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LAST UPDATE: Thursday October 23, 2003

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Games in the Sand and Water
These, by their very nature, consist of activities that you initiate yourself, for there are few organised games on the beaches.

One exception is beach volleyball, one of the most popular sand sports, but of course this requires enough people to form two teams. If you want to join others playing, hunt up and down Patong and Karon Beaches in the late afternoon, for there are usually teams playing here. Most will welcome new joiners. Almost every evening there are several teams of foreign expats playing at the far northern end of Karon Beach.

A rewarding activity that a single person, or a couple, can engage in from the beach is snorkelling. Most of the beaches have some corals growing on the rocks at the headlands, and these harbour colourful little tropical fish. Patong had a beautiful coral reef off it s southern headland, though we are not sure how much has survived the ravages of longtail boat anchors and thousands of tourists. There is also a nice reef on the inside of Pu island, the one seen just off-shore from Kata. Strong swimmers snorkel all the way out to this, though most rent a longtail boat from the beach. This is only accessible in the winter season.

Groups of young Thai men will be found playing football (soccer) on almost every beach from about 5:00PM onwards, and they will usually welcome any foreigner who is fit enough to play with them.

Thais also can be found playing the national sport of takraw , a difficult game played with a cane ball. This can only be hit with the feet, head, knees and elbows, and must be kept in the air at all times. The contortions the players go through to keep the ball aloft are amazing, and it is worth stopping to watch this unusual game.

Frisbee throwing is as easy game for a couple, so don t forget to bring this if you want some mild exercise.

Beach Fishing is almost non-existant on Phuket, for the areas close to the island have been over-fished for years. Some try their luck with rod and reel from the rocks, but again, there is little left close to the island. Village youths now scour the rocky shoreline and coral reefs with home-made spear guns, shooting even the tiniest of fish.