I always knew I'd find an excuse to return to Thailand. My honeymoon was just that.
I first encountered the beauty of Thailand in February of 2006, about a year after the Asian Tsunami ravaged its shores. I was in Kao Lak then, visiting my friend Susan who was on a long term volunteer assignment. Kao Lak, despite the devastation was stunning. I was entranced by the shimmering Andaman Sea, uplifted by the incredible resiliency and spirit of the people, disarmed by the stunning landscape and felt a sense of deep and overwhelming peace.
I always knew I'd find an excuse to return.
When my husband Mark and I were talking about honeymoon options Thailand was at the top of our list. He had never been, and I had enthusiastically talked it up for months. (Truthfully, I wanted to honeymoon in Mozambique, but I am pregnant and venturing to a malaria endemic region at six months is not the smartest idea). Deciding that we wanted to have a slightly traditional honeymoon (in the sense that we didn't want to stay at a backpackers lodge and rough it too much), we booked our package through a travel agent (I never do this, I probably won't do it again), who gave us an excellent deal on our flight and hotel. This was where the excellence stopped.
I remember telling the travel agent, that we wanted to stay in Kao Lak. We even went so far as to specifically choose the La Meridian hotel in Kao Lak after a recommendation from Susan. Murphy's law being Murphy's law, this didn't quite work out. Somehow, somewhere, we were booked at the La Meridian in Phuket (a few hours away). This I noticed way too late as we were chatting with an Australian ex-pat on the flight from Bangkok to Phuket. Now we've learned that both hotels are fully booked. There will be no changes.
So here we are in Thailand, on our honeymoon in Phuket instead of Kao Lak. I suppose things could be worse, we could be in Niagara Falls. We are after all still in Thailand, we are still at a beautiful La Meridian resort, and we are most importantly still on our honeymoon, so it is.
The La Meridian hotel is absolutely stunning. Set back off of the main road, surrounded by a private beach and a foresty mountain view, we're protected from the chaotic hub that can be Phuket. Our ocean view room is lovely (minus the small ant infestation in the bathroom).
It is now nap time, (this 12 hour time difference is rough) but I can't wait to get out and explore our accidental surroundings.