For those of you who love the mixture of a beautiful culture, nature, relaxation and CHEAP shopping, Thailand is the place for you! Shopping to motorbiking, tanning to bush walking, massages to exploring and eating to drinking cocktails; Thailand really offers anything to everyone!
The time taken to go to Thailand was about a trip from Brisbane to Sydney, only 10 hours!
Our First stop was Chang Mai we arrived on the day of the famous flower festival, and for anyone who is into photography, this event doesn't promise a bad photo. Even an beginner like me could not take a bad photo!
And yes of course there were markets that went along with the beautiful flowers and orchids. These markets had bags and hand made fabrics for such a cheap price made by the Thailand mountain tribe people.
Mostly all the Thai people are Buddhist which makes these people extremely happy, pleasant, hard working and not violent what so ever. So obviously, the next stop was the watts! These beautiful temples were run by the monks, but it was hard not to notice how beautifully decorated they were. The one thing I loved about visiting these temples, was how serene the atmosphere and clean the air was as you walked in. No one judges you, it is an experience for yourself, a place where you can sit, relax and think deeply. It was such a beautiful and inspirational experience.
Walking all day does get very tiring, so thankfully there are many places to go and have a $5 cocktail or fruit smoothie. Yes, the food is delicious and a whole meal that would feed for would be about $20. As the sun sets the busy Thai people start setting up for the weekly Sunday night markets. These are HUGE and span such a large area going down many main streets. If you cant pick up a beautiful piece of silver jewelry, handcrafted goods or bags, you are crazy.
Chang Mai not only offers great shopping and amazing food, but it also offers you a chance to get back to nature. It is time for the Elephant conservation camp! This is a great experience waiting to happen as you know the money is going towards a good cause. This camp also teaches people how to traditionally ride elephants, while getting the opportunity to feed the baby elephant, wash and ride the elephants and learn more about Asian elephants...
Elephant riding was such a surreal experience. Seeing these beautiful creatures up close was incredible. I never thought I would actually see them apart from on the TV. It was like seeing a movie star or someone famous for the first time, you kind of have to look twice and ask 'is this actually happening?'. They are pleasant animals, a little stubborn at times, but very chilled. Getting in the water and washing them was even more surreal at one point i felt so comfortable about being with the elephants that I forgot the fact that they could crush me instantly with one foot. Whilst leaving this elephant camp, I received an certificate that i was a 'qualified elephant rider' - YAY!
We then visited the mountain tribes of Chang Mai, however it was quite depressing as it was mostly a market for the people to make money and earn a living off tourism and exploiting their cultures.
Escaping the busy bustle of Chang Mai, Koh Samui was the next destination. Koh Samui was by far the highlight of my short time spent in Thailand. It was beautiful, remote and relaxed. We ended up hiring motorbikes for a week to ride around the small island. This was an amazing experience riding on a motorbike, listening to foals and watching the busy lives of the Thai people go by. At one end is the place to watch the sunset fall, at the other end is the waterfalls and bush-walking, at another end is the beautiful beaches and Chrystal clear waters. There are so many amazing places to explore and get lost on this island. You cant go one day without discovering a new beach, a new restaurant, a new cat and a new temple! The water is the perfect temperature and perfect color for a gorgeous photo. Massages on the beach for $10? Sure why not! Cocktails sitting on bean bags on the beach? Yup. A hotel that has its own private pool bar, beach and day spa? sure thing! If you have bad skin- try out Dr. fish, weirdest experience of my life. And don't let me forget about the amount of stray cats on the streets! They are just gorgeous.
The time taken to go to Thailand was about a trip from Brisbane to Sydney, only 10 hours!
Our First stop was Chang Mai we arrived on the day of the famous flower festival, and for anyone who is into photography, this event doesn't promise a bad photo. Even an beginner like me could not take a bad photo!
And yes of course there were markets that went along with the beautiful flowers and orchids. These markets had bags and hand made fabrics for such a cheap price made by the Thailand mountain tribe people.
Mostly all the Thai people are Buddhist which makes these people extremely happy, pleasant, hard working and not violent what so ever. So obviously, the next stop was the watts! These beautiful temples were run by the monks, but it was hard not to notice how beautifully decorated they were. The one thing I loved about visiting these temples, was how serene the atmosphere and clean the air was as you walked in. No one judges you, it is an experience for yourself, a place where you can sit, relax and think deeply. It was such a beautiful and inspirational experience.
Walking all day does get very tiring, so thankfully there are many places to go and have a $5 cocktail or fruit smoothie. Yes, the food is delicious and a whole meal that would feed for would be about $20. As the sun sets the busy Thai people start setting up for the weekly Sunday night markets. These are HUGE and span such a large area going down many main streets. If you cant pick up a beautiful piece of silver jewelry, handcrafted goods or bags, you are crazy.
Chang Mai not only offers great shopping and amazing food, but it also offers you a chance to get back to nature. It is time for the Elephant conservation camp! This is a great experience waiting to happen as you know the money is going towards a good cause. This camp also teaches people how to traditionally ride elephants, while getting the opportunity to feed the baby elephant, wash and ride the elephants and learn more about Asian elephants...
Elephant riding was such a surreal experience. Seeing these beautiful creatures up close was incredible. I never thought I would actually see them apart from on the TV. It was like seeing a movie star or someone famous for the first time, you kind of have to look twice and ask 'is this actually happening?'. They are pleasant animals, a little stubborn at times, but very chilled. Getting in the water and washing them was even more surreal at one point i felt so comfortable about being with the elephants that I forgot the fact that they could crush me instantly with one foot. Whilst leaving this elephant camp, I received an certificate that i was a 'qualified elephant rider' - YAY!
We then visited the mountain tribes of Chang Mai, however it was quite depressing as it was mostly a market for the people to make money and earn a living off tourism and exploiting their cultures.
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| Tribe girl wearing her neck rings which are actually incredibly heavy |
Escaping the busy bustle of Chang Mai, Koh Samui was the next destination. Koh Samui was by far the highlight of my short time spent in Thailand. It was beautiful, remote and relaxed. We ended up hiring motorbikes for a week to ride around the small island. This was an amazing experience riding on a motorbike, listening to foals and watching the busy lives of the Thai people go by. At one end is the place to watch the sunset fall, at the other end is the waterfalls and bush-walking, at another end is the beautiful beaches and Chrystal clear waters. There are so many amazing places to explore and get lost on this island. You cant go one day without discovering a new beach, a new restaurant, a new cat and a new temple! The water is the perfect temperature and perfect color for a gorgeous photo. Massages on the beach for $10? Sure why not! Cocktails sitting on bean bags on the beach? Yup. A hotel that has its own private pool bar, beach and day spa? sure thing! If you have bad skin- try out Dr. fish, weirdest experience of my life. And don't let me forget about the amount of stray cats on the streets! They are just gorgeous.
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