Day 1 (John's Birthday!): Sydney to Bangkok
We hopped a plane and flew 9 hours to Bangkok. It's funny, now anything less than a 17 hour flight feels short! Looking forward to some weekend trips to Europe when we live back in the States :)
We dropped our bags at our hostel and headed out on the town. First stop--Sky Bar at Lebua. It's one of the highest rooftop bars in the world (820 feet up!) and you might recognize it from The Hangover II movie.
(da da da damn that's one good looking 30 year old!)
Funny story... a lot of the rooftop bars in Bangkok have a strict dress code. Whitney was turned away because she had flipflops on. Luckily, a smart Thai woman had set up shop outside renting out "appropriate" shoes. How lovely...
We then met up with the rest of the group and went out to explore Khao San Road. It's a famous road in Bangkok filled with street food vendors, bars, restaurants, massage parlors, etc. It's pretty westernized and reminded me a bit of Beale Street in Memphis. Super fun and chaotic!
We couldn't get over how cheap everything was. $2 for a beer? 2?? GIVE ME ALL THE BEERS.
The first of many street food meals! John was in heaven.
The street in front of our hostel-
Fish curry for breakfast! They don't really have "breakfast" foods in Thailand (or anywhere in Asia). You have curry/noodles/rice for every meal. It took a bit of getting used to as I've eaten 2 eggs, avocado toast, and orange juice everyday for the past two years. I'm a creature of habit, what can I say.
So many motorbikes!
The Grand Palace- Built in 1782, it served as a royal residence until 1925 and is now used for ceremonial purposes. Beautiful architecture and textures.
There is a strict dress code so I had to rent a top and skirt and John had to rent some pants! It was QUITE warm.
Back to Khao San Road for some daytime fun...
Fish pedicure.. WEIRDDDDDD!
A massage place on every corner. Is this a dream?
Fried scorpion, anyone?
That night, we went on a guided tuk tuk food tour. We rode all over Bangkok tasting local dishes and visited a few landmarks in between meals. This was so fun!
Our sweet ride for the night-
Our guide, Mang. Loved him.
Fruit and vegetable market-
Wat Pho temple-
In Thailand, you know the food is good if they cook it outside in front of the restaurant!
Thai spicy is a whole new level of spice!
I loved this activity! Food and eating is such an important part of Thai culture (and my life, am I riiiight?) and it was really cool to "get amongst it" as the Aussies say. We got to see lots of little neighborhoods we wouldn't have been able to on our own.
A few things Mang taught us:
-Thai people eat at all hours of the day. Our tour was from 8pm-midnight and the restaurants were packed.
-It is common for Thai people to go out to eat instead of cook at home. A lot of their foods take hours to prepare and it is easier (and cheap) to go out and get what they want.
-Each neighborhood in Bangkok is known for a certain dish. If you tell someone you are going out to dinner in the Pratunam part of town, it is common knowledge that you will be eating chicken and rice. The only question is which restaurant you'll choose!
-No one talks bad about the King in public. Save that chatter for the home.
-Tone is such a big part of the Thai language. Mang said he remembers spending hours practicing his tones when he was little. Some words are the exact same EXCEPT for the tone you use. For example, the word for "beautiful" and "unlucky" is the same.. it's the tone you use that differentiates it!
Day 3- Bangkok to Koh Pha Ngan (taxi to plane to bus to ferry)
Koh Pha Ngan is known for it's Full Moon Party. You guessed it... every full moon, there's a huge party. And we went to it! It's like Thailand's Oktoberfest. Everyone gets dressed/painted up to drink and dance on a beach all night. Count me in! Plus, it was Wes's birthday!
Transportation in Koh Pha Ngan (and Koh Samui) is usually the back of a pick-up truck. It took me back to my Alabama roots! (Who am I kidding.. my mom never let me ride in the back of a truck)
You can buy these buckets of drinks for real cheap. They advertise them as combos- Vodka & Redbull, Jack & Coke, etc. But we learned beforehand to offer to pay extra to watch the bartender pour it from the actual bottle (just in case they tried to mix it with something else or water!)
Day 4- Paradise at Loyfa Natural Resort in Koh Pha Ngan
John's breakfast: Asian stir-fry...
My breakfast: toast and pineapple..
We went to a water obstacle course similar to the show "Wipeout"... so fun!
one of the best sunsets we have seen!
Day 5- Koh Pha Ngan to Koh Samui (ferry)
This was the start of several days of rain.. boo!
(check me out in my Louis Vuitton poncho... it was really expensive ($3) and really flattering!)
Hello Koh Samui!
Another awesome thing about Thailand... you can stay in really nice resorts for real cheap!
We couldn't get over how colorful these were!
Bargaining the night away-
Day 6- Guided tour around Koh Samui. The rain foiled our plans of laying on the beach all day, so we decided to do a little exploring. I read about "Mr Samui" on Tripadvisor and he was great. Just a guy and his van, the two of us, and 6 hours around the island.
Curry for breakfast-
Yum!
The Mummified Monk-
Blessed by a (non-mummified) monk-
He gave us good luck bracelets and told us to go back to America and be happy :)
Lunch at a lovely beach-side restaurant-
More temples-
Poor elephants :(
Day 7- STILL raining!
We had planned to go to Anthong Marine Park for snorkeling and kayaking, but the water was really choppy and we didn't really feel like getting seasick (you had to take a ferry to get there). So we called up Mr. Samui again and asked him to take us to "The Secret Garden."
The beer of choice in Thailand- Chang!
Day 8- Still raining... so massages and reading, it is. Oh- massages! I got a massage every single day I was in Thailand. It was seriously the best thing ever and I am really sad that I can't carry on this daily ritual in Australia.
That night, our group did a Thai cooking class. Yum!
Day 9- Koh Samui to Bangkok (ferry to bus to plane)
More squatty potties-
Reunited with family! John's cousin, Josh, and his family (Aimee, Elle, and Tyler) live in Thailand (we got to see them in Australia last year) and we stayed with them for our last night. They live in a lovely little neighborhood that reminded me of a beach or retirement community. Everyone gets around on golf carts and there were lots of people out and about biking, running, and walking their dogs. It was such a different feel from the rest of Bangkok!
Tuk Tuk ride to dinner-
There was a Thai family that came up to our table pointing and smiling at Tyler & Elle. Aimee says they are fascinated with their skin and hair color! Tyler will happily pose for a picture with you if you're nice :)
Pre-bedtime chats-
Day 10- Damnoen Saduak Floating Market. It's about an hour and a half outside Bangkok and is exactly like it sounds- a market on water. You hop in a boat and ride through the market to shop and eat. Really cool experience.
There were a lot of questionable souvenir choices...
Watching them make our lunch-
Back in suburbia... a golf cart ride to an early dinner-
Mexican, of course!
It was great to visit with family and see how they live. I told them multiple times- We loved Thailand and can't wait to go back, but we could definitely not live there!
Some other trip takeaways:
-Tourism is a big money maker in Thailand and anyone (especially on the islands we visited) can start their own business and make a living. Have a pickup truck? Start your own taxi service. Enjoy cooking? Host a Thai cooking class. Enjoy driving, talking, and own a van? Start your own tour company (Shoutout to Mr Samui!)
-Since Thai names are often long and complicated, many cab drivers shorten or make up a nickname for themselves. We were driven around by a man named Bandit and heard of another one named Poo. Hehe!
-Several places we went to advertised a "Foreigner Price" and a "Locals Price"... sneaky! Aimee said she often has to ask her Thai maid (named Porn :)) to buy things for her so she can get it at a cheaper price. Porn does not speak much English so Aimee has to ask an English & Thai speaking friend to translate their conversation. Sheesh!
-A few guys in our group got tailor-made suits for super cheap. Like, 2 suits and 3 shirts for $500 AUD. Cray cray!
-Public schools in Thailand do not teach the English language
Gosh I feel like there is so much more to share about our trip but you'll really just have to go to experience the wonderful craziness of Thailand yourself. We are looking forward to going back someday!
Rudy had a packed schedule while we were gone. Walks, eating, snuggling, and he even attended an Australian citizenship party. WE haven't even been to one of those yet! Man, this dog is living the dream.
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