The Land of Smiles

A celebratory trip to mark the beginning of my husband’s retirement took us to The Land of Smiles – Thailand. We began our adventure in Kanchanaburi – known for its dark history; the area is home to the Thai-Burma railway (aka Death Railway) and the famous Bridge over the River Kwai. There’s a memorial and two fascinating museums to visit and we also took a ride on the railways itself. It’s still a working railways line, used by locals and visitors. Erawan Falls gave us the opportunity for a cool dip in some of the many pools as we worked our way up the seven levels. We moved on to Chaing Mai, a short flight from Bangkok, and into a magnificent city, simply bursting with the most magnificent, ornate temples. Originally a walled city, some of which are still visible, it’s now spread far beyond it’s original confines. The weekly night market is something to behold, we walked from street to street with a multitude of stalls selling all sorts of souvenirs and food – lovely to amble around in the relative cool of the evening. Doi Inthanon National Park, an easy day trip from Chiang Mai, gave us the opportunity to visit a White Karen Village where they manage coffee plantations and make coffee. We were able to visit the highest point in Thailand at 2565 metres above sea level and take a short walk through the forest. We also visited the King and Queen’s Pagodas which were built in 1987 to commemorate the King and Queen’s 60th birthdays. They’re surrounded by beautifully manicured gardens and offer wonderful views over the countryside. Chiang Rai is about 3 hours by road from Chiang Mai, but well worth the journey to visit the White Temple and Blue Temple; both are absolutely stunning, but quite different from each other. En-route we stopped off to visit a Longneck Karen Village, so called because some of women have gold rings around their neck, giving the appearance that the neck has been stretched. We moved onto Koh Tao a small island in the Gulf of Thailand, which can only be reached by ferry. It’s famous for crystal clear water and varied and prolific marine life. There are many dive-centres, but we opted to go snorkelling. Sadly, a lot of the coral is dead, but we saw so many different kinds of fish as well as a black tip reef shark, a turtle and a barracuda – amazing! Koh Samui, although only a two-hour ferry ride away, was quite different. We stayed in a beach resort in Lamai and enjoyed some much-needed rest and relaxation after lots of sightseeing. We were able to walk into town, either along the beach or the road where there were plenty of restaurants, shops and massage parlours. Although there are some local attractions on Koh Samui, we chose not to visit any, instead opting for a more relaxed visit. Our last stop was Bangkok which was a shock to the senses as we landed in the middle of a busy city. High rise buildings and magnificent temples sit side by side with the Chao Phraya River running through the centre. Roads choked with traffic and a leisurely tour around old Bangkok in a long-tail boat – a city of contrasts. Lamphini Park was welcome respite from the chaotic city where local people were doing Tai Chi, tourists were out on the lake in pedaloes and the monitor lizards just got on with their daily life! Thailand is truly The Land of Smiles – people are so helpful, friendly and welcoming. It’s terrific value for money and visitors can enjoy any type of holiday they wish. All with the sunshine thrown in for free!