Two weeks in "The Land of Smiles"

It is probably fair to say we both had reservations about Thailand before we got here... thinking it wold be way too touristy and just like Costa del Sol or something. And although there probably were a few too many English people, it was brilliant.

We didnt really have any set plans coming into Thailand and were initially going to head to the East coast thinking the west coast would be really rainy. But the forecast for Koh Phi Phi was good and it was on Keelin's hitlist so we headed there first. As we arrived on the island and were walking around looking for a place to stay all the shops were putting their shutters down as there was a tsunami warning. Slightly worrying. But we're still alive. Anyway, we found somewhere to stay and then headed out for dinner. Then, we both got far too excitable that there were people to talk to (Malaysia had been really quiet because of the low season) and got very drunk- too much party party. Neither of us could remember where we were staying and decided to sleep on the beach... only to be moved on by the police. Woops.

Apart from this, Phi Phi was incredible. It was so beautiful, with some deserted beaches and such clear water, and some of the food we had was amazing. We met up with Vanessa and Josh on the last night (when we were ready to consume alcohol again). And the next day we headed to Bangkok.

Maya Bay...where The Beach was filmed

Us with Vanessa and Josh

Bangkok was really cool. We thought it would be really dirty, which it is a bit but its also got some amazing temples (we did quite a lot of temple-bashing) and nice modern areas. It was a bit of an eye opener with all the ladyboys and dirty old western men though!

In Bangkok we got on an overnight bus to Chiang Mai which was 10 hours long. We paid about £14 for the VIP bus which was soooo nice- completely reclining seats, blankets, pillows and food. HOWEVER, at 5am, an hour and a half before our arrival in Chiang Mai they started blaring Thai Kareoke. Wayne's face was hilarious.


Chiang Mai was a really beautiful place, where the town has lots of temples, loads of bars and restaurants, and lots of smiley Thai people! We booked ourselves on a 3 day trek through the jungle, where we finally did some exercise for the 1st time in a month, bathed and rode elephants, slid down waterfalls and did some (painfully slow) white water rafting- no chance of a repeat of going overboard as in Ecuador.

At the moment we are just at the Thai/Laos border waiting til the morning when the border opens to cross over- just one day over our visa!

Enjoy the rain your end, and we'll update you in a couple of weeks.

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