Family Pool Merlin Beach

Today the sun is out and the day looks picture perfect, no wind,the air is hot, the sky blue. The mission is to pull up a couple of deck chairs by the pool and chill. We picked the smaller family area, sorted out a couple of chairs and proceeded to do absolutely nothing.

The worry for today is the barman is doing his rounds to looking for sun bathers to purchase drinks and he has started at the further most place from our position. We know he only takes one, maybe two orders before returning to the bar. Horror we may have to get off our backsides to order the next drink. Will people order drinks and disturb his slow work around the pool complex towards us. Oh no he is stopping at an almost unclothed group soaking the sun, he talks, he picks up some empties and progress towards us. Phew sweat wiped from the brow. He passes the next group, he slows, shows his drink menu, passes some words, no he has moved on. He is getting closer and closer. Will he make it or will he stop at the next group, no he is still going. I can almost smell the “Chang”, no he has slowed, oh no. Phew he has walked past those people as well. At last he has arrived.

“One Merlin Punch and one Chang please.”

“Room Number please Sir”

Ah the order placed and received and I have signed for it, wonderful I can settle with a cold beer in a few minutes.

Night Dinning at Merlin Beach Resort

I  wonder how food and drink signed for and charged to the room appears to have no cost. These numbers beside the item on the bill seem to have no meaning, even though they are accumulating and mounting into a significant number on the bill when you actually check out. The don’t really hurt at check out time, you just gulp a little at the size of the bill, after all it is a funny currency anyway. The real pain only happens when faced with the credit card bill a month or so late, and it is apparent that the numbers are larger that your monthly salary, oh bugger.

After briefly reflecting on this dilemma we went to town for dinner where we sat on the beach watching the beach hawkers selling  lanterns of thin paper stretched over a bamboo frame heated by an oil soaked burning wick. The flaming lanterns flew over the moon glittered Andaman Sea bringing their owners good luck as everyone enjoyed the evening at the beach. We reluctantly left managing to grab a cab before the evening rain arrived.