2 Memorable Places - Help Me Find

There are currently 2 places in this world that I had been and wished to visit again but could not remember or able to find the locations.

The first location is a place in Southern Thailand. I flew in via an army helicopter in around 1989. What I could remember of this lovely place was that it was an airfield before reaching Hatyai.  An extremely simple place for refilling of fuel for the metalic bird. The elevation of that airfiled is not at mean sea level. It is probably 30 to 50m above sea level. I could remember that after refilling, we took off from a cliff. The most important feature is a Buddha meditation carving embedded within the cliff. The Buddha rock carving is probably as high as 20 to 30m facing the sea. The depth of the carving is probably 5 to 10m deep. I have tried to find this location in the internet for many years but could not find it. If you could know where this is, please drop me a message. (Note: It may be an island not within the main land)

The second location is a place in South Africa. There was this restaurant in South Africa (could not remember the location, but maybe it was in the outskirt of Cape Town, something like Camps Bay - not sure). The restaurant is facing the sea. The most important feature is that the outdoor tables face slopping hills that runs to the sea. When my coursemate and I were there in 1997, it was sunset and it had one of the most beautiful sunset I had seen. I remember that I had crayfish for dinner. There was also 1 place in South Africa which was memorable. The High Commissioner to South Africa had treated us to a resort at night. The resort was out of town and out of city nights, when you looked up at the night sky, it was a sky filled with beautiful stars, an image I could still remember. Absolutely stunning. The ambient temperature then was cold and the feeling was fantastic.

The problem of remembering is that I was not told the specific locations of these 2 places. So there was no deep memory. The other reason is that I did not have a camera with me in Southern Thailand and my film camera was damaged (possibly due to cold weather) in South Africa.

If you know the places, appreciate it if you could let me know. Thanks.

Quote of the Month

"The Voyager-1 spacecraft has become the first manmade object to leave the Solar System."

12 September 2013
BBC News Science & Environment (Headline)
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-24026153

Canon EOS 70D

Canon EOS 70D with 10 to 22mm EFS lens

Bought the Canon EOS 70D with 18 to 55 mm lens today at the price of S$1496.

Initial feel is that it is an interesting camera because of its available high ISO of 12800. My EOS 450D only produces 1600 max. With such a high ISO in the 70D, the photo can be taken at slower speed and smaller aperture. However, my initial feel is that compared ISO of 100 for both cameras, the EOS 70D seems to take a slightly longer exposure time.

EOS 450D is a simple to use camera and it served its function well. I had this camera for more than 5 years. Well depreciated. But there are servere limitations such a low 1600 ISO and no movie camera. I would still continue to utilise it with perhaps the EFS 18 to 55mm lens with image stabiliser.

The EFS 18 to 55mm lens has 2 advantages: (1) a stm which has no vibration or sound and (2) image stablisation.

Phuket 5 - Symbol of Thailand

Elephant of Thailand





The other symbol - Red Bull Drink (10 Baht)

Phuket 4 - Beaches

Yanui Beach

The best beach that I had visited in Phuket - Yanui Beach
Like - Quiet, Simple, Tranquil, Peaceful

Patong Beach

The worst beach that I visited in Phuket - Patong Beach
Dislike - Crowded, Full of Commercial Activities

Note: Photos above are not edited

Other beaches visited in Phuket - Kata Beach, Kata Noi Beach, Karon Beach
Note 2: Phuket waves are stronger than many beaches. Could be due to the western part of the island is facing the Andaman Sea and Indian Ocean with few islands in between to reduce the energy of the waves.

Phuket 3 - Food

Fried Fish and Omelette at Le Siam - Good

Green Thai Curry at Le Siam - Good

 

We tried different food from high end restaurants to a few mid range restaurants. I notice that from a taste perspective, these restaurants did have one or two dishes that were great, the rests were just mediocre. For example, in Le Siam Restaurant at Jungceylon, the fried eggs, green Thai curry and fishes were great. However, the Tom Yam was not that good.

Tom Yam Soup at Raya Restaurant - Good

Raya at Phuket Town

Raya Restaurant - An old traditional building with timber staircase in the centre of the house

In Raya, Phuket Town, the Tom Yam was reasonably good, but the rest of the dishes we ordered were just average. I generally preferred the clear Tom Yam without coconut milk. Raya Restaurant is housed in an old Thai building with some of its structure still in timber.

Pad Thai at S&P Restaurant - Good

In S&P Restaurant in Central Festival, the Pad Thai (Thai noodle) was reasonably good.

Green Thai Curry that tasted like drinking coconut milk - Bad

There was another restaurant located off Karon Beach - Patak Road, while price was lower than the rest of the restaurants, had a green Thai curry that was filled with coconut milk and it tasted bad.

Phuket 2 - Star Glazing

 

Generally, Phuket tends to be cloudy in August. Couple with some city lights, no tripod, it would be difficuly to capture nice astro-photos. But I tried.

Info of the Photo
Canon 450
ISO 800 (pumped to a high ISO below distortion of ISO1600)
30 sec exposure (max automatic exposure without Bulb)
No tripod
22 / 17 mm focal length
f4.5
Manual Focus (slightly below infinity)
Taken on the roof of Pacific Club Resort facing the beach (Western Sky)
Time about 10:30pm S'pore Time, 9:30pm Phuket Time - 24 Aug 13
JPEG - Edited by camera, no further editing made

Phuket 1 - Hotel & Transport

Pacific Club Resort, Phuket

Panaromic View from Roof of Resort

Visited Phuket, Thailand from 22 to 25 Aug 13.

Arrived in Jetstar flight of 8:20am from Singapore. No delays and arrived ahead of time.

Stayed at Pacific Club Resort, a hotel located off Karon Beach. The good thing is that Karon Beach is less crowded than Patong Beach. This will give some peace and tranquility which should be the case during a holiday. The bad thing is that it is 1.5 hours from the Airport due to probable jams and distance. It is a great facility suitable for family and has a great view of Karon Beach and the sea from its roof top, that comes with a swimming pool. Family can make use of the kitchen (with refrigerator) for larger room, free wifi and complimentary baby cot. We paid about S$175(12800 baht) each day for a 2 bed room with breakfast. The only thing we felt was unsuitable for the family is one of room toilet has a glass block wall wall which could present some modesty issue, especially when the bathing area is facing the corridor. There were a few new resort coming up near this resort. Competition will possibly mean better prices for consumer. Walking to Karon beach would approximately take 10 to 15 minutes. We didn't walk but drove to the beach. There are less commercial activities than Patong Beach, especially so at the northern end.

To enjoy Phuket, it is advisible to rent a motocycle or a car. We rent a Toyota Vios, a manual geared car from Avis Thailand. We found that it would be cheaper to rent the car on the spot in Phuket island rather than booking through internet. From the online booking plus additional insurance, it costs about S$165 for 3 days of rental.