A Month in Thailand

Elephant Riding East of Bangkok

After my final marks were submitted it was off to the Nanning Airport to greet my father. We decided to spend a few days in Nanning, before moving on to greener (and sunnier) pastures in Thailand on January 14th. This is my fathers first year as a retired teacher and it was a pleasure to show him around my stomping grounds. The first few days in China are always the biggest eye openers, as you have to adjust to chopsticks, the lack of traffic laws and curious stares. One of the benefits of working in China is that during Chinese New Year or ‘Spring Festival’, the country basically shuts down. Most Chinese have about seven days off from work, while students and teachers have a full month. Many Chinese cities turn into Baghdad during the festival, as fireworks are shot off to scare away the evil spirits. Most of these fireworks wouldn’t make it past customs in the West due to amount of powder they pack. After a farewell party with coworkers, it was off to Bangkok. Instead of declaring my love for Thailand in a 3000 word essay, I will list 10 reasons why the country is a must-see travel destination!

1) ‘Sanuk’! This is Thai for ‘make fun’. Thais approach life with this attitude, including work. They don’t see the point of doing something if you can’t have a little fun. I have never seen so many smiles in my life. There is an obvious reason why the Thai smile is famous…they practice it constantly on a daily basis! 

Practicing the ‘Wai’ at Crystal Cave Temple

2) The party atmosphere in Thailand is something to behold. There is no other destination in the world that can hold a candle to ‘Walking Street’ in Pattaya. Picture one big bachelor party with 15,000 people packed into one street. The American soldiers were initially responsible for transforming Pattaya into the modern day Sodom and Gomorrah. During the Vietnam War they flocked to Thailand for some R&R and with them came the dollars that transformed the economy into one which is 'service' based.


3) A free 30 day travel VISA is provided upon arrival (by air). If you are travelling anywhere else (China, Vietnam, Cambodia), you need to get a VISA beforehand.

4) Thai food is excellent, especially the seafood. The price is also affordable averaging $5-10 for a meal (including alcoholic beverage). Because the country is so westernized, expect to find American style breakfasts and all of the fast food restaurants you would back home. 

5) The beaches in Thailand are some of the best in the world! After reading ‘The Beach’ by Alex Garland in high school and watching the movie, it was a dream come true to walk the sands of Maya Bay (which is situated on a deserted island, with National Park status). Unfortunately the popularity of both has meant that hordes of tourists (1000+), descend upon the small bay every day. However, the crowds can be avoided by signing up for a camping trip to the island. The trip reaches capacity at 20 and from 5PM – 9AM the island remains in splendid isolation.  

Scuba Diving in Ko Phi Phi

6) Thailand has some of the best scuba diving sites in the world. A full day of diving will only run you around $120. Visibility is absolutely amazing, ranging from 20-30 meters at times. Sea cucumbers are also ripe for the picking!

7) Because it is a backpacker’s paradise, expect to meet new and interesting people from around the world. The further you get off the ‘regular tourist path’, the better. Try renting a motorcycle ($5 a day) and take a back round. 

8) The National sport in Thailand is Muay Thai. The fights are a must see and are quick, lasting only 5 rounds. Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok seats 9,500 and they are one of the few places where gambling is permitted. It looks and sounds like you are on the floor of the New York stock exchange, just with the addition of beer and Van Damme tiger kicks. 

9) Roughly 95% of the Thai population is Buddhist. The ‘wai’ or Thai greeting is widespread and is deeply routed with the Buddhist faith. Visiting wats and temples in Thailand is both a spiritually enlightening and educational experience. Since all living things are welcome at these holy sites, expect to see all kinds of animals. Tiger Temple, east of Bangkok is probably the most famous, with around 100 tigers. Initially I was against seeing tigers chained up and seemingly drugged (which they aren’t), while tourists flooded in for photos. The reality is that their natural habitats have been destroyed and without sanctuaries like Tiger Temple, they wouldn’t be alive. For three hours a day the most people friendly tigers are chained up during their siestas and tourists are guided from tiger to tiger for photos. Most of the tigers have been handled by humans since they were cubs and actually enjoy getting a back rub during 3 of their 20 rest hours a day. Afterword’s if you pay an extra $15, you get put into a cage and get to watch the tigers snap out of their siesta and play fight. A chance to walk one of the tigers is also provided! As with most people I would rather see tigers in their natural state in the wild. It is good to see that admission costs are being used to care for the tigers and construct a larger sanctuary which will allow the animals to live an 'almost' natural environment. 

Ko Phi Phi Leh

10) I have to include shopping on this list. For $120 you can get a tailor-made suite, which would easily cost $800+ back home. The Chatuchak Weekend Market in Bangkok is massive, with over 200,000 visitors a day. Khaosan Road also offers plenty of $3 tea shirts, $5 board shorts, Ray Band glasses, $30 Rolex watches and everything short of firearms for weaponry. Bargaining is a must as most foreigners are seen as a walking wallet. It is an exciting sport, the more emotion you can toss in the better! Treat everything as a 50% off Boxing Day sale. You should never feel bad when it comes to bargaining, as they wouldn’t sell it to you at a loss. If anything the shop keeper will respect you more for not devaluing the Thai currency and tossing it around like monopoly money.

I will never forget Thailand and the one month father/son trip across its lands. It was quite the change returning to overcast and rainy 10 degree weather. I heard from coworkers who stayed in Nanning that the sun had not shown itself since we left. Semester two has started at the University and its smooth sailing from now until July when I return to Canada.