Setting Sail

A quick flight on our third plane of the trip took us over the seas and to the beautiful island of Phuket. As family T has been to Phuket previously in 2002, this trip was a very special holiday for us. Since Mama T and Papa T moved to the city of Sin and HT decided to become a cowboy in Australia, this trip would be the first time we were all together as a family in over a year and a half! What a way to have a reunion! 

We arrived at the beautiful Indigo Pearl hotel and immediately were settled into plushy seats overlooking the ocean and were pried with fruity, refreshing cocktails. Sadly we arrived so late that we dropped our bags and headed straight to the lovely restaurant to be reunited with HT and several of his friends who had been travelling with him for the last few weeks. 

A few cocktails later and we slipped into the silky sheets for our final sleep on dry land! 

The next morning AN and I were up bright and early so we took the opportunity to get dressed straight into our swimmers and headed to the private hotel beach to dip our toes into the sea. The beach was deserted, aside from a few friendly locals, so we enjoyed the peace and quiet of the incredible surroundings. Jet leg clearly does have some benefits! 

As we wandered back to our room we stopped for a quick plunge in one of the three swimming pools at the hotel. 

A quick breakfast later and we headed down to the Marina to pick up the last two members of the crew! BF and RC-M were more than willing to hop on board and set sail with the rest of the motley crew. 

It didn't take us long finding a comfy spot to enjoy the ride. The trampoline became the perfect sunbathing spot, with the shade of the sail and the occasional splash from the lapping waves beneath to keep us cool. 

A few minutes later and the breeze picked up,  the sails started flapping and the beach of Phuket became a tinier dot on the horizon. Jimmy Blue soon became our home!

It's very important to match our swimmers....on holiday we wear pink! 

in true James Bond style our first stop took us to the James Bond island, where The Man with the Golden Gun was filmed. We arrived bright and early and so had the whole island do ourselves, to scramble over and explore, before the tourist hoards arrived just as we were making our escape. 

Our first couple of days in paradise were plain sailing and were absolutely perfect, but the voyage only became more exciting! 

Mood - relaxed! 

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Singapore - Part 2 - Pulau Ubin

After a day a the beach on Sentosa, we were definitely in need of a cocktail, or three! Papa T had made dinner reservations at the Fullerton Bay, a beautiful old colonial style hotel right on the bay, overlooking the Marina Bay Sands and the famous Singapore skyline. 

I didn't take any pictures inside, but we had a delicious meal, rounded off with a trio of crème brûlées and some mini macarons. 

The next day, in complete contrast, AN and I headed to the other side of the country....yes Singapore really is that small! We took a little chug-chug boat over to the small island of Pulau Ubin, just off the Changi coast. Pulau Ubin is said to be a glimpse of what Singapore used to be like, before it became so developed and cosmopolitan. 

The island is basically all uncultivated jungle with a police training academy and a few little shacks serving up the catch of the day. With no roads, the best way to explore was to pick up some bikes and head into the jungle! 

We followed the winding trails deep into the hot and humid jungle, passed the mangrove swamps and giant monitor lizards. The sounds of unfamiliar insects were making the trees hum and the heat of the day felt even hotter under the canopy of giant leaves above us. 

We came to a small path leading off the main track, flanked with colourful flag poles, that was too tempting to leave unexplored. The path led to a little temple on the banks of the murky river that had been ceremonially dressed up in colourful prayer flags as far as the eye could see.

In the middle of the jungle this little show was so unexpected and just a little bit magical. It was also completely deserted, so we wandered around taking far too many photos and making some new turtle-like friends. 

We eventually found ourselves back at the little seafood cafes and feasted on plate after plate of the freshest fish and noodles, before heading back to the mainland. 

We ran straight to the airport where we hopped on a plane with Mama and Papa T, heading to Thailand for our next expedition! 

Mood - Inspired 

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