Sitting at the Bankok airport, about to finish off the Thailand portion of this trip. It has been five great weeks, filled with relaxation and natural beauty. Before I left Sweden, I wrote down what my hopes were for my trip to Thailand. I must say that my Thailand trip lived up to all my expectations and I can put a check mark next to all those bullet points. Mission accomplished!
That being said, I have to admit that while Thailand is a lovely country - beautiful, friendly and reasonably organized - travelling here is almost too easy. It may be because some parts of the country, in particular the islands, are so completely catered to tourists that at times I didn’t really feel like I was in an Asian country. It is easy to experience and enjoy the natural beauty and the culinary delight of this country, but at times it felt like I was distanced from the Thai life and its people. The majority of the interactions are with other westerners and some Thais that you meet have become so jaded by all tourists that they have lost some of the lovely way of being that this region is famous for. Hence, if there is one aspect where Thailand lagged a bit, it would be that it did not touch my heart in the same way as for instance Cambodia did. Then again, I did not pick Thailand to be culturally challenged. For pure relaxation, few countries can compete with this place.
Now I am off to India. As a start, I will visit my friend Kristina, who lives in Dehli. I am not sure what to expect from India. I feel excited and a bit nervous at the same time. I have heard so many stories about this place, both intriguing and horrifying. I am preparing for chaos and complete madness, hopefully coupled with beauty and charm. It feels as if the real adventure is about to begin now. Thailand was just a soft warm up for what is about to hit me. I am really looking forward to it!
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