I have always dreamed of spending Christmas in a beach place and this year we were heading to the paradise-vacation-postcard islands of southern Thailand.

We did a quick layover in Ko Lipe which the main town looked quite developed and busy, we would have loved to get lost in this tiny island but we had plans to meet our traveler friends Adam and Bonnie in Ko Lanta.

We stayed in an airbnb in middle of the jungle and chilled in hammocks with a green lush view, playing ukelele and cooking delicious Thai food that Bonnie (aka the masterchef) had all planned. We even made our own curry paste with a morter and a delicious ayurvedic drink called “golden milk” with tumeric, ginger, spices and coconut milk. Pad Thai, Tom Yum and curries from street stands were also a must.

The beautiful beaches were uncrowded and the flat sea was perfect for long post-yoga seavasanas. Mini hikes to waterfalls, beach readings and sunset beers was all we needed.

This year we decided not to give each other presents for Christmas and it felt good to detach from the materialistic need of buying stuff that we actually can’t fit in our tiny backpacks. Experiencing Christmas in a different way from everyone back home felt good this year.

We moved to Ko Jum, an isolated island with not much to do other than playing cards, laying on hammocks or going for a walk along the long lonely beaches. Too bad there was no surf here.

For New Year’s we wanted a bit of celebration but the closest option we had was Ko Phi Phi, so we embraced the craziness and had a crazy night out on this party island with our friend Pauline. I was able to find grapes and ate them one by one on the beach along the new year’s countdown.

The next day we explored the famous islands from the movie “The Beach” and although it’s absolutely stunning, it is completely packed with tourists which makes the experience not quite as enjoyable. Still happy to spend the first day of the year dipping in turquoise blue waters in between magnificent limestone rocks.

After saying goodbye to our friends, we checked out Railay Beach and Tonsai which are again beautiful places but jammed packed with vacation package tourists. I loved watching all the climbers from the beach and discovering some hidden caves that allowed for some space away from the beach crowds and astounding views.

Bangkok is a crazy place. The busy, traffic-jammed city has a weird contrast between traditional lifestyle with buddhist temples everywhere and also the mega commercial metropolis with malls and modern buildings. It’s a melting pot for anything and everything. We enjoyed site-seeing some of the landmarks and indulging in the street food markets.

We took a month-break to go surfing in the Philippines (blog post coming soon!) and came back to Thailand, this time to do the Mae Hong Song loop in the north-eastern region of the country. The starting point was Chiang Mai which I really enjoyed walking around old town and having monk chats with the teenage buddhis. The food was delicious and the sunday market was quite interesting.

Hopped on our two motorcycles, strapped our backpacks and hit the road for two weeks, making stops at remote towns where noodle soups from little stands was the daily menu.

Doi Intanhon is the highest peak in Thailand and the road inside the national park has incredible views and some pretty awesome waterfalls.

Mae Sariang was a cool little town with the most beautiful temple I’ve seen so far. The paintings were so magical it felt unreal. The chill river cafes were our daily stop.

Riding through rice-field mountains and meeting local communities was the highlight of the route. The road is beautiful with viewpoints of the hills that are picture worthy. We didn’t go see any of the hill tribes or ride elephants because we just didn’t feel like we want to contribute to that.

Mae Hong Song has a beautiful temple on the hill overlooking the town and the mountains. We found a very good friendly vegan cafe that satisfied our food desires for days.

Last stop was Pai, which is a nice town to relax, do yoga and chill in the cute cafes with nice food. Smoothie bowls for breakfast everyday? Yes please! It felt good to have some culinary variety after eating noodle soups everyday.

Overall, the north and the south of Thailand could be two different countries with very different vibes. We didn’t expect to spend so much time here, but thanks to the friendliness and easy traveling country we enjoyed exploring it.