Travel report: Thailand solo trip
I've enjoyed the travel shares from everyone here, and thought I'd offer one from a recent trip. I've done a lot of solo traveling, but my recent travels were family oriented. I'm a recent empty nester (sort of), and had time in May when I could work remotely. For a variety of reasons, I ended up going to Thailand. It was very last-minute (my cc shows I booked my flight on April 19).
I had not been to Thailand previously, and I divided my time between Bangkok, Chiang Mai (northern Thailand) and the island of Koh Samui. I chose Koh Samui over Phuket (the most popular beach destination) for many reasons, but weather in May was the primary factor.
I spent a week in Bangkok, and I enjoyed the city more than I thought I would. On my first day, I visited the Chatuchak market, a 35-acre, busy, hustling market.
Here are some sink bowls on display. They are just a drop in the bucket of what this market offered. So many beautiful things.
I stayed in the Old Town of Bangkok, in a sweet little bed and breakfast. It was run by a young Thai man who made the most delicious breakfasts...
In fact, his breakfasts were some of the best food I had in Thailand. When I complimented him, he said he simply woke up every morning to see what his mother made for breakfast, went to a market to get the ingredients, and came to the hotel to make the same dishes.
I visited the usual Bangkok tourist spots. The wats (Buddhist temples) were beautiful, but most were overrun by young Asians taking social media photos. There are photography businesses set up around the city to rent traditional Asian dresses to young women, who can then have their professional photos taken with the wats in the background for IG, TikTok, etc. I captured one photographer giving posing advice at a popular temple, Wat Arun...
Social media is impacting everyone, everywhere. In fact, I also saw several Buddhist monks scrolling their smartphones.
My favorite time was in Chiang Mai in northern Thailand. I took a fantastic cooking class:
I hiked and enjoyed waterfalls, including one interrupted by buffalos. (Yes, I got out of the water!)
I ate street food from a market visited by Anthony Bourdain. While I love Thai food, I didn't eat much street food because of the intense heat.
I spent time on the island of Koh Samui. My favorite was an excursion to Ang Thong National Park. Kayaking, snorkeling, hiking to a saltwater lagoon, beautiful scenery.
My trip included 10 flights total, and all went without a hitch. I booked 5 stays, and only 1 proved not to be at all what was advertised. After my first night there, I left and booked at a little bungalow on the beach with an open-air shower.
I traveled solo and met some really wonderful people from all over the world. I packed very light--just a carry-on and a small backpack so that I didn't have to check luggage. The Asian version of Uber is called Grab, but I did more walking than riding. The food was so good, and the massages were amazing. On my last day before my long flight home, a tiny, tiny older Thai woman made my body stretch in ways I didn't know it could! It was a great trip.
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Thank you, everyone! I thank Funky for my arms... her weekly Healthy threads and the other inspiring contributors there, keep me accountable.
Kswl, yes, I worked mostly evenings and early mornings, and my workload was relatively light. I had reliable internet most everywhere, and where I didn't I was able to get a hotspot connection from my phone.
I booked accommodations through a combination of Booking . com and Airbnb. I studied reviews and neighborhoods before booking, and crossed referenced with Google and TripAdvisor reviews. Only 1 place was a fail, from Airbnb. But I never felt unsafe. My sister's (female) partner and a college roommate have both traveled extensively in Thailand. It's a well-oiled machine in terms of travel.
Booking . com search criteria, once you indicate you are traveling alone, will highlight ratings from other solo travelers. And the Grab app (rideshare app) offered the option, in some places, for female drivers. I thought that was dangerous for the drivers, but I had downloaded the app before I left home to set it up with my credit card, etc., and I believe I had to share my photo and other information so it was evident I was female, too.
Maire-cate, I was so grateful my flights all went well, and I think I flew 5 different airlines. I had to practice some severe restraint in terms of souvenirs, and I didn't want to have to drag around an extra suitcase. I bought my kids some fun items from markets. My "souvenir" to my friends will be cooking Thai dishes for them that I learned. For myself, I brought home Cascara Tea (tea from coffee shells) from a village in northern Thailand that specialized in coffee. I bought a few clothes that I found I needed (had to ditch a few that I didn't). And I fell in love with the color of these coasters, easy to pack, too. They're now part of my morning coffee routine.
Bpath, I can see how your brother would consider retiring there, especially in Chiang Mai. I'm glad he enjoyed it. I had missed the spring burning by a couple of weeks. These are fields about an hour outside Chiang Mai, and you can see a bit of the new growth beginning after the burning:
I lost count of how many wats (temples) I visited, but I was always amazed the ornate detail of them. They were just beautiful, and any photos I could share simply wouldn't do them justice. This one below was a few blocks from my hotel in Bangkok, and I roamed around the grounds, but did not enter the wat itself because it was prayer time, as you can hear, at the time of my visit. (eta, the photo below is supposed to be a video in which you can hear monks chanting, but the video will not load).
The only wat I could not enter (see below). I'm in menopause, but could not find a menopause exemption. ;-)
Judi, I will post separately about the cooking class, and copy the Cooking forum on it. It was my favorite part of the trip. - last year
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