Taking the Big Break

It is hard to believe we are already past our four month mark of our journey.

As for the past month or so, it has been a very different type of travel than where we started.  We started the trip with a busy five weeks in Japan and jumped in to an additional three months touring SE Asia.  While we have tried not to push the agenda too hard, we have spent most days seeing sights, talking to people, and learning and exploring the places we went.  Knowing that days of lugging our stuff on our packs and traveling from place to place would be tiring to all of us, we have tried to follow at least a four or five day rule for accommodations to avoid travel exhaustion.  For the most part, we have been able to stick to that.  But, we were still up and out most days, visiting temples, sightseeing, eating out, learning and exploring.

Legs? What legs?

For the month of December, however, we’d planned for down time.  Not knowing which beautiful tropical island in the south of Thailand would most suit our tastes, we opted to explore lots of them.  We have hit Koh Samui and Koh Phangan on Thailand’s east coast, and Koh Lanta and Koh Phuket on the Andaman Sea (west coast.)

Snorkeling Fun, Koh Phangan

Snorkeling on Koh Phangan

Laid back Salad Beach on Koh Phangan

Boy, were they so very different from each other.  Especially the last two.  Traveling from laid back Koh Lanta to bustling Koh Phuket was like being picked up from small town America and dropped on to Bourbon Street, New Orleans.  Yikes!  Wasn’t expecting that!   While we certainly made the best of our week there (the week at the hotel was already paid for), I guarantee I wouldn’t have chosen to take my family there if I’d know more about what to expect.  Phuket was a wild party town with every kind of … ahem… show you could imagine right along the main strip.

But, at the end of the four weeks, I don’t feel like any of us grew or learned much during this time.  We tried hard to make the most of it, and I must admit that we enjoyed many relaxing days at the beach.  I guess it might be considered a vacation from traveling.  We relaxed and enjoyed ourselves.

Drinks on the beach in Koh Samui

In upscale Koh Samui, we saw lots of wealthy short term travelers.  On Koh Phangan, we met backpackers and longer term travelers and created a good report with many of the Burmese hotel staff workers at our hotel.

After we hit the Khao Sok Rain Forest, Koh Lanta was laid back and delightful.   It was also special because it was the place we met up with the grandparents for what was by far the most un-commercial Christmas I’ve ever experienced.  The season sure was different in the 95% Buddhist nation of Thailand.  I didn’t see or hear any ads the whole season.  Instead, our beautiful hotel on the beach honored the day with free fruit smoothies all day, a huge banquet dinner right on the sand, and a Christmas toast.  We spent Christmas day with our feet in the sand, drinking fruit smoothies and simply enjoying each other.  Santa did find us but, knowing that we couldn’t possibly carry more in our packs, gave the boys money for Legoland Malaysia which they are super excited about.  Perfect!

Christmas on Koh Lanta

Christmas dinner with our toes in the sand. Not bad.

After Koh Lanta, was Phuket.  I can see why people say it is quite the party on New Year’s Eve.  It certainly wasn’t like anything I’ve experienced before.  While it was wild and certainly not our style, we did enjoy ourselves.  Instead of hanging out in one of the endless bars in town, we spent a good part of the evening watching people send off paper lanterns or fireworks on the beach.  In most of Thailand, big fireworks can be purchased by anyone.  The fireworks that people were lighting off were the huge blow-200-feet-in-the-air type which, where I am from, would be restricted to firefighters and given a wide berth.  (Needless to say, we left the beach before all the folks who’d spent the whole evening at the endless bars headed down to the beach at midnight to light their fireworks.)

New Year’s Eve on the beach, Phuket

Patong Beach – party street of Phuket Is.

The kids got into the New Year’s Party! 🙂

Waterfall hike, Koh Phangan

I am probably not being fair though.  We have seen countless temples, explored the oldest rain forest in the world, visited gibbons in their natural habitat and learned about their plight, seen how cashews grow and rubber is harvested, hiked to waterfalls and local villages, studied bugs in the rainforest, kayaked around islands, and admired Buddhist statues.  Thailand is amazingly beautiful, the people are lovely, and the traveling was so much fun.  After more than six weeks, I am sorry to see it end.  Next time I think I’d plan my itinerary a little differently and balance the beach days a bit more with the beauty and cultural of Thailand.  I’m afraid that I am leaving Thailand feeling like I didn’t quite get enough.

Guess I’ll have to come back…