Making ourselves comfortable

Saturday 18^th August.

Actually managed to sleep in today! Yay! Finally slipping into holiday mode. Again, breakfast is in the Waterfront, and develops into a marathon. After all, we’re on holiday! The main area is where the breakfast is arranged and seating here is for anyone.  The north wing of the Waterfront is reserved for adults only and is a haven for a quiet breakfast. And still 85 or so steps to the food. There is such a variety of food, all cultures are catered for, it’s amazing. And so tempting to try it all. I finished breakfast with a Nutella crepe! Treading dangerous ground here! We took so long with breakfast today it was nearly time to get ready to go in to town.

fruit and yoghurt to start

While we were getting ready there was a dip in the power which we didn’t think much about. It knocked out the air con and the TV which we had on for background music (Thai Channel V) then the water pipes started making a funny noise and we couldn’t turn the cold tap right off. What now!!??

We went to report the problem but it wasn’t just isolated to us, it was resort wide. Phew! I’m sure the beautiful staff at reception cringe a little inside when they see us approach. They’re so lovely and helpful. ‘Is there anything else I can do for you?’ Well, since you’re asking…………… is it possible to get a firmer pillow? They must think,OMG, first the bed is too hard, now the pillow is too soft!! But no, they give a slight bow, very graciously and pull out the ‘pillow menu’. Subject to availability, I can have whatever pillow I think might suit me. And they’re in our room when we get back from town. Bliss!

We ate so much for breakfast today, we may not need lunch! On the 1pm shuttle again to go back in to town to the tailor for a fitting. Dress is great, slight gape on the arm but Tony can adjust that, no need to have worried and the top is spot on. I’m so happy that I order another shirt in a different style, a copy of the other one I brought from home. It’s a blouse I loved so much, I literally wore it out, and have had copies made on our trips to Vietnam. Now I’ll have one from Thailand too. Only need a light, late lunch, that we get at the Happy House Restaurant that we had a beer in yesterday. Just some chicken satay and spring rolls. Although it could turn out to be an expensive meal, I accidentally bit the fork and chipped a bit off a tooth. Bloody hell. Great trip for shit to happen! Filling in some time before the shuttle was due to pick us up, we browse in a shop we walk past. The shop keeper is on us like a seagull on a hot chip, eager to sell us something. You like t-shirt? No thanks. Hmmm, you like scarf? Oooh, scarf you say? Ok, what do you have? Ended up buying a hot red scarf, actually just what I had been wanting for a while. The shuttle arrived at 3.15 and we were the only ones to pick up so the driver offered to drop us at the Bang Niang markets for a quick visit because that was the next pick up, scheduled for 3.45. So of course we say yes. And of course, I buy a dress!  

Dinner tonight has been booked for 7pm so we have time for a longer swim, maybe ¾ hour, and we explored further than yesterday, all the way around to the Aquamarine bar, the swim up bar between wings 3 and 4. The Pool Bar is so busy at Happy Hour, we couldn’t get a seat and ended up going down to the Beach Bar. Blowing pretty hard and some rain, so we had the place to ourselves, except for one other couple. Great chat with the 21 year old barman and I went to take a couple of photos and when I got back, the conversation changed to photography. He’s very interested in photography, has a good camera and offers to take our photo. 

bit windy

Dinner is kebab and curry night in the Waterfront. Persian, Turkish, Moroccan and Indian kebabs, Indian curries, Lebanese and Greek mezzes.

I get chatting to the Indian chef, as you do, and pick up another great idea to go with the garlic and spring onion tip from our dinner at Sakura the other night. Deep fry garlic cloves on low heat. Drain and toss in mixture of salt, mango powder and chilli. It’s his mother’s recipe and is quite special to him, he learnt to cook at his mother’s side and he says some of the best recipes you will never find in a cookbook. He's really proud of his work and appreciates people who appreciate his work.

He also gave us the heads up about an Indian wedding taking place here over the next several days. He's quite excited about it. People have started arriving already, but the main festivities will take place from Monday through until Wednesday, taking the Waterfront Restaurant out of action.