Jeffa.Net

Well, you might be wondering what’s taken me so long to post this.

To be honest, I got “camera shy”. The events of the last month have been huge.

I can honestly say that in the 15 days I was in Phuket I had an absolute wonderful time both medically and physically.

The trip had it’s sensitive moments but overall it was fantastic.

So, what happened?

Well, my Perth – Kuala Lumpur flight was good, new A330 and I booked a premium economy seat, felt more like business class really..

I never wanted to travel economy again but had to on the way home.

Arrival:

Arriving into Phuket was pretty straight forward, unlike Bali there are no entry and exist fees so this makes the process a little easier, I also felt “safer” in Phuket, perhaps that’s just because there hasn’t really been too much hatred towards Westerners there. The trip from the airport to Patong beach feels like it goes forever. Kinda normal though really isn’t it? When you first go someone and it’s a long way away, it takes FOREVER to get there. All in all it’s about 45 mins to 1 hour depending on your driver.

Hotel:

Not as nice as I’d hoped, clearly someone had been smoking in my room the “cushion” pillows on the bed smelt horrible. As I am only paying under $50 a night, I didn’t complain.. The bonus of this hotel was that it is smack bang behind my dental clinic.

The bed was a king but I might have been better sleeping on the floor, rock hard I very much appreciated my bed back in Perth on my return!.

Breakfast was ok, not as great as our Bali breakfast staying at Kuta Seaview but then we were paying 4-5 times the amount.

First Impressions:

Patong beach, like bali a few years ago often has that “sewer” smell to it. Patong floods quite easily and wish that brings  ”yukkys” to the surface.

Other than this, Patong beach and Phuket in general is very scenic, I enjoyed hiring a scooter and motoring around seeing different places, often getting lost but finding my way back. The people seemed friendly enough but one thing I noticed is that I got harassed more in Patong than I did in Kuta. This was very evident with “massages”.

95% of Thai massages “want” to end with a happy ending, they almost get upset when you say no and you almost feel like your dishonouring them. Never the less I kept my whits about me and said a firm no. Obviously if you have your partner with you, no one seems to harass you.

Dental Appointment No1.

This was a quick overview of what we were going to get into, basically it described the fact that I required 2 maybe 3 root canals and then 15-18 crowns.

The final mark was set at 2 root canals and 15 crowns.

The next week I spent time in and out of the dentist, getting my root canals done (2 appointments) and then getting my teeth prepared for the crowns (another 2 appointments). During this time I often simply stayed in the Hotel laying around watching Fox8 all about the US presidential election, or BBC News, much about the same thing.

I did however venture out and go to “The Flying Hunuman” basic description from http://flyinghanuman.com/

“Flying Hanuman is an adventure like no other on Phuket. It shows that the island’s beauty goes far beyond the sea, sun and sand that it is famous for. The hillsides of Phuket overflow with thick forest that is great for exploration and outdoor activities. What Flying Hanuman aimed to achieve was to provide travellers with exceptional service, enjoyment, excitement and memories without impacting the natural balance within the forest environment surrounding it. 

There is no better way to take in the other face of the Pearl of the Andaman.”

I really enjoyed this experience and hoped when my partner came across we would go as well. (which we did).

I also had some really good nights out and met some random people. US Sailors, other aussies and made some good friends from Melbourne.

On the 2nd week my parter came across and that was great to have someone close there to spend some time with. We hired a 250cc scooter and motored all over lower phuket It was great fun, but sometimes very wet!!.

On the Wednesday, the big day, the new teeth went in…

They look great and much better than my previous look which I won’t show.

Once in it took a couple of days to get used to them and I had to go back on the Monday before the flight back on Tuesday to have a couple of them filed down as my bite wasn’t sitting correctly.

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It’s now 2 months on and I love my new chompers, they’ve given me no trouble and I feel much more confident about laughing in public and even talking.

I cannot say how happy I truely am with the service at Sea Smile in Patong Beach Phuket, they’re professional and take it all very seriously. It’s a very well oiled machine and I would strongly recommened anyone wanting the work done to use these guys. www.thaidentalcenter.com

That’s all folks!