We just enjoyed Chinese New Year, a glorious month off of school where we could travel, lounge and enjoy a much quieter Shenzhen. That month off is an oasis in the desert of teaching English. The Chinese people traditionally return to their hometowns during this holiday. We could tell that many of our city neighbors were gone! We felt it in the bounty of personal space we discovered on the metro and in the stores that were still open. It was great. No one rushed to cut line in front of us anywhere. We basked in the calm serenity of the city, but not before heading out on an adventure to Thailand. Some of the first things we did to start this vacation involved crossing things off of our bucket list.
As usual, I need to catch up on our blogs and tell our stories. Booker says to start here so here we go. 
Bucket list item #1: double-decker bus
We flew out of Hong Kong and part of that process included riding a double-decker bus! We had seen them careening around here and especially Hong Kong and thought it would be fun to ride in the upstairs part so we did! The double-decker brought us from the Hong Kong border to the airport with two hours to spare before we had to board the plane. We grabbed a bite to eat and a quick drink. Then we found our gate, a box of Maltesers and a bag of gummy bears. Our brains and bodies were ready for vacation! We boarded around 10 PM and took off on what we thought was a two-hour flight. Two hours and fifteen minutes later we realized that Thailand is an hour behind us in China… so now we know that for the next time we go.
Bucket list item #2: going to Thailand!
Kim has talked about wanting to go to Thailand pretty much since we started dating and I’m pleased to say we can cross it off the list! (I should note that crossing it off the bucket list does not mean we won’t return. On the contrary, we loved it so much there, we can’t wait to go back.)
We flew from Hong Kong to Bangkok, arriving around 1 AM our time. Kim booked our first night at the ZZZ Hostel, only a ten minute walk from the airport. I had never stayed in a hostel before but from what I’ve read, I expected one big room with bunk beds and young adults in varying stages of intoxication. The ZZZ may have had a room like this, but we were in a private room, so I didn’t get the bunk bed experience. Instead, we slept on what would be the most comfortable bed of our entire vacation. Aubrie had a couch that folded down to a bed and it was comfortable also. I can’t compare anything to our Chinese beds, as they are made of fabric stretched tightly over bricks.
We slept at ZZZ for a few hours then got up early to eat breakfast and head to our next hostel. Breakfast offerings included bananas, banana muffins, fried dough, toast and steamed coconut custard. It was simple but gave us the energy we needed to get moving. We fueled up and “Grabbed” a ride to the Little Pig Hostel and Cafe in Sukhumvit. Similar to America’s “Uber” and China’s “Didi,” “Grab” is an application in southeast Asia people use to hail rides and also order food delivery.
From this Little Pig we went to market
Accommodations at the Little Pig were slightly more cramped but still sufficient for what we needed. We just wanted a place to leave our bags while we explored. This new year, 2019, is the year of the pig in China, so I considered it a sign of good luck that we were staying at a piggly inn.
From our new hostel we were more conveniently located to accomplish one of our main goals of this trip: getting Aubrie an affordable dental consultation regarding some Invisalign business! We were also close to some fun markets that Kim wanted to check out, like the Chatuchak Weekend Market and the Train Night Market Ratchada. Stay tuned for detailed stories from the markets.
Bucket list item #3: play beach volleyball in every country we visit
While it wasn’t the friendliest game I’ve participated in, I was able to jump in with some boys on a beach in Patong. I hunted for a game in the sand for two days before stumbling upon their net. They were just setting up when I saw them. I continued stumbling, trying to ask if I could play. The tallest one knew as much English as I know of Thai. We needed an interpreter. He pointed to a shorter boy, busy stepping off boundary lines.
Together we sorted it out but I think I cramped their style. They were lean, young and ready for fast-paced action. I am not so lean or young anymore and I shanked about as many balls as I successfully returned over the next. In fact, I spent a lot of time hidden in the back row between two fast Thai boys but I still played a game and that is all that matters.
Stay tuned…
Over our two weeks in beautiful Thailand, we beached it. We floated and swam. We ate and drank, stayed out late and slept late. There were elephant baths and sea creature discoveries.