It seemed like we were just hitting our stride in Chiang Mai and now it was time to leave. It was to time head south for the beaches of Phuket. We loved Chiang Mai - the elephants, the temples, the food and of course the people. Everyone had been very sweet and kind to us. Even when there was a break down in communication, we managed to work out an amicable Thai/Canadian solution. While Bangkok had the buzz of a big, big city, Chiang Mai was more laid back.

Sometimes we didn't know what we were eating but it all tasted good. We were smart enough to pass on the fried insects offered to us from a fellow Canadian who was too full to finish her portion.

We also saw some unbelievable things like a giant monstrosity of a tour bus. It looked like it came from the future but it ran on diesel and definitely had a last century exhaust system.

As soon as we got off the plane in Phuket we realized we were in for some intense heat and humidity. Fortunately our hotel was only a few blocks from the ocean so we headed to Patong Beach to watch the sun go down. We dabbled our toes in the Andaman Sea looking for a little relief. We watched it grow dark as the festive Chinese New Years lights flickered on in the palm trees. When it was completely dark, we were approached by a beach vendor trying to unload sunglasses - talk about a tough sell. But it was his lucky day. I had forgotten my sunglasses and needed a pair of clip-ons. I had looked all over Bangkok for a pair but to no avail and this guy had exactly what I needed. He said he had personally "walked them in from Cambodia", whatever that means. He also wanted me to hold them up to the moon so I could see the polarized lens effect. I haggled him down from a quarter of his asking price which was probably twice as much as I should have paid but we both left the beach happy that night.