To Argentina & Beyond

Always happy to have a 3-day weekend, even if it means lugging your laptop along so that you can finish your mid-year reports!!  This time we hired a car – a nifty little Honda Jazz – and drove ourselves down to Hua Hin.  Finding our way using google maps was fairly painless, and the signposting on the highways in Thailand usually include English too.

Last time we visited Hua Hin, we stayed in the Springfield area and bunked down with friends who have a condo there.  This time we stayed right in the heart of Hua Hin – in a little motel on Damnoenkasem Rd, paying 1200 baht (one of the more expensive (yes, yes, I know – ridiculous NZ$50) rates for an air-conditioned double-room, with access to a pool).  It was very close to the Night Baazar (which reminded us of the Suan Luam Night Bazaar back in Bangkok).  We enjoyed fresh seafood (although the tiger prawns were not the best we’ve ever had) on the pier and a leisurely walk to the very end of the pier.

The 3-day weekend was of course in celebration of the King of Thailand’s birthday.  At night the lights came on in a dazzling display of lanterns and flags.  Continuing the leisurely walking style, we found a Euro-Thai restaurant and ate pasta for tea, connected to the wi-fi that was free if you bought Chang Beer!  The beer was a welcome break from a solid 3 hours of report writing in the motel room.

Before heading back to Bangkok, we drove up the hill to Khao Takiap, 4 kms south of Hua Hin – also known as Monkey Hill.  The view point from the temple right at the top is amazing (even with haze!).

Before ascending the steps, the locals purchase flowers and incense as offerings, climb their way to top, offer thanks at the feet of the buddha statue inside, then dong the bells that surround the temple with thick sticks of wood. The monkeys are a hoot – one took a liking to Ben’s empty pepsi bottle and he lost it!

Apparently there’s still much to explore around Hua Hin and it’s neighbour, Cha-am.  Roll on another long weekend.

More photos of Hua Hin can be found on my photoblog under the Thailand category.

We are part way through a fabulous 3-day weekend here in Thailand. Yesterday, May 8th was The Royal Ploughing Ceremony. Earlier in the week it was Coronation Day. There is nothing better than a very short week to help you recharge the batteries in order to make it through the last days of the school year. (We have about 21 school days left – 33 days left til Ben & I fly home to the wintery days of NZ for about 8 weeks!)

But even better than a short week is the opportunity to spend some time at a beach in Thailand. Enter Cha-Am and Hua Hin. We were invited to drive down to Hua Hin with fellow teaching colleagues (and kiwis to boot) to stay at their gorgeous condo at Springfield Beach Resort.
Cha-Am’s claim to fame is the being Thailand’s longest white sand beach. And I have to say, it is very quiet, very deserted and very beautiful. The water’s not blue though but it reminds me of Hot Water Beach back home, the temperature of the water is like the bath!!

An afternoon stroll along the beach was most enjoyable – shells a-plenty, sand a-plenty and of course photo ops a-plenty!

How’s this for relaxing?