On a very cold morning in January of last year, Keith and I were having a coffee and talking about our plans for the year ahead – Thailand had always been on the cards, so we decided to just book our flights. Two weeks later we were on a plane to Bangkok. We took a bag pack each, a camera, the lightest lens in our kit, 28mm f1.8, and planned our travels around Thailand on the go, which was so exciting!
Upon arrival in Bangkok we stayed a couple of nights at the famous Khao San Road (thanks Barney & Andy for the tips). Khao San completely transforms at night into the most beautifully vibrant place. We sampled the local cuisine for the very first time in a very charming little place full of so much character called ‘Joy Luck Club’ – loved the rice in a shape of a teddy bear :) The next day we explored some more including the Grand Palace, and a boat ride around the city.
After Bangkok, we made our way up north to Chiang Mai where we visited lots of beautiful temples. We also spent a day at an elephant sanctuary, and learnt to cook Pad Thai at a local cooking school. Before heading down south, we visited the famous Sunday Night Market. I have never seen such a busy market, but moreover a market with the most unique, quirky, creative souvenirs, crafts, clothing and food – just brilliant!!
For our last leg of the trip we headed down south to the islands of Ko Phi Phi and Koh Lanta. We saw Monkey Island and went on a snorkelling trip where they filmed ‘The Beach’. My favourite part was renting a scooter for a few days in Koh Lanta. As it’s an open stretch of a quiet road through the island, we explored pretty much all of it. I doubt there are many places where you can see a monkey on a motorbike :)! It was such a great way to end the journey – relax by the beach and soak in the beautiful sunsets.
Hope to be back in Thailand one day, and explore it some more. I can’t believe it’s been a year, but finally I got round to editing these, and also printing some. We had great fun taking them! Doing personal work allows you to experiment and grow as a photographer. It’s so exciting picking up the camera not knowing what you may capture next, which is very much why we absolutely love photographing weddings… :) Here are some photos from the trip…
