When we started planning to live abroad for six months – we originally looked to Europe before deciding on New Zealand. We didn’t think we’d even make it to Europe, let alone Thailand. But things fell into place, we found a great deal on a flight to Copenhagen and off we flew from sunny, warm Thailand to the somewhat sunny, not quite as warm Copenhagen. After we got over the shock to our senses (we’re not in 100 degree humidity and we still don’t speak the language), we settled in to our week in Copenhagen. Denmark is known for being one of the best countries to live in the world. Why? It’s not the warm weather (although it did warm up while we were there). Free health care, beautiful architecture and design, sustainable solutions, easy to use public transportation, bikes everywhere…you get the point. While it may have been a fluke we ended up in Copenhagen, we became really excited about spending a week in this fairy tale city. Our week in Copenhagen went by quickly. That didn’t stop us from trying some of the best burgers in town – we were staying next door to Halifax which had delicious burgers that were ginormous. We also popped into the markets down the road and enjoyed strolling down cobble stone roads. The other thing we learned about while in Copenhagen – hygge. It’s hard to find a direct translation. Basically, it explains the cozy, organic sweaters, the sleek, well-fit clothing, the cuddly scarves, the fireplaces in bars, long-drawn out dinners. It’s enjoying nice things in life whether that be nice things, a pleasant setting, or good friends and good conversation. It’s our take-away from Copenhagen – hygge, enjoying life....
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Our time in Bangkok and Chiang Mai flew by (thank you again Tum, Vichien, and Toy) and we soon found ourselves back on a plane to Krabi, southern Thailand. Krabi is located near Phuket, but is known for not being quite as touristy. Good weather, beautiful not-quite so crowded beaches – sign us up! Arriving in Krabi – there are private cars you can hire to take you to your hotel or you can take a bus. The cars are 600 baht while the bus was about 150 baht per person (depending on where you’re going). We decided to save some cash and take the bus. We actually stayed about 20 minutes from Krabi in Ao Nang – a little smaller and less of a main hub. Two hours later, after a few stops in Krabi and Ao Nang – we arrived at our hotel. Compared to other places we’ve traveled, Ao Nang was inexpensive for the one bedroom hotel we got. However, the one downfall is that Ao Nang doesn’t have any grocery stores. There were lots of markets and grocers where we found a few things, but no large selections of foods for you to make yourself. The cost of food in Ao Nang was pricer than it was in Chiang Mai, but it was still really cheap. The night before our island hopping adventure, there was a big storm and our hotel lost electricity. Luckily we had learned from our jungle trek guide, Johnny, that beer cans make excellent candle holders. The lights came on after about an hour or so, but it was a realization of how much we love air conditioning. A little tired from all our traveling, we knew we needed to have at least one more big adventure before leaving Thailand. Island hopping sounded like the perfect choice. After doing some research, we decided to book a semi-private tour with Thalassa. There are plenty of tours out there available to take you to a few of the surrounding islands. All of them are fairly cheap compared to prices in the US and other places we’ve been traveling. That being said – some of the cheaper tours were overcrowded and we were...
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After spending a few days in Bangkok, we boarded a plane and flew to Chiang Mai. The flight was pretty inexpensive and really fast considering we talked to quite a few people who took the overnight train – they said it was…an experience. We were extremely lucky to have hosts for this portion of our trip – Tum and Vichien. Not only did we stay with them during our time in Chiang Mai, but they also took us out to beautiful temples, had us try amazing food, and helped us experience Thai culture. We had heard about the generous Thai spirit, but being immersed in it was a different story. A huge THANK YOU to Tum, Vichien, and Toy for our Chiang Mai adventures. The Walking Market Doi Suthep We loved the food so much, we wanted to make sure we could take some home with us. So we took a cooking class in Chiang Mai. Siam Rice Thai Cookery has pretty inexpensive classes and gave us the opportunity to learn how to make our own curry. Yes! Friends – dinner plans when we get back! The school picked us up and took us to a local market where they showed us some of the ingredients. We bonded with our taxi group – cousins from Poland, an Argentinian couple, and some girls from Germany before we split off into different groups for the actual cooking. Another treat we had in Chiang Mai was a 2 hour Thai massage. 2 hours? Thai massage? YES! Will never had a massage before let alone for 2 hours so we were a bit skeptical – would that be too long? Would it hurt? After traveling for 4 months, it was just what we needed. The two hours passed quickly. Did it hurt? yes – but the good kind of hurt. The kind where you feel the knots and kinks being worked out. Afterwards, we walked along the streets in Chiang Mai, exploring. Another thing I didn’t capture – getting my hair cut in Chiang Mai. Tum got me an appointment with the woman who cuts her hair and I couldn’t pass up the opportunity – plus I needed a hair cut. Thanks...
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When we started our journey, we didn’t plan on traveling to Thailand. In fact, we bought a ticket to Australia as an exit plan since we needed to leave New Zealand after 3 months. One of the benefits to not having a solid plan for this trip is being able to adapt and add new locations to the itinerary. After we found out a friend would be in Thailand – it seemed like the stars aligned and pointed us towards the lovely country. It also helped that flights from Australia were only 10 hours as opposed to the 30 hour flights from the US. Our flight out of Australia was much easier than our flight into Australia. No problems with visas – no extra luggage fees. The only problem – we had to sit on the plane for an extra hour or so due to some extra weight in the cargo. A long flight later – we arrived in Bangkok. We rented an apartment off AirBNB. The owners are a very nice couple who gave us directions to give to the cab drivers (complete with Thai directions and an estimated amount of the ride). Seeing the address, the taxi driver asked how we found his neighborhood. It’s not known for being a big tourist location. The hot air hit us as soon as we stepped off the plane. We thought Australia was warm with its 85 degree weather. It was 9:30pm and still 90 degrees. The owners greeted us with some treats and showed us around the apartment – including the community pool (we took advantage of it every day we were there). The first night, we slept well. The next day, we did some work before meeting Toy and her friend Too for dinner. This is where they taught us our first lesson: The food in Thailand is amazing. The next day, we met Toy and Too for a trip to Ayutthaya – the remains of the old city about an hour outside of Bangkok (traffic permitting). Ayutthaya was a beautiful city with over one million residents before it was invaded by the Burmese and burned to the ground in 1767. After driving past tall buildings and the old...
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After 3 months in New Zealand, saying goodbye was difficult. Our last night in Aukland, we stayed by the airport – right by an Icebreaker outlet. One thing we’ve learned during our time in New Zealand – merino wool is great while traveling. Seriously. At the airport – we ran into some more problems (insert “the more you know” music) The tickets we bought through Orbitz did not include our luggage. We’ve gotten really good at checking with each individual airline about luggage costs, but this was the first airfare we bought about 4 months ago and I forgot to check. Whoops. The visa for Australia I obtained at LAX does not exist. Bummer. We got lucky and Will’s visa was in the system, but our airline sent us to Air New Zealand to help me get the visa. After obtaining it, we went back to our airline and we were good to go. Next to us, there was an American from Atlanta who was with a tour group. They lost his flight completely and he had to re-buy a ticket. Things can always get worse. Once we were on the plane, things went smoothly. We stopped at the information desk and spoke with a smiley guy who told us about Sydney’s Opal cards – you load the card and tap on and off the busses, trains, and ferries. He also warned us that the train from the airport has an added fee of $13 on top of the normal cost. He gave us a loophole of taking the bus a few stops away from the airport before switching to the train. Energized, we accepted the challenge. *Note – Sundays all the fares are $2.50 – everywhere. We flew on a Sunday. This means cheap transport and long lines especially at the ferries. We took the bus in the wrong direction *a good reminder to talk to the bus driver. We felt like novices. However – it all worked out. We hopped on the train and took it to the Circular Quay and avoided the $13 extra fee. The apartment we rented was in Manly, Sydney – a half hour ferry ride across the bay. Sweating and hot, we...
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