Kata beach

17th February 

Before leaving Phuket town I wanted to visit the museum before checking out but it was closed when I got there.

I was taking a picture of this shop and the shopkeeper waved at me.

You can just see him on the left of this picture behind the car. He was smoking a huge cigar. I chatted to him for a while. He has had this Tailor shop here for 40 years.

More pictures around the town

After checking out I said goodbye to my room-mates who were sat out the front of the hostel, smoking. They asked me where I was from - they had guessed I was either English or Swedish 😄.

The Scouse lady was flying home to see her grandchildren. The other guy is from London. 

With the help of a local man, selling tours in the old town, I found the local bus to Kata & Karon beach. If you stand around, looking vaguely lost, someone usually asks you where you're going. 

You can probably make out the signs of one of the many Cannabis shops, through the back of the bus.

This was great fun! I loved this journey 

I don't know if there are bus stops, but you just rang the bell to get off, and the driver just stopped wherever.

I was able to check in early to the hostel  - which is actually, also a Bartender school where people are training to make cocktails etc.

As it was pancake day, I decided to try a Thai pancake - they make them square, thin & crispy and cover them with sweetened condensed milk - if you want it. I had banana & coconut.

Spent the afternoon on the beach, which was very busy.

Kata town was busy too

In fact, I'd come here as it is supposedly less touristy than Patong beach, so I dread to think what that's like!

In the evening, the streets around the restaurants were heaving - it was tourist hell tbh - and the beach was busy too

Less so towards one end

You could just make out the head of 'The Big Buddah ' up on the hill (Photo at beginning of this section of blog) Its closed for renovation after a landslide, I read somewhere, so I probably won't get to see it. It's a pity.

Info:

The Buddha statue depicts Gautama in a sitting position (Maravichai: มารวิชัย) and is 45 metres (148 feet) tall and 25.45 metres (83.5 feet) wide. It is made of concrete and covered with Burmese white marble. Facing towards Ao Chalong Bay the statue is the main Buddha of the Wat Kitthi Sankaram temple (Wat Kata). The statue was declared the "Buddhist Treasure of Phuket" by Somdet Phra Yanasangwon, the Supreme Patriarch of Thailand, in 2008.^[2]

The statue cost 30 million baht (approx. US$950,000 in February 2019),^[4] sourced primarily from donations.^[5] It was built legally in a national conserved forest with the approval of Thai Royal Forest Department.

The beach did look quite pretty at night