Photos of the King of Thailand are in front of most government institutions (Photo LP) I had never visited Thailand before my recent trip to the island of Phuket with a girlfriend. Because of Western Australia’s proximity to Bali, Indonesia, I have had the opportunity to visit there many times and will continue to as the three hour long flight makes it very accessible. Phuket is a six hour flight with a transit stop in Singapore. Hardly a “long haul” flight, but that bit further for a short vacation. There were many European tourists in the area of Cape Panwa where we stayed. I so enjoyed hearing German, French and Italian spoken over the breakfast buffet, during the snorkling tours and in the local, tiny restaurants. Australians were the majority tourist group, even in the remote peninsular which is Cape Panwa. I had heard about the town of Patong where there are many bars and restaurants, the “lady boy” concerts; the opportunity to see live...