It is time once again, to go back in time. Aaaaaalllll the way to 2014 and my trip to Thailand and Cambodia. I already wrote about Cambodia not long after we got back (when I still hadn’t figured this whole blog thing out), so it’s finally time to tell you about the much longer portion of this 2 week trip – Thailand!

I’d been wanting to go to Thailand ever since I fell in love with their amazing food (in case you couldn’t tell by now, I LOVE food and it’s a big part of my travels) in college. My friend Katie went back in 2009 and came home with amazing stories and photos. I’ve been convinced ever since that I had to get to this country ASAP.

Finally, in 2013 (which I suppose is not very ASAP), Adrienne and I decided to take each other to Thailand for our 30th birthdays. We settled on the following February for 2 weeks, giving us plenty of time to plan. We worked it out to 4 days in Bangkok, 3 days in Cambodia, 3 days in Chiang Mai and 4 days relaxing at the beach on Koh Phi Phi island.

I can’t wait to share with you my favorite photos of this trip, starting with our first morning in Bangkok at the Grand Palace.

After lunch, we tour Wat Pho and the Reclining Buddha, just south of the Grand Palace.

Panang curry for dinner – yum!

Our second day in Bangkok begins by exploring Wat Arun, across the river. There are some pretty killer views from the top, with even more killer stairs to get there.

Our afternoon is spent on a tour to the Maeklong Railway market and the Amphora Floating market. Every hour, the train passes through and vendors pull back their awnings and move their boxes out of the way. As soon as the train is gone, out come the awnings and the food and it’s business as usual.

Day three we fly to Siem Reap, Cambodia, which you can read about here. It’s incredible and I’m so glad we made the effort to see this amazing place.

From Siem Reap, we fly to Chiang Mai in northern Thailand, where we spend our first day at a Thai cooking school, making the most delicious food.

The next day we went down to the Thai Elephant Conservation Center. I’ve written about my experience visiting elephants previously in India, and once again, I hate to think I contributed at all to animal cruelty. But I’ll go into more detail later.

For our last day in Chiang Mai, we head up the hill to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep.

Finally, it’s time for the beach! We spend 4 glorious days parked in those chairs on the beach, doing almost nothing. Seriously, can I go back right now?

With only a couple days left, we head back to Bangkok for a day trip to the ancient capital of Ayutthaya.

On our last night, we walk around Kao San Road in Bangkok, eating at the local food vendors. It is definitely worth the experience.

And I may have tried one of the tasty goodies on the cart below, but you’ll have to wait to find out which one!

OK, I’m definitely ready to go back to Thailand now. Just thinking about all the yummy food is making me hungry. I see a lot of Thai dinners in my near future. And seriously, did you see that beach? I’m way behind on my reading this year and could use a few weeks to catch up. I’m excited to tell you all about this trip in more detail. Stay tuned!