Who’s seen the movie ‘Last Flight Out’? It was released in 1980 and is based on the true story of the last American evacuees who left Saigon in April ‘75, at the end of the Vietnam war.

Well this situation is nothing like that dramatic! But here we are, heading back to Bangkok to catch what is rumoured to be the last plane home!

Looking on the bright side, we are both well, have had a wonderful holiday, have a place (with loving dog) to go home to, and the 14 days isolation will now start a few days earlier than we planned.

Our first (and what turned out to be only) full day in Sam Roi Yot was lovely. We did as planned, and rested by the pool, reading and enjoying some down time. Breakfast was homemade today – a bowl of much craved cereal (cornflakes) and some toast with tomato. Followed by an incredibly delicious mango we bought for less than 15c at the local market.

By early afternoon, my stomach got the better of me and I felt the need to put my detailed ‘best crab in district’ research into practice. This region has many small fishing villages where colorful fishing boats catch, amongst other things, a lot of blue crab.

After a lovely drive along a beachfront strip that lasted about 10 kms, we arrived in Pak Nam Pran, home to about 5000 people, and hundreds of cafes, restaurants, motels and resorts.

It’s also home to the ‘Ox Seafood Restaurant’ which, according to my research has the best and freshest seafood among the many restaurants which cook local seafood to order. There were large tanks holding the seafood and while everything looked clean, the restaurant was basic… plastic chairs, simple wooden tables, but all with an amazing view of the sea!

I choose a small Tom Yum soup to start, then curried crab, an omelette, stir fried vegetables and boiled rice. The soup was sour and salty as expected and was filled with lovely fresh king prawns… at least 10 of them which is a lot for a small size, especially for less than $10! The crab was equally tasty, though not as spicy as I thought it would be. I did say ‘a little bit spicy’ when asked if I wanted it mild or hot. Sometimes things get a bit lost in translation.

We took the long way home, venturing further down the coast to see even more fishing villages with their colourful boats, fishing nets drying in the afternoon sun. There were also lots of racks of seafood drying in the sun – mostly with squid, which actually smelt quite pleasant!

After a swim and a little more reading when we got home, we got ready to go to dinner. Sean, who owns the house had recommended the restaurant that is closest to the house – just 400m away. He also suggested getting there early due to its popularity with locals who tend to eat dinner early, before dark.

Following on today’s theme of crab eating, I again ordered crab. This time with local basil and black pepper. My request for ‘a little bit spicy’ was well understood this time. Boy was this dish delicious! Chunks of super fresh crab stir fried in the tastiest of sauces and spices. I cannot believe it cost less than $10!

While the crab was amazing the highlight of the dinner was meeting a local family. Three generations including a very cute little girl who was maybe 8 years old. Her grandfather asked if she could practice her English on us. I assume he had been teaching her given the immense smile on his face and that he was filming the interaction on his phone. I’m not sure if the sound on this video is working, but apart from talking to us, she also burst into song with a lovely rendition of ‘I did it my way’. What a treat for us!

One thing we have been doing on this trip which I failed to mention on the blog so far, has become a bit of an evening ritual. Dave and I have only recently joined the ‘The Crown’ watching bandwagon, and over the last month or so before this holiday have been binge watching to catch up, whenever we have had the opportunity. On this holiday, most nights we watch an episode or two on the laptop. We only realized last night, after we watched episode 10 of series 3, that it was the last one currently released. Everyone thinks we are coming home on the Australian Government’s recommendation, but really it’s because we have run out of ‘The Crown’ episodes to watch ?

We are now in the transfer taxi on our way to Bangkok airport which is about a 3 hour drive. The plane leaves at 6pm (10pm Sydney time), so we will be back in Oz early tomorrow morning. I’ll let you know when we are home safely. Even though we missed a few days R&R, our 14 days self isolation should give us the opportunity for some rest. See you all on the other side…

P.s Big thanks to @Tanya for her advice on how to deal with getting home.

P.p.s Well done to @Qantas. Their responsiveness and helpfulness given the situation has been amazing!