Life in Phuket is great… unless you need to get anywhere with public transport. This is a topic that gets raised constantly because it’s one of the things that desperately holds the island back in terms of tourism. Tourists come here, they see how expensive and difficult it is to get from A to B, and they don’t come back because of it. Even the people who live here find public transport a nightmare.

If you don’t have your own wheels, or a friend who does, then you may as well stay at home. The main reason for the problems is the tuk tuk mafia that operates out of Patong. They dictate taxi services on the island.

Regular, metered taxis are only allowed to take people to and from the airport, and you can’t hail a cab in the street as you would do in Bangkok. Here we are on an island that is pushed as a major tourist destination, where multi-million dollar real estate projects pop up daily, and you can’t even take a taxi from one place to another.

I had to take a tuk tuk home on Friday night because my friend who was driving was staying out late. A year ago, a tuk tuk from Patong to Phuket Town cost 300 baht, day or night. Friday night it cost 400 baht. You can’t really haggle because the tuk tuk drivers don’t care if they take you or not.

Tourists and locals need cheap public transport, especially at night. The lack of public transport limits how much of the island people are able to see.

I hope that somebody does something about this soon. Otherwise, all these plans for next-level tourism facilities (like the long-awaited International Convention and Exhibition Center) are pointless.

Techno’ tags: Thailand, Phuket

At Club Lime last night:

Some guy: “You wouldn’t happen to be The Lost Boy, would you?”

Me: “Umm, yeah, I guess so.”

Some guy: “Oooooh hooooo hooo.”

And that was it. No further explanation given. Just a knowing look from someone I’d never met before. It happened at Bed Supperclub once too.

Some girl: “Are you Matt Crook?”

Me: “Yes… how do you know who I am?”

Some girl: “I don’t. I just know you’re writing.” [Girl gives me evil look]

Some girl (in a sarcastic tone, she said something like this): “I’m standing with Matt Crook. Great.”

Me: “Right. See you later.”

Again, that was it. No explanation for the scathing look, just a downpour of daggers aimed at me.

The guy at Lime I assume is friends with the property sales girls I once angered. I met one of the angry sales girls last night and she was actually quite friendly, although I was still a bit scared of her. She was wearing a cute hat though.

I was pretty damn excited when my download link for Radiohead’s new album In Rainbows dropped in my inbox yesterday. I couldn’t wait to hear what my three pounds had bought me. I put it straight on my iPod and have listened to it all day today, and on first impressions (whatever that’s worth for a Radiohead album) I think it’s fantastic.

It’s the most mature of all Radiohead albums, hinting at each of their previous stages in some form. From the distorted guitar chords of “Bodysnatchers” to the stirring “Nude”, this album is everything we’ve come to expect from Radiohead.

The opening track, “15 Step”, is ugly, but somehow fitting. It could have come form Thom Yorke’s solo album The Eraser.

The real standout track for me, and the song I can’t stop listening to, is “Videotape”. It’s really something you can’t put into words. I heard a version of the track a while ago on Youtube and then forgot about it. Hearing it again reminded me of the impact “Videotape” has the first time you hear it.

In Rainbows is still available for download from the official website. The response from the music press has been largely positive about the album, although it’s yet to be hailed as the masterpiece it could potentially be given time. It could be the band’s best album to date, but you can’t make statements like that after just one day’s listening.

In Rainbows is there to be enjoyed though.

Please, take five minutes, sit down, follow this link, and listen. It’s incredible.

Techno’ tags: Radiohead, In Rainbows

Last night was the beginning of what I think stands as Phuket’s only regular drum ’n’ bass event. It was held at Club Lime on the beach road in Patong. The DJs were me followed by T-Base from Bangkok. The turnout wasn’t exceptional, with maybe two-dozen people in all, but we’re pretty much trying to make a scene from scratch with this one.

If you live in Phuket or you’re visiting and you have even a passing interest in drum ‘n’ bass, you should definitely check this event out. It’s bi-weekly, with the next one slated for November 24 with Marco from Australia.

Next month looks like we might have Pichy and Dragon coming down from Bangkok to play, and after that, who knows. Drum ’n’ bass is like an alien music form here in Phuket. I don’t even know if there is a large enough audience for it here, but the guy who’s organizing all the parties, Bob, is keen enough to have me excited about the night and Club Lime in general.

Club Lime is just about the only club in Phuket (and certainly the only club in Patong) that focuses on decent clubbing music. The owners appear a bit confused about what they want to do with the club, but it’s getting there, and with expansion plans scheduled for the near future, it could become Patong’s flagship nightspot.

Last night, I also heard that somebody in Phuket flew Danny Rampling, who is retired, to the island to play at somebody’s birthday party. This place is made of money.

On a side note, after not DJing anywhere for four months, I think my skills actually improved somehow.

Techno’ tags: Thailand, Phuket, Club Lime, Drum n bass

You’ll have to forgive me for not getting any pictures today, but other than people wearing white, I didn’t find see to take pictures of. The Phuket Vegetarian Festival has begun, but I’m yet see any of the gruesome sights I’ve been looking forward to coming across.

One good thing that happens during the festival, as with all Chinese festivities, is that a lot of the restaurants in Phuket start offering some really great J food (vegetarian). Some of it is obviously just vegetables, while other dishes are made to look and taste like meat in various guises.

I only last about five hours into the Vegetarian Festival before somebody bought me a bowl of noodles with pork in it. I did have a vague plan to go vegetarian for the duration of the Vegetarian Festival, but decided against it in the end.

According to my little booklet about the Vegetarian Festival, today at 8 pm there was supposed to be some sort of ceremony at Sui Boon Tong Shrine in Phuket Town. “Worship and propitiation to the Gods”, whatever that means.

Excited, I set off on my motorbike, got totally lost for an hour, and eventually find the shrine. Nothing much was going down, aside from a few kids throwing fire crackers at each others. Disappointed, I drove off and stumbled across Jui Tui Shrine, which looked to be the main hive of activity in Phuket Town.

There were hundreds of people strolling around buying food from the various vegetarian stalls. Right next to the shrine itself was a stage with two girls screaming out the latest phone offers from AIS; very in keeping with the spirit of the festival, I thought.

While there were lots of people around, again, there wasn’t anything exciting happening. I think I need to wait for the street processions to begin before I can see the really cool stuff. Feeling despondent, I gave up on all things vegetarian and ate a dish of kaow man gai tort (friend chicken with rice) before heading home to take much-needed nap.

There will be a street procession through Phuket Town at 7 am on Saturday, so I will make a point to wake up for that, as well as bathing in hot oil on Sunday at Gim Tsu Ong Shrine.

Phuket Vegetarian Festival pictures.

Techno’ tags: Thailand, Phuket