(Photo by Lars Anderson/Stripes Guam)
Sea kayaking through lagoons, hiking with elephants and tasting unique local food are just a few of the amazing things to do in Thailand. Did you know that they make paper out of elephant poop? Have you ever climbed up a waterfall? There are many exciting locations and activities in Thailand!
The John Gray Sea Kayaking Tour in Phuket goes through lagoons on the Andaman Sea. It is a cool experience. The kayak enters caves that are filled with bats everywhere, eventually opening into a clearing. When the tide is low, there are hundreds of mudskippers and crabs walking across all the mud. Up high, monkeys are climbing on walls of trees all around. Toward the end of the boat ride, krathongs, floating baskets out of flowers and leaves, are made with the crew. Candles placed in the basket lit on fire and released onto the water. The tradition is to make a wish, let go of one’s hatred and anger and to pay respect to the water spirits. Bioluminescence, an organism that produces a chemical reaction lighting up the water, is visible in the caves from the kayak at night.
In Chiang Mai, hiking alongside elephants on a trail is a unique experience only offered in a few places around the world. Rice and grain balls are made for the elephants and fed to them, along with sugar cane and bananas. Walking alongside the elephants on the trail is fun but watch out for their poop! In town, they take the dried poop and make it into paper. The paper making process is shown at the Elephant Poopoo Paper Park. At the end of the hike with the elephants there is a waterfall. The water is really cold. There is time to clean and brush them. The elephants spray water. There is a large treehouse nearby where you eat lunch. The views are great, and the treehouse is so big it has multiple rooms.
Thailand has lots of unique, amazing food. The markets have lots to try, like fried scorpion. It is super salty. There are also crepes, which are a favorite. One of the really good food places is CocoMango with a variety of mango and coconut desserts. Cooking class is a great way to learn and try many local foods like pad Thai, spring rolls, curry, tom yum soup and mango sticky rice.
(Photo by Lars Anderson/Stripes Guam)
Overall, Thailand has many great things to see and do. There are adventures sea kayaking, hiking with elephants, climbing up a waterfall, and cooking local food. Plus, there are so many unique things to see like mudskippers, monkeys, and bioluminescence!
