No tours? Then, what?

There is one story left to tell about Ko Samui, Thailand.  We never made it to the beach due to some unexpected rain. Instead, we found a coffee shop where I enjoyed another Thai Milk Tea.  It is soooo good. I’d appreciate my readers finding that recipe for me. You think I’m kidding? Well, we also connected with some folks back home and then had what might be our last Thai foot massage.  It was just as good as the first albeit the back massage was the roughest yet. ‘Good for you’, says the therapist. Whew! I’ve lost count but that might just bring my massage treatments in Thailand to the grand total of 9!  At about $7.00 US per treatment, that’s a great bargain, I believe. Feeling all relaxed, we walked back to the boat, George sporting his new sun hat. Something had gone terribly wrong for Holland America and their boarding process.  It seems everyone converged on the dock simultaneously with the light rain. The line of people zigzaged through their 3 tents and back through the parking lot and into a jumble of people. Then the rain came! First, it was light. We reached for our umbrella in our backpack and realized it was back on the ship.  George’s sun hat became my rain hat. HAL staff members were passing out umbrellas to some. The rain strengthened. All the while, there were the workers passing out juice, fruit kabobs, and the funniest- thing of all, moist washcloths to refresh after the hot day at the beach. Pretty soon, we were shivering and dripping.  It must have been 45 minutes before we were undercover. We laughed a lot with the British couple in front of us. Others, well, they were displeased. We heard a few unpleasantries but most everyone took it in stride. We returned to our room and turned off the air for the first time this trip. We also welcomed our warm clothes, for a change.  Maybe this is why we brought them. And, to top it all off, there was a phone message awaiting us. It was Rose, one of the Golden Girls, asking lots of questions about our upcoming tour. She then told a new fellow traveler about our tours so we had a second message from an unknown traveler asking to join our group. No good deed goes unpunished.

We’ve been docked in Pattaya, Thailand for two days.  It’s a few hours from Bangkok but, having been there already…..one of us has been there twice, lol……….we decided to stay close to home.  By that, I mean we are staying close to our ship home! Home, afterall, is where you sleep at night.

On Day One in Pattaya, we wandered off the ship about 10:30 and found ourselves in the middle of a huge working dock with containers, tug boats, cargo ships, and barges everywhere.  Apparently, it’s a new port for HAL, and there was no shuttle available. Remember, most passengers have gone on excursions to Bangkok. The cruise line doesn’t know what to do with us rebels. We connected up with four young travelers who work in guest services.  They arranged a taxi for us to Terminal 11 but they also shared inside information about their countries and their work with HAL. They hailed from the Phillipines, Taiwain, and Mexico. We entered the mall, themed like an airport. We actually saw impressive replicas of the Eiffle Tower, Leaning Tower of Pisa, and Pier 21. Fancy clothiers and jewelers were everywhere. We headed for the Thai food court. Oh, man! It was a mecca for our favorite foods. With tummies full, we took a walk to the nearbye beach. Disappointing! Thais are very proud of their southern beaches. Well, I doubt this one makes the list. We returned for one more Thai Milk tea and waited for our co-travelers to take the taxi back to the port.

Our final day in port has been a lazy one.  We found a secret place to hang out at the top of the ship with nice AC, great seating, and floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the water.  It will be our go-to place to read, write, and relax. We walked the promenade deck a bit. George visited the gym. Yes, only George and I visited the spa.  What can I say? I did walk the deck! Then, there were the quesadillas. I ordered quesadillas via room service. When asked if we wanted chicken, we said, ‘No, just plain.’  Well, plain is what I got! 8 triangular pieces of toasted tortillas with crema, guac and salsa. NO CHEESE. Geez! I thought that is what queso means. I haven’t given up. I’ll try again.    

George took two more calls from the Golden Girl.  “Where do we meet? What time do we meet? Do I need a jacket?  How much money should I bring? Will I need anything else?” We dutifully traveled to her room to deliver yet another itinerary – number 4, I think.  I’m sure there will be an update in my next posting.

So, the chocolate chef is world famous and with good reason.  One small complaint about some cruises is that there are desserts of all kinds but few are the good chocolate variety.  Not true here. Chocolate lovers, book your cruise now. We just dined next to a couple from the Netherlands who said they’ve cruised over 100 times and this is the best kitchen they’ve encountered.  I don’t know if I’d go that far, but the chocolate. YES!

Tomorrow, no more ridiculous ramblings.  We actually visit Cambodia!