We are now firmly in the Sheraton, and what a lovely hotel. We have a standard room, the luxury ones must be amazing. Actually the only difference I think, unless you have a suite, is that we don't face the pool. I am quite happy having to walk 100m to get to the pool.
We just relaxed all day today under an umbrella. It is very hot and humid, and the sun can be blistering, so trying to be really careful. The hotels has only two storeys and is set among lovely gardens. There is Jasmine everywhere, and I think they are called Jacaranda. At night when you are walking anywhere there is the most wonderful perfumed aroma everywhere.
It is right on the beach, but there is little beach to speak of and the tide is in a lot. Earlier I heard someone say they had seen a couple of man'o'war jelly fish just off the beach. We did go for a swim earlier today, but think we might give it a miss in future!
I didn't quite know what to expect but thought Hua Hin would be a small seaside town, but wrong, it's an enormous resort. It isn't the sweeping beach with azure seas, there seems to be a permanent heat haze, although the beach is shallow, there is a constant wind that gets stronger in the afternoon and the surf is quite rough. Not that we mind, it is lovely sitting in the gardens.
We are about 10kms from the resort centre, but the hotel has a minibus that drives in an back every hour, and today we caught the 4pm bus in. Probably a bit early as it was still hot and sticky. I was amazed at the size of the place. We wandered around for about half and hour, and then the thirst for beer set in.
One thing I forgot to mention yesterday is the Thai driving. How they manage not to kill themselves when they move around is amazing. They weave in and out of each other, moped circle around the cars. The moped usually have the mum, dad, three kids and the dog all clinging to them. I sucked my breath in a number of times on the journey down here. But nobody seems to get uptight or road ragey about it, it is obviously just how is done over here
There are lots of little streets with bars and we opted for one and sat down. Rod told me he felt a bit strange, as it was soon apparent that after dark, this was the red light area, but the bar and the girls were really friendly. He thought he might be dragged off in a back room and have to pay lots of money. An English couple from Worcester say down with us, Rod nicknamed him the major, as he looked just like one, but they were great fun. They travelled every year out to Thailand, and then added Cambodia or Vietnam or Laos. They were seasoned travellers, and after talking to them about Thailand, Rod felt a bit better. I thought the place was amazing.
All looked a bit seedy and full of aging western men walking about..... umm
We only had about 40 minutes before the bus back, but the place was vibrant, and we will go in another time and I will take some pictures.
Exhausted with the heat we came back to the hotel and had dinner. The hotel has a number of restaurants and chose Azia tonight who do Thai, Indian and Chinese food. We opted for a Thai Platter between us and I thought I was going to explode by the end. The food was just wonderful, hotel but aromatic. It was a great way to try a variety of new dishes, and we loved them all.
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