Nut & Itchy in Cha Am

5 - 8 May : Casa Papaya, Cha Am, Petchaburi.

It was my first time landing in Suvarnabhumi (pronounced as Suvarna-boom) and I was careful not to crack jokes about bombs going 'boom' or stuff like that in case we get carted off for interrogation.

On a totally unrelated note, a bomb did explode in Bangkok on the day we arrived. It detonated in a city phone booth. A man got injured and the newspaper reported that Bangkok could be a target for terrorist attacks. In our room, 3 hours away from Bangkok in Cha am, LY and I looked at each other.

"What if a bomb explodes when we get there on Tuesday?"

We both shrugged.

"Oh well!"

The bus ride from the Southern Bus Terminal felt very long. As we were approaching Cha Am, there were banners touting 30-70% discounts for a factory outlet selling Roxy (YL!), Abercrombie & Fitch, OXOXO, Billabong and Puma. We didn't find out where it was until the day we left. It was a good 20 minutes away. We were relieved though. Imagine spending all our shopping money even before we reached Bangkok. That'd be nuts.

Anyway, back to Casa Papaya.
The staff were friendly and helpful. The resort, very unique. But overall, it fell below expectations. For the price we paid (3000 baht per night), we expected a little more. There was a problem getting into the place because the road leading in was flooded from rain the night before. If it weren't for some kind samaritans in a car who offered to take us in, we would have been stuck (we hopped on two motorbikes from the bus stop).

There was a lot of construction going on for another resort next door, which made the area VERY NOISY. Not quite the seaside holiday we imagined. Our request for a free upgrade to a better room was turned down (we'd have to pay) even though there were a few available. The construction area also emitted waste flowing to the sea, which made the beach smelly at certain times of the day.

The rooms were pretty. Love the hammock. But the TV channels were limited to local programmes and Fashion TV (the only one in English). Their 'Casa Papaya music' were some MP3s you could listen to from the TV, but they were not even by original artistes. Piped music. Oh kayyy.

Breakfast was a disappointment too. Coffee and juice. Eggs, mini sausages, porridge, cereal and pancakes. No bacon. We only got a 'special' breakfast on our last morning - a ham and cheese omelette. Oh joy. :P


The pool was small, but located in a cosy, landscaped 'secret garden'. I think the pool can accommodate 2-3 people at once, at the most. Security was good though. And at night, a security guard hung out at the beach with his 4 dogs. The mutts became our friends. Coming to us, expecting a pat on the head or a treat. Then sitting down on the sand next to our deckchairs, as if keeping watch on us.

So, yes. It's a unique place. Charming even, just not worth the price we paid. We could've gone to a much better resort with a nicer beach for 3000 baht a night. But we had fun. We always do.


We ate where the locals ate, out on the beach at the open air seafood restaurants. Lots of seafood washed down with lots of Singha beer. And just two resorts away was a very fancy schmancy resort called The Verandah. It had a very nice bar so we hung out there for happy hour cocktails (Buy 1 Free 1). Not bad... not bad at all.

Just some of the stuff we had to eat in Cha Am:

Som Tam (papaya salad), Stuffed Squid with Minced Pork


Spicy Pork Salad, Pork in Chili Paste


Crab Meat with Curry Powder, Spicy Squid and Fish Maw Salad


Stir-fried Squid with Salted Egg, Deep Fried Squid, Singha Beer

We also encountered freak storms.


That's all for now, folks.
And we leave Cha Am for Bangkok, with a drink or two.
Posts on Bangkok, coming soon.


Off to Bangkok >>