We Came, We Saw(adee), We Snacked
Happy Sweaty 13th!
Another year, another spring break, another day to travel with my favorite person
The thing about Thailand is once you're there you don't want to leave. Ever. It doesn't matter where you call home. Thailand finds its place in your heart.
In the early 2000s, the Thai government engaged in “culinary diplomacy: winning hearts and minds through the stomach”, sponsoring thousands of Thai restaurants launched across the globe. Honestly, it was brilliant. Combine that with films such as Anna & the King (1999), The Beach (2000), Ong-Bak (2003), Beautiful Boxer (2003), Tropical Madald (2004), and Love of Siam (2007), many in the West were inundated with the sounds, sights, and smells of Thailand.
Thailand holds a special place for us because in 2018 we were sitting in the back of a songthaew (Thai bus for medium length trips) and adorable uniformed Thai children jumped on. Someone said "I could teach the mess out of those kids" and by the end of the summer, we had our applications in at Search Associates.
That summer we let the spirit lead our trip. We wandered the streets of Bangkok and sands of Phuket and Ao Nang. Then, we hopped over to Malaysia exploring Penang and Kuala Lumpur before we flew to Cambodia spending a week in Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville.
This time, we limited our 12 days to three stops– Bangkok (central), Chiangmai (north) and Koh Lanta (south).
In many ways our experiences in Thailand are much like its cuisine—a perfect balance of sweet, sour, salty, and spicy. From the generosity of Thai people (sweet) to the gorgeous beaches on every coastline (salty) to the sweat trickling down your back as you sit in traffic (sour) and the som tam filling your stomach (literally spicy).
The best part of visiting somewhere more than once is you don’t have the “have to do” or “you must see” pressure or guilt. Instead, you can branch out to lesser known experiences or choose to get two massages on the beach in one day just because you feel like it.
Careening through the streets of Bangkok in style
Bangkok, Central Thailand
A few friends recommended this Trip Advisor tour and it did not disappoint. Shuffled around the city in style, we ate sampled dish after dish. Feast your eyes on some of our favorite items.
Chiangmai, Northern Thailand
“Go to the north” they said. “It will be cooler” they said. We did. It was not. In fact, we learned that March is prime burning season, with smoke billowing in from Myanmar and Laos. Needless to say, we donned our masks and made the best of our four days spending our time at a Mui Thai fight, learning how to cook a few dishes at a culinary school, and scrubbing an elephant at the HUG Elephant Sanctuary (well, Hope did that while Nate took photos from the safety of dry land).
Koh Lanta, Southern Thailand
It’s super easy to top off the gas tank!
The last few days of the trip we wanted something slower and low key. With blue skies and cool breezes, Koh Lanta was perfect. Not much to report here beyond if you’ve ever thought about staying at an “adults only” hotel, you should. The absence of children screaming was peace we didn’t know we needed. We did spend a day joy-riding on mopeds.
เจอกันคราวหน้า (see you next time!)