They say that the first one is always special. First college, first bike, first girlfriend, first kiss, first salary, all of them. This was my first trip abroad and needless to say it was special. Since long I had been dreaming and planning about this day. Finally, I get a chance to step outside to Thailand.
7-16th Dec 2012
I got hold of one of my uncle and did all the booking for Thailand 2-3 months before my journey. I was accompanied by one of my old batchmates from IIT Bombay. I was pretty clear that I just don’t want to visit 1-2 places and come back but cover as much as possible in those 9-10 days. So, we booked for Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket and Krabi.
I boarded the late night flight of Thai Airways and reached Bangkok early morning. From there I had to catch a domestic flight to Phuket along with my friend who was supposed to come from Bangalore. I waited in the lobby for 2 hours and then it was time to catch the domestic flight but there was no sign of my friend. I tried to enquire about his arrival but didn’t get any response. So, I decided to check in and suddenly he arrived. His flight was delayed but thankfully he could make it on time and we headed towards Phuket.
I was excited about the whole trip and couldn’t resist myself thinking about the beaches and oceans 
and clubs and lots more. We checked in at Devana Patong resort near Patong beach (most developed beach in Phuket). Then we had some quick lunch and our cab arrived to pick us up for a half day city tour. I was amazed to see the cleanliness of the city and the discipline with which people drive cars. Interestingly there are only 3-4 brands of Japanese cars which you would find on the roads mostly multi-utility vehicles. We drove down to Karon, Kata and Nai Hom beach which are in the shape of OM and spent some time at a peak nearby from where you get a good aerial view of these three beaches. It was a breathtaking view and the water was just crystal clear blue which kissed the white sand. Form there we moved to promthep cape 
which is like a very small cliff emerging out of the ocean which can be seen from a nearby viewpoint. Then we came back to our rooms, freshened up and went for a walk on the Patong beach. The next day we went to Phi Phi islands by a ferry. It is one of the most beautiful islands in and around Thailand. On our way to Phi Phi, we came across Maya Bay (where THE BEACH starring Leonardo Dicaprio was shot in 2000 and became a tourist attraction since then). A lot of them tried snorkeling near Maya Bay and so did my friend but I decided to stay back as I didn’t have the confidence to get down without a guide. We reached Phi Phi by around 12.30-1 pm and had our lunch. The waveless beaches surrounded by mountains were so tempting that I couldn’t resist but take a bath and soak under the sun. It was around 4 pm and we headed back to the ferry which dropped us back in Phuket. I spent some time in the Jacuzzi back at the hotel before I took a sound sleep. The best part was the amazing pancakes we had from a lady selling varieties of them near our hotel
The next day, we headed towards Krabi which is a 3 hour drive from Phuket. We checked in at Aonang Paradise hotel early morning and spent an 
entire day on the Aonang beach in Krabi. I would say that if you happen to travel to Thailand, you just cannot afford to miss Krabi. The secluded beaches, the exotic islands, the exquisite locales are a treat. Most people avoid visiting Krabi as it comes out to be slightly expensive but I believe it would be a crime to have visited Thailand and not visit Krabi. So the first day was peaceful as we lazed on the beach. Later we tried swimming and trying our hands on floating in the sea. We thought of taking a Kayak but it was pretty late and the people over there suggested not to start late as it might get dark quickly. The evenings are colorful in Thailand as you would see the streets lightened up, bustling with tourists and stalls selling local cuisines. Some pubs play live music while others just force people to try their food by offering discounts. You would normally get a lot of food options like Indian, Chinese, European and of 
course Thai. The next day, we had booked for a trip to 4 islands- Phra Nang, Poda, Chicken and Sunshine by a speed boat. And honestly I was spellbound to see these islands. It’s heaven. Finally I got a chance to do snorkeling at the Chicken island and being a non-swimmer I could rely only on my instincts and get into the deep blue sea because I didn’t want to miss the experience. At first it is difficult to get used to it cos you have to breathe through your mouth but in 5-10 mins you become stable and breathe properly. The first time I dipped my head into the water I was dumbstruck to see those beautiful fishes and corals under water. I held a loaf of bread in one hand and a shoal of fish rushed towards me and finished the loaf in no time. I couldn’t believe the proximity with which I could see them. The water was also not very deep and I could see many corals and colorful rocks on the sea bed. Then we had lunch at the Poda Island and spent some more time there trying to swim and did some more snorkeling at the Poda Island. Then we returned back to Aonang beach and it started raining in the evening. Thailand weather is so unpredictable that it would be hot and humid sometime and would suddenly start raining. Nevertheless, it was great fun hopping islands at Krabi
Our next destination was Pattaya and we had to take the road back to Phuket, then flight to Bangkok and then again 2 hours road trip to 
Pattaya. It was a long journey and unfortunately my friend lost his cell phone in the cab which dropped us at Pattaya. We checked in at Citin Hotel and tried contacting the cab driver but he had already left for Bangkok and we got to know that we would get the phone back after 2 days when he would come to pick us up. Anyways, we freshened up and took some rest as we had to catch up the famous Alcazar show in the evening. It is one of the most famous cabaret show in Thailand and people from all generations and countries flock to see this evening show. Then we had some diner in a restaurant on the beach and slept off at our hotel rooms. The next day we had to cover Coral island and I was excited about the under water walking. We took the ferry and reached coral island. From there we went to a jetty where professional scuba divers will take you under water and let you walk on the sea bed with an oxygen mask for breathing. We could touch some of the corals, feed fish and click pictures under water. We could also see the corals through a glass bottomed boat which took us back from the jetty towards coral island. The coral island would come across as a home to Indians as you would see majority of the tourists from India and even the Thai guides were fluent in Hindi. We then reached back at Pattaya and had some good Indian lunch buffet in a restaurant near the beach. Post lunch we visited the Noong Nooch village where we could enjoy some local Thai art and culture and some games played by trained elephants. We came back to the beach and took a walk around the famous Walking Street and had some lip smacking diner before we retired to bed.
It was time for our last destination – Bangkok. Thankfully my friend got back his cellphone as the same guy came to pick us up from Pattaya. We checked in at Citin Pratunam hotel which was located in one of the clumsy lanes of Bangkok behind Indra Square. Soon, our cab came to pick us up for a half day city tour to see Wat Trimit, Wat Pho and Gems gallery. Wat trimit is a statue of Buddha built from 5.5 tonnes of pure gold and Wat Pho is a reclining statue of Buddha which is about 50 meters long and 12 meters high. The statues are simply magnificent and it’s actually difficult to capture the entire Wat Pho statue in one single frame. The gem’s gallery is nothing much to talk about but loads of highly priced stones way beyond my budget 😛
The second day was a full day trip to Marine park and Safari world. They reserve some of the world’s most beautiful birds and animals like polar beer, seal, walrus, dolphins. There are several shows by orangutans, seals, elephants and many more. An Indian buffet lunch was also arranged post which a mini bus took us through the safari where zebras, giraffes, ostriches, deer and many more animals freely moved around. We could see them at very close proximity. There was also a wild safari where tigers, bears and many more wild animals basked under the sun. In the evening we hopped on a cruise on the Chao Phraya river. It was a 2 hour long cruise with dinner buffet and live performance by a Thai lady singing Hindi songs. The spirit went up as time passed and the crowd enjoyed the performance and danced to her tunes. The last day was totally free and we had to chose between Floating market and Chatuchak market for shopping. We decided to take the metro and go down south towards Chatuchak market which is a weekend market. It is a crazy market where we shopped and bargained crazily for our friends and relatives. The thing is, you just cant resist shopping there considering the great deal that you get. Then we had a quick lunch at McDonald’s and boarded our flights back to India
The experience was unforgettable. I don’t have words to describe the beauty of Thailand. All I can say is that it is better experienced than read about.
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