The Racha Experience

The Experience

The bay on Koh Racha

Racha, it's Thai word for King, and the experience lives up to her name. Woke up every morning in her lush rooms, opened them wide doors and there a full blown spectacle of layered ocean blue. The waves as they grew tall approaching the satin shores, into a concave wall of cyan blue so clear I saw. It was painting in motion, a canvas of saturated colors. The hue of blue permeated through me. And the breeze, enveloped me she did, ever reverberating, ever present. The morning sun, her slight tint of yellow reflected off all the white villas, the skies clear, saw for miles. The emotion came natural, a surreal feel of vacation can't describe in words. It was the place, the time, the setting so right. Paradise.

Fine Sand

7 years ago I was here. Her beach ridden with dead coral bits from the tsunami back then had grinded down into the finest white powdered sand my feet had ever walked. Clean, white, gentle wide shoreline enclosed in a pleasant bay we played. Waddled through receding waters after the waves broke shore, the easy incline made the retreat a prolong episode as the water thins out. My foot sank, in fine white they were embraced. My mind was just overcharged with the experience that there was nothing else that could pollute my thoughts. It was relaxation pure, there weren't a hint of work that could breach that sphere of peace I got. Unwind.

Getting to the Island

How we Arrived

Getting to this resort required a boat ride from Chalong pier. Getting to the pier from the airport was a hefty 800 Baht ride by airport limousine. Save yourself the trouble of hunting for a metered taxi, they may cost more and you may end up somewhere you may not want in the hands of illegal touts. Anyway the sign boards announce loud the standard pricing from the airport to the various destinations on Phuket, so pay attention to those and you shall be safe. These months, the rain should have stopped. But climate change in our lifetime made the weather unpredictable. Storm clouds built and bleak the sunny shores, the gust churned the blue oceans into choppy peaks. The ride was a roller coaster, don't eat too much before the 45 minutes journey thus. Voices heard, the trip provided by The Racha costly. But had you research and then you will appreciate the ride offered by the resort in her twin outboard private boats. Public operators charges the same to the island, but I bet they do not offer the same appeasing ride The Racha could. Large and spacious her boats were, this trip for me, laden with only less than 10 passengers on her two craft convey. Yeah, they could well have packed us up like sardines using only one boat, but that's the practice of other boat operators and not The Racha.

Days on the Island

Pirates?

As the late morning approached, like crabs on a migratory journey on Christmas Island, we saw hordes of day trippers marched and descended the slope side of the resort making their way onto the shore for whatever mating and spawning fantasy they had on their minds. Not too pleasant the experience as we had to share the secluded shores with them sometimes rather rowdy and rude crowd. They mingled and tried to breach the resort grounds, security was busy explaining to them the notion of private grounds. A mix of people from all corners of the world. Certain culture are born with over reactive salivating glands, and this particular flock walked and spew phlegm everywhere. Could be an inherited genetic defect. Some crowds were however well behaved and I was really impressed with them. There was a cheery bunch that looked like they came out of Pirates of the Caribbean. The Pirate Lord of the Indian Ocean and his crew actually carried with them plastic bags which they collected the beer cans after they had gulp its merry making contents down. They left the beach in the late afternoon leaving no trace of their visit.

So Bright....

Beyond 10 am, the beach will be a bustle of activities. Those hours left me flabbergasted at times at the sight of super bright luminous bikini swimwear the Asian ladies wore. They imitated all possible grace from b-grade magazines while the shutters clicked away. Bright colors in nature are actually warning signs to other predators that consuming them would be a bad idea because of poison, so those ladies were safe and were not eaten by sharks. The crowd merged into the rows of beach umbrellas and chairs on the left section of the bay. Those were rented out by independent operators who forcefully infiltrated the grounds desiring a piece of the profit pie. I do hope they do not grow beyond the rows of 2 which was already poisoning the tranquility and turning that corner into mini Pattaya. I was told during peak season, there could be up to 4 rows and that was disheartening.

Depending on the season, the waters in the bay will be a calm or choppy. This month of August, strong waves rolled in synch with seasonal winds that blew onshore. Snorkeling is not possible without smacking into rock formations or guzzling down salt water. But it offered a chance for many to try mini surfing, boards rented out again by independent operators who built an unsightly shack in the middle of the otherwise un-spoilt shorelines. Staff of the resort told me, during year end this part of the island will be flat calm as the wind blows on the other side of Koh Racha. However, during those good times, The Racha will have to move her floating jetty over. The jetty then becomes a platform for the day trippers to beach as well, the bay will be an infestation of moored boats. Snorkeling could mean smacking into hulls of boats and guzzling down diesel fumes if you venture out carelessly.

Floating in the Bay

The serenity returned later in the afternoon past 3 pm. The day trippers migrated back up the hill to the other side of the island where The Racha's floating jetty was located. When the last of the day trippers had left, The Racha deployed their band of beach cleansers cleansing up the entire shoreline. Such noble greatness The Racha, to keep the beach pristine and to clean up the carnage left by others. The beach belongs to the government, it is not private and deeply I wished it could be. We had to share her splendor for those few hours. Fortunately for us, we had the advantage to retreat back into the resort where her amenities plenty whenever we needed.

The Ongoing Battle

The Chinese have Came

Racha is idyllically located on the island within a bay blessed with magnificent white shores and inviting waters. Unfortunately, this spot is also exploited by many profiteers and the results are them bringing on the nasty day trippers so well documented in so many other reviews about The Racha. That was the only sour bit of the trip but come on, the world do not revolve about us. I could jolly well live with those few hours of unpleasantness by finding other things to indulge within the resort away from the mob. It is not the resort's fault that the crowd cannot be controlled, in numbers and in behavior. While I was here 7 years ago, the day trippers were significantly fewer. The mix of visitors, inclusive of hotel guests, were a majority of Caucasians and a small number of Japanese. This year, this season that I visited, just gazing out in idleness and between moments of thought, I was really lead to believe the Chinese was setting up Koh Racha as a base for their naval beach invasion.

Mini Pattaya

The local Thai profiteers will not give a second thought to the tranquility that The Racha tries her best to offer her guest. They just come and set up shop all over the place bringing filth and unpleasantness along, all they wanted is cash. Its though the negotiations must have been for The Racha and the independent businesses with the former trying to keep them in check. I wondered sometimes if the authorities in Phuket actually have control over these stubborn operators limiting what they can do and where they can carry out their shoddy business overcharging the tourist. I believe they come and they go whenever and wherever, evidence from the sheds on the bay which were left abandoned and to rot in the corrosive salty air. But looking on the bright side, these structures offered an interesting backdrop for any photographer with a keen eye for subjects, I did.

In tune truly with nature, fortunately no concrete jetty was erected on the island as permanent eyesores breaking the curvature of her bays. The only way for The Racha to get her guests on shore was the use of The Racha's floating jetty which I mentioned. Unfortunately, this means sharing the only way of getting on and offshore with the public. This could be quite a nasty landing experience for some if our arrival and departure coincides with the hours when the day trippers arrive and leave. Most of the marauding invaders were likely never educated on Archimedes Principle of Flotation and moral education during their deprived childhood. They did not make way for us trying to do our best from falling into the water with our bags and cameras on the unstable platform. Two of those idiots actually ran and stomped on the jetty in our opposite direction brushing rudely across and beside us in a hurry, throwing us almost off balance.

The Main Pool

I wondered how the security staffs could differentiate who was hotel guest and who not. Magically, they were able to allow me to waltz into the compound and not let the day trippers through. Management must have trained them to have photographic memory. It will always be an ongoing battle between The Racha and those surrounding who are always trying to expand their encroachment and make quick profit. I don't think this will ever change and my favoritism will always be with The Racha. The small operators are only keen in taking advantage of The Racha's environmental conscious effort to keep the bay in harmony with nature.

Retreating Back

Club Del Mare

The main pool overlooked the beach with her high construction above the diner. On the infinity edge we were and chatted. On occasions the sea breeze strong it grew and the water flipped unnaturally upwards into a spray of misty droplets that soared over our heads. A lap or two we sometimes did but most of the time we just lazed and sipped coffee or that gin tonic ordered we did. Other days we were in her garden pool that was adorned with tall trees that swayed gracefully in the wind. At times the sky grew dark and the rain fell heavy but that did not douse our spirits. What was different from 7 years ago was that now The Racha featured a third pool at the foot of a hill fringing the resort grounds. It was tastefully christened Club Del Mare and the food offered was equally tasteful. Meals offered were reasonably priced in tune with the portion, extremely good service and the exquisite settings. With many pools also means the chance for one to hide effectively should one need a break from babbling wives, she will take at least an hour to find you. And if you are lucky, the sun would be out and that could successfully drive her back into the villa leaving you in peace for the rest of the day.

Waters so Clear

With any tropical island resort means the possibility of a million bites from mozzies and sand flies. Amazingly, somehow the resort had this under control. Unlike other beach destinations we went, we do not need to drink insect repellent and have it ooze out our sweat pores just to potently prevent them bites. Giant monitor lizards occasionally stroll the resort grounds so in case you need an adrenaline rush, you could try capturing one and wrestle with them fun creatures. If you are a cat lover like me, there are aplenty of them that originate from a restaurant of classic wooden built nested at the foot of a hill on the right side of the bay. These island born cats accompanied the guest sometimes as they strolled the beach and I was tempted to test out if cats could surf. I was also surprised at the sight of a mountain goat that made its way every day to the small rocky outcrop above the water in front of Club Del Mare. There it lazed staring at us people, wondering if them bright bikini ladies will be consumed by sharks. Goat shared the view with me as I gazed into the horizon looking for signs of fin.

I'll be Back

Perfect

Other than additional amenities, nothing had changed compared to the first time I was here. Still The Racha maintained her captivating essence and her villas had not deteriorated from fine mist of the sea. Maintenance crew could sometimes be seen retouching the walls showcasing the ongoing effort management had put in to upkeep The Racha's charm. This will not be the last time I will be here. I had travelled 9 years to cover most shores in Thailand. I cannot find elsewhere luxury strategically located in front of a sheltered mesmerizing shore, the fine white sands that embraced me, they crystalline waters of the Andaman. I was living in a painting for those 4 days. The beauty of which I had captured forever as I did my pre-wedding photography session within. I did not protest the sum when my card was swiped because I knew it was going in for a good cause. We all should appreciate the effort it takes The Racha to maintain the sparkle of her environment even though it is not under her control. The results of which are for us to fully immerse, body and soul, and sink into the enchanted vista as one. Not many places here can balance the comfort offered by manmade infrastructures and the pureness of immaculate nature. The Racha, her amazing management did.

See here for full photo set under The Racha Experiece 2013.

The waves are string in August

Shack where boards are Rented Out

Abandoned for Now

The Rain Came

Day Trippers Came in These

Day Trippers Marching to Beach

The Bay from a Hill

So Wide, So White

Strolling When there are no Day Trippers

Looking Out

Day Trippers mixed with Hotel Guest

Happy Weekdays at Guti

It was a Thursday, and the journey was easy, way easier then leaving on weekends when getting to Hua Hin could take five hours in the nasty traffic. We left at almost 7 am and reached the resort at 9. Incredible the record time, but again, this was only possible on a weekday. I was there at Aka Guti, within the vicinity of Blank Mountain where springing up are the countless holiday residential developments, a large country club and the recently completed water park. I skipped the water park, we were there for a company team building trip. And yes, it was absolutely good. There were heaps of alcohol, lots of trashing about and silly things that went on which I will not blog about. What I want to transcribe, is just the Guti experience, a romance with the greenery, the scenery and the retreat the resort could offer.

The Pool in Villa

Set in our villa between the 2 sleeping rooms, the infinity pool I floated. Staring up the grey skies, the fine droplets fell all around. The circular ripples broke shape sides of me. I could just make out the outlines of clouds if I stared l long enough in stillness. These months were the rainy season. The view out and beyond into the mountains bordering the Kingdom, the pastures surrounding stretching wide. There at the edge of the pool I rested my head, the morning freshness I breathed.
The villas fringing the resort offered the best views, the sunset is spectacular I heard. Spending time sprawled on the breach chairs in the late afternoon, within the privacy of a villa, the smell of a hot brewed coffee from the Nespresso machine, with the skies transiting through the colors of dusk. I wished I did that but this trip those hours, I was in my meetings. Next time I will. These villas that offered the best views have two sleeping rooms that slept four in total. Each with its own large bathroom and a stone bathtub in a setting of bamboo walls. I am not sure if just a couple on a holiday are allowed to take these up, for if not one will have to take on the one bedroom villas which are nested higher up the gentle hills. The view would be overlooking the roofs of others.

The Common Pool

The pool within the villas are already sizable, but if it laps you want to do for that morning exercise, then the enormous hotel pool you will have to head to. Of infinity concept, the inviting water blends with the landscape beyond. Someone brought a ball and when there's a ball, any team of hot blooded Thai men will instinctively start kicking it around till it turns into a game of soccer. Ok no field, so instead they instinctively started throwing it about the water and turned it into a game of water polo. We were there breaking the peace.
Beside laid the eatery, a sumptuous buffet breakfast was served. A network of footpaths links the resort, the avenues through foliage a pleasant walk. The occasional golf buggy ferrying laundry and housekeeping staffs we had to made way for. As we stopped our chatter wherever we were at Guti, only the resonance of insects and birds we heard. The night before we sat in a group by the pool within one of the villas and played cards into the wee hours. The coolness of the air through our tropical clothes, the cold beer the accompanying contentment. In between our breaks from ranting about bad cards, only the enveloping calmness and the darkest of night beyond our orange porch lights.

The Pool in Villa

Weekdays at the Guti, other than my company dominating the resort taking up five of the villas, there were only one or two others taken up by other guest. So if it is privacy one wants, then weekdays will be the answer. So it is for the rest of the resorts in Hua Hin, and back again on weekdays I will for the enchanting experience.

Villa Front

The Breakfast

How to pay fine in Bangkok

The Post Offcie

One of the fun things living here is that, any roads can be made into your personal autobahn. Not our fault really because, come one, have you really seen any speed limit signs when travelling in the countryside? So driving is like as long as you don't kill anyone, you are not doing anything wrong here. Just beware of the herds crossing the roads. By herds, I refer to cows, buffalos and frequently the hordes of motorcycles scrambling across traffic light junctions when its green in your direction.

Eventually, however, one does get to learn speed limits on certain roads when a mail arrives at your office with a picture of you in your car. It will be printed on some flimsy paper, off colored with a greenish tint because the police had ran out of budget and decided not to refill certain cartridges in their inkjet. They send you a speeding ticket so that they could fund the refill of their inkjet. Now, why do they send the ticket to your office? Well that's because when purchasing a car, you will have to register your residential address with proof. Proof is a mysterious residential booklet that we expats can never get our names into. Thus the address in your work permit becomes your residential address. Strange thing this Kingdom of Thailand expects foreigner workers to work, eat sleep, shit and breed in our offices.

The letter that came, it's all in Thai even though they know your name is in no way vaguely showing any relation to Thais. Get your friends to read it. Exceeding a supposed 120 km speed limit by 7 km on Rama II road cost THB 400. Where to pay for it, my friend said post office. Can you not pay for it? Well, let me tell you that, for letters like these you need to. If not, the next time you are trying to renew your road tax, you will be unable to because the system had flagged you for the unpaid fine (yes, they do have a computerized system). What about for legally looking tickets received on some flimsy paper stuck to your wipers with some scribbling of a number for you to call and probably some neighborhood police station to go to? No need, tried and tested. I got one for parking up front a restaurant on a road side for dinner.

Off to the neighborhood post office I went. A small challenge faced trying to figure out how the queue system work. I saw a stack of laminated cards placed below some Thai writings. Does not take much for me to figure out I should be choosing the smallest number available and not the biggest one. Next listen to the Thai broadcast and await your turn (if you can understand Thai). I was truly impressed at the speed of things, 20 numbers processed in 20 minutes. When it was my turn, handed over the entire letter and the staff handed some Thai forms back for me to fill. And when she realized I was an "alien", some frowning but all goes well after. She did the fillings for me and told me where to sign what. I get the basic idea that I will need to purchase 2 envelops. One they send to the police with a cashier's order which I paid for the fine. The other is a return envelop which I wrote my address on, that's where the receipt is to be sent to (yes, they will politely send you a receipt for funding the refill of their inkjet). Cost a mere THB 80 for the deliveries. And then I was done.

So in summary, post office = place to pay for speeding tickets.

A Million More Cars on Thai Roads

Welcome to Bangkok

Thai people are one of the few rare species in the entire universe that prefers to spend more time with their cars then with their families. Normally people only spend so much time in a vehicle when travelling to another galaxy. This trend is exponentially growing. Is it just me or has the traffic gotten worst in recent years? My recent trip to Hua Hin which I blogged about had me cinder in stress and anger, much different from the earlier years when I just moved over to Thailand. Driving to Hua Hin then was an enjoyable ride through the country.

Beating the traffic, is there a method? Drive a large snow plow and shove them all aside in a pile of carnage. That is my fantasy. I am pretty sure this idea had definitely cross other driver's mind. The fastest I ever got from home to work, some 30 km away, was in 30 minutes. That was when I left home at 5 am in the morning. Now, leaving at 6 am, it took one and a half hour. Leaving at 6.15 am, two hours. Leaving at 6.45 am reach work in three hours. Tried going to work late and left at 10 am, one and a half hour. Left home at noon, one hour. Defies logic ain't it. You gotta start building a profile of the travel times and then from there on choose a sweet spot in the middle of all those bitterness. The return journey home, you gotta pick a time too. Its either leave before 4.30 pm or after 8 pm for me. Now I understand why many are buying condominiums that are sold at ridiculously inflated prices dotted around the inner city.

The effect of school terms on traffic are also significant. When the schools are closed, you can generally take 25% off the travelling times. When schools sets in, it's like everyone is rushing out early morning to get reincarnated. In addition to all the daddies and mommies sending younglings to school, there is an influx of teenagers driving thanks to the first car ownership scheme introduced. True or not remains a debate. But I remember in my school days we can't afford cars. Here, consider the fact that in addition to legitimate parents buying cars for their spoilt legitimate sons and daughters, there are many sugar daddies out there sponsoring their sugar daughters. I no money, I no honey, I am not one of them daddies.

The basic criteria for driving is you need to have a brain. Grow one if you don't have. With heaps more cars on the road these days, there are exponential heaps more stupid drivers. If you ever been through a driving test here, you will know there are no such things as reading up on highway code and driving rules. Passing the test is a matter of if you can drive a bumper car in an amusement park, you can pass the test. Brain is not a criteria. There are no rules that you need to log learning hours with a legal driving instructor. Stupid drivers with bad judgments and little experience contributes to stupid accidents, which contributes to stupid congestions. Ok, not all of them are stupid, there are careful drivers who knows their limitations. But careful drivers equates to careful slow driving leaving huge gaps up front and a tail back so long which results in the same congestion. When it rains, stupidity triple folds. Driving in the rain, sometimes you will think a speedboat had just overtaken you in a furious wake of angry spray. Drivers here have never heard the word aquaplaning before probably because there is no Thai word for that. Most likely also, they have brain mass deficiency. So when they crash, the motorway jams for miles and miles behind.

I come from a time when a liter of petrol was way much lower than a liter of soda. When the petrol prices crossed that line, everyone was so much complaining back then. Humanity had accepted the fact that cars drink more expensive juice then us. No one in this era does a comparison like that no more. As we feed the hunger of our machines, petrol conglomerates' wealth just blossoms skywards in what seems to be a conspiracy. Look, in jams, cars ain't moving, they just burn petrol and this is energy wastage. So all the talk here about going green, save the world by reducing energy consumption and yet the traffic congestion which is purely in contradiction. Kinda feels like the authorities knows about the issue but they also know that on the other side of the same coin, the more petrol we burn doing nothing in jams, the more money they make. In jams, we actually have our own climatic system surrounding our cars. This is definitely not global warming friendly but who gives a damn about that here really?

The folks here are generally blaming the first time car buyer's scheme for the traffic situation. This scheme allows first time car buyers to enjoy a tax rebate amounting to 10% on the value of cars under a certain specification - eco cars generally. But look to the streets and no we don't see an overwhelming percentage of boxy miniature Japanese or Korean makes that can sail along with the onset of gust. Thais are just getting richer, this is no more a developing country but a developed one. The scheme didn't turn out well for many. People did not really understood the rebate system and assumed they will get 10% in returns after purchase. So many had loaned money for down payment and booked their cars, only to realize later then that they have difficulty servicing the loan. The returns are on tax deductions only and are stretched over several years, not any near future full amount rebates to pay off their debts. So many cancellations on the million purchases made in 2012, this I hear from the circles I in.

Bangkok sizzles with cars and we are glad it ain't the worst in the world. Population increasing uncontrollably, we are the parasite of Mother Earth. The flood of automobile will only increase and soon Bangkok will top the records. Traffic, you live here and you will know. It takes a car to get around, it is a necessity. We just have to embrace the situation and live with it.

Documents for Work Permit

And so they changed the law recently within the last two years. We now have to get a medical certificate in order to get our work permits renewed. For the past decade, I have never needed one for the immigration. It's hard to confirm which regulations are for real and which are just there for the sake of making regulations looks like someone had put effort to come out with them. So here I am sharing my experience and this should hold valid for this year at least. Some say that we needed a chest x-ray and a whole onslaught of test which fortunately excludes anal probe. But the truth is, we only need a simple letter from the doctor, which for some reasons, we must also undergo a mandatory Syphilis test. Have we foreigners been rampantly importing Syphilis or what? As for the chest x-ray and such, the honest nurse told me, no it ain't true. All doctors here evolved from dolphins. She said the doctors have acute sonar capabilities which could detect tuberculosis just by listening and that will be enough. So my certificate which included a 45 minutes wait for the confirmation if my body is crawling with Syphilis cost THB750. I do not have Syphilis.

Photographs. My admin told me that I will need to provide 2 fresh 4 x 6cm of meself and warned me I must not used that which was used the previous year. Well, truth is, I had been getting away with it. I have been using that same photo from my stockpile which I acquired since many work permit cycles ago. The other set of photos required is that which shows you working in your office. So I had my HR take snapshots of me while I groped my female colleague's ass in front of the company signboard.

It's true, the "Notification of Residence Must Be Made Every 90 Days" chop in your passport. I never got to know how to notify them about my residence and so I can't share how that's done. As such, I was fined in one of the renewals some years back. But if you are a frequent traveler, every trip in and out of the country equates to a "notification" already when you get your passport chopped at the immigration. There is no need to sing the Thai national anthem in front of the immigration officer when he or she interviews you, this believe is for another type of renewals not related to work permits. They just need you to be present and see your face. There are actually two places we foreigners gets our work permit renewed. The one at Chamchuri Square can be reached by going to the Sam Yan BTS. This place is however meant for manager levels and above titles only. Ironically these are the same positions which the graduates who are produced from the Chulalongkorn University located immediately behind are known to expect and only accept.

The one at Chaengwattana is for all other lower levels and is notorious be very crowded. How to get there? Taxi. Chaengwattana is not in Bangkok, it's in another province called Nonthaburi. Whichever place you go, just make sure you go early, very early. Lots of government institutions here prefer the nostalgic approach and stick to paperwork. It can take up to 30 minutes for one number in the queue to be processed. Fortunately, for big companies, we outsource our work permit renewals. Our representative was there to take the queue number for us way earlier before the doors opened. There is no such efficient thing as drop your filled forms and come back another day to pick your renewed permit up because they have not taught about it.

VIP Parking in Bangkok

In Bangkok, you will see many of these privilege parking implementations. There are those for Chevrolets owners, for certain credit card holders, for certain insurance policy holders and privilege shopping card holders. They also have whole floor of reserved parking for "Pink Lady" where they let you in on the condition you have a vagina (no need to actually show them). That is where you can take your own sweet time to park without being harassed by impatient men revving up their engines, flashing their headlights and honking till you crash into a pillar in panic. I've also seen a whole floor reserved parking for LPG and NGV powered cars. So, when these highly unstable vehicles catches fire, the contagious fire only blows up all of the other equally highly unstable vehicles within. That a contained apocalypse hopefully without affecting cars on other floors.

High-so Cars Only

But Central Plaza really tops it. If this ain't discrimination, then I don't know what is. Spotted recently at Central Plaza Rama 9, a whole row of empty slots reserved for so called "Super Cars". The parking was full at peak evening, only 2 Porsches were parked within all the empty slots reserved for certain makes of high-so cars. The rest of us in our "common" cars had to go round and round in circles just like Sputnik did around Earth. Kinda get the feeling from them that "If you are not rich, please try not to come to Central". You need to be rich then they will warmly welcome you.

The Infestation of Hua Hin

Evason Hua Hin

What Happened to the Easy Drive

The Route

Getting to Hua Hin is a straight drive along Rama II till the end where one turns left on to Phetkasem, and from there on straight pass Cha-am and into Hua Hin. I remembered that getting there used to be an enjoyable drive of less than three hours. I remembered the smooth flowing traffic under pollution free crisp blue skies. Music accompanied our chit chats, the ever present hint of tyre noise permeating into our cabin. A pleasant drive with occasional stops at petrol stations for that snack or that toilet break, smiles on everyone's faces you met. I left home as usual on this trip, but this time I reached my destination only after an agonizing four and a half hours. The jams, started on Kanchanapisek, way before turning right on Rama II. Trucks laden the roads, pregnant with payload and slow, they do not stick to left lanes. They dominated all lanes without regards to faster moving agile cars. What was supposed to be a nice journey, turned out to be an antagonistic obstacle course. On Rama II, still the trucks infested the lanes, and on Phetkasem, the traffic filtered down to hordes of cars on a snail's pace. Why? Because of the long weekend where Vesak Day fell on a Friday. Discovery Channel can make a Great Migrations episode out of this in fact - Mad Thais on Long Weekends.

Within those hours, anyone would turn from pleasant driver to devil on wheels. We need to forget all the civic manners and adopt a combined performance made up of all the appalling driving behaviors from Kuala Lumpar, Jarkata and Ho Chi Minh city, with Bangkok inclusive of course. That way, you will move, if not, you become permanent parts of the roads most of the time. Most cars I witnessed executing amazing feats on the road are Beamers and the Benz, for some reasons success in business also showcased in success on roads. The worst traffic behavior, it is no wonder why in some countries, Asians behind the wheel are notorious for their disorderly manners. Drive wicked, use the service lane, cut into everyone's path and force your way in if it even means gaining just one car's length. Climb, the horizontal ladder of traffic that's what many did. Be wicked, reach your destinations in shorter times. We ended up stressed, angry and upset, the expression of the exhausted sprit I seen at petro kiosk. Be good and your trip to Hua Hin could take you into the night. Road rage or do a Driving Miss Daisy, your choice, your time.

Evason no longer Exclusive

The crowd at Breakfast

Evason, just a little beyond Hua Hin, on corroded shorelines she resides. A road separates the compound from the sea. Mention the word Evason and the picture of peace and tranquility comes into mind. No, not on a long weekend. What happened was a zoo. Coupled together with the sub two thousand Baht packages Evason is so widely promoting through websites such as Ensogo, the pickup for many of their most fundamental rooms resulted in a serenity breached. Bangkok families squeeze more than two into per room. Officially or unofficially remains an uncertainty. I was told the entire resort was actually fully booked for the weekend. I had trouble finding a spot to park my car.

Breakfast, it was a market. Crowds picked up and gathered in numbers when chefs were spotted ferrying the bacon to the stations. We wiped them out in no time, leaving many behind the queue with none. What's with Asians and bacon? Well, we perceive bacon as a precious rare food item from the western realms. The big pool viewing the sea, under scattered tall trees, the cast of bendy shadows. The breeze hot, of white clouds contrasting the blue skies the vista. Pleasant above but below the mayhem was. It was more like a water amusement park. And so I forgo that dip, and in my own villa pool a restful calm I had seek. This trip, for one night we picked the Evason Studio, for the next we picked the Pool Villa.

Evason Pool Villa - Bath

Evason Studio room, would not recommended it. If it is basic you want then the most basic room would suffice. The only different is the large balcony with a day bed outdoors, you lay in tropical climate and turn into a sweaty pile. Could be nice for wine in the night, but smacked tightly together the rooms divided by walls, little privacy there will be. But my second day was something else, the Pool Villa. Enclosed in high walls offering seclusion, an inviting pool was set within. Next to it the outdoor tub, encircled by a lotus pond she sits. The shower located next to the tub, in openness one baths under the stars. In the hot day not venturing anywhere to any attractions infested by the crowds, floating under the skies the cricks of nature accompanied my relax stance. One truly rest in a Pool Villa so this I highly recommend.

Great Breakfast Spread, Excellent Food

Asians and Bacon

Just too many People

Working by the Pool

Egg Station

Evason Pool Villa

Evason Studio Room

Evasion Studio - Day Bed Outdoors

Food Shortage

OX Restaurant

OX Restaurant - 12°24'16.20"N,  99°59'40.80"E

I had meals in this restaurant called OX previously. Where Evason is located, there aren't much restaurants around. So any establishments on a long weekend nearby will be packed like sardines. The non Thai and non English speaking crew guarantees to drive your frustration up a notch. The wait for food, two notches. When served the wrong food, that triples it. And when I tried to snap a picture of the rising moon set against the backdrop of the stunning horizon, the crowds kept getting in the way, so angry, so angry. This picture I shown, she (the big white one) was dominating the scene and refused to go away. For twenty full minutes she was posing away, like a mutant bull fly moving in circles on my LED screen while I watch a movie. By the time she went away, the best of lighting the dusky skies and the moon could offer was gone. And so I shall title the picture "Don't Eat too much at Hua Hin, or else...".

Arghhhh....

The Weekend Crowd

Gin Poo Restaurant

Gin Poo - 12°24'19.20"N,  99°59'30.00"E

The next day, we tried to lunch somewhere less crowded at a place called Gin Poo (meaning eat crabs). We ordered steam crabs. The waiter came back say "no crab left". We ordered fried fish in fish sauce. He came back later saying "fish finish". We ordered BBQ prawns, he came back later say "prawn finish". So we ate the only thing that was left - squid. Servings was small, taste was average, but the view of fishing boats moored along the river was great.

The Fishing Boats

Somewhere Good

Somewhere Good - 12°19'60.00"N,  99°59'51.00"E

The best meal I had was actually on an unknown restaurant, located at the corner of bend, a large wooden hut with several small straw roofed constructs. We were lucky we were early, at 11:30 we reached. The crowds soon came and many had to be turned away. The price was fantastically cheap for the quality of Thai food we have. I am a fanatic of fried rice, and this joint offers one of the best I had in a long time. The fragrance of the extra hot wok sealed the flavors of curry powder and crab into every grain of rice cooked to perfection for frying. In most places, the art getting rice cooked perfect for frying is scarce, fried rice usually ended up mushy but not here. Must try you must, must come again I will.

Huts

The Scene Beyond

The Limited Parking

So when is a good time for Hua Hin?

Never on a long weekend should one make any destination that needs to commute out of Phetkasem a choice for relaxing holiday. Unless, one leaves at ungodly hours such as 5 am in morning, the drive would turn you into a wild pile of fuming rage. The traffic had gone terrible lately with the increase of cars. This is thanks to last year's aggressive incentive schemes for first time owners, policy makers denies this of course. Anyways, all resorts will be cheaper during weekdays, quiet and private without the wild crowd. Heaps of resorts had sprang up all over Hua Hin, driving the migratory swarm even bigger. Trips to Hua Hin had always been good, too bad it is just not now.