Living the Life

What a great weekend in Phuket.  I've gotten all my school stuff organized and ready to go for the week.  I had a quiet lunch with Carey, and i'm sitting here in my comfy apartment enjoying a thunderstorm.   Apart from Friday night's absurdity that is Patong, my time was spent doing things that I really hope will become routine.

Saturday morning I woke up fairly early, shockingly, since I was up so late the night before, and I sat on my porch, soaking up the rays, drinking coffee, and face timing with my best friend back home.  Started chatting with the gal who invited Carey and I out Friday.  We agreed we both wanted to go to the beach.  Carey had received an invite to Karon Beach to watch the Phuket Open Beach Volleyball Tournament.  Several folks from Friday were gathering at Laem Sing Beach to relax.  I opted for relaxing and Carey agreed, so we picked up our new friend en route and headed west.  If you don't know where you're going, it's easy to miss.  The beach isn't visible from the road.

That's because it's below… way below where the road is.  Lots of steps, carefully laid ones, to get to the sand.  The thought of coming back up was enough to keep me by the water alone.

When we got a peek of this view though, I knew tearing myself away was going to be difficult.  

We found familiar faces easily.  The beach is quiet, calm, and uncrowded.  We were greeted quickly by nice young Thai men who set up lounge chairs for us with our group, positioned umbrellas depending on whether someone wanted sun or "shadow," put out our towels, brought tables, offered menus, delivered drinks.. it was awesome.  

We lounged and chatted, laughed, regaled one another with stories from the night before.  Some folks had some beers, others sipped on green coconuts.  Without any word, people casually took turns getting in the water.  It was wonderfully refreshing and surprisingly strong.  I found the little free standing shower on the beach to be far better for cooling down.  The food was reasonably priced and it cost 100 baht per chair for the day.  I guess the umbrellas just came along with the chairs.

I took a few pictures, but I feel like my camera phone just can't capture the beauty of this paradise.

 I'm feeling really content today.  I made it through my first full week of school.  I've got the best family a gal could ask for back home.  I've got one of the best people I know by my side, caring for me when i'm sick, listening to me rant when I feel crazy, and dancing with me til the wee hours of the morning.  I'm making new friends.  Feeling ready for the next week of school.  Even though it's raining outside, there's nothing like the sound of rain and the rumble of thunder to accompany feelings of gratitude and happiness.