Thailand has long been a bucket list destination of many people, myself included. & rightfully so!

My new Canadian friend Jade and I left beautiful Laos and embarked on a new journey-starting in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Holy temples!

The temples in Chiang Mai are absolutely beautiful, and there are shrines like this everywhere you go. Many locals (among others) come here periodically to worship/pray throughout the day.

*Tip from Lyss: Make sure your shoulders and knees are covered, it will make your life a lot easier. And don’t forget to always…..

!!!!!!

Of course we had to visit the ele’s while we were there :’) nobody really came on our “tour,” so we got them pretty much all to ourselves!

*Tip from Lyss:  If you ever find yourself in Asia and eager to hang with the elephants like I was, do your research! Try finding an organization like VESA which allows you to volunteer on an elephant conservation center in rural Laos. They have a big enough island so the ele’s can roam free, and daily measures are taken to ensure they have the same challenges finding food, walking in different parts of the island, etc. as they would living in the wild. This keeps their minds engaged and stimulated. Also: only the Mahout should ride the elephants 🙂

OF COURSE we had to wild out in Bangkok, get sketchy tattoos and lose all our dignity..

Jk  😉

I don’t have many pictures from Bangkok because it was pouring rain the majority of the time and I was hella sunburnt. But it was exactly as I thought it would be- loud, crazy, and full of people. The street food was great and super cheap. You could get these ‘lemonade-in-a-bag’ treats for less than 50 cents (they were my fav).

After Bangkok we headed to Koh Phangan…

This is where the infamous Full Moon Party takes place-which was honestly probably the least memorable event for me out of our stay in Koh Phangan…and no, not because I drank too much 😉 but because there is so much more to the island! The nights leading up to the main event are much more mellow on the beach, which also means less people and less broken glass/trash. We watched partiers dance the night away at Drop In Club and then caught the sunrise. Amazing!

Renting a motorbike for the daytime was one of the best decisions for sure. It was the most effective way to do/see what I wanted on the island without having to pay a tuk-tuk every time I wanted to check something out on my own! Plus-it is prettyyyyy fun 🙂

Jade and I found a little waterfall that was beautiful and I ended up showing it to some new friends the next day as well who really enjoyed it! There’s one main road that takes you over some steep hills and windy turns but it leads to the waterfall and then when you reach the other end of the island there’s a beautiful beach that has hardly any people. So worth the $8 it cost to rent this bad boy lol

*Tip from Lyss: If you rent a motorbike in Thailand do not be an idiot. Watch out for white sand, it’s slippery.  Make sure your renter is reliable and isn’t going to hold your passport hostage and charge you 5,000 baht for a small scratch that you probably didn’t even cause. And wear your helmet! I can’t tell you how many people I saw on the island with ace bandages all over their bodies because they crashed….no thanks

Oh and of course Jade & I attended the Full Moon Party. But after an hour or two of dancing (and eventually losing each other in the crowd), I sat back on the beach with a new friend from South Africa. We sat and watched people from all over the world come together. We had long life talks and drank lots of Chang, making the most of our last days in Koh Phangan.

Next stop was Koh Tao…..

I want to say it was my favorite but they are all incredible so it’s hard to pick. This island is incredibly well-known for scuba diving, but for me it was all about relaxing, swimming, tanning, eating amazing Thai food, and exploring. I did end up hurting my leg/foot here so some of this was limited but I made it work lol

Tip from Lyss: If you want to scuba dive, I talked to SO many people who had a great time doing it and 10/10 recommended. A lot of the schools are right near where the party bars and pub crawl are as well, so look into it! I was looking for more relaxation, and I found it- in the very south of the island near Freedom Beach. There were hardly any people, I got to hangout with the locals, learn more about their culture, and meet fantastic people of all ages who truly broadened my views about life and what it means to do something you are passionate about and love.

Hey-the sunsets weren’t bad either 😉

And of course, the best part: Drinking all the Changs!!!! Thai beer is delish!

I have tons more I could say about Thailand, but I’ll save it for another time! Thanks for coming!

 

Disclosure: My tips are obviously just from what I experienced my first time in Thailand and what I’m glad I learned while being there. Hope you enjoyed and can one day implement some of them!!

COMING SOON: The Philippines!