Thailand

 

So here we are, on a trip to Thailand. 

Phuket > Krabi > Koh Samui > Koh Tao > Bangkok > Chiang Mai > Chiang Rai > Bangkok > Siem Reap (Cambodia)

We chose a route which would allow us to explore the southern beaches of Andaman Sea, then Bangkok city and then go to the Northern Mountains. And, finally take the bus to Cambodia. 

Patong Beach in Phuket. The Bangla Road is pretty busy 24 hours a day for 365 days!

Gorgeous sunset

We hired a bike and off we went to explore some other beaches.

..only to then get caught by the police & get fined , for not driving with a International Drivers Licence! Embarrassing! 

Kata Beach in Phuket

We then hopped on a bus and went to Krabi. 

The beaches of Krabi were extremely beautiful.

The long boats are a unique touch to Thai beaches.

and the lime stone cliffs too.

After Krabi we went to Koh Samui. To our surprise we were there on one of the festival days; Loy Krathong, Thailand's Festival of Lights. It coincided with one of the biggest festivals in India on the full moon day in November. One would light the candle and float these floats in the water.

We did see some massive ones in the town centre.

The Lamai Night Market has food, t-shirts, hats, fruit, beers, shakes, and more to offer.

The island also offers beautiful temples one can visit. Please be mindful of the clothing when you visit temples.

The temples are extremely clean.

The Big Buddha of Koh Samui. After Koh Samui we went to Koh Tao. 

This is where we caught up with some really bad weather.

There was a storm brewing and no one was in the water. We ended up going to the beach one day only and rested indoors for 4 days.

The rain was persistent in Koh Tao.  

We then took the boat and then the train to Bangkok. 

Bangkok boats of some absolutely gorgeous temples. 

The amalgamation of Hinduism and Buddhism in Thailand was quite evident. In a Buddhist temple of could see idols of Ganesha, Vishnu, Shiva and Brahma. 

Here we see Garuda. The vulture god of Hinduism.

 

Outside one of the Buddhist temples.  

Wat Arun in Bangkok.

We crossed the Chao Praya River, to get more views. 

Lord Rama was at the entrance of one off the Wats. 

Off we went to Chiang Mai and crossed the historic city of Ayutthaya.  

At the Chiang Mai station. 

The monument of the Three Kings in Chiang Mai. 

The Wat at night, with the moon shining in the background. Sometimes the camera doesn't capture what one sees with their naked eye. 

We also visited Doi Suthep in the mountains of Chiang Mai.  

The Royal Park Rajapruek was about 30 minute drive from the city centre. 

It has beautiful gardens , ponds, lakes and walkways.  

The biggest attraction was the Orchid Park. 

Again, the photos don't do justice to what we saw at the park. 

The next day we went to the Blue Temple, White Temple and the Black house. 

These are really modern temples and do symbolise a society ready to look at religion and temples with a new perspective. 

En route to the white temple we also saw the big buddha. 

The entrance of the White Temple was quite different than the other places we had visited.  

The temple was something out of the world. Also, the architect has a very beautiful eye to how one can make this place more photogenic and touristy. Is that a good thing or a bad thing? I am not as opinionated as others, but I loved the aesthetics of the place.

Accidentally we ended up wearing white that day!  

Everyone here looks stunned! 

And the next day, we went to the waterfalls Khun Kron. 

There was a constant spray of water when we stood there. 

The clock tower of Chiang Rai. 

We then took the night train back to Bangkok. 

The scooter drivers run Bangkok city. They are the lifeline and if one has to go from A to B, one must take the scooter. The traffic is really bad, the buses are slow (although they are AC) and the metro doesn't connect every important part of the city. Trupti and I hopped on 2. Check out the number of scooters in the background. 

Democracy Monument in Bangkok.  

Also, the Tuk Tuks are the other mode of transport that are the bloodline of Bangkok City. 

Christmas isn't far and we will be missing the English Christmas this year and will be celebrating in t-shirts and in the tropics. 

Rajasthan & Punjab - During Diwali

We were in Rajasthan for a couple of weeks and visited the forts and palaces of Jaipur, Jodhpur and Udaipur.

 

At the Hawa Mahal

This looks like a beautiful building from far, but inside it is quite cramped. 

We made friends who took our photo and shared it later. I loved this about India, where anyone would be happy to say hello to you and just have a small chat. 

We also went to Rani Ka Bagh, which was beautiful, but not very popular.

Rani Ka Bagh - 2

We visited Amer Fort the next day and this was a huge huge fort on top of a hill.

Sheesh Mahal in Amer Fort.

Jaipur from the top.

Sun set from the top of Nahargarh Fort.

Frangipani Flower and The Flower & the Sunset;-) 

Next we went to see the Jaigarh Palace in Jaipur.

The singer here could sing songs in about 8-10 Indian languages. 

Mehrangarh Palace in Jodhpur. And someone was caught sneaking out of the window.

Jaswant Thada in Jodhpur

Mehrangarh Palace from our hotel's rooftop. The singers were extremely talented.

Next we went to Udaipur, which was better than Jaipur and Jodhpur both. 

Also, because of the lake in the middle of the city, it seems like there is a charm to the city.

We saw a puppet show, which sadly happens to be dying art form. 

The traditional folk dancers of Rajasthan were brilliant.

This lady was exceptional with 7 pots on her head!

Some of the photos while boating on the lake.

City Palace Udaipur is the biggest palace in Northern India, and I was exhausted while walking through the whole place. 

Frangipani Flower is back!

At the gates of the City Palace, Updaipur. 

We visited Saheliyon Ki Bari, and by this time I knew I was having a heat stroke.I ended up with red patches all over my body & couldn't sleep all night.

Diwali was round the corner and we then made our way to Patiala to see Mamaji and Mamiji. 

With my mum's extended family in Patiala

Mamaji and Mamiji

Fireworks, a drink and roof top bar! That's the way Punjab celebrates Diwali. 

Flowerpot!

We then went to Chandigarh and met my university friends. The monster glass in Monu's hand is appropriate to his size. 

With everyone here. Raman, Gagan and Monu's family were exceptional hosts.

And now a photo with the late arrival of Supreet. His family's hospitality for us will stay with us for the rest of our lives. Trupti and I had a brilliant time in Chandigarh. 

And now, we go on our next adventure to South East Asia. Bags packed and ready to go!

• Things I liked about Rajasthan & Punjab
• brilliant hospitality
• extremely humble people
• they go out of their way to help and support you
• they never say NO
• Things I didn't like about India (not just the North)
• unhygienic country
• poor sanitation
• men peeing on roads
• men spitting paan and gutka on the roads
• coked drains and overflowing gutters
• bad traffic 
• constant honking
• broken roads
• bad air quality
• archaic trains that run at 1960s speed 
• really slow pace of things happening in hospitals (and any office) in general

Visited Agra

While we now embark on this 1 year journey, we thought we must start from India, and from the land of love i.e. Agra! 

We we booked a 1 way ticket to Delhi, hopped on a train to Agra and visited the Agra Fort (this is also called the Lala Quila), the Taj Mahal and Itmad-ud-Daula. 

Agra isn't a modern city and still feels like I am in 1980s India. Very disappointing!

At Agra Fort

You can see the Taj Mahal & the Yamuna River in the background. 

Entering the Taj Mahal at 6:00 AM the next day. 

Seeing it for the first time, I got goosebumps. Almost had tears in my eyes. 

The was drizzling all morning, however that meant we had less crowds and more opportunity to take photos. 

Our guide was a decent photographer too. 

Even on a cloudy morning the Taj looked phenomenal.

One of the exit gates, I suppose. 

We then went to Itmad-ud-Daula, and the stone work was a piece of art. 

We met this Bengali couple and they took our photo. May be it's just me, and my photo skills, but I need to take 15 photos to just get that 1 perfect photo. 😁

One of the exit gates at Itmad-Ud-Daula.

I shall try and write more as we travel more in India and then other countries during the next 1 year.