WEATHER: HOT HOT HOT
HIGHLIGHT OF THE DAY: The cool waters of the pool
BUMMER OF THE DAY: Can it get any hotter
WORD OF THE DAY: ‘Come
with me to FantaSea’-most annoying song in the WORLD
After our 15 rounds of cocktails and alcoholic drinks
yesterday, we were a little slower today but we thought that would be okay as
we have the wedding tomorrow and guessed that we would get a few drinks to make
up for today’s smaller effort. The girls
always point out that they only ever drink lots and get hang-overs when I am
around, but it also works in reverse, I am never without a drink when they are
around so I guess we are either perfect together or we are just raging
alcoholics…. BUT it is not all my fault…..
The Bucks night out did seem to turn out bigger than Ben
Hur. Frog was escorted home at 4am in a
bit if a state and Jase was home a little earlier. Hearing stories from people around breakfast,
there seemed to be some Hangover II qualities to what we were hearing. But the god thing was no-one died, no-one was
tattooed and the groom was safely tucked up in bed. To share 2 stories, we heard that Shane had
seen some-one he knows at the Thai kick boxing, which really isn’t that unusual
as he knows a lot of people and generally runs into some-one he knows
everywhere, so why not Phuket, but this person turned out to be my half-brother
who was holidaying in Phuket as well.
The freaky thing is they have never met, Paul and Karla recognized him
from Facebook and all my tagging of photos and they knew that there was a Bucks
night on tonight-so no flies on my family they went up and said hi and got a
few photos!!! How random is that! And apparently Trev and Shane dodged a bullet
when people were trying to organize a fight in the ring between the 2
brothers. Thank goodness, common sense
or some other issue prevailed and it didn’t come to fruition-can you imagine
telling Dayna that Trev lost a tooth or had a black-eye from something like
that…… Talk about lucky miss…….
Anyway Frog was out for the count- so after another
amazing breakfast, we got the kiddie winks ready, hair up, hats on and lubed up
with sunscreen and we were on our way. I
don’t think it is much cooler than yesterday; it is the humidity that is the
killer. Once we passed the markets the
kids were wondering how much further it was to the main strip of Karon and
personally so was I. In total it would
have been a 20 minute walk where we stopped and had a look at a few shops on
one side of the road and then crossed over and did the same to get back to the
start of the main road. There aren’t a
lot of ‘souvenir’ shops as such, there was one we found, but they were more
clothes shops, restaurants and the fish that eat all the dead skin off your
feet shops but that was about it. I had
some banking I had to do, so I kept the kids with me in the air-conditioned
comfort of the bank while Sandy and Shelly did a quick look around without
little people to make sure that there was nothing more to see and then we
treated ourselves to a tuk tuk back to the hotel and to see the smiles on the
kid’s faces and the wind in our sweaty hair it was worth the 200BHT (6.50AUD)
and the best money spent so far, even the cocktails and that’s saying
something.
Once we were back we were in our togs within 30 minutes
and down to the pool for the rest of the afternoon where we had a few more
cocktails and some lunch. Even staying
at a 5 star resort the cocktails are only 7AUD a pop and I got nachos for lunch
and they were only 9AUD for a fairly generous serve. Just imagine how much cheaper you could do
things if you wanted to, which I don’t, but I am just saying for 5 star service
and in an international hotel it is still pretty cheap here and a Hilton of all
places. Sandy got away earlier to get a
10AUD massage and a pedicure, which Shelly and I aren’t into and were happy to
stay with the kids. We splashed around
in the pool, with me NOT going down the waterslide today, till 3.45pm, when we
had to head upstairs to get ready for our 5.15pm pickup for our dinner and show
tonight at Phuket FantaSea. I really had
no idea on what it was all about except that they had elephants in a show and
we got a dinner. The girls booked it
yesterday with the hotel and decided that we pay an extra 10AUD to get a better
dinner and better seats at the show tonight.
I was just going along for the ride and was happy to do whatever, as
long as I was with them, I didn’t care where that would be. I have to say I’m enjoying a ‘family’
holiday. The kids are at a great age now
where they all get along, they all play together well, they understand a lot of
things and to be included in all of that, for me is kinda special as I have
never really had that before and out of all the years that the Elks, Randall’s
and I have been friends this is the first opportunity that we have had to make
it all happen. As the Elks and Randall’s
have interconnecting rooms and I am one room down, we drop them at the chaos
that 4 children and 4 adults create in 2 hotel rooms and then I head back to my
little piece of Nirvana for a shower, a 10 minute time out where it is
clean-ish, cooler and my bed has always been made each day so far where the
other 2 have not and I have had power when the other 2 have not-I’m telling you
my room was Nirvana and then it is back to the chaos of family life 2 doors
down.
We had to catch that annoying shuttle to the transfer
building, so we had to make sure we had worked that into our timing, and
perfect it was as we took a seat it started to pelt down rain, not just a rain
shower, this was a mass bucketing of rain in epic proportions. The transfer was a little late picking us up
at 5.25pm, but we were on the road passing through the busi-ness of Patong to
get through to the other side to Kamala and where the FantaSea show was. After seeing the welcome size (which is
massive) I still had no idea on what to expect till we pulled up and as the
minivan door opened we were welcomed to the place, told where to collect our
tickets, what time dinner and the show started and to have a great time. The kids and I stepped out and I think all of
our mouths were open, it was all lit up with neon lights and just at dusk we
still had enough light to get some photos before it got too dark….
Phuket FantaSea is the island's biggest show. With
trapeze artists, a cast of hundreds, performing elephants and other animals and
an exotic storyline that blends tradition with fantasy you'll have a wonderful
evening out here. But the extravaganza doesn't stop there as FantaSea also
hosts one of the biggest buffets in Asia and is set in a theme park that offers
carnival-like games, lots of shopping opportunities, a Palace of the Elephants,
a Similan Adventure Centre several other food outlets. It's spectacular, it's extravagant,
and it’s impressive and great entertainment value for all.
Shelly and Sandy went to get the tickets when I looked
around and I saw a face I recognized and smiled and said Hi, it was a bloke
that Shane used to play football with a long time ago, Oral B and his
family. He then saw Shane and we all had
a gas bag and the world got a little smaller as Sandy used to teach Oral B’s
daughter the violin…… I’m telling you smaller and smaller and after Shane
meeting my half- brother last night at the kick boxing, randomly, you just
never know what actions or remarks will be seen and heard and maybe even
remembered by people you may not know…at the time…but may know people you
do. It is a crazy world. Before you even pass through the main
illuminated gates there is a massive pond with koi fish at the park’s entrance,
where a writhing mass of orange, yellow, and white battle for food (available
for purchase). Some of the fish are
massive and the kids were mesmerized by them for about 15 minutes.
So with a wave to Oral B and family, which I am sure, we
will see again inside, we walked through the turnstiles getting our tickets
punched and then we had a full hour to full in before heading to dinner. The kids thought they were in heaven, asking
the prices of everything at the stalls as we passed to see if they had enough
money to buy something from there. We
were trying to tell them to have a look around at everything first and then we
can come back if it’s what you really want.
It is tough to tell a kid who has money to burn this philosophy, but it
is where it all starts. The main street
is called Carnival Village Shopping
Street and pretty much everything enters and exits this street with it
culminating at the end with the Palace of the Elephants Theatre and where we
would finish up tonight for the show.
Our first stop was Similan Entertainment Arcade and it
was all lit up like a Christmas tree with neon, everything was neon colored and
it was like walking into another world. The
arcade is supposed to reflect the undersea marine world of the Similan
Island. Here you can test your skills
with exciting games in the design of a side show alley type of set up.
Moving back into the street you start to notice all the building
designs that are occasionally wacky, over-the-top costumes of people walking
around, and elephants milling about down near the palace. Phuket FantaSea bills itself as “the ultimate
cultural theme park”, and it’s tough to come up with a better description. The
evening peaks with a stage show, but that’s not the only excitement. The
village has an assortment of shopping choices – from t-shirts to beachwear to
jewellery, where we had to stop at each one in search of elusive purchases the
kids could buy.
It was dinner time.
We were famished. You could eat
anytime from 6.30pm right up till 9pm when the show started. This was also our first look we got at the
Palace of the Elephants which is across the large courtyard all lit up and it
really did look like a centuries old palace from Angkor Wat. Beautiful and pretty much a WOW moment for
me. The meal was at The Golden Kinnaree
Buffet Restaurant and after showing our ticket and walking in you can see the
how the park runs on a grand scale. It cavernous hall seats 4,000 hungry
diners, it looked like a massive wedding reception venue. Tables all set up in rows as far as the eye
could see, but tastefully. Two long
buffet counters serve a mix of Thai and international food; while a changing
selection of special dishes get their own kiosks at the front of the room. Wrap
up the meal with coffee and a plate of scrumptious bite-sized desserts and that
is how you feed a park of people. We had
paid extra to eat in a small room with our own buffet and it was like we were
in a white palace, the room was all silver and white and it was a pretty
amazing experience. We had the same food
as outside, it was just having the luxury of our own and the food was
amazing. I got a few spring rolls from
outside, a noodle bowl and pork rolls.
After dinner we had one more hour to fill before the
show. There’s no shortage of ways to
pass the time. You can jump aboard an
elephant for a trip around the Songbird Luminarie. Watch the bartender spin, flip, and toss
bottles while dancing a techno-jig at the open-air bar. Shop for that perfect
memento; there’s a store (or stall) for every taste and budget. Or visit the
photo studio and dress the family in traditional Thai costumes for a unique
keepsake. We headed to Tiger Jungle
Adventure where there was a promise to see some Tigers. It is an adventure into an ancient, exotic
realm of primordial jungle where you can catch a glimpse of the gentle,
magnificent creatures that inhabit the enchanted Kingdom of Kamala including
monkeys, deer, snakes, white peacocks, lemurs and cockatoos. You pass through a theatrical environment of
12 exotic and mythical scenes inspired by timeless legends and ancient folklores
and finished with the Tigers. They were
pretty amazing to see so close up, but they were pacing and I think this is a
bad sign that they are bored. There were
4 of them in the enclosure, and they did play with each other at times, which
was nice to see, but with just a pane of glass separating you from them it is a
pretty cool experience. We had to haul
arse back to the theatre. We were
running a bit late now as we were looking for a shop that Hads had seen a
necklace she was ready to buy. The poor
kid, we tell her to look at everything, she does and now we don’t know what
shop she saw it in!!! She was hysterical……
The theatre opened at 20:30 and we made it at 8.55pm and
most of the guests had already filed through security. We show our tickets
again for the first check, and then the security check your bags for anything
that is electronic and you have to check it in to storage. Cameras aren’t allowed inside, and they take
it very seriously. Video cameras, digital cameras, camera phones – basically,
everything short of pen and paper that can create an image – must be checked
in. The process is quick and painless, but my thoughts are after the show when
we all exit together but I guess we will worry about that later. Two minutes later you’re in a large hall full
of costumed staff, baby elephants, and young tigers, all of which will pose for
a photograph with you – for a fee. I HAD
to get a group photo so we choose the elephants for out picture and we were
allowed to pat them after the shot and one of them even sniffed my bag with his
trunk and it was a little scary-it was a real life elephant. So I paid for the photo and you pick it up
after the show.
The show kicks off in grand style at 21:00. The stage is
huge, but the performance space is even bigger. Aisles, ceiling, audience –
every part of the theatre is used. While the eye is treated to modern effects
like smoke, explosions, lasers, rain, soaring people, the brain gets insights
into Thai culture in the form of traditional dances from different regions of
the country, shadow puppets, and a fascinating wardrobe. It’s not tough to
believe elephants can become accomplished actors, but this show also employs
goats, roosters, water buffalo, and doves in supporting roles. The chickens were a highlight for all of
us. The story isn’t easy to follow, as
95% of it is in Thai, but it doesn’t matter. Loud and funny moments interrupted
by quiet, beautiful interludes do a great job conveying the emotion. The end
result is a display that’s as dazzling as the sights outside the theatre. The Grand finale with 16 elephants on stage at
the same time performing some tricks is certainly a vision to remember and no
matter what age you will definitely love the show. It is a long night for kids with the only
show starting at 9pm, the 2 Elkin girls had faded off during the show with it
finishing around 10.30pm. We then had to
join the photo line, which I did that, the girls joined the camera line (which
was a lot longer) so we decided to make way with the kids to the front gates
and wait for them there. It was lucky we
did start out early as the heavens then decided to open up and we got wet on
our way back to the main entrance where we could wait undercover for Shelly and
Sandy, who weren’t that far behind us, but certainly got a lot more wet than
us.
There’s one thing that sticks with you is the operations
at Phuket FantaSea. They are slick, they
know what is happening at all times, move you all to where you need to get too
and their job is done at the end of the night when they have you picked up,
fed, entertained, and returned safely to your hotel – all without missing a
beat. Transitions from Point A to Point B to Point C are seamless, and there’s
always plenty of staff around to keep you heading in the right direction. The
size of this well-oiled machine is astounding, and makes its flawless execution
that much more impressive. There seemed
to be a lot of people all waiting for the transfer’s home, depending where your
hotel was depended on to which stop you waited at and then mini-vans just
pulled in, loaded up and then pulled out.
Our line looked busy, so as the boys sat with the kids we waited in the
line and within 15-20 minutes we were at the top of the queue, loaded up and on
our way home.
No children made it back awake, they were all fast asleep
and we had to do that stupid transfer thing again to get to the hotel. It is a real pain when you have 4 sleeping
children at 11.30pm at night. We had to
wait 10 minutes for the trolley shuttle to get us and with all children in bed;
the adults weren’t far behind them. No
nightcaps tonight- we needed our beauty sleep for the wedding tomorrow.
What a great day.
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