A blissful getaway

Wow! John and I had such a great time on our first overnight getaway since Sam was born (4 1/2 years!!). We've definitely done a lot of traveling with the boys, so I'm not complaining about being stuck in one place with them, but it was so great to travel with just John.

We went to Phuket for the night- on super sale tickets from AirAsia that I got 9 months ago.It is an incredibly beautiful island with cliffs and beaches and clear water. I had been to Phuket 5 or 6 years ago, but I don't remember seeing the sights- I don't think we did. I do remember really enjoying the salad bar at Sizzler's that trip- I was nauseous and pregnant at the time and we didn't have fresh salad much in Aceh where were living at the time.

Anyway, Phuket is amazing. I'm so glad that AirAsia flies there direct from Chiang Mai and that we might be able to go more regularly. We are actually going again with the family for two nights in September.

Before I get to the pics- the number one best part of traveling without the kids was not needing to think about their needs at all. Usually, the whole airplane travel part (including the airports) is consumed by efforts to keep them entertained and quiet. When we land, I immediately am looking for snacks for them- a constant need to have water on hand at all times, and then we have to pay attention to how tired they are- naps, bedtime, etc. This trip was just so freeing. We got to the airport and did our own things (I'm listening to Harry Potter 5 on audiobooks). Sat on the plane and did our own thing (watched a show together on the laptop). When we landed we took our one backpack (it was just an overnight) and strolled across the street to rent a motorbike. I passed bananas on the motorbike and almost thought "hey, we should get those just to have something on hand in case the kids get hungry." We checked into our hotel- overlooking a beautiful bay with amazing infinity pools. And then we headed further south to explore the island. John had been there a couple of times for soccer tournaments and showed me his favorite beaches. We had dinner (with no kids, this was relaxing too), and headed back for a starlit swim (no need to stay in the room to watch the kids). We slept in in the morning too- and then headed out to the beaches. We got an hour long massage on the beach (at the same time!), and went swimming in the rough surf (at the same time!). It was a profoundly enjoyable 32 hours :-) Here are the pics:

Our room
The view from one of John's favorite beaches
Sunset at the southernmost point of the island
I took this pic because of the shrunken head... I guess they are advertising that they can braid your hair?
We got snacks at this place so we had our own little gazebo on the beach
I liked this beach a lot- steep climb down to it but really cozy and gorgeous.
The view from one of the hotel pools- the color of the ocean here was pristine- 10 shades of turquoise and blue.
Another shot from our balcony...