People watching

Posted under Deja vu Asia 2010

Upon looking at the west coast beach areas of Koh Phuket, (Phuket Island), it is hard to realize the devastation that was here a few short years ago. Hotels and resorts have been rebuilt and the beaches are full and the towns are busy. Soon the death and destruction left by the Tsunami will be but a memory, a tale to be passed down by an older generation.

It would appear as though there are more Europeans here this year, than in the past. Still a lot of Scandinavians, but Europe appears to be the area to flee from this year. Maybe the mounds of snow that they are encountering, along with the strong winds and freezing temperatures has encouraged them to travel. Something new that I noticed this year, particularly in Patong, are the number of old Gaffers with a “suicide” hair do By this, I mean “dyed by their own hand” It would seem that once these old fellows escape from their extended care lodges, or the watchful scrutiny of care giver children, they flee to Patong and incorporate a clever disguise. The problem with “dyeing on the cheap” is that there appears to be a very small choice in colors. Those with a full head of hair appear to prefer “coal black”, as extracted from a can of Nugget shoe polish. This give the casual look of possibly a black cat having landed on ones head, and then hung on for dear life I have been tempted to take a peek under the black mat with the thoughts of finding a pair of eyes glaring at me, but that would only satisfy idle curiosity. The other group of debonair gentlemen are those with a comb-over. This is where they try to extract sufficient hair from their ears to drag up to the top of their skulls, or as close to as possible. (I have more experience in this category). Now for some reason, these dashing rascals appear to prefer a brilliant orange color, similar to the dye used on the robes of the novice monks, and is thus likely to be very available and for a modest cost. The result is a fuzzy orange wreath, worn in the Roman style, part way around the head. Now as Patong is the area of choice for the party crowd, and is thus filled with the younger tourist group, I suspect that the clever disguise is used in hopes of blending in — I hate to tell them, “it ain’t working”. Of course, I could be mistaken and Patong is actually hosting a convention for retired circus clowns. One never knows.

We have now moved to Kata, probably the most quiet of the three major beach towns on Phuket, but our favorite, eating and sleeping playing a bigger role in our life style it seems. We will be here for a few more days and decide if and when we will move on to Bali and Malaysia.

We will keep you posted.

T