Before turning 30, I thought it was this huge deal. I wanted to just ignore it and move on with life. Now that 31 is here, I look back with my increased wisdom time on earth and laugh. For my birthday, I wanted to be out of the country on some adventure, to minimize the blow of this birthday milestone.
After lots of brainstorming we decided on Thailand. I’ve never been to that part of the world and it was so intriguing to me. We booked a three day liveaboard dive trip, but left our itinerary open besides that so we could be as spontaneous as we wanted.
With limited time thanks to work schedules and pups at home we wanted to maximize our trip. We planned a 12 hour layover in Dubai on our way over. I figured, if we are flying halfway across the world we might as well see as much as we can.
Since we connected through Dubai we flew Emirates and got to see the on plane bar! That was definitely a first for me. They also had a birthday cake and champagne for us. Let the birthday celebrating begin!
Dubai
We landed in Dubai around 8am and had about 8 hours to tour around the city before we needed to be back at the airport. We took a crazy cab ride tour around the city and got to see some of the major sites. No photos from this ride because I got a little carsick and photos just weren’t going to happen!
She dropped us at The Dubai Mall where we ate and walked around for the rest of our time. You could really spend a whole day or more just checking out that area, but with limited time you do what you can.
We had a little bit of extra time so we got a little crazy and went back to the airport and CRASHED before our flight. We were landing in Bangkok at 7am the next morning with another full day planned so we had to sleep a little.
Bangkok
Once we landed in Thailand we checked in to our hotel (I love how in other countries they let you into your room as early as you want if they have any open rooms) and had a power nap. Our hotel was in walking distance of a pretty reputable massage place so we booked two hour Thai massages. You might think, massages after almost no sleep, won’t you just fall right asleep? To that I’ll say, absolutely not. If you’ve ever had a traditional Thai massage, you know exactly what I mean. They are intense, to say the least.
It felt amazing and I was so refreshed afterward, but there were times I had tears in my eyes as an elbow was digging it’s way into my calf or some other muscle that I didn’t realize was tight. Such a cool experience though and Nate and I got to go in the same room so I was able to peek over at him every once in a while to see him wincing!
We walked a bit around the city and had some delicious food at our hotel before we headed out for something I would say is an absolute must do in Bangkok. We went on a Bangkok by Night tour with Just Nok bicycle tours. This tour was recommended by a complete stranger I chatted with about our Thailand trip a couple of weeks before we left. I am so so glad I took this stranger’s advice.
Nok is the owner and operator of this fabulous tour. The ride lasts about 2.5 hours and goes along the Chao Phraya river, through “Old Bangkok”, the flower market, and local neighborhoods and backstreets. We were there in April toward the end of the season so it was just Nate, me, and Nok. She takes a max of 8 riders so it’s always a personalized experience.
This was by far one of the coolest things I’ve ever done. We got to see some of the most beautiful sites in Thailand lit up at night and with virtually no one else around. Nok was a wonderful guide and was so full of knowledge on Bangkok’s history and current events. It’s hard to put into words how special this experience was so if you end up in Bangkok, please please do it. 
After our Bangkok bike tour we headed back to the hotel for a quick sleep before our flight south the next morning to catch our dive boat. Thailand has lots of budget airlines so booking trips within Thailand is cheap and can be done last minute. We took a flight down to Krabi and then a sweaty bus trip up to Khao Lak where Wicked Diving is located. At their open air office we met the 16 other divers we would spend the next 3 days with, living, eating, and diving together.
Similan Islands Diving
This trip took us out to the Similan Islands, one of the top diving spots in the world. These islands sit in the middle of the Andaman Sea and were absolutely gorgeous. Both Nate and I are certified, but never dove together. Thankfully we made good dive buddies. We borrowed a GoPro and learned we aren’t exactly underwater photog experts, but we got a few fun photos.
Sadly, after three days our dive trip had to return to the mainland. We made some fun friends on the boat who also had no further plans so we continued our travels with them. We were told we needed to check out Khao Sok, a national park rainforest within a few hours drive of Khao Lak, where the boat would drop us.
Khao Sok National Park
The thing to do (?) in the rainforest is stay in a treehouse, so that’s what we did. We stayed in Khao Sok national park at Our Jungle House. Literally in the jungle with monkeys swinging from our treehouse, we settled in for a two night stay. From our jungle house we were able to hike in the national park, rent scooters to race through the streets, and head out for an awesome longboat tour on Khao Sok Lake.
Koh Lanta
After our treehouse adventure we only had a couple of days left and Nate and I wanted to head to the beach to relax. We went separate ways from our travel buddies and headed south to Koh Lanta. I was told this was one of the most beautiful islands and I think I have to agree. We had a magical stay at Layana Resort. Thy treated us like royalty, but without the price tag. We spent the rest of our time walking along the beach, relaxing by the pool, and eating as much Thai food as we could.
As we started the lengthy journey back to Seattle I knew this had been the trip of a lifetime. I know these days of carelessly traipsing across foreign countries with no agenda are numbered. If you have the chance, go. If you’re unsure, don’t be. Take that trip you’re considering! And if it’s Thailand, let me know if you have any questions.
