Phuket 2014

Last week I travelled to Phuket, Thailand with my family. Although the weather was not the best we had an insightful and enjoyable time.

We landed in the evening and by the time we got to Graceland Hotel at Patong beach we were buggered from flying.

The hotel was old and loved, but well maintained. We had more than enough space in our room for four and had a beautiful view over one of the pools. The hotel had three main pools which included a sky pool and two swim up bars. There was also a good sized gym, the usual restaurants and even an eight lane bowling alley.

On our first day we explored the shopping centre and then made our way down Bangla Road. This is certainly an experience with every second person asking you to come and see a ping pong show, it is an amazing sight all lit up at night, bustling with people and lady boys!

My dad and sister both got suits made at Aussie Tailor on Bangla Road and we are very impressed with the quality and cost. Only time will tell us really how good the quality is though. 

Not much was cheaper at the shops than in Perth and the things on the street were more expensive that Bali. They were much better quality though and had more technology. We did well with our shopping.

We went to FantaSea which really is an incredible place. There is so much colour and most of the time I wasn't quite sure what was going on. It was quite over the top, but not too much to handle. We had a buffet dinner and I was amazed at the range, quality and quantity of food they were churning out! The show itself  was spectacular, it taught you a little about Thai culture and it had animals! The animals were well cared for and there was no hint of cruelty which made me happy. 


We took a boat, one of those double decker ones, to Phang Nga, or more commonly known as James Bond Island. This trip was great, the crew were really good and they took a liking to us Aussies. I think part of this was due to the fact that we understood their sense of humour. The lunch on the boat was also really tasty. At one point we stopped and hopped into inflatable canoes and got taken around these lagoons and through some caves. All the scenery was incredible. We stopped at the big pointy rock made famous by 'The Man With The Golden Gun' and went for a walk and took lots of photos.  To get to here we had to take a long boat which also took us to the floating village. There was a school here and it was amazing in that we could just walk through while the kids were learning. The trip finished off with swimming and canoeing at a sandy beach.


After two attempts we were lucky on the third time to go to Phi Phi Island by speed boat. After being post phoned there was no way the tour company was going to cancel the trip, even with four metre swells. Normally I can handle the surf, I'm always at the beach and I love roller coasters, but this was rough. It was an hour of being thrown about and getting soaked by sea spray before we were able to get out. This was not must relief because we got out to snorkel and we were still getting thrown around. There were a lot of pretty fish who weren't afraid when you got up close. After this we arrived on the beach at Phi Phi and celebrated dry land! We had lunch and went for a walk but didn't get to spend much time on the Island because the travel time was much longer in the rough conditions. The island was very beautiful. We then took an even rougher boat ride to another island where we could swim and snorkel or sleep. On the way back into the marina it was incredible to see how drastically the tide had changed.

Over all it was an incredible, fun experience.

Perth Supanova 2014

This year I only managed to check out Supanova on one day. I didn't get down on Saturday due to work and sporting commitments, though I wish I had. It wasn't all that fun playing hockey in those rainy conditions.

I was doubtful of the new location at the Convention Centre, but I was delightfully surprised. I was expecting it to be cramped, but the layout flowed really well.

I had a fangirl moment during my photo with John Barrowman who is such a great bloke. He is very friendly and clearly wants his fans to make the most of having to pay for a photo. He was very funny during his panel and very appreciative of his fans. His partner Scott is also very lovely.

The panel with the Bond guys, George Lazenby and Richard Kiel was very informative, perfect for a James Bond geek like me! George did all his own stunts in His Majesty's Secret service. I found out that during the famous scene where Jaws bites through the cables,  it is actually Richard biting through braided licorice.

Ming-Na Wen was such a cutie during her panel, especially when she was fangirling over Benedict Cumberbatch, Chris Hemsworth and all things Marvel. She is the polar opposite of Agent May.

It was also great to see all the stalls, especially all the work by artists. I met up with a girl from primary school who had made some posters and written a few comics. Her work is incredible, go check it out-MN Productions!

Overall it was a great experience and I look forward to next years!

Easter Adventures

So last Thursday we drove down to Moore River in pretty non-existent traffic for the long weekend.  I had a pie for about the first time in a year for lunch and then dad and I went for a quick paddle up the river.

On Good Friday the swell was massive and the waves were crashing over the sand bank into the river. The wind was pretty strong but we still managed to go for a short paddle around the river mouth. That night the sunset looked magnificent as the sun kissed the unrelenting chop of the ocean.

The next day we went up to Lancelin where the wind was howling and the surf was messy. At the beach, a stones throw away, a baby dolphin played in the waves, while its mum and dad hunted fish amongst the seaweed. Back at Moore River the conditions weren't much better, but I couldn't resist getting thrown around by the surf a bit before going for another paddle in the river.

On Easter Sunday the Easter bunny came and brought along the nicest weather of the weekend. We went for a bit of a body surf, and then dad and I went for a long paddle. We went a fair way up and found an estuary which we followed all the way to the end, weaving and ducking under low-lying tree branches. The water was so clear we could see all the fish below us, to the envy of many fishermen who couldn't reach were we made it to. 

The drive home this morning was uneventful, although the roads were much busier than on the way up.

Aussies come to an end again.

The 2013-2014 Surf Life Saving season has come to a close with the Australian Surf Life Life Saving Championships finishing on Sunday. I went down to Scarborough again on Sunday morning to check out some of the events.

The weather was much clearer than earlier in the week and the surf was still pretty calm. Although the swell did start to pick up as  the sea breeze came in.

There were plenty of freebies being handed out so nobody went home empty handed. There were also food vans, so no-one was hungry and you could have the perfect spot to watch the beach arena and water arena one in the amphitheatre, while having a feed.

Northcliffe won on 481 points,  followed by Manly on 181, and Moolooaba on 164 points. The top three Wa teams were City of Perth in 7^th position on 101 points, Trigg Island in 14^th place with 61 points and North Cottesloe in 15^th place with 60 points.

WA did much better in the Masters competition  with City of Perth coming 4^th on 170 points and Trigg Island 5^th on 160. Northcliffe also won the Masters on 180 points.

It was really good to get down there and watch one of the most Australian sports, and I hope Perth will get the chance to host the Aussies again soon.

Australian Surf Life Saving Championships

This morning I went down to Scarborough beach to check out day three of the Australian Surf Life Saving Championships.

 Monday and yesterday were dedicated to Masters competition, for competitors over thirty years of age, and today was the first day of senior competition.

I decided the safest option for me was to walk to Scarborough from Trigg, that way I wouldn't have to wrestle anyone for a parking spot. 

An easterly was blowing gently early on, and there wasn't a cloud in sight-unlike yesterday which was overcast. There also wasn't much of a wave but that did start to pick up. When the sea breeze came in with force the ocean became quite choppy.

The competition had a really good set up. Each arena had its own radio frequency and first aid tent. Around the amphitheatre were food vans, merchandise stalls and people handing out freebies. From the shade of the amphitheatre you could see most of the water events and you were prime position to see the flags and beach events and the open water arena.

Trigg Island are the leading WA team by day three, falling in seventh position overall with 26 points. They finished in 5th position in the masters event.  

City of Perth on 12 points and Mullaloo on 9 points follow Trigg for WA clubs.

Northcliffe have a strong lead overall on day three on 103 points. They are followed by Newport on 44 points and Manly on 43.

City of Perth won silver for U17 First Aid competition. Trigg Island won gold and silver for U17 Surfboard Riding, silver for U19 board relay and a Bronze for Champion Lifesaver. Cottesloe won bronze for Open Malibu Long Board Riding and and Sorrento won bronze for U15 Surfboard Riding.

Hopefully the rest of the competition will continue without any dramas.