Thailand truly is a magical kingdom.  Our Thai experience began before we even left China…from the moment we set foot on Thai Air we were in another world.   The plane itself was brightly colored inside and the stewardess greeting passengers was a beautiful Thai woman with a brightly colored robe on.  With flowers in her hair and bright pink lipstick, she was very much the first glimpse of how vibrant Thailand would be. 

The food on the plane was easily some of the best we have ever had on a flight.  After a quick flight to Bangkok we were taken to our hotel  Siam@Siam.  Even the hotel was a work of art and the staff were very friendly.  The halls and rooms were decorated to the extreme with amazing art and bright colors.  The rooftop bar and pool were filled with music and smiling staff.  Even the gym seemed more like a disco with loud music pumping.  For our first meal we stayed close and ate at our hotel restaurant and it did not disappoint.  I have always loved Thai food but this was my first time trying a Massaman curry and it was to die for.  The live band playing at our hotel bar was lively and really good, and they were playing american songs better than the original artists.  After dinner we went to the local mall, within minutes our mind was blown as we realized the shopping in Bangkok is out of this world.

Being tourists, we had to go check out Soi Cowboy.  We had just recently watched the Hangover movie again and thought we better go and check it out since we were so close already.  We were a little nervous to go there not knowing what to expect.  Soi means street in Thai, cowboy is the name Bernard Trink (a nightlife columnist) gave it after T.G. “Cowboy” Edwards, an American who opened one of the first bars there in 1977.  His nickname came from the fact he wore a cowboy hat.  The strip has about 40 bars, most are Gogo dancers but some are topless nude.  Some are just regular bars with live bands.  We were dropped off by our cab at the end of the street, the area was bustling with the evening crowd, the streets were packed.  We walked from one end to the other just taking it all in.  I knew it was going to be a strip filled with bars and shows and strip clubs but I did not expect all of the street activities and variety of costumes and performances we witnessed.  While tasting the local beers; Chang, Singha, and Leo Thai we were people watching, and we saw all kinds of strange and interesting people walking down the strip, including “lady boys” as they are called.

After our first full day in the City we started our tourist itinerary which included TEMPLES of course!  We had an amazing all day tour through Buffalo Tours visiting all the must see temples in, and around the city.  We saw the Emerald Buddha, the Reclining Buddha, the 18k gold Buddha, the Imperial Palace, and several other cool landmarks.  The heat in May was intense, and we expected it, but it still was quite a surprise how humid and sticky it got!  For the temple tour we had to wear pants and keep our bodies covered up, that also added to the heat!

Another day we headed outside of Bangkok to  a private tour to the floating market and the railroad markets outside of the city.  At the Damnoen Saduak floating market we took a wooden boat and cruised down the canals from shop to shop checking out the amazing goods for sale.  The variety of Thai street food was unbelievable and we bought a ton of snacks and fruits to try out.  Tasty treats, from mango, coconut, rice, and squash flavored bite size snacks, also a furry but delicious strawberry like fruit!

 

The cutest little creature called a  Slow Loris were available to hold at one stop.  We got to hold them and get our picture taken, it wasn’t until later we realized we probably did a bad thing by paying for a picture with them, encouraging the locals to capture them for pets/tourism.

Next stop was the Railroad Market. Every day a market is set up on a fully functioning Railway.  8 times a day a train rolls through and all the shops pull back their tables and awnings to make room for the train to go by, it is crazy!!!

After visiting all the markets we went to the Jim Thompson House museum & restaurant.  It was a very interesting place, Jim Thompson was an American expat who helped the silk industry boom.  He took 6 traditional Thailand style homes and brought them all together to make 1 big house.  He disappeared and to this day is missing!!  After a busy day of shopping and being tourists we headed out for a massage…we had a 2 hour Thai massage, complete with body twisting torture! The prices for merchandise and services in Thailand are really hard to beat, for pennies on the dollar you can have an amazing day of shopping, dining, massage, and entertainment.

Our last night in Bangkok we went to dinner at Sirotto, a rooftop bar & restaurant from the movie Hangover II.  It had an amazing view of the city and excellent service.  The food was just as beautiful as it was tasty!

From Bangkok we flew to Phuket…our beach destination was HOT!  90 degrees feels like 100!  From the airport it took us about 1.5 hours to reach Kata beach, where we stayed at the Kata Thani Beach resort.  The beaches did not disappoint.  The stunning emerald green waters, filled with tropical fish, and massive rock formations, were all so much more beautiful than a picture can capture.

We took an all day boat tour to visit the famous Phi Phi islands and snorkel with the fishies.  First stop was Maya Bay, Krabi, and Losa Ma Bay.  Very cool rocks, cliffs and water.  We went snorkeling on a reef and saw Dogfish Puffer, Angel, Moorish Idol, and many more beautiful fish.  Next we went to a bird island with caves filled with birds nests, and after that we went to Monkey Island.  At Monkey Island cute little long tailed monkeys climbed down the cliffs to get banana’s from our boat.  Next stop was Pearl Island, we spent a few hours there enjoying the views from the beach.

After long days of swimming and snorkeling we went for more Thai massages! We tried a coconut oil massage complete with hair braiding (amazing)!

For dinner one night we went to Blue Elephant, a restaurant in the old governors mansion.  The menu was amazing and the building was beautiful.

The best experience of all in Thailand was our elephant sanctuary visit!  We took a Tuktuk truck about an hour away, to the jungle to visit a site with rescue elephants.  The camp was crazy!  There were 3 elephants just running around free when we pulled in the gate.  The baby elephants were so cute and they were so friendly.  All except for one little boy elephant named Justin Bieber AKA Naughty Boy, he was a wild little bully!  We got to feed all of the elephants and then take them for a bath and swim.  The sanctuary is doing really great work.  They save these elephants from unhealthy situations like logging camps, circus shows, or tourist rides.  Elephants were not meant to be ridden and they can be injured easily from weight on the back.

After our elephant excursion in Thailand I was a happy camper…I had checked off all my top 10 Thai travel goals!  Next stop Japan!!!