We had been to Thailand once before in 2020, the ill-fated trip when I had my moped accident (don’t ask) and fractured my patella. Oddly (and mostly thanks to Colleen), I still have fond memories of my recuperation after knee surgery at the Centara Grand Beach Resort in Krabi. On that trip, we were scheduled to fly back to the U.S. on March 18th, the day President Trump was threatening to lock down the U.S. due to the pandemic, and we returned to find that everyone was being sent home to work and were soon wishing we had stayed in Thailand instead of returning to the U.S.
And so, feeling that we had left something undone, Thailand was on our itinerary for this trip from the beginning, starting with the places we didn’t make it to in our last trip – Bangkok, Ayutthaya, and Chiang Mai. We also had plans to catch up with some old friends, Ellen and Jirair Youssefian, on the island of Ko Phi Phi and travel with them for a week, which we were very excited about. We’ve been fortunate to have a few friends crazy enough to rendezvous with us along the way of our travels over the last year and have found it that sharing our journey with people we know and love really enhances the experience. And, in all honesty, as much as I know that Colleen enjoys my undivided attention, it is nice occasionally, as a change of pace if nothing else, to be in a group which includes more than just the two of us.
Our original itinerary for this trip contemplated spending two weeks relaxing on the beaches of the Andaman Islands after India, which we anticipated to be a pretty overwhelming and exhausting experience. But, due to the time and expense involved in getting to the Andamans, we decided to proceed directly to our next planned destination country, Thailand, which has some pretty nice beaches of its own. We found what looked to be a nice “hippie chic” hut overlooking a beautiful remote beach on the island of Ko Pha Ngan (the scene of the crime, or rather, the scene of the accident) which looked like the perfect place to just kick back and recover from our pretty intense month in India as well as to recharge our batteries for what promised to be a very busy week with the Youssefians. Once I confirmed that there was a yoga studio within walking distance, it was a done deal for Colleen and we booked it.
Getting There
As had been the case on our last trip there, getting to Ko Pha Ngan took a few steps and a bit of time. We flew out of Kolkata around 9:30 PM on Wednesday October 25th and, after two flights with a layover in Bangkok, we arrived on the island of Koh Samui around 7:30 AM the next morning.
From the Koh Sumai airport we had to take a shuttle across the island to the Nathon Pier ferry terminal, a drive of about 45 minutes and along the way we were able to observe for the first time the impact of Thailand’s 2022 legalization of marijuana. As we drove along the coast road, I quickly lost count of the number of recreational marijuana dispensaries, but for most of the 24 kilometers, there seemed to be one on virtually every corner.
From Nathon Pier, we took a passenger ferry to Thongsala Pier on Ko Pha Ngan where we grabbed a taxi (typically a pick-up truck with covered seating in the bed) and made a brief stop for provisions at a 7-11 which was the best we were able to find in the way of a grocery store. (We were somewhat amused to find that they sold joints at the check-out!) We drove for about a half an hour to Haad Rin (setting for Ko Pha Ngan’s famous monthly full moon festival) at the southern tip of the island. From Haad Rin we had to grab a longtail water taxi to take us around the island to Haad Wai Nam where we would be staying for the next 12 days.
Thanks to an incident which happened on a trip in Turkey in 2021 (now and forever known as “The Near-Death Experience”) Colleen is not a fan of boarding or disembarking from boats on beaches (“haad” is the Thai word for beach), so she was justifiably nervous about this last leg of our current journey. Fortunately, our long tail driver was able to get very close to the beach both coming and going (we hardly got our feet wet), and, after a short but bumpy ride of about 20 minutes, we arrived at our “Final Destination” of Haad Wai Nam just about 15 hours after we flew out of Kolkata, exhausted but happy to have that part of the trip behind us.
Ko Pha Ngan/Haad Wai Nam
Our place in Ko Pha Ngan was one of three off-the-grid bungalows perched on a ridge overlooking Haad Wai Nam (our hosts lived in one of the bungalows – another “went there and never came back” story!). As promised in the listing, the place was “hippy chic” (really more “jungle hut rustic”), but it was also inexpensive ($38 per night) and had a million dollar view. It was also an “eco lodge” meaning that it was off-the-grid with limited solar and battery power (no AC, but a small “smart fan” and a mini fridge). Although there was no guarantee of wifi in our bungalow, there was a wireless router which controlled the solar power system which we were able to use to get internet access.
Water came from a mountain stream with one tap in a central location filtered for drinking, but there was silt in it after rains, so we quickly reverted to bottled water. There was an outdoor kitchen, but it was so full of “nature” that it really wasn’t usable for much besides making coffee in the morning. We were able to keep juice, milk, and water in the small fridge (along with a necessary supply of chocolate) but as there wasn’t much available in the way of groceries, this wasn’t much of a problem and we kept a few dry goods like cereal buttoned up in a dry sack to keep them safe from the wild life. Fortunately, there were a few good restaurants within walking distance and food prices were pretty reasonable.
The views from our room, porch, and deck were amazing and it felt very much like the Garden of Eden with the many beautiful flowers and butterflies fluttering about during the day, but at dusk and dawn the mosquitos appeared in droves and so we took to burning large quantities of incense during those hours before and after retreating to the safety of our mosquito net enclosed bed. By this point, we had grown pretty used to the ever-present gecko lizards but were happy that the mosquito net also served to keep them out of our bed at least.
We discovered that Wai Nam was one of three nearby beaches – Haad Wai Nam. Haad Tien, and Haad Yuan – which were separated by two low ridges which required a bit of climbing to traverse. Over the course of our stay, we found that each of the three beaches had its own character, which provided for a nice variety of options and we quickly got to know our way around the various paths, trails, and stairs which connected them.
Our beach, Haad Wai Nam, was the smallest of the three, but maybe the most picturesque, with a small resort and restaurant called “Why Nam?” which had great food, amazing fruit smoothies (Colleen became addicted to something called a Solero), and a large shady porch which was a popular place to hang out for people coming from and going to the local full moon and Halloween parties.
Haad Tien was a larger, sandier, and more exotic beach (occasional topless and even nude sunbathing) and also home to The Sanctuary, another bungalow resort and restaurant. Oh, did I mention that The Sanctuary had a yoga studio? It was more than convenient to meet at the Sanctuary after morning yoga and workouts for breakfast or lunch and just lazing about.
Haad Yuan was the largest and maybe most interesting of the three beaches, with a number of restaurants and bars (which kept erratic days and hours), and lots of bungalows (most of which appeared to be empty) spread up and down the beach and around the adjoining cliffs connected by some of the most precarious walkways I have ever seen.
We fell into a nice routine of morning yoga and workouts and then hanging out at one of the three beaches for the day. We usually ate breakfast at home and then some combination of drinks, snacks, and meals while we were out. The weather was generally sunny, but there were some thunderstorms, mostly in the evenings and night, and it was actually pretty awesome watching the lighting over the ocean and then hearing the thunder roll in and, when there weren’t storms, there was the constant sound of the waves on the beach and rocks below us.
We did take a day trip back to Haad Rin to do some shopping which provided a bit of relief from the monotony of paradise. Haad Rin, which is the site of a big full moon rave party every four weeks is known as a bit of a party spot. We arrived there early by Haad Rin standards (about 8:15 AM) and strolled through the town which was slowly waking up and eventually found a place for breakfast. We perused some shops, made a few small purchases, then hit the 7-11 which was again as good as it got for groceries, before catching another longtail back to Haad Wai Nam.
Did I mention that there was a yoga studio nearby?
The Sanctuary on Ko Pha Ngan (Colleen)
Despite being pretty much out in the middle of nowhere, we quickly identified a seemingly nearby yoga center. When we went exploring the first day, we headed down the hill and along a sort of overgrown path through the jungle that paralleled a beautiful sandy cove. At the end of what is Haad Tien Bay there sits, The Sanctuary. This small wellness focused resort begins on the beach and continues up a steep incline where little one room bungalows precariously perch on the steep face of the hill. At the top was the yoga shala, a screen enclosed, large space, nestled in among the trees where monkeys hung out, literally.
The Sanctuary offered many wellness focused activities, but most important to me were the two daily yoga class options, vigorous vinyasa or a slower, more stretching focused yin class. And so, pretty much every day began with a 15 minute hike down the hill from our “campsite”, along the jungle path, and into the lovely Sanctuary where I would climb what was a very steep, very long narrow pathway (see photos) to get to the yoga shala at the top. I wasn’t the only one catching my breath while lying flat on my yoga mat before class even started!
Over the course of our stay I enjoyed meeting and learning from the yogis in residence. Similar to other places we’ve been that cater to a particular crowd, like surfers or divers, the yoga instructor is often someone who has made a month or longer commitment to the resort to provide yoga instruction, and resides there while doing so. One of the yogis I enjoyed was a retired fireman from London, someone who was very committed to making sure we were all getting the most out of our breath and our yoga practice as we possibly could, often going way beyond the expected end of class much to our surprise once finished. I very much enjoyed having this opportunity to add a little structure to my day and to get back into the daily practice.
Moving On
All in all, our stay on Ko Pha Ngan was pretty idyllic and, in many regards, like being in paradise, but 12 days of living in a rustic beach hut turned out to maybe be a bit more than we had bargained for. And so it was with mixed sentiments that we made our way down to the beach at 6:30 AM on Monday November 6th to start our journey to the island of Ko Phi Phi where we would soon be meeting our friends from home.
Ko Phi Phi
It’s only about 160 miles from Ko Pha Ngan to Ko Phi Phi, but as usually seems to be the case in Thailand (unless and even sometimes if you are flying) getting there involved a few steps and many hours of travel. We started with another longtail from the beach on Ko Pha Ngan (managed to keep all our luggage dry!) to Haad Rin, where Colleen was pleased to find we landed at a real dock and, even better, it turned out that our longtail driver also had a taxi and was happy to take us on to the ferry terminal. From there, we took a ferry which stopped at Koh Samui before dropping us at a place called Don Sac on the mainland where we caught a bus across the peninsula to Krabi. From Krabi we boarded another ferry which took us to the dock at Ko Phi Phi where we arrived at around 5 pm, just about 10-1/2 hours after we had started out.
While all of this sounds a bit complicated, it was actually a single ticket (OK, a series of tickets) booked through one agency with a lot of expertise herding tourists (they had adhesive stickers they put on you, almost like you were a piece of luggage) and it was actually all quite easy and painless, but a long day of travel nonetheless.
As luck would have it, our friends Ellen and Jirair, who were coming from Hong Kong via flights through Bangkok and Phuket were on another ferry just 15 minutes behind us and we had a very joyful reunion with them on the Ko Phi Phi dock. Jirair and I have worked together in various capacities for over 30 years and Ellen and Colleen have been pretty fast friends for about the same period of time since our kids started taking piano lessons from her. Aside from some local adventures over the years, we’ve travelled abroad with Ellen and Jirair before. In 2015 the four of us spent a week together in St. Vincent and the Grenadines on the island of Bequia.
Following our reunion on the Ko Phi Phi dock, we all took a water taxi to the Viking Nature Resort where we would be staying for the next two days. We chose the Viking Resort because it is somewhat removed from the craziness of Ko Phi Phi requiring either a longtail ride or a 45 minute hike (which we did on one occasion) to reach it. The accommodations were pretty cushy by our standards (very welcome after the rustic hut on Ko Pha Ngan).
The grounds at Viking Nature Resort were predictably lush and tropical with pathways winding up the ridge connecting the bungalows with some interesting steeping stones which we had the opportunity to see being made. When I asked the young man doing the work (who spoke no English) what he used to form the leaf shapes, I was first surprised and then felt stupid to realize that he used actual leaves which he embedded in the face of each stepping stone and then later removed.
Best of all, the Viking had a nice small private beach and there was good snorkeling right off the beach (snorkeling is one of Jirair’s favorite things to do). While we were only there for two days, we struck a pretty good balance between being active and just relaxing.
Jirair and Ellen were up early every day for snorkeling and enjoying the beach before a decent buffet breakfast provided as part of our stay after which we would proceed with whatever activities Ellen had scheduled for that day.
On our first day, Ellen had booked us on an excursion which took us to see Ko Phi Phi Lee (Little Ko Phi Phi – site of the Leonardo DiCaprio movie “The Beach”). It was an amazingly scenic spot, but the crowds were a bit overwhelming pretty much everywhere we went. Along the way our captain pointed out some of the sights and we stopped to snorkel in a cove where Colleen wanted to explore the caves under an overhang where it turned out that there were a good number of sharks hanging out in the shade. (Quick, back to the boat!)
After the cruise, we wandered to the backside of Ko Phi Phi which turned out to be just as beautiful as “The Beach” and far less crowded. We grabbed some lunch, wandered the town a bit more, and then caught a longtail back to the resort. We ventured back into town on our second day, had another nice lunch with a view, and wandered the town a bit more. We deciding to hike back to the resort, which turned out to be a bit of an adventure as we once again found ourselves in a place not very well covered by Google Maps, but did eventually find our way there and had another nice dinner before retiring.
We spent our last morning snorkeling and relaxing on the beach before packing up for our next destination, Phuket.
Phuket
I should say that Phuket was really less of a destination than a layover. Our basic plan was to catch an afternoon ferry to Phuket in order to catch early morning flights to Bangkok, our next real destination. But when you travel with Ellen Youssefian, you pack it in as much as possible, even on a layover.
So, when we arrived in Phuket, we had a driver waiting for us to take us to our first stop, known as the “Big Buddha”, a 150 foot tall statue (the third-tallest statue in Thailand) on top of a mountain located about an hour south of Phuket. We were on a pretty tight schedule as the Big Buddha closed at 6 PM but, as it turned out, our timing was close to perfect as we arrived around 5 PM and sunset seemed to be the ideal time to visit the Buddha. (As an added surprise, it turns out that there are hundreds of bats nesting inside the statue that all come out at sunset!) It was surprisingly beautiful and definitely worth the effort to get there.
From the Big Buddha our driver took us to our next destination, a Michelin Star restaurant called The Blue Elephant Cooking School and Restaurant, where we enjoyed a variety of beautiful and delicious dishes and cocktails. It was one of those evenings where between what you order and what the chef decides to just send your way it just becomes a blur of one delicious dish after another.
Following what was certainly the best (and most expensive) meal we had had in quite some time, our driver took us to our final destination in Phuket, the Airport Inn. The Airport Inn was nothing to write home about, but it was clean and had hot water and, at $33 a night was pretty much everything we have grown to look for in a layover hotel but, it was not particularly inviting by the light of day and the Youssefians decided to accompany us to the airport the next morning rather than sleep in or hang out there. So, after some complimentary coffee in the lobby, we all took the free shuttle to the airport and bid farewell to Phuket.
Bangkok
For the first four days of our stay in Bangkok, while the Youssefians were still with us, we stayed at a place called the Column Hotel, located in Sukhumvit, a newer neighborhood full of high rise buildings and shopping malls. We had a very nice two-bedroom apartment on the 25th floor which provided some pretty amazing views of the Bangkok and its world-renowned traffic. We also had an amazing view of a thunderstorm which blew in one evening which grew so thick that much of the city disappeared from view for awhile.
The Column Hotel provided a pretty good base of operations and included breakfast every morning at a nearby place called “Foodland” which was reminiscent of an old Woolworths, essentially a diner located inside a grocery and convenience store.
On our first day there, we discovered that a large nearby shopping mall (Terminal 21) had a street food festival going which entailed three floors of street food stalls offering virtually any variety of street food you could imagine and we found ourselves drawn back there again and again, both for food and shopping. (The mall also had some very festive Christmas decorations as a reminder of the season, but I have to say that we weren’t really feeling it.)
Ellen had arranged a guide and driver for our first full day in Bangkok and we travelled about 2 hours west to visit an authentic floating market. Unfortunately, the first market we visited was closed but, being quick on her feet, our guide quickly made arrangements for a boat tour of the surrounding canals which actually turned out to be quite interesting.
From there we visited a floating market which was open and packed with people and activity. We did a bit of shopping and eventually found a nice place for lunch after which we made the 2-hour drive back to the Column Hotel to rest and get ready for what promised to be a fun evening.
Having sorted out the workings of Bangkok’s Skytrain during one of our ventures out, we made our way to the closest station (which adjoined the Terminal 21 Mall) and rode the train a few stops up the line to another Michelin Star restaurant called Paste where we would be meeting Ellen’s friend from college, Tom.
We started one of Paste’s signature cocktails called “The Dragon’s Kiss” which comes with a bubble of smoke which you kiss to disperse the smoke before drinking. After that, it became a bit of a gourmet smorgasbord with everyone ordering different things and sharing plates. Another amazing gastronomic experience.
The next day was a testament to the benefits of sightseeing with a local. A driver picked us up early and we drove about 45 minutes north to Ayutthaya where Tom lives. We started by visiting one of Tom’s two homes there, a traditional Thai structure to which he has added salvaged structures over time, all full of beautiful family heirlooms, portraits, and sculptures.
From there, we visited Tom’s own temple, the Wat Phra Dhammakaya. To call it just a temple is a bit of an understatement as it is an enormous complex which includes temples, conference facilities, offices, and even living quarters for thousands of monks. While I was unable to confirm the assertion that it is the largest Buddhist temple in the world, it’s hard to believe that it isn’t. It’s crowning and most recent addition is the Dhammakaya Center, which includes a large rectangular concrete structure (the Great Sapha Dhammakaya Hall) which covers over 40 acres and which can accommodate 150,000 people on its upper level and, when necessary can accommodate another 150,000 people on its lower level which is normally used for parking. (Perhaps not intentionally, but it actually looks like a parking structure.)
At the center of this Great Sapha Hall is the enormous Dhammakaya Cetiya, a domed structure which more than anything resembles the flying saucer from the 1951 sci-fi classic The Day the Earth Stood Still (except much, much larger).
You really can’t appreciate how big the area enclosed by the Sapha Hall is until you start walking toward Cetiya and over what seems like (and likely is) several hundreds of yards, it keeps getting bigger and bigger. Even when you get as close as possible to its perimeter, you really don’t appreciate how big it is until you realize that the texture of its golden roof is created by an army of life-size golden Buddhas – 300,000 of them, with another 700,000 under the dome for a nice round 1,000,000 Buddhas! (Another of the Temple’s claims to fame.)
From the Dhmmakaya Temple, Tom took us to lunch at a riverside restaurant which served traditional Thai food, a place we likely wouldn’t have visited (or might have turned away from) as the only words of English on the menu were “Recommend” and “Thank You”. Tom ordered a variety of dishes for us to sample and share (river prawns have become my new favorite food) and we washed it all down with some nice cold local beer and watched the traffic on the river.
Over lunch Tom filled us in a bit on his story. It seems that his family came to Ayutthaya some years before where his father, a friend of the King was advised to build canals, which he did. Tom’s family prospered and they eventually sold a large tract of the land they owned to the Dhammakaya for construction of their temple complex. Tom’s mother was a cousin of the queen and ended up being (of all things) her fashion and cosmetic consultant. So, a bit of a charmed life which led to Tom following in the footsteps of his uncle, a famous Thai pianist, coming to Shenandoah University in Virginia to study piano where he and Ellen Youssefian met and become partners in crime as well as life-long friends.
Following lunch, we visited Wat Phra Mahathat, one of the oldest and most significant temples in Ayutthaya. Wat Mahathat is incredibly picturesque as, like most of the temples in Ayutthaya, it is in a state of ruin. (Quick History: Ayutthaya was the capital of Thailand from about 1350 until it was burned to the ground by the Burmese in the 18th century after which the capital was moved to Bangkok.) Truly beautiful and amazing.
Unfortunately, during the course of our tour Colleen suffered a sudden attack of food sickness (pretty sure it was her decision to go for the Asian breakfast at Foodland that morning) and we retreated back to Tom’s place to allow her to rest and recover a bit. This time, we went to Tom’s other house, actually his piano studio and recital hall, a very interesting place where he and Ellen were able to play some duets and talk about the good old days.
Colleen recovered after a bit and we were treated to yet another amazing traditional Thai meal prepared by Tom’s cook.
Spent, but completely sated, we thanked Tom for an amazing and wonderful day and our driver returned us to our hotel.
We had a lazy morning the next day (including another trip to the Street Food Festival) and then set off on another guided tour arranged by Ellen. This time we travelled to the old city where we visited the Grand Palace, actually an enormous complex of temples and palace buildings. Even in a city full of beautiful and ornate temples (over 400 of them actually) the Grand Palace complex is extraordinarily beautiful and amazing.
From the Royal Palace, we proceeded to the nearby Wat Pho, a beautiful temple complex which features a 150 foot long gold reclining Buddha. We’d heard of and seen pictures of it, but were still blown away by it, walking the length of the stature in front, then around its enormous feet to walk back the other side and see the back of the reclining Buddha’s head and arm.
We then took a quick boat ride across the Chao Phraya River to see the Wat Arun where we discovered that, much like what we had seen in India and elsewhere, it is a popular custom in Thailand to dress in historic attire and have one’s photo taken at the old temples.
Sadly, it was our last day with Ellen and Jirair who were heading back home and had an early flight the next morning. As always seems to be the case, our week went by much too fast but it was packed with interesting activities and it was really great getting to share them with good friends.
Following Ellen and Jirair’s departure, we checked out of the Column Hotel and relocated to a nice little place more aligned with our budget called the Villa de Khaosan located in the old city near the somewhat infamous Khaosan Road.
We visited Khaosan Road our first (and second, and third) night and found it to be pretty much what we had heard – crowded, noisy, and a bit boisterous – but were able to find some decent places to eat and also some very inexpensive foot massages which became a nightly event for the rest of our time in Thailand.
The next day we took a walk east from the Old City down Ratchadamnoen Klan Road, one of the Bangkok’s grand boulevards, where we came across a beautiful collection of International Style building’s one of which served as the city’s library. We passed the city’s Democracy Monument and then past the old city walls to the Saket Temple (The Golden Mount) which, as the highest (and only?) hill in Bangkok afforded some great views of the city.
From the Golden Mount, we wandered through the canal neighborhoods for a bit, eventually making our way to the Jim Thompson House. (If you are not aware, Jim Thompson was an American businessman who more of less single-handedly revitalized Thailand’s silk industry in the 1950’s and 1960’s who is also famous for having stepped our for a walk in the jungle in 1967 and never being seen again.) The House itself was a beautiful traditional Thai house located on a small canal with a wonderful garden, beautifully furnished and decorated with an incredible collection of ceramics, sculptures, and artwork collected by Thompson during his lifetime.
While our room at the Villa Khaosan was pretty tight, it had a great roof-top pool and bar and great views across the Old City. It ended up being our late afternoon and sunset hang-out spot for the duration of our stay there.
As a final note on Bangkok, I have to say that on our last trip to Thailand we had only planned on passing through Bangkok and it honestly wasn’t high on our list of places to visit on this trip. I think we have to give Ellen some thanks for forcing our hand a bit here as it turned out to be an incredible city to visit and one we seem likely to visit again in the future.
Next installment, we’ll continue with our month-long trek through Thailand heading back to Ayutthaya.
Burning the Inheritance 
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