Saturday 12 December 2015

Another sunny day lazing around by the pool.  A lovely way to pass the time.

In the late afternoon we have arranged to join a trip to the market in Phuket.  Traffic is heavy so getting there takes a little while.

Like the other markets we have seen in south east Asia it well stocked – the main section is perhaps not as tightly packed as in Ho Chi Minh (and perhaps less varied) but there is still a lot to wander through.

At the back of the market there are food stalls either selling ingredients or a variety of cooked food.  Jackie is not feeling well initially – it is hot and she is struggling.  She chooses one of the small restaurants at the very back of the market and we are given a menu of pictures of the food and make some choices.  I go for shellfish.

All freshly cooked and as she has some water Jackie starts to feel better.  Slight dehydration – a case of getting adjusted to the temperatures and so on.

When it turns up the food is very simple and good and much enjoyed.  During the meal Jackie asserts she now wants to go and find a bag she saw earlier as it might be the right one.

Settling up is not a lot of money.

Now we wander up and down the aisles looking for the bag shops again!  We do find a couple but in general they do not seem particularly well made and decide not to invest.

We still have some time before being collected – so head for a bar just on the corner opposite the pick up point.  We sit down and order some drinks and then I feel a couple of spots of rain.  Shall we move?

Yes we do move inside.

And then it rains. and it pours and we see a real downpour.  We are under an awning – and staying dry is proving difficult.  Others from the minibus start appearing in the bar and in the one next door – and everyone is huddling away from the rain.  And it is now really RAINING.

The street is turning into a river.  And the minibus has not arrived.

We cross the street so that we are in the right place when it does arrive – which it then does – but even being in the rain for a couple of moments mean we are now wet.

All rounded up we head back to the hotel and have a shower (why when we are already so wet?  The shower is warmer).  And time for bed.

Boy did I tell you it rained and rained earlier?

More concerning is Jackie reporting that the floor on her side of the bed is damp and a towel is put down to absorb the wet.