So, whereas before I was staying in Patong which is for all intents and purposes solely a tourist attraction and is rife with Russians and Australians, I am now staying in Phuket Town in basically the heart of downtown.... and I'm not the only white person... but I'm certainly the minority now. Last night I ran into 3 Americans (very rare... plenty of Australians and Brits, but not many Americans) that were eating at a pizzeria around the corner when I went exploring, but for the most part, I draw more strange looks from people here that seem to ask with their eyes if I'm lost.
That being said, I'm quite enjoying it here actually. I miss Maria tremendously of course... but I'm getting a much more accurate feel for what life is really like in Thailand now that I'm away from the beach. Most storefronts seem to be closed until about 5pm when everything opens and everyone is selling something from their front porch, but until then, I don't know where everyone is. Does everyone work a 9 to 5 job and then come home and sit on their porches and sell wares until 10 or 11? Or do they sleep until 4pm and live off the income from the noodles they sell at night? Without watching individual houses I really don't have any idea to be honest... as I don't have the slightest clue what rent is like here or what the hourly wages are comparable to.
However, I did go out last night really for the first time to explore. Usually I map out online where I'm going so I know exactly where I'm headed, and while I did use maps to get a feel for the surrounding area, and always knew where I was, I did a bit of meandering to try to find somewhere that had cheap Thai food. My search was a bust, excluding one sit down restaurant that I may check out later... but I did find a small mall about 5 minutes walk away. I think mall isn't really the most accurate way to describe it to be honest... it seemed more a place for kids to hang out after they get out of school. There was a movie theater, a video game store, a few various and sundry clothing shops, a hair salon, KFC, Dairy Queen, the aforementioned pizzeria, another Ice Cream shop (guess ice cream is popular.... considering we're at the equator, I'm sure I can't figure out why), and hundreds of kids and teenagers just sitting around staring at the white guy walking through the mall alone.
Too bloody hot though ... tried to take a cold shower, but apparently the electric shower doesn't have a cold setting, just a not-quite-hot setting. So that didn't help much. It did help temporarily with the "I feel like I'm drowning in my own sweat" experience that happens every hour or so though, but I can't just stay in the shower constantly. Trying to stay in the room as much as possible to be honest though; I had my fun the past two weeks and this is just a waiting game as I'm trying to save my money for Russia. I love it here, but really can't wait to move on to Russia .. got a woman waiting for me that I miss too damn much ;)
That being said, I'm quite enjoying it here actually. I miss Maria tremendously of course... but I'm getting a much more accurate feel for what life is really like in Thailand now that I'm away from the beach. Most storefronts seem to be closed until about 5pm when everything opens and everyone is selling something from their front porch, but until then, I don't know where everyone is. Does everyone work a 9 to 5 job and then come home and sit on their porches and sell wares until 10 or 11? Or do they sleep until 4pm and live off the income from the noodles they sell at night? Without watching individual houses I really don't have any idea to be honest... as I don't have the slightest clue what rent is like here or what the hourly wages are comparable to.
However, I did go out last night really for the first time to explore. Usually I map out online where I'm going so I know exactly where I'm headed, and while I did use maps to get a feel for the surrounding area, and always knew where I was, I did a bit of meandering to try to find somewhere that had cheap Thai food. My search was a bust, excluding one sit down restaurant that I may check out later... but I did find a small mall about 5 minutes walk away. I think mall isn't really the most accurate way to describe it to be honest... it seemed more a place for kids to hang out after they get out of school. There was a movie theater, a video game store, a few various and sundry clothing shops, a hair salon, KFC, Dairy Queen, the aforementioned pizzeria, another Ice Cream shop (guess ice cream is popular.... considering we're at the equator, I'm sure I can't figure out why), and hundreds of kids and teenagers just sitting around staring at the white guy walking through the mall alone.
Too bloody hot though ... tried to take a cold shower, but apparently the electric shower doesn't have a cold setting, just a not-quite-hot setting. So that didn't help much. It did help temporarily with the "I feel like I'm drowning in my own sweat" experience that happens every hour or so though, but I can't just stay in the shower constantly. Trying to stay in the room as much as possible to be honest though; I had my fun the past two weeks and this is just a waiting game as I'm trying to save my money for Russia. I love it here, but really can't wait to move on to Russia .. got a woman waiting for me that I miss too damn much ;)
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