Amazing Thailand!!!

(I went to Thailand over a month ago, but I just uploaded my pictures to flickr and relived the memories.)

I had been plotting a trip to Thailand pretty much since my feet touched down on Korean soil. It was a dream vacation come true, but not for the reasons I imagined. When people think of Thailand (myself included) they usually think of Phuket and the pristine beaches on the southwest peninsula.

We didn’t go there. My traveling companions (this time Jamie, Sarah and Kim) and I ended up flying into Bangkok and then taking a bus to Ko Chang, a slightly less touristy island in the southeast.

I talked them into going there after hearing about other people’s trips and realizing that it had everything I wanted –the beach, snorkeling, elephant treks through the jungle, kayaking, massages- without the 13+ hour bus ride down to Phuket. After Cambodia, I decided that I didn’t want to spend my vacation on a bus, I just wanted to relax on the beach. It turns out we didn’t spend that much time at the beach (we all got third degree sunburns our first day on the island) but I wouldn’t take back a minute of it.

In addition to debilitating sunburn, we experienced bed bugs, cockroaches, and traveler’s diarrhea. In spite of all that, it was the trip of a lifetime. Rather than ramble on like I usually do, I’m going to make a list of my favorite parts of the trip.

#1. Thai food – Thai food has always been a favorite of mine, and not surprisingly, the real deal is even better. Every day we had fresh, delicious Thai food and usually it didn’t cost more than $3.00 a plate. I would go back in a heartbeat for the food alone.

First amazing meal in Thailand, Fried noodles w/chicken, chili & basil (or something like that)


Mouth-watering fresh pineapple shake, I had one nearly everyday


Yellow curry w/chicken & potato, delish


Pineapple fried rice, a new favorite!



#2. Cheap as Chips – Everything in Thailand is really cheap if you think of the cost in US dollars*, and you can indulge in such luxuries as massages everyday without really spending that much. A 1 ½ hour massage cost us 280 baht, which is about 8 US dollars. (*I get paid in Korean won, so it really wasn't as cheap as I thought it was at the time.)

#3. Riding Motorbikes on Ko Chang – It wasn’t on my list, (Yes, I actually generated a “to-do” list using my Lonely Planet book) but Jamie and I rented motorbikes for a day and had our own little “Motorcycle Diaries” adventure on the island. I was a little scared because we don’t have insurance coverage outside of Korea, (when did I become such a mom?) but we had a blast and I found myself fantasizing about moving to a city where I could ride a moped around everywhere.


#4. Meeting people from all over the world – One of my favorite things about traveling is the interesting people I meet and hearing their stories. We met people from England, Holland, New Zealand, France, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, and boatloads of people from Sweden. Many of them were traveling through several countries in Southeast Asia, and hearing about their adventures in Laos, Vietnam, Malaysia, etc., made me want to stay another year in Asia just for the sake of traveling.

#5. The food – Oh wait, I already talked about that. It was amazing though and deserves another place on the list ☺

Coming back to Korea after this trip was really hard. I spent my first week back whining about going back to Thailand, which I will someday. I already have it planned out: I’m flying into Phuket this time and visiting the islands down that way, especially Ko Phi Phi, which is where “The Beach” was filmed and is supposed to be absolutely gorgeous.

Have to wait until I’ve paid off a few bills first though. Which is why I am going to sign off for now and get going on my online TEFL course. (I get a 200,000 won/month raise once I finish the darn thing)

Many more pictures of my Thai adventure can be found here, on my Flickr page.