Patong

Coming to Thailand, I didn't really have an image in my heard about it. I have seen gorgeous photos of a perfect paradise, and I heard stories of the country being really dirty and sketchy. I had heard stories of people coming here and hating it and heard stories of people coming here and loving it. I was not really sure what to expect with the mixed stories and photos I have in my head prior to my landing. In reality, this country is a little of both aspects. I can get a really clean, pristine paradise, or I can get a really bad horrible experience depending on where I am. While staying at a gated resort, I get the perfect paradise, but when I go into the city, I see a lot of garbage everywhere, dirtyness around the streets and now a very good standard of living. Driving on the highways, the lines are the street are basically just a suggestion and the laws here are not really enforced. --or, if a law is enforced.. it is extremely enforce:

JEEZ! They don't mess around. We take a taxi everywhere we go because our resort is in just a excluded resort area, so we are able to see a lot of the island. I am glad sometime I am in a taxi and not on the streets. I look to my right and there is trash ever where and run down looking shops/house, and I look to my left and there is a really nice house, or nicer looking shops. It is not necessarily a town that is a run down neighbor, but it depends upon the house. Today, we went to the city of Patong. It is like one major  town in Phuket. I absolutely loved it! 

Kinda can't tell from this photo but it is basically exactly how I pictured it would be.. a recipe of part dirtiness, shops all on top of each other, a black market of brand name things, and toss in total awesomeness. Not a lot of people like cities like this one, but I'm not most people. As long as I stay out of trouble or danger, I am lovin it. I would never ever want to live or work EVER in a place like this, but it makes for some good shopping and experience. 

Another good thing about Thailand is all the Thai food! If I studied abroad here, I would gain a ton of weight. It is about 2 dollars for a decent size scrumcious meal! I am in Asian food heaven. 

My lunch this afternoon, after I even ate about a fourth of it. Pha Thai. 80 Bat, which is about $2.30ish? MMM... 

We also went to an outlet mall today that looked like if you disregard the palm trees it came straight out of Albertville. 

  

There were a lot of recognized stores there like nike, addias, north face, ed hardie, etc. except the prices were pretty comparable to the states prices so none of us bought anything.

Here are some photos from our hotel from the rest of the day: