A week in paradisde

Being taken by pedicab through the temple (Wat) grounds to my hotel.

Waking up in the middle of the night to see the beautifully outlined lights on the ships anchored off shore to guard the king.

Watching the small fishing boats leave and return in the quiet of the evening and morning - and then having the opportunity to eat their catch later in the day.

Swimming in the pool, walking out to the sea, swim in the warm water, walk along the beach, return to pool - swim up to bar in the pool and enjoy a freshly made drink in a pineapple.

Quick Tips:

Best Way To Get Around:

Walk, walk, walk, but if you take a taxi or tuk tuk (sort of a taxi motorcycle) be sure you know the fair price and bargin hard.

This is a five star hotel located on the beach with a huge pool complete with swim up bar. There are two excellent resaturants (chinese and italian) as well as a somewhat elegant coffee shop serving many varities of food - including some excellent Thai choices. The rooms are clean and spacious - some more so than others - I was lucky enough to be upgraded to a two room suite with a balcony about 40 feet long overlooking the sea. This consisted of a large dining room area (small kitchen), flowing into the living room. Separate bedroom with huge dressing area and bathroom with separate shower, bidet and tub. All rooms have a balcony facing the sea-mine was huge and allowed me to look out over the sea at any time, enjoy breakfast in elegant luxury, and see the fishing boats go off and return (regular rooms have a smaller balcony - but large enough for a small table and chairs). There are all the specialities one would expect from a 5 star hotel including a very nice spa that I look forward to trying next time.

You take the lift to the highest floor and see one of the most beautiful panoramic views of the sea and curving beach and think...no the food can't match the view. Wrong!

Do not miss the dim sum lunch on the weekend. Dim sum cost about $1, are freshly prepared and are the among the best I have had anywhere (including China, San Francisco...well you get the idea). There are some old familiar ones, but some I had not tried - everything was a winner. Explore, enjoy and stare in disbelief at how you could possibly have had such a wonderful meal in a five star restaurant for (much) less than $10. Oh did I mention the smiling, friendly wait people?

This will be a highlight of your trip - don't miss it.

Ask anyone where the night market is - that is if you don't stumble on it yourself. Hua Hin is a small town and probably the smell of the many outdoor barbecues will lead you in the right direction.

You will find a long road where many booths have suddenly blossomed after dark - selling more varieties of food than you may have seen in your life. First just walk along and see everything. Notice where there are a lot of people eating (a good sign). There are lots of Thai foods you will not have seen before, most made to order. Some shops sell drinks, another fruits, another stir-fry...oh I wish I was there.

You will find one (or more) displays of fish on ice. I found a huge complex of chairs, tables, fish, and lots of cooks. There is a menu in English but a good thing to do is look at what others are eating and if you see something good ask for it. (I did this with a whole fried fish is a spicy chili sauce.) If you choose a whole fish you can specify small, medium or large (depending on the number of people); price ranges from about 3-5 dollars.

I had small clams in a savory sauce, followed by the aforementioned fish. Oh what a gourmet feast and my bill was under $6. Okay there weren't any tablecloths but there were stars (did I mention that the whole thing is outside?).

There are many vendors on the beach - the surprise type for me was horse vendors. Each horse comes with an attendant in a numbered vest. You barter for a ride then get to ride on the beach for the selected amount of time. That's right you get to ride right on the beach.

Well how come the beach was clean and there weren't little "gifts" from the horses on the beach? Apparently the horse attendants must clean up after their charges or they will not be allowed on the beach at all!

Hua Hin is a microcosm of Bangkok for shopping. There are fake watches, beautiful silks, more handicrafts than you know what to do with, and more tailors than can possibly make a living.

Remember they do this every day and you MUST bargain hard - it is easy to pay more than 10 times the fair price, but it is also easy to get a good deal with some patience, a lot of smiles, and some cultural savvy. If you haven't been in a bargaining society before look and ask prices a LOT, before you ever make an offer (once you make an offer it is expected that you really mean it and will buy if a satisfactory price is reached - it is really bad form to bargain, get your price and then not buy).

If you are going to be in Bangkok - wait to make your purchases there - you can generally beat the best price in Hua Hin by at least 20% in Bangkok (this does not apply to fixed price items like books).