"The Big Buddha Of Phuket"

As I've taken the weekend off training to try and let my open sores heal (the elbow is doing nicely, knee and ankle not so great yet) and I obviously don't really want to go to the beach (sand and open wounds don't mix) I though a spot of touristy goodness might be in order. So, with my fear pushed down as far as possible, I set off on my tiny little moped to duel with the cement lorries, trucks and psychotic pickups on the main road into Chalong. Roundabouts don't really seem to have any rules over here and undertaking is positively encouraged. Turning right on a main road is like Russian Roulette...I found that a good tactic was to use my size to my advantage and tuck myself in on the outside of a much larger vehicle so as it bulled its way out into traffic, I could use it as a blocker. Still, for someone who is new to being motorised on 2 wheels, I felt more than a little vulnerable.
Still, once off the main road, the roads were positively pleasant and the appeal of biking returned to me...quiet jungle roads, winding uphill, the sights, sounds and smells of villages, of wilderness. Lovely.

I was going to visit Phuket's biggest religious attraction, the Big Buddha. Perched on top of the largest hill on the island, it is visible from almost everywhere. As the road wound its way uphill, I was glad the the Thai construction crew, who had decided to only pave half of the road, leaving the other side as gravel, had decided to tarmac the uphill side. This made the downhill run a test of nerve (either go on the gravel or see how long your nerve holds going down the wrong side and potentially meeting a lorry coming up). Still, a nice 20 minute ride up the hill brought me to the summit and the big buddha hove into view.
I like visiting buddhist sites. They never seem so commercialised as many other religious sites...the Big Buddha was a slight exception though, probably due to it not quite being finished. The gift shop actually gets you BEFORE you see the Buddha. Still, I chucked some coins in the box to contribute towards Buddha's right eye as it seemed the kind thing to do.
Its quite a feat of engineering - all the mouldings were done on site and the buddha is completely coated with marble trucked up to the top of the hill. All very impressive, as you can see from the pictures. Also note my awesome shirt, which got its first outing, as will all my other disgusting shirts, every time I do something deliberately touristy. Wait until you see the purple one with orange flowers and flamingos!

A quick stop off at Boots (yes, they have them here!!) for some more medical supplies to stop my leg dropping off and then another dice with death at the Chalong roundabout and I got home. Nice trip out and a beautiful, beautiful day (and the views were stunning too!).