My first time in Thailand

Hi, This is how my first 2 weeks in Thailand (Bangkok) went. I will try to do things in order but there is allot to tell so i might have to just put thing’s in as they come to me. The main reason i went to Thailand for anyone who does not know is to meet someone i have fallen in love with, Originally i was saving up for Japan (Tokyo) but i am so glad i ended up in Thailand instead.

The first full day was on the weekend so we thought it would be a good idea to start off with the JJ Market but first we decided to go to for Breakfast, We had Pad Thai which this place is famous for and i loved it even with all the Chilli Kate added =D.



After Breakfast we took the BTS there to give me a chance to see some of Bangkok from above and because it was the quickest way there. It was also a great chance to see some of the areas destroyed by the red shirt protests.

We arrived at the JJ Market which was Insane at times but great fun, I found a T Shirt i LOVED! and it was only £2 so i got it but sadly later we found out it didn't fit, but Kate looks great in it so it's OK. The market had so much exiting things, i really wanted to buy an alarm clock that Kate spotted which was a simple block of wood with a light showing the time but i still don't know how it worked, anyway it was cool. When i was walking around i thought about something someone said to me about tourists, How they just rush around taking pics and never really sit down and just take in the experience and look through your eyes rather than the camera lens so when we found this nice little caribbean style bar just hidden away amongst all the chaos of the market we decided to sit down and have a drink, Guns N' Roses are my favourite band in case anyone doesn't know so i just had to get a pic with Slash the bar tender =D



On Monday we decided to go to the Island Koh Chang for 2 night's and stay at the KC Grande Resort. Kate knew where to get the mini bus that would take us to the ferry for the 4 hour trip, On the way we past Tiger Temple.

By the time we got on the ferrie it was quite late and dark so when we arrived we got a truck to the other side of the Island were the KC Grande Resort was. We arrived to a great welcome from really friendly staff and got a little Golf kart drive to our hut on the beach. When we walked in it was great we were both laughing because our friend "Nhing" booked the room for us and asked for a Honeymoon sweet so we arrived to this scene.



We woke up really early (6am) the first day and took a walk on the beach to the breakfast area, The food was great and the Chef was the only one awake and he gave us a warm welcome. The Chef made us a special dish on the 3’rd day as well, he was such a nice guy and we would recommend his food to anyone =D

Anyway i can’t really describe everything there is too much so i will show a few Photos and explain that way.








Koh Chang really was amazing and we both loved it so if anyone is thinking of going there i can tell you for only £32 a night it is well worth it, in fact we went for 2 nights and extended it to 3 after a day there because it was that great.

My first time on Khaosan Road was great, We tried some insects which were actually really nice after Kate removed the head and wings for me lol. I remember telling Kate that i have fed most of these to my Lizards over the years so it was not too much of a shock for me to see these kind of thing’s but eating them is a whole different story.



We stopped for a while to watch a street dance which broke out between a group of Thai guys each taking turn at performing there dance on the street, I recorded it all but don’t know how to show videos on this website so if anyone can tell me then i would be happy to upload it. We sat down and relaxed at Kate's favourite bar/pub on Khaosan Road just under this tree on the bench.



I have to be honest though my favourite thing about Khaosan Road is the Banana Pancake thing i am now addicted to that you can find there. My least favourite thing is the guy trying to sell me a Designer suit which will show off the muscle i don’t have.

The shopping Mall Carrefour is my favourite mall in Bangkok, i went to 3 or 4 different ones but i love this one, It’s really close to Kate's apartment so we spent allot of day’s having dinner in here. I tried nearly all the restaurants including a Thai one where you have to boil your own food kind of like fondo but in a soup, Thai Spicy Salad with Crispy pork was my favourite salad and we got allot of stuff from the super market upstairs in the mall. By the end of the 2 weeks it felt like my regular mall i really miss it lol



On the weekend i got to meet Kate's family (Keng, Pac, thier beautiful Daughter Google and her Grandma) and they are some of the loveliest people i have met in my life and they made me feel like i was one of the family. Her brother is a huge Boxing fan like me and i get on great with him, His wife is an amazing mother and even without speaking any English managed to make me feel so welcomed and introduced me to my FAVOURITE Thai Fruit (Dragon Ball) OK yes it was my favourite mainly because i used to watch the show DragonBall Z as a kid but also it was really nice. At Koh Chang we had Dragon Ball and it was white with black dots and it seemed to have to flavour but Kate's sister in law insisted i tried her one so i said ok and when she opened this one it was BRIGHT! Pink/Purple and the taste was allot sweeter so i know now to always get the Dragonballs that are Pink inside =)

There Daughter seemed to be really shy around me but after about 2 hours had me chasing her up and down the room throwing her little toy ball around and had me sweating like crazy just in time for dinner (Which Kate cooked) Kate always cooks for her family when she goes there because she is AMAZING!!! She makes some of the best food i have ever tasted, It was great earlier that day to go to the fresh market and get all the ingredients for less than £7 lol, The bag of meat alone would cost about £6 in the UK. The fresh market is the place that people seem to stare allot at me though i don’t know why that is but maybe not allot of Farang go there. Anyway i am so happy to have met her family in fact the next week we went back the day before i left and i brought a gift for there daughter which they liked. I really want to go there every Saturday when i go back now because normally i am a really shy person and avoid any group thing unless it is with people i have known a long time but i felt so at home there thank’s to them. Great people and i love them already.

Kate's cousin "Pi O" owns a tour guide company and runs it himself so we planned a trip to Hua Hin, The Waterfall and Tribe Village which was roughly 2 hours in a Taxi outside Bangkok. First we had ice cream in this nice little shop while we waited for her Cousin and it was great. First up was the Waterfall and after several checkpoints and MILLIONS! Of Butterfly’s we reached our destination. Sweating like crazy in the Heat and the high Humidity i was then told we will begin the climb up to the 4th Level where the waterfall was. I had allot of fun swinging from the tree to rock’s like a kid again and picking up a butterfly on the tip of my finger. I remember thinking this is like Jurassic Park (My Favourite movie, Along with Free Willy) Anyway we got to the top and it was great here are some pics.









On the way back down we stopped off at one off the little Restaurant checkpoints were Kate's cousin asked for some food for us, He kindly asked for it to be not so hot but Kate let him know i am surprisingly good with Thai food when it is made the Thai way, Not the Farang way =D

and they made my favourite Thai dish (Minced pork with hot Basil and Chillies) along with a few others.

After the food we started our ride up to the Tribe Village. We had about 7 or 8 boxes with us full of cloths and toys that we brought up with us from Kate's work place in BKK. Allot of the people at her work helped out and brought in some nice cloths and toys. On the way we stopped off and bought a huge tin filled with sweets for the children, In this shop they had a few bird cages with this same species of bird in each little cage i remember thinking that it was a bit random but anyway, On the way up we stopped to give a few children a lift on there way back from School so they didn’t have to walk. I remember noticing that they didn’t even have shoes and just thinking how hard something as simple as going to School must be for them and it really makes you think wow i have so much and i don’t even realise it. When we got there the children went “Ting Tong” Trying to look in the boxes as we unpacked them and got the kids to line up so we could hand everything out. After the clothes we gave the sweets, and then i decided to give out Kate's potato Chips from her bag lol. It was great fun walking around the village after and seeing how they life there life and what it’s like for these people. All the children said thank you by singing a song for us which was great to see.








On the way back down the Mountain we stopped to pick up allot of fruit which i helped load onto the truck even though the ants on it bit the hell out of me, It was the Fruit that is known for it’s horrible smell but i can’t remember it’s name just now. Anyway it was one of the best experiences of this trip and my life and would really advise anyone who has the chance to go see both places.

One more quick thing about this day i just want to say, on the way back to BKK in the mini bus me and Kate were laughing and joking with each other and the driver i guess was not in a Good mood and turned up the radio so that made us laugh even more and he turned it up so loud that the base was actually vibrating so much we could feel it, it felt like being in a Night club and this is how i found my favourite Thai song “Mr Lao Kao” came on the radio and we were laughing so much, you have to give this song a listen it’s the ultimate cheesy song and they are now my favourite Thai band, the songs name is Mr Lao Kao.

The Grand Palace was somewhere i really wanted to see and we had a chance to go there in the 2nd week. The Grand Palace was really beautiful, it was being repaired in some parts and i even got a few pics of the painters in action doing the wall art. The Emerald Buddha was the best part of the Grand Palace, Inside was really beautiful but sadly no cameras allowed so i had to get a shot through the window from outside and with the zoom on the camera it was not as high quality but you can still get a clear shot here.



We got there mid day so we were lucky to catch the soldiers marching and changing position which i have on video as well. Here are a few of my favourite pictures from the Grand Palace.














After the Grand Palace we were Hungry and China Town was not too far so we decided to go there, Kate called one of her best friends "Mod Mod" and asked her to join us so we had a chance to meet. She was lovely and to be honest i was really nervous to meet her but she is a lovely woman and great fun. This is the place we had a meal at in China Town and it’s AMAZING! If you get a chance go to this place and try the Oyster with Crispy Egg, It’s my favourite. Normally i really don’t like any seafood apart from Prawns and Shrimp (Which i had loads of in Thailand) But Kate encourages me all the time to try new thing’s and i am so glad she did because it’s now my favourite Chinese dish.









After China town we decided to go to Khaosan Road again for a few drink’s and we got a Boat from China Town which was great at night because i had a chance to see all the temples and Bridges light up at night and it is a beautiful sight. When we got off the boat i suddenly got the feeling in my stomach that every Farang must get at one point eating Thai food so we rushed to the nearest Toilet, When you are holding THAT! In a 5 minute walk can seem like 5 hours. When i got to the Toilet my first thought was THANK GOD IT’S NOT A BLOODY HOLE IN THE FLOOR AGAIN, after i was finished the toilet would not flush but i didn’t care after all it wasn’t my toilet so i thought i will just put the paper in the bin but as i opened the bin a Cockroach crawled out and i S###T! Myself. Anyway we were now ready to go have a few drink’s. We stopped at a small bar and sat outside watching the Farang flood the street. We had the bucket with Thai Whiskey and i had a Cocktail =)

After this we went to a club just around the corner from McDonald's, I think it was called Brix Bar or Pub. I was quite shy at first but after a while i ended up Dancing to the Great Thai music. The live band was great the female singer especially sounded really great when she covered a Beyonce song. Here are a few pictures from the bar.







Lumpini Park is a place i was really exited for, I have always loved animals and Reptiles are something i have had a passion for all my life. I have kept many snakes & Lizards and i have always dreamed of keeping a Water Monitor but out of respect for the animal i would never buy one because i believe something that big should just be on it’s own free to do as it want’s not in a tank or cage. This park was very beautiful but to be honest my only focus was on these amazing reptiles that roam free in this park so here are a few pick’s of the Lizards, or the Thaksin’s as Kate would say lol.






Khao Din was the final main attraction we went to in my first 2 weeks and i read allot about the conditions being poor before i went so i was a bit unsure but it was not that bad, some of the cages were not so good but allot of them looked like they were kept very well mainly the monkey’s and birds. I loved walking around the Zoo with Kate we had alot of fun and YAY European style toilets for me =D which was great because 10 minutes after entering i needed the Toilet.


There is so much more to say about my first 2 weeks spent in Thailand but i have just tried to share the main highlights of my 2 weeks for you all and hopefully people can see that £1,000 is enough to do so many great thing’s if you have someone to advise you on where to go and look for what you want. The food was amazing and Kate is surprised at how well i took to the food and so happy that i was able to handle the heat. I guess you just have to accept that every day you will need to sweat and just shower later at night when you get back to your room with an AC lol

Kate though is the reason my 2 week’s were so special, I could never have dreamd that i would meet such an amazing woman. She is such a kind hearted person and always does her best to care for me, her family, and her friends. She is always trying to learn and better herself and her life and she is the reason i am so happy with my life right now. I am planning to go back in 1 month. I love her more than i could ever describe with a keyboard and her family is my family now.

My favourite beer was Tiger but it is not Thai, So my favourite Thai beer is Leo =D