Thailand (Day 42-51)

Day 42 Chiang MaiThe breakfast selection at our hotel was not particularly rich, but it was completely sufficient. After that, we went into the city because I wanted to make an appointment there for the next day, as a small piece of my tooth had broken off. Then we wandered through the city and went into various shops. After enjoying a delicious iced coffee, we returned to the hotel. We spent the rest of the day by the pool. In the evening, of course, we went back to the night market.

Day 43 Chiang Mai

In the morning, we rode a rented scooter to the Coconut Market, which is only open on weekends. The market was really nice, with various food and clothing stalls. In the middle of the market were small water ditches, and many palms were next to them. Since we weren’t hungry yet, we first went to a shopping mall. There, we explored a bit and then crossed to the other side of the street to a local market. After having a coffee, we headed back to the Coconut Market. Here, we got something to eat and then returned to the hotel. After a little break in and by the pool, we had to leave for my dentist appointment. While I was at the dentist, Jan went to the barber. The dentist was really good and only cost me €42. What was also interesting here is that you generally had to take off your shoes everywhere. I was given slippers to wear. After that, I walked back to the hotel, and shortly after, Jan arrived as well. In the evening, we went to the Saturday Night Market. It was really huge, and some streets were even closed for it. Afterwards, we returned to the hotel, and I managed to convince Jan that we should watch the movie 'The Hobbit' together.

Day 44 Chiang Mai

On this day, we went straight to a morning market in Chiang Mai. At the market, there were many small artists, and you could actually do workshops everywhere. Whether pottery or making your own drinks, almost everything was available. Since we were there so early, the market wasn’t crowded yet. From there, we continued to another market, where we again found many clothing and food stalls as usual. There was also a sort of supermarket where there were different stalls where you could try on clothes. I, of course, had to try everything, and Jan was so enthusiastic about the mushroom chips that he spontaneously bought them. Later, when we were just about to leave after the meal, we were approached by two young women who asked if we could give them an interview. I said yes, and Jan quickly hid behind the camera. The two women were from a hotel and asked me some questions about the city. Afterwards, we returned to the hotel and relaxed again by the pool. Later, we had to do our laundry and went out for a coffee. In the evening, we, of course, went back to the night market as usual.

Day 45 Journey to Phuket

Today, I started the day with jogging for the first time on our trip after breakfast. Jan refueled the scooter and returned it to the rental place during that time. Afterward, we packed our things and relaxed until 12:00 in our hotel room. Then, we went a few meters from the hotel for lunch, and afterwards we took a taxi to the airport. Fortunately, we could immediately check in our luggage. After going through security, I lay down for a bit. However, we learned on the way to the airport that our flight was delayed by 40 minutes. But when it was 10 minutes before departure and boarding still hadn’t started, I became a bit skeptical whether it would still happen. Shortly after, we received the news that the flight would be delayed even more. This led to a total delay of two hours. We then looked for something to eat for dinner, although I found only instant noodles. When boarding finally began, everyone got a burger from McDonald's, and as a vegan, I got instant noodles again! Fortunately, the flight went by quickly, and we landed in Phuket around 8:00 PM. Since our accommodation was about an hour away, we decided to take the bus. It wasn’t hard to find the right bus, as we were approached directly at the exit and taken to the bus. We arrived at our accommodation shortly before 10:00 PM.

Day 46 Phuket

Since Phuket is somewhat more expensive than northern Thailand, we decided on breakfast at 7/11. Before that, however, we wanted to rent a scooter. On the way to the scooter rental, I spotted a fruit vendor and got four bananas for just 14 cents. Our first destination with the scooter was Old Phuket Town. We just wandered a bit through the streets and shops. The old town is known for its colorful old houses, which look really beautiful. After having a smoothie, we headed to Monkey Hill. We initially thought we could drive up the hill, which unfortunately wasn’t possible. Hence, we had to walk 2 km uphill. It was quite exhausting, and by the end, we were completely soaked in sweat. But it was definitely worth it. On the way up, we saw groups of monkeys repeatedly. One monkey also first stole Jan's water bottle from his bag. He opened the bottle with his teeth and drank the water. Upon reaching the top, we then saw many baby monkeys, and the view was truly stunning. However, the monkeys weren’t particularly interested in us unless we had food or drinks with us. In general, it was very interesting to see the monkeys so close and observe their behavior. After that, we returned to our accommodation and, of course, decided to end the day at the night market.

Day 47 Phuket

We had actually planned a beach day, but it was pretty much ruined by the heavy rain in the morning. We quickly walked to 7/11 to get breakfast. We spent the rest of the morning in our room. At noon, we rode the scooter to a gym. In the evening, luckily, it no longer rained, and we went to a night market 45 minutes away. The market was very large, but unfortunately, there were not many vegan options for me. That’s why I ate Pad Thai again.

Day 48 Phuket

We were lucky that it didn’t rain this time, and we were able to do our beach tour. After a good breakfast at 7/11, we headed to the first beach which was about an hour away. The beach was located right next to the airport, and the airplanes flew low over us. This was spectacular, and everyone at the beach filmed it. However, generally, that part of the beach was quite crowded and littered. If you walked a little further to the left or right, the whole picture changed. Since we wanted to go to more beaches, we continued on. On the way to Banana Beach, we briefly stopped at a small restaurant on the roadside and had Pad Thai. At Banana Beach, we had to pay 40 Baht for parking and were then allowed onto the beach. It was relatively small but very beautiful. The water was light blue, and you could even see some fish. After a quick cool-down, we laid back down on the beach. Afterward, we had another hour to drive to Freedom Beach. We drove along the coast and saw crows and construction projects everywhere. Many new hotels and facilities are being constructed here. Upon arriving at the beach parking lot, we first had to walk 500 meters downhill through the woods. When we reached the bottom, Freedom Beach was waiting for us. We were lucky to see a beautiful sunset here with relatively few people. Unfortunately, we also had to walk back up the whole way. That was quite exhausting, but the beautiful view made it worth it. From there, we naturally went to a night market.

Day 49 Journey to Ko Phi Phi

After returning our scooter, we went back to 7/11 for breakfast. We walked to the nearest bus stop and took a bus to the harbor, although you couldn't really compare it to a bus like the ones at home. The vehicle was more like a transporter with benches in the cargo area. However, it was much cheaper than a taxi. We had to change once, and in the second bus, we were traveling only with Thai workers. Once we arrived at the port, we had to wait an hour for the ferry. The ferry took about two hours to Ko Phi Phi Island. There, we had to pay an entrance fee for the island. The island was really overcrowded with tourists. There were hardly any cars or scooters, as there were no proper roads. If you get injured there, you are picked up by a golf cart with a bed. Several people were already standing at the harbor with a kind of cart to carry the bags and suitcases. Since we hadn’t informed our hotel in advance, we had to carry our backpack ourselves. After lunch, we continued on our way to the accommodation. However, we took a wrong turn and climbed many stairs with our heavy backpack. When I realized we were lost, I could only laugh about it. So we had to go back down all the stairs and then to our accommodation. There, we had to climb what felt like 1000 more steps, as our room was at the very top. Once we arrived at the top, I was drenched in sweat and had to shower first. However, our view was really beautiful, as we could even see the sea. After a longer break, we went back to the “town” in the evening to get something to eat. Here, you had to search a bit to find the budget places.

Day 50 Ko Phi Phi

In the morning, we were woken up by loud rain and thunder. We wanted to do an 8-hour boat tour today but then decided against it and booked it for the next day instead. So we went for breakfast, and a little after 10, the rain stopped, and the sun came out. In the end, we might have been able to do the tour after all. We then walked to a viewpoint, which again required going up what felt like 1000 steps, but this time without a backpack! The view was again breathtaking. We could see the beach and the sea from both sides. Afterward, we returned briefly to the accommodation to change into swimwear. At the beach, we rented a kayak for two hours after some bargaining. We paddled a bit through the bay and even stopped briefly at a mini beach, which unfortunately was quite littered. Afterwards, we paddled some more over the sea, both went for a quick swim, and observed small fish. Next, we laid back down on the beach for a bit. In the evening, we went back into town for dinner, and we discovered a fire show on the beach. We, of course, watched it, and it was really cool. We sat in the front row and could see everything perfectly. The men performed various tricks and later even brought spectators up on stage.

Day 51 Ko Phi Phi

We were picked up at our accommodation at shortly before 10:00 AM and taken to the harbor. Once there, we had to wait until around 10:30 for our boat. We rode on a typical small wooden boat with a total of 6 people. Our first stop was at a small rock in the sea, Shark Point. Here, we were able to snorkel for 20 minutes. You could see many different fish among the corals, and the water was crystal clear. Personally, I found the colorful fish, which looked like rainbow fish, to be the most beautiful. After that, we went on to Bamboo Island. Here, we had to pay another 400 Baht since it is a national park. We had a total of one hour to explore the island. The beach was almost white, and the water was beautiful again. Unfortunately, the island was crowded with tourists. After that, we had lunch on the boat and returned to the harbor to pick up 6 more people. Our next stop was again for snorkeling, where you could see many different fish again. We made several stops and also passed a small ‘Viking’ cave. Additionally, we made another stop to swim in a small bay. Our second to last stop was at Maya Beach. However, swimming was not allowed there, as baby sharks were present, which would be disturbed otherwise. The beach was beautiful, with blue water and white sand. After that, we returned by boat and saw a wonderful sunset. In the end, the whole sky turned various shades of purple and pink. After that, we went to eat something in the town.