Come play in the Sandbox

After almost three years of being grounded, I jumped at the opportunity to go to Thailand as part of the Sandbox tourism scheme.

Under the scheme, as long as you book several nights at a resort, complete the necessary paperwork and undertake COVID tests; you are able to travel internationally. It did take me the best part of two days to figure out the system and book in for what was needed, but trust me, it was worth it; and I recommend to anyone wanting to get back out there into the big wide world.

The resort itself, JW Marriot in Kho Lak, was suitably majestic with its towering white-washed walls and ornate rooftops. The eight-night deal was with Luxury Escapes and included accommodation, flights, all meals, two massages, airport transfer and happy hour drinks. The room was fantastic- large and marbled with lovely little Thai touches to the décor and the welcome towel origami on the bed. The back deck led into the largest pool in Asia as it meandered around all the other rooms in the resort.

The beach was lined with palm tress or course, with hammocks, a beach bar and the requisite umbrella deckchairs. There was a Japanese, Thai and Italian restaurant to choose from and the buffet breakfast was back! The first thing I did was book in one of my free massages at the luxurious spa- a beautiful lily pad filled area with Arabic-like archways. The perfect thing to ease that travel-body soreness that we have all forgotten about by now.

I could have happily stayed at the resort the whole time, but I am an explorer by heart, so hired a scooter. As long as you stay within the province, this is allowed, and really, how far can you get on a scooter anyway?

A visit to the night markets was high on my list. The sights, sounds, smells and particularly food of an Asian market is one of the things I had been missing for so long. I got reacquainted with the art of bargaining, and was pleased to still be paying low prices for those different new clothes that I had been craving.

The hinterland of the region is filled with waterfalls, so I visited one- Sai Rung waterfall- just before day’s end, once all the locals were gone and had the waterfall to myself. Amazing. There are also several beaches in the area to visit, each a little different. Some of the area still had Tsunami damage that was yet to be fixed 15 years later, and I visited the local Tsunami Memorial Park, which was striking in it’s simplicity to convey the breath of the tragedy.

Another thing high on my list was a visit to Memories Beach Bar, which apart from the lack of customers, was a great outfit. Set up perfectly for those Instagram moments, I watched a matching-dressed Asian family pose on the swings and smiled. The sunset was wonderful and the walk back to the resort along the beach, safe.

I went on a Surin Island boat trip and was encouraged by the busyness of the day. Although only half a dozen English-speaking tourists were on the tour, there were several boatloads of local Thai tourists, who all came to see one of the wonders of their land. Three snorkelling sites were visited, along with the national park area for lunch and a walk around the island. Oh how I had missed the roar of those long boats! It was a day trip definitely worth doing.

Having ticked all the touristy things off my to do list, it was time to relax and mix with the locals. I had forgotten how nice Thai people are- so hospitable, kind and always smiling. A visit to a couple of the local bars near the resort, found some lovely local characters who were more than willing to have a chat, share a drink and some of the local delicacies.

I had forgotten about the majesty of the Buddhist temples, all gold and wonderful, with several buildings to explore in the one compound. The peace, tranquillity and silence as comforting as a the blanket of thick humid air that surrounded me.

A local Polish tour guide took us to an authentic cockfight, and we were the only foreigners there. An experience to say the least. We also went to a beautiful rooftop restaurant overlooking the start of the Thai archipelago that I had seen on previous trips to Thailand. Definitely worth the drive.

It was also great to talk to people from all over the world at the resort- England, Germany, Australia, and more. Though tourism clearly hadn’t recovered fully, it was heartening to see more people arriving as I left, and my wish for the local restaurateurs is that the industry recovers and overflows into their waiting arms.

#travel #writing #freelance #Thailand #Sandbox