ขอบคุณ, thailand

As I fly over Asia, a place I never thought I would see, I truly understand the meaning of “the sky's the limit.” This plane can take me anywhere, I know that now more than ever. It may take 3 flights, a 28 hour sleepless day, copious amount of tv, movies and the magic of a delta airlines diet coke to keep you going, but you get there. You get there and it makes it all infinitely worth it. 

No matter how hard my catholic high school may have tried, I could never really grasp the concept of Buddhism.

Buddhists believe that human life is one of suffering, and that meditation, spiritual and physical labor, and good behavior are the ways to achieve enlightenment, or nirvana. But it is so much more than that. It isn’t a religion as much as it is a way of life. 

It didn’t take one day in Bangkok for me to see this with my eyes, to feel it in my heart. After hours exploring the Grand Palace that made us feel like we were walking on a different dimension, we stepped outside the gates and back into the unforgiving heat. Although super cute and stylish, the cargo pants and elephant t-shirts they give you to cover-up were a new form of torture. As we plopped down on the first shaded bench we could find to strip, we noticed a man having too much fun with our stupidity. 

Waiting for some kind of joke, he was instead one of the friendly individuals I have ever met. The only word I can think to describe him is “enlightening.” Taking matters into his own hands, he personally walked us to a pier to go on a longboat ride around the canals of Bangkok that he promised we would love. 

Now, let's get one thing clear, anywhere else in the world, if a small man who spoke about 57 words of English tried leading me down an empty alley to a hut on a river, I would’ve ran as fast as my feet could take me. But that wasn’t him, that’s not Thailand. 

This boat ride turned out to be one of the most eye opening and incredible parts of the trip. In something so simple, I was utterly amazed. Everywhere you looked, there were children running outside under clotheslines filled with colorful shirts, mom’s making dinner and cutting fresh fruit, dads watching the boats float by with their Singha beers and not a single one wearing a shirt. But what stuck with me was their smiles. 

You never know how truly spoiled you are until you see how people can have the absolute minimum, yet the most. No matter who we passed or what they were doing, every single person stopped to watch us float by their houses and give us the warmest smiles and strongest waves I have ever known. These people could not have been more excited for us to be in their backyard. 

I kept waiting and waiting to encounter someone even the slightest bit rude. The only one I found was the woman working lost and found at the Phuket Airport who had to deal with my annoying, 20 year old, helpless self trying to find her purse that SHE left on the plane. And that is just not her fault, so she doesn’t count. 

From boat drivers, waiters, Tuk tuk owners, fruit cutting geniuses, and cooks as far as the eye can see, I don’t know why people call Disney World the happiest place on Earth. I guess they just haven’t been to Thailand. 

Every aspect of this country is intricately made with love. The spicy Tom Yum soup made from small pots on the side of the street. The perfect old ladies who gave us life changing massages for $20. The iced coffees with sweetened condensed milk on every corner that I will have to learn to perfect because I may not be able to drink iced coffee any other way. The tradition of a simple bow and ขอบคุณ (thank you in Thai) that I may just have to bring home with me.

The beauty of the landscape may make you come, but it is the people that will make you want to never leave. 

From Bangkok, to Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai, to the islands of Phuket, I would talk about these 16 days of bliss forever, and I just might. All so different, all so wonderful. 

Bangkok- one night in bangkok definitely does make the hard man humble. If you don’t get that joke, please culture yourself. 

Throwing ourselves into the bustling streets of utter chaos, we truly entered into the fire. Seeing century old temples that have details down to the smallest speck of gold was something I will never get over. As we hopped from one to the next, our awe only seemed to grow and grow. 

Walking around what the locals call JJ market, we ate our way through the streets. Mango sticky rice, thai basil egg fried rice, coconut ice creams and, of course, iced coffees had no chance on us. 

From flower markets with marigolds as far as the eye could see, to Chinatown that felt like Times Square with an IV of espresso and street dumplings, the goods just kept getting better. 

We spent New Year’s Eve at a Michelin starred restaurant on the river overlooking Wat Arun and drank caipirinhas as fireworks sparkled in the sky. 

To ring in 2024, we took an hour car ride to a salt farm, to hop on a train that ran through a small local market on the western outskirts of Bangkok, to drive another hour to sit on a canoe through a floating market with locals begging me to hold a snake, to drive another two hours back. Now, let’s just say that car sickness goes with this like oil and water. But hey, I survived, and it was an adventure.  

We watched Muay Thai fighting in the first ever muay thai boxing arena that included free flowing beer and freshly popped popcorn. It was a man’s paradise to say the least. 

From there, it was off northbound. 

Chiang Mai- one of the most simply beautiful places I have ever been. The old city is wrapped around an ancient wall that protected it from war, but I kind of wish it would have stayed like that forever. This little slice of heaven was filled with charming streets, views of the foothills of the Himalayan mountains, and khao soi on every corner. 

On our first morning there, we took it upon ourselves to hike the monks trail. A 2.5 mile uphill stretch to the top of one of the nearby peaks carved the way by an elephant carrying ancient ruins and gold, this wasn’t for the faint of heart. My mom? Oh she was pissed. But two hours, a 3,000 feet elevation gain, and plenty of sweat later, we reached the temple, and it was beautiful. 

That night though, it took the cake. Visiting the elephant sanctuary outside of Chiang Mai was a once in a lifetime experience. When will I ever be able to say again that I swam in a pond and bathed elephants with 3 French men, a man from Romania and his Italian girlfriend, a couple from Wales, and well, myself (a good ole Kentucky girl)123444444! 

These truly are the most remarkable animals. Their wit and intelligence outweighs their cuteness, which I didn’t think was possible. They knew how to take a straw hat and place it on my head. They feasted on sugarcane and loved nothing more than a human hug. I almost hid from the driver and stayed forever. I truly don’t think I have had a smile that pure, and that intense, in years. 

Chiang Rai- now, here’s where our trip took an unexpected turn. Turns out, my mom and Thailand aren’t the best of friends after all. For our three days in Chiang Rai, my mom spent every moment of them in the room. (I’ll spare you the dirty details but to put it lightly, it became a daddy daughter trip for a few days)

Longneck villages up north that humbled you to the core123273456, modern temples adorned in blue and gold, the most delish Tom yum a night market has ever gifted me, watching sunset inside a ginormous female Buddha statue are just glimpses into the art of Chiang Rai. It still blows my mind how much lies within one town you may have never heard of. 

And here is where the temple that remains most vivid in my memory lives. The white temple is one of true magic. The minute you step over the first small bridge, you are transported into a new universe. One of glistening gold, brilliant white, and details that would’ve wowed Picasso. 

On the way out, we got to leave a little piece of ourselves there. I’ll let you read for yourself. 

This brings me to the final destination of our trip, Phuket. If you have read this far, this is your treat because WOW oh WOW. If Miami, Key West, and Heaven had a threesome, this would be their love child. It makes sense, I swear. 

We stayed in Kata Beach on the southern end of the island and stayed on the top of one of the many hills there. As we hopped between tuk tuks, ubers, boats and canoes, we took the island by storm. 

Every beach and island had its own flare. One quaint, and the next, according to the Russian we crossed paths with “crazier than Las Vegas at night.” We didn’t go…. But I’m taking her word for it. 

My favorite though was Ya Nui beach. Hidden away at the very end of the island, this is truly the gorgeous beach known to man (and that man is actually a WOman, and it’s me, Peyton)

To give you the best description possible, I rented a paddle board and took exploring to the next level. Little did I know, this would be one of my favorite 60 mins of the entire trip. As I paddled further and further into the water, the pretty kept getting prettier. 

The water looked as though you were looking through a stain-glass window. A mixture of pale green, bright aqua and light blue made this the perfect canvas for finding fish. 

Warning: I have no idea the names of any of these fish, but they were super cool so, let me live. 

I saw fish that looked white with stripes of black to the eye, but the moment a sparkle of light hit them, you saw that they were really a neon yellow.  Ones that were a bright magenta and royal blue that blended together seamlessly. Some that were skinny with a needle as a nose and whizzed past me like Usain Bolt. The fish were almost as beautiful as the horizon that never seemed to end.

It’s wild how much you are at ease when you feel so small. I have never felt more insignificant, in the most beautiful way, than in that moment. For a moment, the only thing I could think about was how big this world is, and how little my role in it is. I need to stop taking it so seriously. 

Take this as your sign to book the flight. You will never regret the feeling of floating on a longboat through the Andaman Sea and island hopping with people you love. Seeing monkeys play on the beach and people fawn over James Bond Island. Eating freshly cut pineapple and swimming with a shark, by accident….. 

It’s funny how one moment something can be your reality, and the next? Well, now it’s all just a beautiful memory. I’m just glad I have you to share it with.

Thailand, ขอบคุณ.