Eric got up at 0700 to take Mike to shore. He was going to the airport to try to catch a morning flight into Bangkok to try to get his visa situation fixed. Eric returned to Kosmos and immediately went back to bed. For some reason, both Eric and Christi were very tired and had a hard time getting up. We finally reluctantly dragged ourselves out of bed only because we were so hungry that we could no longer sleep.

We had a big, long list of chores and errands that needed to be accomplished today. But, as we ate a late breakfast, the beach beckoned to us, calling our names and telling us we needed to come and play in the surf. We spent hours boogie boarding, body surfing and swimming. Playing in the surf is so much fun. We haven’t done it since we left home since most of the beaches we were at had too much coral or too strong of a rip tide.

Mike, meanwhile, arrived in Bangkok and got to the embassy at 1300 (1:00 pm). They told him to come back at 1500 (3:00 pm) to pick up his passport with the correct stamp. He returned on time and was told to wait. At 1630 (4:30 pm), he started to get demanding about getting served. He finally got his passport back at 1700 (5:00 pm). He was trying to catch an 1830 (6:30 pm) flight back in rush hour traffic. He took the subway as far as he could, knowing the subway would be much faster at that time of day. From there he reluctantly jumped onto the back of a scooter, knowing that a scooter could get him there faster than a car. Here the scooters drive on the sidewalks and where ever else they darn well please and no one seems to care. He arrived at the airport at 1820, but they wouldn’t let him on, saying they had already closed boarding. He had to wait two hours for the next flight out.

Back at Kosmos we vowed to get started on chores right after we ate dinner. We walked to the All Seasons hotel, where the other day we had seen that they had a five course prix fixe menu that looked pretty good. We were told to come back in 20 minutes, at 1900 (7:00 pm), when they opened. We were there promptly at 1900 and were the second table seated in the whole restaurant. There was a band playing covers of easy listening love songs. The musicians were talented, but the music was too loud, making it unpleasant to listen to. Celine Dion and Mariah Carey songs already pierce your eardrums at normal volume, and at high it is almost unbearable.

At 1950 (7:50pm), the first course came out. At 20:00, the band stopped and traditional Thai dancers and musicians took over. They were great. The music is gentle and melodic, using wind and percussion instruments. The dancers did a half dozen costume changes. In each case, they had a tight fitting sleeveless blouse paired with a skirt varying in length from above the knee down to ankle. The costumes were usually adorned with a scarf and heavy jewelry. One costume had the scarf pinned to look like wings; other costumes had elaborate head dresses, as well. The colors were all very bright and cheerful, with some of the skirts solid and color and some quite detailed patterns. The style of dance is slow and deliberate motions, with lots of leaning, bowing, angled arm gestures, and turning around in circles. All in all, it reminds us a lot of the show in Bali similar music (without the chaka chaka!), similar costumes and jewelry, similar dance style. The show lasted about an hour and we enjoyed it tremendously. It was the highlight of the night. While the Thai dancing was going on, we got our second course.

At 2100, the ear splitting band resumed. At 2130 (9:30pm), our fourth course arrived. We had noticed the people across the way that arrived after us had gotten their third course, but we hadn’t. As they were setting the food down, Eric said “We never got our third course”, just to let them know they had forgotten it. They immediately snatched the plates back off our table and plunked them down at the table across the way. Eric tried to tell them to bring our food back, but to no avail. The table next to us had dug in. Eric tried to tell every passing waiter and waitress it was OK to bring our food out of order, but they wouldn’t do it. Fortunately, we didn’t have to wait too long for the third course. From there, the service got faster, probably because the restaurant was clearing out.

We were pretty astounded by our fourth course. It was a seafood platter with three calamari rings, a mussel, a lobster tail, and the biggest prawn either of us have ever seen in our lives. With the shells off, the prawn meat was as big as the lobster tail meat.

In Thailand, at pretty much every restaurant we have been to, you sit down and order your food. The server will bring the food out as it is ready, so some people will get their food well after other people in the group are already finished eating. Once the last dish they feel like bringing is plunked on the table, the entire restaurant staff vanishes into thin air. You can’t get the dishes they forgot to bring, another beverage or dessert. To pay, you have to search the restaurant, kitchen, and sometimes the back alley to find anyone who works there to ask them for the check.

In Malaysia, service was exactly the opposite. The waiters were always hovering close and watching with an eagle eye. The minute you would set your fork down to take a drink or talk with your hands, they would rush over and clear your plate. The moment your drink was half empty, it was cleared. At pretty much every meal we would almost have to wrestle the half-eaten plates back from our over-eager to clear servers, and usually multiple times.

There was a point to that little tangent. At the All Seasons, the clearing practices were Malaysian style. After an hour of waiting for your food, you are hungry and want to eat every last bite, especially knowing it will be another full hour before the next course comes out. But by bite three, the severs were trying to snatch the plate away. To make matters worse, there was probably a 1 to 2 ratio of severs to guests, and every single server was hell bent on clearing your plate and glass every time they passed. OK, we may be exaggerating a little, but only a little.

At 2200 (10:00 pm), we were finally served our dessert and by 2230 we were ready to go, with only one other table left in the entire restaurant. We must have just gotten really unlucky with our service, because we are sure everyone in the restaurant had the prix fixe menu and they had all come later and left earlier than us. As much as we complained about the slow service, we have to say it was incredibly good value for the money. It cost about USD$25 each, included soup, salad, brochette appetizer, chicken and rice appetizer, seafood platter main course, dessert, and a foo foo cocktail. The portions were all quite large. Plus, entertainment was included, and we really did enjoy the traditional Thai performance a lot. The food wasn’t great, but it was fine, especially for the money.

Mike called and let us know he would be returning to Kosmos at 2330, so we sat on the beach and listened to the All Seasons band until Mike arrived. So much for chores! [45]