400 baht so my plan was to spend no more than 500 baht. The 1000 baht/night room was reduced to 800 baht (what a deal!). If we stay for 3 nights it would be 700 baht a night but since they like us, they will give us that rate for our 2 night stay. Ha! "400 baht a night is the most we can pay," I reply. After a good 5 minute haggle, we agreed on 500 baht a night. Afterwards Jij and I laughed at the reality that I was haggling over a mere $2.50!! Anyhow, we are staying at a fancy resort...more like a string of bungalows amidst beds of flowers, right across the street from the beach. We have a pool, internet access, satellite tv (that sealed the deal for Jij!), our own bathroom as advertised: "with an american throne", all the amenities. It's just right. I mustn't get used to such grandeur as I know raggedy guesthouses are in my future.

Today is a drizzly day, hence my time spent blogging! There is a surf competition going on at the neighboring beach of Kata that we may check out later assuming it wasn't cancelled due to rain. The world shuts down when it rains in these parts! Tomorrow, we are going to catch a boat to Ko Phi Phi, a nearby island. We will spend some time there climbing and then head to Krabi and Rai Lay(on the mainland) for more climbing. These names may ring a bell as this is the area that was affected by the tsunami last year. There are still a lot of relief efforts in these areas though where we are it is all mostly rebuilt. We have been playing the guessing game, I wonder if this is new, I wonder if this got hit, etc. We hope to become more educated as time goes on.

Thanks to all who have posted comments!! Still haven't mastered the knack of getting pictures uploaded onto this site...pictures to come!