Thailand
Part 1
As amazing as Myanmar was, we were ready for a little break as we had only one day off in 16 days with each day being about 6-8 hours of riding. We crossed into Thailand after a very smooth and quick border crossing and found ourselves in a little resort in Mae Sot. We've come to know border towns as being very dodgy and if we can help it, we don't spend anytime there. But this little hidden gem was exactly what we needed! There was a pool, cold beers and not a tourist in sight so we decided to stay for a couple of nights and relax. Our plan was to head straight across the middle of Thailand into Cambodia to catch up with Zeus before coming back in and working our way down to Malaysia. Small things such as well built roads, traffic obeying rules, 7/11's, fresh fruit stands and clean public toilets were very welcomed and we didn't realise how much we missed them!
Thailand round 2:
We crossed back in from Siem Reap, Cambodia and headed for Bangkok to catch up with Seth, a friend from Düsseldorf and a fellow Aussie. The border crossing was smooth as butter, as was the ride to Bangkok's outer suburbs. We then hit traffic and our 6 hour journey turned into 10. We spent a couple of nights with Seth and his girlfriend Deborah, venturing into the city to watch the rugby world cup final and exploring Chatichak market the next day.
We then escaped the hustle and bustle and spent a couple of days in Hua Hin, a popular beach resort for Bangkok residents. We returned from the beach one afternoon wondering what all the black stains on our feet were. A quick google search revealed that there'd been an oil spill a few days earlier, so we spent a fun-filled hour cleaning that up with chain cleaner.
We then progressed down the Thai gulf staying in a couple of really small, quiet villages on the beach, before crossing the peninsula to the west coast and catching the ferry over to Ko Lanta. We spent three nights in a bamboo bungalow on the beach, taking day trips around the island to isolated beaches and waterfalls.
Sick of the tourist beat, we picked a point a few k's south down the coast and off the main road and hoped for the best. We were rewarded. I'd assumed that the most beautiful parts of Thailand had been developed to attract the tourist dollar, but it seems that there are still a huge amount of places that haven't succumbed to the 7eleven and vodka bucket onslaught, and they are of equal or greater natural beauty than those in the brochures. We spent two nights on a secluded beach with only one small local kitchen to eat from. The beach was completely empty the entire time we were there. We swam around a rocky headland to find another amazing beach, which could only be reached by water with shear cliffs enclosing it.
Having been to Thailand a few years back, we new what to expect in the popular tourist hotspots. Once again, our favourite parts of this leg of the journey were the times spent in the quieter places.
We crossed back in from Siem Reap, Cambodia and headed for Bangkok to catch up with Seth, a friend from Düsseldorf and a fellow Aussie. The border crossing was smooth as butter, as was the ride to Bangkok's outer suburbs. We then hit traffic and our 6 hour journey turned into 10. We spent a couple of nights with Seth and his girlfriend Deborah, venturing into the city to watch the rugby world cup final and exploring Chatichak market the next day.
We then escaped the hustle and bustle and spent a couple of days in Hua Hin, a popular beach resort for Bangkok residents. We returned from the beach one afternoon wondering what all the black stains on our feet were. A quick google search revealed that there'd been an oil spill a few days earlier, so we spent a fun-filled hour cleaning that up with chain cleaner.
We then progressed down the Thai gulf staying in a couple of really small, quiet villages on the beach, before crossing the peninsula to the west coast and catching the ferry over to Ko Lanta. We spent three nights in a bamboo bungalow on the beach, taking day trips around the island to isolated beaches and waterfalls.
Sick of the tourist beat, we picked a point a few k's south down the coast and off the main road and hoped for the best. We were rewarded. I'd assumed that the most beautiful parts of Thailand had been developed to attract the tourist dollar, but it seems that there are still a huge amount of places that haven't succumbed to the 7eleven and vodka bucket onslaught, and they are of equal or greater natural beauty than those in the brochures. We spent two nights on a secluded beach with only one small local kitchen to eat from. The beach was completely empty the entire time we were there. We swam around a rocky headland to find another amazing beach, which could only be reached by water with shear cliffs enclosing it.
Having been to Thailand a few years back, we new what to expect in the popular tourist hotspots. Once again, our favourite parts of this leg of the journey were the times spent in the quieter places.
Düsseldorf catch up
Loving the street food again...
Beach all to ourselves
One of the many amazing sunsets - no filter!
