The last of the Phuket series!
My sister, cousin and i made the effort to wake up especially early on the last day to get
to Kata Noi beach one last time! This was the steep stairway we had to conquer to get
to and from the beach...
The tide was coming in when we arrived, and we stood at the bottom of the stairs for
some moments, enjoying the swishing of the waves before taking turns to jump onto the beach from the platform we were on.
It was monsoon season and the red warning flag was up...
...as was this signboard!
So, eventually, since my cousin can't swim, my sister is not a strong swimmer, and i'm definitely not strong enough to rescue anyone from the sea, we decided to be good and not attempt to wade out into the waters that morning.
We sat on the beach for a while, taking in the sights and shrieking at the little hairy crabs running from one hole to the other, before making our way back.
After washing up, we made a rushed trip to Jung Ceylon Mall to buy some last-minute
souvenirs for our friends back home...
I managed to get a shot of the cute toilet signs they had! I couldn't figure out why the
mall used blue for the handicapped cubicle sign instead of the men's toilet sign. Can you?
After grabbing some gifts, we rushed back to the apartments to check out, packed our
luggage into the van, and off we went! But we weren't headed for the airport yet as we
had one more venue we had to stop at before flying back to Singapore.
We made a pit-stop for lunch at another seafood restaurant by the beach. They served
really cool coconuts that had Gucci sunshades on them :) :) :)
Phuket beaches (except Patong beach!) always provide a good backdrop for pretty
pictures, so once again, i snapped some shots for my album.
My father and sister really look alike! Gosh...
Finally, after lunch, we made our way to the site where The Phuket Big Buddha sat,
overlooking the entire province. The statue was only about 80% complete, and i'd known beforehand that construction would still be ongoing. We had to endure a bumpy ride up
an uneven hill with extremely narrow roads and dangerous terrains to reach the site, but once we arrived, there was no doubt that it was all worth it.
The Big Buddha looked grandly majestic, and even though there was construction taking
place in the area and gigantic cement trucks being driven around, i was awestruck by the aura of peace surrounding the Buddha.
Views of the statue from the side and front...
The Big Buddha sits atop the highest hill in Phuket, and is entirely constructed with
speckled marble. Work on the statue has been going on for at least two to three years
now, because the builders are (supposedly) depending entirely on donations to complete
it. For 300 baht, anyone can buy a slab of marble to be used to complete the statue.
My dad insisted that it was a touristy gimmick, but i went ahead to buy one anyway and wrote Chloe and Fluffie's names on it, with the wish that they would be blessed with good health and lots of love throughout their lives :)
I walked all the way up to the foot of The Big Buddha and found a smaller structure made entirely of gold (The Small Buddha) behind it...
There were more locals than tourists in the area, many of whom were there simply to
worship or to have their prayers heard...
More pictures! Of wind chimes...
...and a signboard with a mantra on achieving enlightenment.
Now, this is what made the climb up all worth it...
The views at the top are to-die-for! I almost didn't want to leave...
On our way down, i tried to find the Singapore symbol amidst the trail of flags leading
from the Buddha, but couldn't :(
After a fulfilling 4 days in The Land Of Smiles, it was finally time to return home to
Fluffie :) Some last parting shots of Phuket before i kept my camera...a Dunkin' Donuts
outlet at the airport...
...and one more shot from the plane...
I always feel a little down at the end of each vacation, because it means it's time to wake up and return to reality. This holiday was extra special because it was the first time in
many years that all of us managed to take time off and go away together, and could well
be the last.
On the other hand, it was a relief to be able to come home to Fluffie because i'd missed
her terribly in Phuket! I wish i could take Fluffie with me to see the world. If only...
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