The first of twelve... or more! #Take12Trips

Last week I saw a link on Facebook to a blog that's challenging people to #Take12Trips. I was so excited to find such a cool challenge. Basically, all you need to do is plan and take at least one trip each month for 12 months. It's the perfect way to get people motivated and excited about life and to encourage people to take time out from their busy lives to do things they haven't done before or to go on adventures, either just down the road or to far away places. The trips can be as big or as small as you like. Check out the following link for the full post - http://www.needanotherholiday.com/celebrating-12-months-blogging-challenge-take12trips/. 

Sunday 27 October 2013 marked five and a half years that Scotty and I have been together. And I love celebrating anniversaries. The first year that we dated we celebrated every month together and I used to say we should celebrate because neither of us would ever have a one, two, three month... etc etc anniversary again. At the time I was saying it to be sweet, who knew it would actually be right! 

So, with our 'half anniversary' to celebrate and my first 'trip' to be taken I decided to plan a surprise for Scotty. We wanted to go stand up paddle boarding in Thailand but ran out of time, so I looked into where we could do it in Perth. 

I found a company called Elemental who operate from Point Walter and they only charge $50 each for two hours. It was really easy to book online and we just paid when we got there on Sunday. They say to book in advance so that you don't miss out because its pretty popular, especially in the summer. 

Sunday morning had perfect weather, it was going to be 28'C and there weren't any signs of wind. There was one other couple there too and we all went down the river together. You can choose to pay for a lesson but we just chose to do our own thing. The lady gave us a quick lesson on the sand and then we were off.

It was so easy! We thought it was going to be hard to stand up but it wasn't at all. We paddled down the river stopping to muck around on the way. We had two hours and the lady had told us how far she thought we'd get before having to turn around. 

It was such a fun morning paddling and mucking around, both trying to stand on one board and trying to put one foot on each board. This resulted in a lot of time in the water! 

Stand up paddle boarding is also a great way to exercise. You get a great arm and core workout and can push yourself as much or as little as you like. 

This challenge has motivated Scotty and I to add our own twist. We're going to take it in turns to plan a surprise activity/outing each weekend for us to do together. We love being outdoors and spend a lot of time running which you all know is our favourite thing to do, but we want to make sure we are experiencing other fun things on the weekends too and thought this would be a great way of doing something new and fun together. 

I'm really looking forward to seeing what Scotty has planned for this weekend. He's great at planning surprises. He once planned an amazing weekend away in Akaroa. The whole town is 'French' so he planned a French weekend. He even surprised me with French desserts that he'd made and packed in a cooler bag along with lots of other tasty French treats. He always sets the bar very high! 

I'm hoping that by sharing my trips with you all that it will give you inspiration and ideas to take your own trips. Planning trips or activities is so much fun and having things to look forward to is a great way of staying motivated at work or with other aspects of your life when they might become repetitive or boring. 

I hope I've inspired each of you to plan an activity or a trip. Now, what will your next 'trip' be? 

Making our way down the river

Making our way down the river

Posing for photos

Paddling the lazy way

Some of the beautiful boats we were paddling alongside

Right before we attempted to stand with one leg
on each board which resulted in the ultimate splits

Both standing on one board - success!

Chilling out on our boards before returning them

Careless or carefree?

As I start to plan our next holiday and do the sums we have soon realised that five weeks travelling around to five different countries is going to be an expensive adventure. 

So, we take a moment to step back and discuss our options. Do we spend the money, or should we be saving it for a rainy day? It's so important to discuss big decisions and not to rush into things, no matter what they may be. 

This will be our fourth big holiday for the year and in total we will have had 16 weeks off work (by the end of January when the new year/new term starts). This seems extravagant to some people, but to others it's an amazing opportunity not to be wasted. 

Everyone will always have their own opinions and make comments on different aspects of other people's lives, no matter what they do or don't do with their time. I try not to judge anyone for the way they live their lives, it's none of my business. What people show on the outside isn't always the full story, and it's not up to me to judge people for their actions or choices. Everyone is different, and everyone has the right to live their own lives how they choose. 

For us, the most important thing is to live every day as if it's our last. You only live once, and as silly as I think using #yolo is, it's something that we quite often jokingly say when making decisions - usually decisions based around spending money. Because as silly as we might think the hashtag is, it's so true! We are only given one chance at life, you don't get to go back and change anything or spend your time differently. Once each and every day is gone, it's gone forever. If you don't use each day wisely and live it the way you want, the way that will make you the happiest you can be, you don't get another shot at it. 

Living every day as if it's your last can be expensive, but at the end of the day as long as you've got food on the table and a roof over your head, that's all that really matters. 

We choose not to spend our money on partying, drinking or smoking, and I don't buy designer clothes, shoes or handbags. This allows us to have more money for what is really important to us and that's travelling and adventures. Getting to see the world and experience the different cultures around the world is a huge passion of mine, and Scotty wants to run and race all over the world. I don't want to look back and say 'I wish I'd travelled more'. This is something I've heard my nana say a couple of times, and even though she's travelled during her lifetime, there are places she wishes she'd gone, but never ended up going. 

Some people might think we should be saving for the future or to buy a house. And one day we will own our own home, but at this stage we don't even know where we want to settle, so buying a house which would tie us down to one place for a long time isn't even on the cards. 

We have put ourselves in a position to live the lifestyle that we want to live which also gives us school holidays off together to travel the world. Our lifestyle certainly wouldn't suit everyone, but it doesn't need to. Everyone chooses their own paths in life and creates their own journeys depending on their own dreams.

At the end of the day, the one thing you should do is to live the life that makes you the happiest. If this means settling down and buying a house and having kids, then do it! If it means going out with friends and partying until 4am, then do it! If it means throwing caution to the wind and packing up and traveling the world, then do it! 

You are in control of your own life and your own happiness. Live every day as if it's your last - don't look back on life and say 'What if?'

A Taste of Thailand

It was school holiday time again and Thailand was our chosen destination. I'd tried to plan as much of our trip as I could without booking too many things each day so that we could take things as they came, but as you are probably learning, I like to see as much of places as possible, so I also didn't want any wasted time.

Scotty wasn't 100% sold on going to Thailand, but I knew once we got there he'd love it, and I was right. We both did! The only comparison I had was Bali and it was nothing like Bali, it's so much better in my opinion. Bali is a lot more third world and the locals are a lot more in your face, whether it be at the markets or even just getting a taxi from the airport. That said, I did like Bali, but I just liked Thailand a lot more.

Please bear in mind while reading this post that everyone has different ideas on the ideal holiday and what makes the perfect holiday destination. Hopefully most of you have a bit of an understanding by now what sort of things interest me, which you'll be able to have in the back of your mind when reading about my thoughts and recommendations on Thailand.

Our first stop was Bangkok. We had no idea how big it was going to be, or that it had 10,000,000 people! Our hotel was about an hour from the airport but it only cost $15 in a taxi which was fantastic. We stayed in a place called Sathorn which we found to be perfect for what we wanted. Our apartment was a 10 minute walk to the train and from there the possibilities were endless. We spent one night at the Silom Markets which were fun. That area also had a lot of live entertainment (the kind that male tourists might enjoy!) The next day we went to an Aussie pub to watch the AFL grand final. We also went to Siam Paragon which is a huge shopping complex. They have a fantastic Ocean World which we loved and which would also be great for kids. There was plenty of fresh fruit and street food available around Sathorn and some great restaurants too. It's also very handy to Lumpini Park which is the exercising mecca of Bangkok. Most places we went in Bangkok were only two stops away on the train - it was fantastic! Something I would recommend is getting a longtail boat down the river which takes you through the canals and then drops you off at one of the temples. Once you've looked around you can easily get boats across to the other side of the river to see other temples and then get a boat back to the pier where you started. One thing I must tell you about, which we learnt the hard way, was that Air Asia do NOT fly from the Suvarnabhumi airport with all of the other airlines. They fly from the Don Mueang airport and the two airports are about an hour apart. If you are flying with Air Asia please double check this, especially if you have connecting flights. All of our internal flights were with Air Asia (except when we got caught out at the wrong airport and had to re-book with Thai Airways). We'd flown from Perth with Thai Airways and their service was amazing. Fantastic entertainment, food and comfortable seats.

Next stop was Chiang Mai which we fell in love with as soon as we arrived. We were staying at a hotel inside the old city which I would highly recommend. It only cost about $5 for a taxi from the airport. We soon realised we were on a great street filled with bars and restaurants, and just down the road from the walking street markets which they have every Sunday (we just happened to arrive on a Sunday). We were spoilt for choice when it came to choosing places to eat which was fantastic. I would highly recommend paying a tuk tuk driver to show you around the old city and take you to any of the places out of town that you want to see. We were lucky because we had permanent drivers out the front of the hotel who weren't there to rip us off and spoke great English. One of the places we went to was the Tiger Kingdom - we got to touch real tigers! It was incredible, and something I will never forget. Another must do in Chiang Mai is the Flight of the Gibbons. It's a bit pricey if you're travelling on a shoestring, but well worth it. The guides are fantastic and they provide a lovely meal afterwards as well. We were also lucky enough to be shown some great trail running and would be more than happy to introduce you to the lovely people we met if you want to explore some trails while you're there. On a side note - the trail running community is incredible. We met a great guy in San Fran when we were there in May who just happened to honeymoon in Thailand and met some great guys who he then introduced us to. One of them is even competing in the same race as Scotty in Hong Kong in January so we'll get to see him again there - such a small world!

From Chiang Mai we travelled to Pai. We'd booked a mini bus which only cost $8 each and it was a 4 hour trip. When a pick up truck arrived to collect us from the hotel we almost died - was this what was taking us all the way to Pai. Oh well, it'll be an adventure. As it turned out that was just the vehicle they use to navigate the small streets of Chiang Mai to pick up the passengers and then you change to the mini bus at the bus station. Thank goodness. Unfortunately there were a lot of Chinese tourists on our mini bus (it was a Chinese holiday the week we were there apparently) and they all had huge suitcases so we had to have our bags at our feet which meant for a very quashed ride. The road to Pai is extremely windy so don't expect to get much sleep. Something I would definitely recommend is travelling with minimal luggage. We were away for two weeks and only had carry on luggage and it made things so much easier getting around the place.

When we arrived in Pai we felt like we'd really arrived in Thailand. Hardly any cars and no taxis. Everyone hires motorbikes or scooters to get around the place, or if you're staying in town you can just walk. We were staying about 10 minutes out of town in a bungalow at a fish farm. It was absolutely stunning with green mountains all around. We had a deck right on our doorstep which we could stand on to fish in the lake - Scotty caught 3 fish, 1 of which was huge! Anywhere in or around Pai would be great to stay - it's just a matter of choosing what sort of accommodation you want. There are bars and restaurants on every street in the middle of town and friendly people everywhere. We rode our motorbike up to a beautiful waterfall and through some local villages. It was great to see how the Thai people live, they have such a simple way of living, it's inspiring. At night the streets are filled with markets and lots of tasty food. One of the other fun things we did was tubing down the Pai River. They drive you up river and send you on your way in a big blow-up tube. You can even buy beers to drink along the way!

After a couple of days it was time to get back on the bus (we had a lot more room this time which made for a much more comfortable trip). And it only took 3 hours - there was a lot more downhill. Then we flew from Chiang Mai to Bangkok, and then Bangkok to Phuket.

Our first impressions of Phuket were that it's very expensive compared to up north. We paid 300 baht to get 5 minutes down the road, whereas in Bangkok we only paid 380 baht for a trip that took over an hour. It was 9pm so we went straight to our hotel (it was a funky wee beach shack with nothing but a mattress on the floor, a fan and a semi-outdoor bathroom). It was perfect for one night but you wouldn't want to spend much more time than that there.

The next day we were picked up at 7am for our day trip to Phang Nga Bay. It was a fantastic tour which I'd highly recommend. We went with a company called Phuket Sail Tours. We went swimming, snorkelling, kayaking (with a guide to do all the hard work for us), caving and had lunch at the floating village. The tour was pretty pricey but worth it in our opinion. It was a fantastic way to see some of the islands in the south of Thailand.

The place we stayed that night was close to the Rassada Pier where the ferries to Phi Phi Island leave from, so it was just what we needed for the next day. The apartment was really nice, but it seemed as though we were in more of a 'local' area rather than somewhere many tourists stay. All of the menus at the places to eat were in Thai and there weren't any shops or massage places around (these are plentiful in most tourist areas). We found one 'restaurant' that looked alright and they gave us a special menu with English on it. It turned out to be the best chicken fried rice we'd had since being in Thailand. It was a perfect example of 'don't judge a book by it's cover'. It also really showed us that where you end up staying can make a huge difference on the experiences you have. Up until then we'd been staying in touristy areas with lots of things to see and do which meant we had a great time and were always out and about doing things. That particular night in Phuket we were tucked up in bed by 8pm because there wasn't much around to keep us occupied. One thing I spend a lot of time doing before going on trips is researching on tripadvisor for the best places to stay - I think this is hugely important, not only for the quality of the hotel but also for the location.

The next day it was time to board the ferry for Phi Phi Island. It'd been pouring with rain the last two nights in Phuket, absolutely bucketing down. And was still raining when we boarded the ferry. We figured that even if it rained for the next two days we could still relax at the guesthouse we were staying at. 'Guesthouse' is what they call a backpackers and this was our first time staying at one so we weren't sure what to expect.

Bruno (the French owner of the guesthouse) picked us up from the Tonsai Pier on Phi Phi Island and took us in a long tail boat to the place where we were staying. It took about 20 minutes and when we arrived we came to a beautiful beach which would be our home for the next two days. The boat took us right up to the front door of the guesthouse through the mangroves which was pretty cool.

We had a great couple of days wandering around the village where we were staying. We did a fantastic boat tour and went snorkelling at some of the islands where we saw some amazing fish. This was organised through the place we were staying. I'd highly recommend Le Rendezvous as a place to stay on Phi Phi Island. It's only got two rooms so it's very quiet, but with a bar downstairs for when you want to mingle with other tourists. It's away from the big resort which makes for a lot more private and peaceful stay - and it's a lot cheaper too! We struck it lucky with the weather and had nice warm days on Phi Phi Island - a bit too good one day when we both got extremely burnt!

After leaving Phi Phi Island we caught the ferry back to Phuket and then flew back up to Bangkok for our last night. We stayed at a great hotel 10 minutes from the airport which had free transfers - it was just what we needed. And we found a lovely place to have dinner (it just happened to be in somebody's carport which they'd converted to a 'restaurant') and the food was amazing. It made for the perfect end to our trip.

As you know travelling is a huge passion of mine and this year is just the beginning of what will be a lifetime of travelling the world. I know it's not for everyone but for those that are in two minds about travelling or sitting on the fence when trying to decide whether or not to travel, all I can say is Please Do It!

While we were in Thailand experiencing all of the culture, food, people and everything in between I took hundreds of photos and would've loved to have taken hundreds more. I just kept thinking to myself that I wish I could bottle up everything we were seeing and feeling and share it with everyone.

Unfortunately that's not possible, so the next best thing is to share my photos and memories with you all and hope that it gives you the push you need to head out into the world to see it all for yourself.

Please feel free to get in touch if you have any questions about Thailand or travelling in general, I'd love to help point you in the right direction.

Bright lights of Bangkok

One of the many amazing temples in Bangkok

Our first tuk tuk ride in Chiang Mai

Playing with the baby tigers at the Tiger Kingdom

Our transport in Pai

Scotty fishing from the deck at our bungalow in Pai

Exploring the local villages in Pai

The floating village we visited on our Phang Nga Bay tour

Snorkelling at Mosquito Island off Phi Phi Island

Rest and relaxation

 

I'm terrible when it comes to relaxing. My version of a great holiday is seeing as much of a country as possible in whatever time frame we have.

Scotty and I are currently in Thailand for two weeks and the first four days have been non-stop (which I love). But, I'm going to try and slow down the pace a bit for the rest of the holiday and try to take some time to relax. Scotty has a race at the end of our holiday so it will be good for him to spend some time relaxing by the pool or on a white sandy beach somewhere.

That said we still have 3 more towns to visit and lots more exploring to do, but with a few massages, naps and mocktails in between.

This is a short post to say I haven't forgotten about you and I will be back with a fun-filled post all about our trip to Thailand on the 21st October 2013 once we return to Perth (and have a few days to get settled back in to work and routine).