Soloing in Thailand

This week, Vietnam and several other countries, including China, celebrated the Lunar New Year--Tet, as we call it in Vietnam. Last year, I spent Tet in Vietnam with my roommate D and J, a school friend of D's who was traveling in the region. We visited Danang and Hoi An in central Vietnam before spending the last few days in Hanoi. This year, I decided to take advantage of the week off and explore outside of Vietnam. Although I'd been to Thailand for a brief visit last July, it was to run a half marathon and I didn't have time to see much of Bangkok or visit with a former colleague from DC, K, who now lives and works in Bangkok. I stayed with K and her partner for three days at their fabulous apartment in Bangkok, conveniently close to a Starbucks, Belgian beer house, and public transportation to fabulous shopping. After indulging in a lot of Western comforts, including all of the above mentioned goodies, I headed to a tiny island on the eastern coast of Thailand near the border with Cambodia--Ko Mak. For the next three days, I enjoyed nothing but rest and relaxation. The island was beautiful and still mostly calm and quiet. The roads looked like big sidewalks that could barely accommodate 1 car and 1 motorbike at the same time.

I have never really taken a vacation by myself before. I ventured out on my own for a day in Bangkok last time, a weekend in South Africa a few years ago, but I've never spent a whole vacation by myself. In Bangkok, my days were up to me. I had dinner with K and N at night, but I spent the days wandering around Bangkok, shopping, visiting the largest market in SE Asia, and taking in the scenery. Once I left Bangkok, I was completely on my own. It was a little strange at times, but it was a great opportunity to simply relax, read a few books, and enjoy thinking about the coming year. There were a couple of challenges that I hadn't anticipated though. One in particular. For those of you who watch 30 Rock, you'll understand when I say I had a "choking on dinner in my apartment" moment. I was preparing to head to the beach for the day by slathering on sunblock (yes, mom, I wore sunblock every day). I was about to head out when I realized that although I had put sunblock on every possible inch of my body I could, there was one big spot that I didn't think about because I couldn't reach it--my back. Now, how in the world was I supposed to soak up the sun without having any sunscreen on my back? The rest of the travelers were young families and couples. I couldn't see myself walking up to a family on the beach and asking some young dad to help me with my sunscreen. Not exactly the way to make friends when you're traveling alone. I stretched and contorted as much as possible, but couldn't figure out a way to do it alone. In the end, I arrived back in Hanoi with a great front-side tan. :-)

I hope you enjoy some of the pictures from my trip, including some of the fabulous Western indulgences I partook in.

A restaurant in Bangkok where everything was recycled.
They let customers write on the white walls. These Thai
teens were enjoying the opportunity to express themselves.

Dragon roll to celebrate the new Year of the Dragon.

Scene from Bangkok. Mix of cars and motorbikes,
but mostly cars--unlike in Vietnam.

A jelly filled Krispy Kreme donut. OMG.

Hash browns for breakfast before
my flight to the beach.

My ride to the beach. A twin propeller plane.

The road in Ko Mak. Nothing
around but greenery.

The hotel had swings set up along the beach. 

View from the pool. Beautiful
sky and coconut trees.

The water was clear and so blue. Pictures don't do it justice.

Sunset over Ko Mak. The pinks were gorgeous.
Again, I couldn't capture the colors in the picture.

Trat Airport, where you fly into before traveling to
Ko Mak by boat. You took a trolley to the plane.
It felt a little like Disney World!