Hello family and friends! We just spent a really wonderful eight days in Thailand. Thailand's beaches are the beaches I've been dreaming about my whole life. And we've seen some really nice beaches in our travels, so that's saying a lot. Despite the fact that I (Kenzi) spent the whole time sick with a nasty head cold, we loved Thailand for its warm water, warm air, beautiful beaches, turquoise water, yummy food, cheap massages, and... wait for it... special guests Jadyn & Ryan!
Reunited with Jadyn & Ryan!
An incredible sunset from our beach on Koh Lanta
Jadyn and Ryan, my sister and brother-in-law, are the family members whose home in Murrieta, CA, has become our home base during this year of big adventures. They graciously hosted us during our two months at home and will host us again for the holidays. We have met some really nice people during our travels, but nothing quite compares to the familiar faces of our closest loved ones.
They arrived in Bangkok in the middle of the night. Bill taxi'd to pick them up at the airport since I was nursing my cold. The next day while I rested, the three of them saw some sights around Bangkok: the Grand (Royal) Palace, Wat Pho (Temple of the Reclining Buddha) and the river taxi along the Chao Phraya River.
My people with the giant reclining Buddha at Wat Pho in Bangkok
Fires how on the beach in Koh Lanta, not sure how these guys keep a full head of hair...
The pink elephants outside the Grand Palace in Bangkok
Some of the boats they saw on their river tour
Just like all the Southeast Asian countries, Thailand has a long history but the recorded history goes back to about the 1100s, when Thailand (formerly called Siam) was ruled by the Khmers (the same Khmers who built Angkor Wat in Cambodia). Thailand also had other groups of people such as the Chams, Mons, ethnic Malays, etc. Thailand is largely Buddhist, so there are lots of beautiful wats (temples) around. But just like in Cambodia, there is a strong Indian/Hindu influence here as well. During the 1700s/1800s, when the rest of Southeast Asia was being colonized by the French and British, Thailand is the only country that stood firm and was never colonized. However, they must have had some British influence since they drive on the left side of the road.
Something that is immediately noticeable upon arrival in Thailand is that it is a country in mourning. Their king of 70 years, Bhumibol Adulyadej, passed away on 13 October at the age of 88 from a long illness and the country has entered a year-long period of intensive mourning. This mourning is readily apparent from a tourist's perspective because there are billboards everywhere with his picture, and black and white banners/ribbons everywhere. Apparently everyone wore black for the first month, and many still are. Most people are now wearing a black band or ribbon on their arm. There is a tribute to the king in or on every hotel, every airport, and many businesses. On our flights around Southeast Asia, there is even a brief tribute to the king over the loud speaker before the safety briefing. He was a beloved king and the country seems quite shaken by his passing. Even now, six weeks after his death, the TV channels are still running coverage of his life and death. And while most of the grief seems heart felt, it is interesting to note that there are laws in Thailand prohibiting people from criticizing the king or the royal family. Nonetheless, given all the divisiveness in the US right now, it was kind of nice to see people unified around the loss of their leader. The king's presence and loss was felt even by us tourists throughout our time in Thailand.
Tributes to the King were found all throughout Thailand
Another tribute to the King
From Bangkok, the four of us headed south by taking a flight to Krabi and then a van ride (including a ferry) to the islands of Koh Lanta for five days of relaxing and adventuring. We took a Thai cooking class, went on a snorkeling excursion to Phi Phi and Bamboo islands, rented scooters in order to explore the island, and Jadyn and Ryan spent a morning riding and feeding an elephant (we already have some elephant time booked for later on so we didn't go on that particular adventure with them). The rest of the time was spent walking on the beach, getting massages, swimming in the nice warm ocean or nice warm pool, eating delicious food, watching night time fire shows at the beach bar next door, or just generally relaxing.
All of us jammed into a taxi with our luggage on our laps, on our way to the airport to catch our flight to Krabi
Jadyn and Bill working hard to make dinner, while Ryan and I were excellent cheerleaders!
Dinner: fried money bags, Massaman curry, chicken satays with peanut sauce, mango sticky rice for dessert. All was very yummy!
The view from the boat on our snorkel excursion to Koh Phi Phi
An amazing beach on Bamboo Island
Koh Lanta exploration by scooter
Jadyn and Ryan riding their elephant friend
It seems that every country's tuk tuks are slightly different. This is what they looked like in southern Thailand.
Fire show on the beach in Koh Lanta, not sure how these guys keep a full head of hair...
Our 2-suite bungalow on Long Beach on Koh Lanta, Thailand
So basically, Thailand - what's not to love? Well, one itty-bitty-little-teeny-tiny thing: you can ask Ryan about ALL his mosquito bites because they especially liked him. Thailand was really the first time we used our bug spray faithfully, and it was definitely a necessity. But overall we felt it was a small price to pay for the blissful island life.
Bill's parents, Joan and John, sent some money to Thailand along with Jadyn and Ryan so that we could all go out to a nice dinner. We chose a restaurant called Black Pearl because it was associated with the cooking school where we took our Thai cooking class. Turns out it was cheesily themed after the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. It didn't really matter though because the food was really good. Thanks Joan and John!!
Joan and John, thanks for the delicious dinner at the Black Pearl!
We loved our time in southern Thailand and definitely hope to come back someday.
So happy that you all had a great time in Thailand! We want to take Audrey when she is a bit older...we are too scared of the mosquitos!
ReplyDeleteDid you have papaya salad/Thai BBQ chicken at the beach? My absolute favorite! :)
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