To be frank, we were quite skeptical while planning a trip
to Thailand. This was a much needed and awaited break and we didn’t want to
screw it by going to some over-hyped place. After getting mixed kind of reviews
from friends and some online posts, we decided to visit Bangkok, Krabi and
Phuket. Yes, we skipped Pattaya as many of the reviews stated, it’s same as
Phuket.
We had some prejudices in the mind, which to some extent
were either true or quite far from reality.
1.
There would be white sand beaches with crystal
clear blue waters
Reality: The normal beaches of Krabi and
Phuket are normal :) No clear blue waters
as they show in the pictures or travel sites. In fact, these beaches are like just any other beach in Goa. But when you visit the islands like
Phi-Phi or James Bond, your fantasy of being on the white sand beach with
crystal clear water would be fulfilled. Though the sea at James Bond Island is green, the nature is too beautiful to
explain in words at the islands.
2.
It would be crowded as hell
Reality: Bangkok was too crowded, Phuket
was moderately crowded and to our surprise, Krabi was relaxed.
3.
We would be accompanied by a lot of Indians
wherever we go
Reality: This holds true only for Bangkok.
On Krabi Railey beach, we didn’t find any Indian traveler. However, there are
some shops and restaurants run by migrated Indians.
4.
The weather might not be good as it’s the month
of May
Reality: The weather was good. Though we
got tanned around 2-3 shades, the sunny climate was not so irritating. It did
rain on couple of nights though. The best part is when it rains, it rains heavy for shorter periods. This did not affect our plans.
5.
We would love the Thai food
Reality: Our experiments regarding Thai
food was limited to Thai curry before visiting Thailand. But we were quite sure
that we would survive on their food. In reality, we didn’t like the food much.
For Indian taste, thai food is a bit bland. Plus every dish seems to be
prepared in the weirdly smelling fish sauce, which some people might not like
at all. God bless vegetarians as we didn't find much options for them, They can take a help from Indian restaurants but what's the fund in eating Indian food in other countries? Also, if you have booked a tour which includes lunch, do get some things on your own to eat as you may not eat the food they are providing.
6.
Dinner cruise would be a must have at Bangkok
Reality: They try to sell it
hard as one of the best packages for Bangkok tour. But it is not. Going to the
dinner cruise was one of the worst decisions we made during our trip! Details
would come with the next post.
Many more posts to come with the complete travel experience.
Hold on!
