Thailand!!

I travel alone. Well, most of the time. Sometimes there are people I meet at my destination, but I mostly travel alone. I am a serious traveler and when people hear that I travel, the most common question they ask is, "Do you really travel alone?" And then, of course, it is usually followed up with, "Aren't you scared? Isn't it lonely?" I guess sometimes it might be more interesting to travel with people, but traveling alone is empowering, dynamic, and enjoyable. I like the fact that I get to decide where I travel without consultation, whining, or negotiation. I get to decide. Maybe that is selfish or egocentric, but I don't care. Traveling is my passion and I love to be in a place that doesn't look like where I grew up with people I can't understand. Seriously. It is where I am at absolute peace and solitude. My greatest reflections and revelations come while I am traveling. From figuring out transportation to understanding food to trying a new activity, it renews me, it sustains me. 

Haad Tien Bay

Once we start the school year, I usually look at my holiday time and try to plan out where I can go. Bonus points if I can scratch off a new country on my cool world map. So, back in September or October, I decided to go to Thailand for my winter holiday. Ankara is normally cold and snowy during January so I decided that I wanted to go to a warm, humid place that required no sweaters, coats, thermal socks, or boots. My toes needed to breathe. My skin needed to feel that sticky, humid air. My nose needed to smell the ocean. I am a member of a Facebook girls travel group and I saw a suggestion for The Sanctuary in Koh Phangan (https://www.thesanctuarythailand.com/). There were various options including a spa and yoga package. I decided that I wanted to choose the "yoga holiday" which gave me: 

• 7 nights accommodation
• Welcoming meal
• 6 Yoga / Pilates classes
• 2 Private Yoga / Pilates sessions
• 1 Sanctuary therapy or healing session
• 5 Massage treatments (1 hour each)
• Daily Steam Room

I mean, they really had me with the pictures, but once I realized I could do yoga along with spa treatments, I was in! I emailed the resort and they responded immediately. I had a ton of questions and they answered all of them. I reserved my room and started looking for airfare. My biggest concern was with actually getting from the airport in Koh Samui to the next island where I could find the resort. There were many different ways to get there from a ferry to taxi boat to trunk, so I checked with the staff for the best way to get there. In the end, I actually took three flights, a taxi, a ferry, and a taxi boat. The island is only accessible by boat and after going through this experience, I think I should make this a requirement for all of my warm weather vacations. The island is isolated but spectacular. The resort is set into the jungle where you actually climb a mountain to get to your accommodation. It felt a bit like camp but in the middle of a rainforest. 

I arrived to the island in the middle of a rainstorm on a wooden boat. It was just me on the boat and I was a bit nervous but the driver got me there without incident. I wore tennis shoes but when I had to jump out of the boat, I second guessed my choice. I should've switched to flip flops at some point, but when I left Ankara, it was in the 20s. Now, I was jumping off a boat on an isolated island with temperatures in the mid-80s. Of course, my tennis shoes were full of water and I had to walk across the beach to the reception. 

the view from my balcony

 The first thing I noticed was a sign to take off my shoes so I gladly removed my wet tennis shoes and sand covered socks. As I walked through the door, I told the reception guy, "Either this was the best decision of my life or the stupidest decision of my life." He laughed and handed me a glass of cold ginger tea. We settled my account, he told me of all of the classes/activities, and then another person showed me to my room. We walked through the restaurant and again, I saw a "no shoes" sign. At that point, I didn't know it, but most of my vacation would be spent barefoot, which was glorious. 

My room was tastefully decorated with a large balcony and thatched shower/bathroom. I didn't realize my bathroom was a thatched hut until it rained and leaked into my bathroom. I was annoyed at first, but then this added to the ambience of the jungle. The balcony had a hammock and a little love seat couch that called my name most days. I spent so much time on that little couch thinking, reflecting, resting, and reading. The first night, I walked down the steps to the restaurant, ordered a delicious pad thai, and fell asleep around 9 p.m. I was exhausted after flying all night. 

the entrance to my accommodation

The hotel gave me all of these little tickets for each of the services. It was a bit complicated to book everything because you had to go to the individual places. The first day I was there, it rained most of the morning. Not just a little shower, but like monsoon type rain that turns the ocean brown next to the beach. After the rain stopped, I ventured out to find various things around the resort. It took me a while to find the spa and book my appointments. After the spa, I went to search for the Tea Temple to book my private yoga sessions and healing treatment. They told me to come back a few hours later so that I could attend the Sunday meeting and hear about all of their treatments. After the meeting, I decided to book two private yoga sessions with Johnny and acupuncture with Mark. Johnny was from the UK and not the typical thin yoga body. As soon as I heard his soothing voice, yet no-nonsense way, I knew he was for me. Mark was an Australian who had a friendly demeanor and who said he could help relieve my nasal congestion. At that point, I had a really bad cold and could barely talk. The cold started on my way there and got worse as time went on. 

friend from Germany

The next day, I got up and went to yoga at 10:30. I met Johnny and the first thing he said to me was about my hips. "Tightness in your hips indicates some sort of trauma you have not dealt with or something from your childhood." I was having a really hard time with my hips and I felt sore and could not stretch them well. I went right back to my room and journaled some of my feelings I had after that session. Without getting too personal, I saw patterns in my life that I had never seen before. I vowed from that day forward, I would take care of me. I would put my needs first. I would listen to my body and treat it well. 

entrance to one of the treatment rooms in the spa

The rest of the week went like that...yoga in the morning, spa treatment during the day, mediation in the early evening, and meet new friends at the restaurant every night. The first night, I was so nervous going to dinner alone, but as the week went on, I meet really cool people each night. The resort also had cool events like live music and karaoke during the week. It was small, intimate, and encouraging. 

live music

The spa treatments were fantastic. I had massages, a facial, mani/pedi, and a body polish. The most memorable services were the Thai massage and the body polish. The massage therapist was so excited when he found out he was doing a Thai massage that he made me giggle. He stretched and pulled me in ways I didn't even know were possible. The body polish was amazing. First, the lady covered my body with papaya - my entire body. I had disposable underwear on, but that was it (see pic). Everything was out for all to see, including the girls. After the polish, she rolled me up like a burrito and then massaged my head and feet. That was glorious. Then, I showered, while the therapist cleaned up the area. After I was finished, I came back to the table, this time buck naked and she spread and massaged lotion into my skin. Again, divine but a bit out of my comfort zone.  Overall, I was impressed with all of the spa services and felt appropriately pampered. 

granny panties for my body polish treatment

On Saturday, I had scheduled to take a speedboat directly to the airport and since there were five people going, it was actually cheaper than the taxi boat I took when I arrived. It was a bit rough getting on to the speedboat because you had to take a little inflatable boat our to the bigger boat, but then we were off at breakneck speed! About 15 minutes into our trip, the boat made a sound and the captain immediately stopped. He started the rutter again which caused the boat to make another sound and the guy started saying things in Thai to the co-captain. The owner was also on the boat, so he translated that the rutter needed to be changed. So, 10 minutes later we were on our way to the airport. 

When we arrived at the dock, there was a truck waiting to take us to the airport or into the town. This was definitely the easiest way to get back to the tiny island airport. Flights went well back to Turkey and classes started the next day. It was a rude awakening, but at least the weather was warm. Overall, I was really pleased with my first trip to Southeast Asia. I will be going back soon. 

refreshed after my vacation