Holiday in Paradise

Tatum & Corbin
Jul 11, 2020
2 min read

Wowza... has it really been 5 months since our last post? We've been a little busy. So... without further ado...

Christmas arrived and with it... a little taste of home. Emma, one of our best friends from Laramie and her younger brother, Eli, came to spend their Christmas vacation on the beach. We were lucky enough to spend nearly two weeks exploring new areas in Vietnam and Thailand together.

So... what does Christmas in Vietnam look like? Well, a lot like Christmas at home... white. White sandy beach that is. We threw on festive Santa hats and spent the afternoon eating calamari and getting sea-side massages. Zero complaints here...

The next day, the four of us headed to explore the My Son Ruins. The ruins are special because each temple was influenced by different cultural groups and countries as a result of trade in the area. The temples were once the capital of the Champa Kingdom and were built between the 4th and 13th centuries. More mind blowing was that the ancient ruins are surrounded by large craters... from American bombing raids during the Vietnam-American war. Is your mind blown? Ours was...

On New Year’s Eve we hopped on a plane bound for Thailand. We rang in the New Year at a small bar, singing karaoke with the bar staff. They weren’t sure what to make of our rendition of “Friends in Low Places” but sure seemed to enjoy our company.

We spent the first three days of 2020 exploring beautiful Khao Sok National Park. We filled our days with jungle hikes, pool parties and countless bowls of the best curry we’ve had so far. The main attraction is the beautiful Ratchaprapha Lake. We spent most the day on a long tail boat weaving through sheer jungle cliffs and enjoying the sunshine.

The grand finale of Emma and Eli’s trip was the Thai island of Koh Yao Noi. Our first day we rented motorbikes and beach hopped our way around the tiny island. It was fun watching Emma and Eli try to get the hang of motorbiking, they did great but were a little awkward at first. Eli was able to get Corbin's heart rate way to high as they almost lost control.

We saved the best day for last, an island hopping tour. We met our guide, and headed to our private long-tail boat. Throughout the afternoon we made 6 stops, each one was unique and seemed to be more beautiful than the last. We marveled at the views as we sipped on beer, played in the blue water and snorkeled. Our guide had Corbin drive the long-tail boat while he poured shots of Thai rum into everyone’s mouth and gave a pineapple slice as a chaser. We ended the day scrambling to the top of a rocky viewpoint to watch the sun set.