Living the Daydream: Month 16 roundup
We’ve done it, folks.
Month 16 of living the daydream was my final month of living abroad! And while you’d ~think~ that after this whole crazy adventure (and over a year of not being home), I’d maybe be ready to see family and friends and get back to life in the U.S., … that could not have been further from the truth (sorry guys).
While November was incredible, it felt like there was this huge dark cloud hanging over my head the entire time.
Which there literally was half the time (thank you, rainy season in Thailand), but also, my flight home inching closer and closer was a HUGE source of anxiety for me.
Moving to Korea after school and saving up to backpack Southeast Asia was the extent of my post-grad plan, and I think we can all say a resounding MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.
But that also meant me coming home with no clue as to what comes next and as a girl who LOVES her plans, that was absolutely terrifying.
All of my friends from home had moved away, and my two besties I made abroad were in London and still back in Korea. There literally wasn’t even a time where we were all awake at the same time to FaceTime.
I had no job lined up, a nearly empty bank account, and no plans. Life after Asia was looking BLEAK.
I never wanted these last three weeks to end, and so while November was still spent in Asia, my mind was elsewhere.
Sorry for the angst right off the bat - let’s talk about what I got up to in November. (I KNOW I’m behind - sorry)
Where I’ve Been
Cambodia
Siem Reap - 3 days
Horrific Transit - 2 days
Thailand
Koh Phangan - 5 days
Koh Tao -10 days
More Horrific Transit - 2 days
United States of America
Richmond, Virginia :((( - the rest of the month
Highlights
Living out my Lara Croft dreams - exploring the temples of Angkor
Seeing the temples of Angkor in Siem Reap, Cambodia, was a highlight of my WHOLE. ENTIRE. LIFE. I grew up watching Lara Croft walk through these exact temples, and I was finally able to see them for myself. And it was everything I could have ever imagined.
I went on two separate days, one with a tuk-tuk driver to cart my friend and I around, and the next on my own rented motorbike - something that has become one of my favorite things to do since learning in Laos.
I have no words to describe the feeling of riding a motorbike through ancient ruins, the wind whipping in your hair, with the temples looming on either side of you. It was a pinch me moment. Words cannot describe the magic that was in the air.
I was there with one of my very best travel buddies - and he did a great job of being the instagram boyfriend of the day and put up with all my pictures and high pitched squeals and rambling. ily Josh <3
I’ll let the photos speak for themselves - I really just can’t speak highly enough of Siem Reap and Angkor.
Full blog post to come!
Family Reunion in Koh Phangan
If you’ve ever looked into backpacking Southeast Asia, I’m sure you’ve heard of the Full Moon Party. The majority of backpackers plan their trip around attending the infamous party on Koh Phangan, and I was no exception! That being said, there are reasons why I would, AND reasons why I wouldn’t recommend it.
To be honest, the party is fun, but it’s not all that. Anywhere from 20,000 to 40,000 people show up every month to go crazy on a mediocre beach in Thailand, dressed in cheesy neon clothes and body paint, only to spend an obscene amount of money on inflated alcohol prices and to lose their friends somewhere in the throng.
I won’t lie, I went to a random jungle party in the week leading up to the full moon that I enjoyed WAY more. And no matter the time of month, there will always be a party on Koh Phangan. What people don’t tell you is that there are new moon parties, half moon parties, beach parties, jungle parties, and just about everything in between, so don’t worry if your itinerary doesn’t allow for a full moon.
The reason I ~would~ recommend it, however, is because quite frankly not many people plan their trip around half moon parties or random jungle parties - and even if you decide to do the smart thing and not plan your whole trip around the Full Moon Party, chances are, everyone else still will. Because the full moon party only rolls around once a month, everyone you’ve met along the way will probably find themselves on Koh Phangan at the same time as you.
All the friends I made in Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia were there, and it was the least “solo” I felt the entire time I was solo traveling. I arrived to the hostel a day after them, and as a result had a welcome party of 4 of my closest girlfriends all screaming my name before I even got out of my tuktuk. I’d never been to the island, but having ALL of my people from every different leg of my journey there made it feel like home instantly.
Even two months out, I met a group of people who were planning on attending the November full moon party later on in their trip, and although we were heading in opposite directions at the time, we were able to say a definite “See ya later!” and actually managed to meet up a full two months later! It is a really unique thing about the party that I really loved.
Two days before the party, I came home to the hostel from the beach and someone was sleeping in the previously unoccupied bunk below me. I tried to be quiet, but he woke up and rolled over, and before his face could even register in my brain, he promptly sprang from his bed and gave me a massive bearhug. I had met him in Laos nearly a month and a half earlier! One of my favorite people ever just happened to be my bunk mate?? Love to see it.
I would’ve felt the WORST fomo in the world if all of these people were there without me, so I have no regrets.
And while the party wasn’t everything we had ever hoped and dreamed of, I had the time of my life with my Laos and Vietnam family, waiting out the rain by playing pool in the hostel, laying on the beach, body painting ourselves in neon paint every other night, jumping flaming jump ropes, and watching the sun come up over Haad Rin beach after the Full Moon Party. It was the best.
Falling in Love with Koh Tao
The last stop of my entire three month trip was the tiny little island of Koh Tao, Thailand.
I had massive expectations for this island, I won’t lie! I grew up reading the travel blog Alex in Wanderland, and she made Koh Tao her home for months on end, multiple times. She loved it there, and I basically trust her opinion on everything.
Safe to say, she didn’t let me down.
Koh Tao, while tiny and not possessing much in the terms of “things to do”, managed to charm my socks off, and I see why she stayed for so long.
Because I took about 10 days on this island just to decompress and soak in my last few days of travel (i.e. not waste one of my last few days on an overnight ferry or a 16 hour bus - what the freak is up with travel times in Thailand?), I was really able to settle into a little routine, and I loved it.
I rented a motorbike, found a favorite brunch spot, went to Muay Thai exercise classes (traveling does a NUMBER on my fitness level so I needed this), explored all the beaches, got a tattoo, learned to scuba dive, and even unpacked my backpack fully for the first (and last) time on my trip.
And since everyone that I knew from Koh Phangan continued on to Koh Tao, it seemed like there were people I recognized around every turn. I loved it.
Learning to Scuba Dive!
A major contribution to me loving Koh Tao was the fact that I spent three days learning to scuba dive! I’ve always wanted to learn, and I can’t believe it finally happened!
Now, this scuba diving adventure was only meant to be a one and a half day open water certification course, but because I loved it so much (and definitely not because of my sexy Polish ex-Dolce & Gabana model dive instructor … 👀), I promptly signed up for the advanced course.
3 dives the first day, 5 dives the next, and 3 dives the last day - it was insanity and I loved every second of it. The T-shirts they were selling at the dive shop said, “Same planet, different world”, and I really couldn’t explain it any better.
Since I was a swimmer my whole life, I’ve always felt at home in the water. Being able to now breathe underwater, swim through caves, float through shipwrecks, and interact with the most amazing wildlife was an absolute highlight of my trip.
And plus - I was there in rainy season - so while the beaches were a little bit of a no-go, you really couldn’t tell underwater. The fish don’t care if it’s raining or not, so diving really is the best rainy day activity!
I already know it’s going to be a lifelong hobby, and I have dreams of diving in the Red Sea, Raja Ampat, Isla de Coiba, Útila, the Galapagos, Lake Átitlan, and more.
Next on the to-do list is to get an underwater camera setup so I can bring you along on these adventures and hopefully show you just why I adore it so much! That singular underwater picture of me is that absolute worst, but I couldn’t not include it in the part of the post - lol!
Lowlights
Siem Reap -> Koh Phangan transit from hell
I’ve actually recently written about this in my most recent Travel Disasters blog post - so please head over there if you’re interested in reading about it - click here!
I have absolutely no desire to think about it ever again, let alone write about it again. It was hell. And that’s all I’ll say.
Rainy season in thailand - and not planning my time well!
Unfortunately, I got some really bad weather for my last few weeks in Thailand. Of course, in Southeast Asia and all of its different climates, it was about time I hit a bad patch. It did, unfortunately, add to the doom and gloom of the last few weeks of my trip, when I really could’ve used some sunshine to flip my disposition around.
I filled my time with finding new brunch cafes and with diving, which was a blessing! I never thought that diving would be such a good rainy day activity, but while visibility wasn’t amazing with the cloud cover, the water in Thailand is pretty clear regardless so it wasn’t bad at all!
Another huge bummer was missing out on the western side of Thailand as well as Khao Sok National Park, all of which was on my original itinerary.
My goal was to be home for the holidays, so I had a flight booked for the day before Thanksgiving, which placed a ticking time bomb on my schedule.
One thing that I didn’t take into account when planning out my Thailand travels was the FREAKING TRAVEL TIMES. Literally who knew? Everything is an overnight something or other, and in an effort to really soak in my last few days, I made the executive decision to say goodbye to all my friends as they continued on through the mainland and then out to the western islands.
It was the best choice, because they didn’t have good weather either and I needed a second to chill out and reflect by myself to return home for the first time in forever, but it was so sad to send them off as they loaded all of their backpacks into the bed of a pickup truck that took them to the ferry, while I went back to my little dorm bunk bed and cried.
I spent the last few days of my trip alone (I literally I spent so much time alone during this trip so It really wasn’t a big deal), but with the weather and my impending flight and lack of plans back home, it was a hard last few days all alone.
And I didn’t even see all that Thailand had to offer! Which, who really can, but I definitely feel like I failed a little bit when it came to the Thailand part of my trip.
Oh well, all the more reason to go back (and hopefully get some nice weather:)
The end of an era
Obviously, this is what I’ve been hinting at this whole blog post, but obviously my time in Asia coming to a close was a huge lowlight this month for me.
It was a 50 hour journey home, involving a ferry, an overnight bus, one last motorbike ride through Bangkok to get to the airport, a 9 hour flight to Ethiopia, and then an 18 hour flight that had a pitstop in Togo to refuel, and then straight through to Dulles. A two hour drive home, and just like that, the fever dream was over.
I set foot into my childhood home after a relatively quiet drive home, turned to my parents, and promptly sank to the kitchen floor in tears.
Of course I reassured them that I was very happy to see them; I had warned them that this was bound to happen before I started the journey home. My dad silently went and got my favorite flavor of Crumbl cookie out of the freezer (My favorite weekly flavor came out two weeks before I got home and he knew it would make the blow of coming home just a little bit easier), and then I preceded to spent the next three weeks holed up in my room.
All of the friends that I made while traveling are currently on working visas in Australia and New Zealand, saving to keep the adventure going. I’m so happy to see them on new adventures every day, but obviously it was also fuel for the massive pit of depression I was in when I got home.
It took me a long time to get back to normal, and now, 6 months later (and with another trip in the works), I’m finally happy here at home.
Thank you for everything, Asia <3
xoxo
