Normally Thais are always smiling but that day they were very serious and racing around on their motorbikes. I knew it was time to head to the hills.

We spent six hours on the hill waiting for a wave.

Eventually we got word of a large earthquake and that the Tsunami had already hit. We worked our way down the hill. I took my camera and a friend to investigate.

I've lived in Patong, Phuket for two years. I was expecting some water damage. I didn't expect what I found.

One of the first sights I saw was a local bus tossed into a building. It got worse from there.

Cars and trucks had been tossed into impossible locations and piled like dominos. Boats had been pushed 150 meters inland until they hit a concrete building. Metal gates had been torn like paper.

The coffee shop where I usually drink my morning Latte

Where I would sit and drink my morning Latte, there was now a "Tuk Tuk" taxi.

It was hard to reconcile this with yet another beautiful day in Phuket.

Looking at the destruction it was like walking through a Hollywood movie set. Having happened so early, we assumed that there were only be a few people injured.

Then we came across a local supermarket located in the basement of a building near the beach. A friend was working with the rescue workers. He informed us that the store was open and there were bodies underneath.

Later that evening he was near tears. He informed us the last body they recovered that day was a 19 year old girl store employee there to earning her $175 CDN/month salary. It was at that time we began to realize this was real. Since then they have recovered more than 30 bodies from that store.

The Thai rescue and relief rescuers have done a truly amazing job. They have mobilized housing, food, translators, and communications for those affected.

They have been working tirelessly to find survivors and often with their own lives at risk.

We went to volunteer and help survivors. I was informed by the Canadian Embassy representatives they did not require assistance. However we found one Canadian looking for his girlfriend. They had been vacationing on Phi Phi. We basically spent the time with him just trying to find out where the bodies were being kept. No success.

The walls at the hospitals are full of pictures of the missing -- people of all ages and from many countries. The number of children that are missing is the most saddening.

People are trying to return to normal in Patong. A great effort is being made to get ready for New Years.

We need some level of normality to escape the obviously depressing surroundings. People are trying to put on a good show, but you can see the severity of the situation silently hitting people.

I was talking with one business owner who lost their life's savings with one wave. They were thankful that none of their staff were lost. There is great concern tourism will be affected for years. But Patong is determined to rebuild quickly and be better than ever.

Compared with the surrounding areas, this town got off lightly.