Oh, I'm really in it now...

jill
Jan 24, 2019
3 min read

Thailand. I was scrolling through Facebook and someone had posted a video of a baby elephant that kept trying to sit in people's laps. I have ALWAYS had a thing for elephants since I was a kid, so this hit me in the feels. I had to find out where that baby elephant was and have her sit on me too. After some sleuthing (thanks, Nancy Drew), I discovered she was at a place in Chiang Mai, Thailand called the Chai Lai Orchid. It is an AirBNB that also happens to be an elephant sanctuary. They also hire young women to work there who are at risk of trafficking and teach them English and how to run a BNB (among other things). I knew I had to go to there.

But, being me, I couldn't wait until I saved money, blah blah blah before I went. I became single-minded and had to go NOW. Within a week, I had a plane ticket and reservations at AirBNBs...including the Chai Lai Orchid. The good news is: once you get there, things are pretty cheap. Super nice places to stay at a FRACTION of what they would cost here. Food cheap. Transport cheap. But the plane ticket...not so much. I was lucky enough to find one less than $700.

I also attempted to track down an old friend of mine I used to talk to back when I worked at A&M Records. He ran a record store in Orlando, but had moved to Thailand to open a book store there. Luckily, his email hadn't changed, and I was able to get in touch and will be able to see him while I'm there.

In my research, I've discovered all sorts of crazy stuff about Thailand and its customs, etc. Beyond loving Thai food, this is totally out of my wheelhouse. I'm scared and excited, all at the same time.

First, I'll be flying to Los Angeles (where I've got a 10 hour layover!), then from there to Taipei, Taiwan where I'll only have a brief layover so I won't be able to check it out. From there, I land in Bangkok, where I'll stay for a few days before flying to Chiang Mai for the rest of the time I'm there. It takes a couple of days of travel to get to Thailand...my first REALLY long flight (not that the 8-9 hour flights I've taken to Europe were quickies)...so considering my hatred of the "travel" part of travel, this should be interesting. I do hear really great things about the airline I'm flying with...so fingers crossed.

Some things I'm doing along the way:

Seeing old friends in Los Angeles who are kind enough to help me fill those ten hours!
Sitting in the Taipei Taiwan airport...probably the closest I'll ever get to China.
Seeing tons of temples in Bangkok and Chiang Mai.
Eating REAL Thai food IN Thailand.
Riding down the Chao Praya river in a boat.
Seeing a famous "ladyboy" show (yes, that is what they call them).
Eating super juicy, ripe, delicious mangos every day.
Three words: Hello Kitty house!
Seeing Thai street art.
Getting tons of massages because they are so CHEAP there!
Treking through a jungle with an elephant.
Bathing, feeding, and playing with elephants.
Staying overnight with a Karen tribe family.
Travelling to Chiang Rai on a day trip to see, among other things, the place where Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos meet, and float down the Mekong river