Finally Heading Home!

I'm finally on the final flight from Oahu back to Maui! After five days of traveling it's hard to believe I'm actually coming home. Flying business class made everything so much easier. I got to hang out in the Asiana business lounge in Seoul, Korea with all-you-can-eat food/drinks, shower and the best high tech massage chair that I wanted to marry. 

I was able to sleep on the long flights with reclining chairs and high quality food and service. Once I got to Oahu I wasn't even tired! It was so nice to hear people speaking English again. Thai people are super nice, but people in Hawaii are super nice too. Happy to get my life back! Maui No Ka Oi!

Stuck in Bangkok

Well... I thought I was heading home and arriving August 30th, but apparently Thailand loves me and doesn't want me to leave. I am now stuck in Bangkok for a couple nights at a hotel because my flight was 45 minutes delayed and I missed the rest of the connecting flights. So I was up all night on the phone with annoying customer service rescheduling flights, costing me endless fees. Do not fly with Hahn Air. They have a bad reputation. I won't be arriving in Maui until September 2nd.

Final Days in Chiang Mai

I had four final days in Chiang Mai before heading back home. The only thing left on my bucket list was to go to the zoo, so we went and we were highly disappointed. We saw one elephant and a kangaroo, but the rest of the animals were hiding from the hot sun. 

The rest of the time we ate good food, watched movies and got massages.

Overall I think these two months flew by really fast and I'm so grateful that my husband put all that work into organizing a wonderful experience for our 10-year wedding anniversary. I really wasn't expecting to like Thailand that much, so it really exceeded my expectations. With that being said, the grass is not always greener on the other side, just different. Heading back to my exotic paradise life on Maui is not too bad!

Ban Lamai, Koh Samui

We are now sitting on the airplane back to Chiang Mai, after taking the ferry and bus from Koh Samui to Surat Thani. 

Overall our stay at our friend's house in Ban Lamai, Koh Samui was relaxing and grounding, aside from both of us getting food poisoning. For me it only lasted a day, but for Zen it lingered longer. After that we were more cautious about where we chose to eat and made sure it was organic and sanitary. 

The city was pretty ugly and noisy, but there were quite a few health conscious restaurants, our favorites being Vikasa (more expensive), Pure Vegan Heaven (the best ever!!!), the Secret Brunch, Tamarind's Spa and Sweet Sisters Café.

We got around by scooter because using the Grab app is more expensive in Koh Samui.

The closest beach was by New Hut Bungalows (really cheap by the way, only $12/night if you are looking for a simple and affordable place to stay), but the water was too shallow. The nicest beach was Silver Beach, but we kept getting bit by some sort of tiny invisible bugs in the water. We have no idea what they were. We felt the bites but they did not leave a mark.

They had a few night markets right down the street, walking distance. One thing to keep in mind is that most places in Thailand do not accept credit cards, so it is important to carry some cash with you at all times.

Koh Samui is like one big European melting pot. Everywhere you go you hear a bunch of different languages. It also means you smell a lot of cigarette smoke when eating out or at the beach.

One example of Thai people being super hospitable is when we took a shuttle that was full and everyone made space, even if it meant sitting in someone's lap. That would never happen in Western culture. Another example is when I ordered some food at a restaurant and the waitress noticed I was picking the onions off, and she offered to take it back to the kitchen so they could pick them off for me. Now that's quality customer service!

Treehouse Silent Beach, Koh Samui

Finally back at the beach! For someone who is used to going to the beach almost every day in Maui, I've felt like a fish out of water in the city of Chiang Mai. The ocean here is very warm and not as clear as Maui waters. The wind picks up early around 7:30 am, so best to get out for a morning walk/run and swim before then.

We are spending five nights in a beach bungalow at Treehouse Silent Beach for about $35/night. If you want something even cheaper, you can get a room without A/C for about $17/night.

Getting to the island of Koh Samui is not as easy as one might expect. There are so many options: traveling via train, bus, flight and ferry. Long story short, it was challenging finding a direct flight last minute that suited our needs, so we ended up flying with Air Asia from Chiang Mai to Surat Thani, then taking a 1.5 hour bus ride to Raja Ferry. The ferry ride was 1.5 hours and once in Koh Samui, we took a one-hour shuttle to our final destination.

It's so convenient having everything you need right here, not having to drive anywhere. There is a fabulous restaurant with very friendly service that has pretty much everything you could imagine on the menu with prices under $5 per meal. Affordable massages are easily accessible right on the beach.

I could get used to this lifestyle. Eating at a restaurant and/or living off of coconuts and dragonfruit everyday, saving time not having to cook or shop, wifi and cleaning included... This would a perfect place to save money on living expenses and focus on building an online business.

The rest of our time here in Koh Samui we will be spending at our friend's house who is house sitting for us in Maui at the moment. On August 26th we return to Chiang Mai and then I'll have three more days before I head back home to Maui. Zen will stay another month. I've really been enjoying my time away but there are also things I miss about Maui, especially my cats.

Pai

We just got back to Chiang Mai after spending a week in Pai, a small hippy town, about a 2.5 hour drive away. The intention was for it to be a romantic getaway, but instead we got sick. Zen booked a nice room for us at Montis Resort and we ended up having to move twice to different rooms due to plumbing issues. For the inconvenience, we negotiated a discount, a couple extra nights for free, complimentary room service and snack bar. The resort was not very busy at all and overpriced in our opinion.

I heard good things about Pai, but was not at all impressed with the town. Not much to see or do, but I like that it was cheap. It was nicest at nighttime. It was basically one big street market with lots of noisy traffic, more like how I envisioned Thailand being.

All in all, it was a very peaceful, relaxing and uneventful trip watching movies and taking baths, so can't complain.

Mantak Chia Workshop

We took a 6-day Mantak Chia workshop at Tao Gardens in Chiang Mai, Thailand!

It was such an amazing experience spending time in Master Chia's powerful presence, feeling his chi and building our own, learning so much about taoist practices, how to move energy and access our inner super powers, meeting conscious people from around the world, eating delicious healthy food (3 meals a day), practicing chi gong daily, swimming in the pool, working out in the gym, enjoying the beautiful peaceful environment and the serenity of being in nature. Priceless! 

 Mantak Chia owns Tao Gardens and lives on the property. The theme for the workshop was how to transform negative emotions (stored in the organs) into positive energy. I've always been able to feel energy, so it was good to learn more about how to use it. The energy was so powerful in the room, with everyone building chi at the same time. My experience was that it felt like the ocean, with waves pulling me in different directions.

The main thing I learned was that we have full control over everything: our thoughts, our emotions and what we choose to do with our energy. It's not really anything I didn't already know, I just understood it better and the science was broken down. We are connected to the universe with energy, everything spirals and moves in the same way. It all really ties into belly-dance, so I am inspired to find ways to incorporate this into my teachings.

We stayed at Phoo Na Resort, out in the country side about 20 minutes from Tao Gardens. The owner, Phoo was the sweetest hostess ever! 

Always smiling and made us what ever we wanted for breakfast.