Thailand and the One Thousand Buddhas


Without a doubt Thailand is one of the most famous and vibrant countries in South East Asia that no backpacker can skip. Within the South East Asia region, it's one of the safest and most developed countries; with good roads although not necessarily good drivers, with a decent connection within the country, a railway network that connects the main cities and most of the country. Last summer, I was lucy enough to explore a good portion of the country, so I'll divide this post according to the regions I went to and the recommendations I consider appropiate.

BANGKOK

The capital of Thailand, and unnavoidably the fist stop for most South East Asia trips is a beautiful and perfect disaster. It's a massive city, with more population than countries like New Zealand and the unspoken rule for locals to try to rip off tourists. Once you get off the plane, your first duty is to get to your hostel, which hopefully will be near the KaoSan road, for reasons I'll explain later. Taxis are not too expensive, for about 300k THB you should be able to get anywhere, some drivers might try to charge you more, but you might even be able to do cheaper than that. UBER is one of the best options are the prices are standarized, and there's no chance they'll rip you off. If you're traveling alone, you can always look for other tourists to share a taxi, the same way I did. Once you get to the city, which will probably take about an hour, you can start exploring. There's so many temples and so many things to do around the city that it can easily keep you busy for 4 to 7 days, specially considering the hangover you'll get if you're staying near Kaosan road, where cheap drinking is mandatory and the hangover are as unavoiable as mosquitoe bites.

There really isn't much about Bangkok I can tell you that you guide won't tell you; tuk-tuks are bound to try to charge you more than what they'd really charge a local, so always demand a taxi with a taximeter or use Uber, if you wish to go to the Imperial Palace, I recommend you to go very early, and hopefully wear pants and a t-shirt as you won't be allowed in with shorts and tank tops, and rentals won't be guaranteed. And simply take your time to enjoy the million and one buddhas you'll see in all the temples, and walk the streets of the city to get to know the real bangkok, from the small street markets, to the delicious street food. Most temples charge you entry fees, and my favourites were Wat Poh and Wat Arun, and clearly the biigest reclining buddha.

One destination from Bangkok that's easily overlook is Ayattuya, the former capital of Thailand. It's about 1.5 hours train ride from Bangkok (for about 35k THB the cheapest train ride) and it's a beautiful old town with the ruins of what was once the home for Thai dystany up until the 19th century. It's a very historic and beautiful town worth visiting on a day trip, get a scooter and explore all its got to offer.

Fun fact: I was there the first week of February, a couple of months after the death of the former King of Thailand and the city and country were still in mourning, if you walked in the morning towards the imperial palace you could easily see tents provided by the government giving free breakfasts to locals and anyone who'd want to give their respect to the deseased royal, the mouring is said to last for a whole year and with fruits and rice, you can also get free water and a few medical supplies.



PHUKET

One of the most touristy attractions in Thailand is Phuket with Patong being the center of the action. I will be quite honest, Patong, is too crowded. The amount of Russian tourists make the beach too crowded to enjoy and to be honest they're not the cleanest visitors. The night area is fun, it's got a lot of local stores, massage parlors and heaps of markets to bargain. One of the best things you can do in a regular day in Phuket is to rent a bike or scooter, if you've never been in one, don't worry, you'll fall the first time no matter what, and once you've got a hold of it, explore the city. Go to the big buddha and the few temples around the city, watch the sunset in one of the beaches at the south of the island and get lost on the way back, just like I did. And no matter what you do, take tours to the other islands like Koh Phi Phi, that are the true jewels of the region.


KOH SAMUI - KOH PHANGHAN

If you're overage and going to Thailand, I'm 99% sure you're going to go to the infamous Full-Moon party which is basically an ode to cheap drinking at the beach, don't worry, I'm not complaining. First of all, my first recommendation is to find a hostel near to where the party is held, hence, the south side of the island, it can become quite hard to get back to the hostels if you're too far, specially because chances are that you're gonna become stranded from your crew. Be careful because it's so crowded and with so many drunk people, a lot of tourists lose their posessions, so simply put your money and cellphone in your underwear. 

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