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the-juanderer · 6 years

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My Thailand Experience Highlights Guide

Oh the places you'll go!

It was about that time of the year for me to scratch something of my bucket list. It was time for a solo adventure and I had plans for South East Asia. Being a Latino born and raised in South central Los Angeles not too many people I grew up with can say they've been backpacking in a foreign country. I am lucky enough to have came across and met some really dope people in my life I can call friends. Who travel the world and influence me on living my best life and showing me that anything I want do in life I can accomplish! I was 26 at the time just a month away from turning 27, May 26th whoop! and I’m still just irresponsible enough for random, spontaneous, probably not the smartest or most willing travel plans, but made it happen and my first backpacking solo trip to Thailand was a success!

I had difficulty planning for Thailand, mostly because whenever I would try to Google “ The best things to do in Thailand”, there were too many recommendations and activities. I had sort of an idea of what activities I wanted to do like play with elephants, eat some bomb food, take a typical tourist selfie, but it was just way too confusing and overwhelming to try and plan anything definite.

I decided to just search and find cool blogs of locals and people who decided to go live out there. That way I can get some insights from a locals point of view. In which I can tell you all had great advice! The more you research the more you’ll come to find that travelers seem to go to the same places but I didn’t want to follow that pattern. I wanted to get lost and just find my own routes and unique places. So in combination with their advice, and my many mishaps, fails, good ideas, and good luck, here are a couple highlights of my dope 10 day adventure and some helpful tips I have for anyone planning to visit Thailand.

First for anyone planning on going to Thailand coming from one of the biggest over planners and over thinkers of all time, you have to trust me on this one, don’t over plan! There are so many things to see and do, and they’re all cheaper once you get there, as opposed to pre - booking online. People would also tell me to book a hotel until I landed there so that I could walk around and see what areas I liked best. They’re typically cheaper if you just walk in to the hotel instead of booking online. Though I booked hotels because I’m an over planner like I said. Ha!

Bangkok

Tip #1

Take a tour ! There is a tour desk on every corner, literally. If you are staying at a hotel they have a tour desk but I felt the tours were a little cheaper when you bought them from the outside tour desks on the streets. They are literally on every corner once you get to the main roads. They are the best ways to explore and see the best parts of Thailand. Especially if you're only visiting for a few days.

I first started my Thailand adventure by landing in Bangkok. Always wanted to go to Bangkok after the “Hangover” movie though not to black out and wake up not knowing what happened the next day. It was my first time traveling solo and on top of that to the other side of the world. Definitely a nerve racking experience before getting there.

I stayed at Hotel Icon Bangkok for 3 days which was a great stay. Hotel was very clean, Wi-Fi was super good and hotel employees were so helpful and nice. I really liked the comfy rooms also it was so conveniently central to a lot of bars and stores. So I definitely recommend this hotel if you guys going to Bangkok and its super affordable it was about 2100 Baht per night which is about 70 dollars in American. Though you can find way cheaper hotels and hostels which range from 15 dollars a night.

Tip #2

Money = BAHT (1,000 baht= $30 100b= $3 50b= $1.50 25b= .75) This was a helpful way for me to remember the currency exchange rate.

Getting around

Tuk tuks are the most fun to take in Bangkok as they race around traffic and make your heart stop a few times, no joke! If you go to the big shopping district take the Sky train there and a tuk-tuk back. I was also taking taxis and using Grab (Uber) make sure you get your taxis and tuk-tuks metered some try to gyp you by giving you a price up front and its usually way cheaper with the meter on. Stay alert! and just be aware. I would ask the taxi drivers to turn it on when it would be off and they were pretty cool about it. The sky train is mostly everywhere though and that was my main source of transportation.

Side note never taken a subway in my life and my first time happened to be in Bangkok and I got lost a few times but it was awesome. Don’t get frustrated just embrace it you’re in a foreign country its okay to get lost!

Let’s Party!

Let’s get the party talk out the way, if you want to party make your way down to Khao San Rd. is the main backpackers’ road and is filled with bars, clubs, hostels, and vendors! This is definitely the place to party in Bangkok and often people will go and never end up leaving this road since there are so many things to do here. Oh! and beer and liquor are super cheap!

Rambutri St. is a street parallel to Khao San, actually connected to it if you take the “walking streets” or alleys which are pretty sketch. I started recording while walking down those alleys just in case something went down but its totally safe! So don’t worry. Ramburi St. has the same stuff going on but instead of bars it has more hostels and is a bit quieter place to stay. Besides that you’re in Bangkok and night life is crazy everywhere, no one sleeps!

Bangkok was pretty cool did a lot or most of my shopping there so many street vendors and malls. Check out the malls some of the biggest malls I have ever seen in my life and you can find anything and I mean anything! Bangkok’s biggest shopping district is the sky trains stop Siam. Check out the Siam Paragon, the nicest mall I have ever been to that also has the nicest movie theater I’ve ever been in if you want to see a good movie. There is also an aquarium on the bottom floor that I’m sure is really nice I didn't get a chance to check it out though. In the same area across from Siam Paragon is MBK, this mall hosts no designer stores but here you can get practically anything you can think of for super cheap, filled with hundreds of little booths selling stuff and a good food court, it’s fun to walk around in if you don’t get too overwhelmed, and a good place to get cheap souvenirs in bulk before going back home.

Tip #3

BARGAIN HARD - Everything is worth about half its said price so even if you can’t get it that low bargain your ass off! I was out there hustling. Ask for a discount or offer around half the price and bargain up from there. The best tip of all start to walk away and say you aren’t interested! They’re quick to accommodate you better when they see if they might have no customer at all, I did it all the time!

My favorite part of Bangkok was the river crossing ferry I took. A ferry transports people from one side of the river to the other, and a journey only cost 3 baht. The most popular ferry crossing for sightseers is the crossing between Wat Pho Temple and Wat Arun at Tha Tien Pier. I took it down to about 7 stops, took all day but so much fun.

Tip#4

Learn to Talk Thai! Helpful words to know. Trust me, always better being there knowing something than nothing.

FYI: Thai’s use Kap (boys) and Ka (girls) as a polite word at the end of sentences or phrases, it also kind of works as a short “Hi” “O.K” or “Yes” so don’t be confused by all the Ka’s and Kap’s that are thrown at you out there.

1. Sa Wa Dee KAP (Kap for boys, Ka for girls) = Hello

2. Kap kun KAP (again, KA for girls)= Thank You

3. PET= spicy MAI PET= no spicy PET NOY= a little spicy

4. Chai= Yes

5. Mai Chai= No

6. Foods: Guy= Chicken Mu= Pork Kye= Egg

7. Mai Cow Jai= I don’t understand, Cow Jai= I undersand

8. Nam Kang= water

9. Mai Loo/Roo= I don’t know

What to eat?

Food! There was food everywhere from night markets to street food every few feet. It’s easy to find good food on Khao San/Rambutri and much more American foods than you will find anywhere else in Thailand. For cheap food go to the vendors, Pad Thai is really popular and a good dish that you can get almost anywhere tell them if you want Chicken (Guy) or Pork (Mu). I fell in love with Tom Yum soup out there so definitely recommend that.

Take a Thai cooking class!

A dope experience! It’s about a half a day course and is so delicious and worth the time. It’s a small group and you visit a Thai market to buy supplies and the guide explains to you different kinds of food. DON’T EAT! Before you go, you end up extremely stuffed from morning to night! You cook 5 different dishes out of categories and you get a cook book to take home and everything. Don’t be afraid to try the Northern dishes and curries. For sure try Mango Sticky Rice it’s so bomb!

The Islands

The islands were my favorite part of my whole trip in Thailand, beautiful beaches, dope people, and you’re surrounded by so much beautiful culture. I took a flight from Bangkok to the islands and decided to land in Phuket first. It’s the most popular island for tourist so wanted to see what all the hype was about. I used Sky scanner to look up flights, there super cheap from within Bangkok ranging from $70 - $100. I stayed at Blue Ocean Resort, which was a really nice beach front resort. Wi-Fi was so-so and they had a cool little gym to put in some work if you want to. The location was the best part, Patong beach was literally across the street which is Phuket’s most popular tourist spot. Nightlife is insane full of bars and clubs and women (also lady boys) on poles! The beach was pretty cool, where you can do about anything you can imagine on water like jet skis or windsurfing.

Tip #5

Do not forget to bring Bug Spray! Trust me you’ll thank me, especially if you’re traveling to the beach areas. They’ll eat you alive!

James Bond Island in Phang Nga Bay

There is so much to do in this area so you definitely need to go on a tour. Tours are so dope if you are staying at a hotel they usually have someone there offering different tours at different prices but don’t just buy from there walk around and explore. (Remember you can pretty much bargain anything) I did the James Bond, Phang Nga Bay trip by Long Tail boat. The tour guide was hilarious and very knowledgeable. First went to a monkey cape which was awesome! Never seen monkeys up close like that. Literally a park with wild monkeys jumping and running around everywhere. I tried getting cool with one by feeding it a banana but he wasn’t having it and chased me down! My life flashed before my eyes! But I survived. Awesome experience being around wild monkeys, here’s actually a picture of the monkey and I right before he decided to turn against me and chase my ass.

Monkey - “Punk ass human don’t even know me like that! ”

Later went canoeing down Phang Nga Bay to Talu Island and went through some amazing sea caves. You literally have to duct down in the canoe to get passed the entrances of the sea caves. Some really nice spots to take pics. Shortly after you get to James Bond Island where I got to see the famous movie location “The Man with the Golden Gun” was filmed. Took some typical tourist selfies. That whole day was a fun experience with dope views and good vibes.

The cool part about being alone in a foreign country and taking tours is the awesome people you meet along the way. When you’re alone on a tour sometimes you need a partner so I would get paired up with other solo travelers. Other travelers from around the world with dope stories and wisdom. Don’t be afraid to spark up a conversation with people. There just out there exploring and having fun just like you.

KOH PHI PHI

Koh Phi Phi was my favorite island of them all. If you’re looking for crystal clear beaches, a place to relax or even a place to party hard Koh Phi Phi has it all! It is so tiny when you get off the boat on one beach you can see the other beach ahead on the other side. I was here for 1 day but I felt that’s all you needed to explore and get a good feel for the island. I took the morning ferry from Phuket, arrived and had breakfast and booked a boat tour, spent the day on the boat and went snorkeling. I then arrived back at around sunset. I had enough time to hike up a viewpoint to see an incredible view of the whole island. The tour was about 1800 Baht / $60 bucks.

Elephant Sanctuary

You can’t go to Thailand and not visit some Elephants! Going to Thailand I was under the impression I was going to ride some but as I was there I learned how they treated the elephants when you go trekking and they abuse them and beat them to have people ride them for pleasure. I was totally against that and hated hearing how these animals were treated. I ended up finding the Green Elephant Sanctuary they have built out facilities that were so amazing and great habitats for the elephants. Such a fun experience! Really awesome that it was ethical and the animals were treated incredibly well.

You start by feeding the elephants fruit and taking photos. Next, you go into the mud pit and rub mud on the elephants. You can tell they were really enjoying this. After the heavy mud, you go into a mud bath. You are waste deep in muddy water and you rinse them off with buckets and the elephants will sometimes squirt you with their trunks. Lastly, you shower with the elephants and you brush them clean.They also serve you food buffet style at the end, BOMB! All I can say.

An amazing experience all around these people clearly care so much for these animals and giving a positive experience for guests. I recommend making your reservation in the morning because it's less crowded. If you are reading this and thinking about an elephant ride versus going to a sanctuary I would highly encourage you to stay away from any place that rides elephants. They are not humane. These animals need to eat 400 pounds of food per day and they can't do it when they're giving rides or hauling logs. Moreover, they are abused quite horribly in those situations. Please come to a place like this. I loved it, probably the highlight of my trip.

Message!

Overall my first international backpacking trip was way beyond my expectations. I made new friends and met some interesting kind hearted people from different parts of the world. I saw some of the world’s best beaches and monuments. The locals are so nice and humble and treat you so well. I went out there to find and become a better version of myself. To temporarily detach myself from my current reality and realized there is so much more this world can offer. There are so many other types of struggles and obstacles that I don’t have to ever deal with. People are so much more humble and happy with far less in their possession. I learned to be grateful for what I have and be thankful every day that I’m so blessed to live the life that I do. I take so much for granted and when you travel to a third world country, you are immediately struck by the fact that people are happier, even though they have a lot less than you have. When we are constantly seeking to upgrade our lives with a better car, new job, or a better smartphone, just think about this - you can still be happy with what you have got.

Well these were just a few highlights of my trip and I hope you enjoyed reading my experience and the few tips I provided. Remember to embrace everything you see, hear, and do. Definitely won’t be my last time in Thailand I have been bit by the travel bug so I’ll be traveling soon again and eventually make my way back to Thailand for some Tom Yum Soup and some Thai Tea which btw is the greatest only in Thailand!

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