Pat's Home Cooking Class and Phuket Town

One of the "definitely" items on my list was a cooking class, which of course the guys were in for as well since they, well, make their living from food. I initially thought about finding one in Bangkok since I knew the options would surely be limitless, but then opted for Pat's Home Cooking Class in Phuket based on some great reviews and the thought of having some mellower activities on the agenda for my first couple of days in case the jet lag knocked me on the floor.

Pat's class starts with a tour through the local market just around the corner from her house, where she clearly spends a good deal of time as everyone was warm and happy to see her. She walked us through the market, pointing out key ingredients to Thai cooking and explaining the differences between certain kinds of chilis, fruits etc. Yum!

After the market, we meandered back to Pat's house, a beautiful spot nestled in trees where she has a cooking class kitchen set up just outside. Our class was Blake, Bryan and I, plus a nice Aussie couple who had left their kids at the hotel's kids camp for the morning to enjoy a little time away.

We made 4 dishes (which I will of course have to call by their proper names later, but we'll take the easy route for today) - spring rolls, a sweet/hot/sour soup, green curry, and papaya salad, while Pat also walked us through the amazingly simple steps of making bananas in coconut milk for dessert.

Following the class, we spent a couple of hours walking through Old Phuket town to see some of the old Sino-Portuguese architecture that comprises much of the area. we didn't make it too far but you could definitely see the potential there!

(Yes, I am pathetically trying to imitate the dragon here...)