Erin and I said, “Enough with this cold! Let’s go somewhere warm!” So we did. We headed to the sunny beaches of Thailand. It was such a great feeling coming from freezing temps of Japan, and stepping off the plane into warm sweet smelling, tropical air. We had a layover in the Bangkok airport for a few hours and there we tasted out delicious first dish of Thai food. This, too, was a welcome change from the sometimes bland, cold, or slimy food of Japan. These dishes were a new beast altogether! One bite aroused and excited the senses. A cornucopia of fresh flavors; basil, lemongrass, coconut, curry, carrot, lime leaf, the Colonels 11 secret herbs and spices, all danced and made sweet, passionate love to the taste buds, before sliding happily down the throat and settling contentedly in the stomach. Ahhh… Thailand and its scrumptious food!

The new Suvarnabhumi Bangkok Airport was amazing; huge, vast, bright, unique architecture, airy, well lit, equipped with the latest technologies. Unfortunately, I have recently read that it has some problems that are significant enough that officials have decided to repair and re-open the old airport and use it as a domestic hub. I guess the new airport has been a sort of money pit and repairs are expected to take up to 10 years. Strange how these things happen.

E and I took a domestic flight to Krabi, Thailand, a decent-sized hub close to the coast in the south. We had read up on the beaches of Rai Lei, which isn’t accessible by car, but a scenic 25 minute longtail boat ride later and you’re in paradise.