A TALE OF TWO THAILANDS

THAILAND HAS JUST LIFTED ALL RESTRICTIONS FOR INDIAN TRAVELLERS. PRIMROSE MONTEIRO-D'SOUZA HAS A NEW FAVOURITE DESTINATION IN THE SOUTHEAST ASIAN COUNTRY

- PRIMROSE MONTEIRO-D'SOUZA

There is a Thailand most of us have never seen. A Thailand from which you might come back with (almost) no shopping. A Thailand the images of which will leave your friends envious until they visit themselves. We come to this Thailand through the familiar – Phuket in Southern Thailand. I wander into the massive living room and dining area of my villa at the Avani+ Mai Khao Phuket Suites & Villas and feel my fatigue fall away, even as I register that the summer heat has not been given admittance into this high-ceilinged residence that I want to airlift back home. Beyond lie a bedroom and a large dressing room and bathroom – though that word seems a little inadequate for this cocoon with twin basins, shower and freestanding tub that begs to be sunk into, glass of wine in hand. Outside is an outdoor rain shower. And accessed from the living room is my own private pool, which I am tempted to never leave.

And yet, I must, for this is but a stop on the way to the other Thailand. Phuket, known for its beaches, shopping, shows and parties, is the gateway to everything it is not – only an hour’s drive away.

Just two months old, the