However, my placement in Thailand continues to be a blessing because I'm located quite close to many of the things I've been dreaming about. Cue the white sandy beaches and elephants!
Yavette is one of the other girls who is signed on with AYC and she's living about 25 minutes away from Emily and I. Fortunately Yavette is quite the social butterfly and has found many Thai friends who love American company and want to practice their english. Through Yavette we've befriend a Thai girl named Pupae who was born and raised in the Pattaya area and has happily signed on to be our part time tour guide. With Yavette and Pupae we've visited temples, mountains, beaches, overlooks, sanctuaries and floating markets. And we're only in our first month of adventures! It's been amazing having Pupae to show us around, not only because she has a car and is fluent in Thai, but because she's a genuinely fun, kind and interesting person and she's always up for whatever crazy plan we have next!
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| Pattaya from above. We live in the string of lights in the back left corner |
Koh Larn Island
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| A cold beer, a good book and a stunning view |
Pattaya is often our home base for many of our adventures. It's the closest city to us and is bustling with both Thai people and a huge expat community. It's also where the ferry dock is located which can take you to many of the surrounding islands. This past weekend Yavette, Emily and I took the ferry over to Koh Larn island, which is a 30 minute ride away from the mainland of Thailand. There are a handful of beaches on the island and we chose Samae Beach which is on the far end of the island hoping it would be less crowded, and we were right! The water was a stunning color of blue and the beaches were clean (unlike the beaches in Pattaya), it was a perfect place to spend the weekend. There's just one resort on the beach of Samae and it seemed that only around 10 couples/groups were spending the night so we had very quiet evenings and mornings until the tourists came over.
We rented a moped to make exploration a little easier (and more fun). Mopeds are the main form of transportation in Thailand and it was good to practice on a smaller, less crowded island before trying to drive in the busy streets of mainland Thailand.
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| Living the dream: drinking out of a coconut on an island |
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| Tien Beach on Koh Larn Island |
Sanctuary of Truth
The Sanctuary of Truth is a temple that is currently being built just north of Pattaya. It is extremely unique because it is constructed completely out of wood; even the nails are made of wood. It represents images from both Buddhism and Hinduism, and has architectural influences from Thailand, Cambodia, India and China. We took a guided tour of the sanctuary and learned that the creator wanted the temple to provoke thoughts of "ancient visions of earth and philosophies." Inside the temple there are many statues based on mythologies and the cycle of life, meant to bring people back to their roots and focus on the important aspects of morality in life. Personally I didn't agree or enjoy some of the thoughts being shared within the temple mainly because most Buddhist beliefs make me feel guilty for living a life of "gluttony and sin" (I like alcohol and material goods too much for Buddhists) however, there was one corner of the temple that I thoroughly enjoyed. There are theories that humans are grounded and linked through cosmic energy and they believe that our birthdays give us direct connection to one planet and one of the four elements. Our tour guide helped us through some complex lunar calendar which presented us with one planet and one element, kind of like an intense horoscope. I didn't understand half of what was going on, but it was really interesting to hear our own individual results. 
The sanctuary had three elephants on site which people could ride around the perimeter of the temple, but I'm highly against riding elephants and keeping them in captivity (that rant can be found here) so we opted for feeding them some bananas instead. I've never been this close to an elephant before and it was crazy to see just how big they actually are! I can't wait until I have the time to go up to Chiang Mai to volunteer at an elephant sanctuary.
Pattaya Floating Market
I've heard about the floating markets in Thailand for a while now but couldn't fully comprehend the concept, however that pondering was finally answered after spending an afternoon at Pattaya Floating Market. It turns out that the market isn't truly floating, instead it's more like boardwalks and little huts built above and around the water. There are a few Thai boats that float around and dock along the boardwalks, and there you can buy food or drinks. The rest of the markets contain just about anything you could possibly need. There are all sorts of bizarre Thai foods (pigs tails, duck beaks etc) and yummy drinks such as fresh smoothies and iced coffee. This is also a great place to purchase any sort of souvenir you could dream of; shirts, bags, elephant pants, bamboo dishes, jewelry and art.
Buddha Mountain
Buddha Mountain (also known as Khao Chi Chan) is home to the world's largest carved Buddha. It was created in honor of the King's 50th year on the throne, which was in 1996. (That's right, do the math. He's about to enter his 70th year on the throne). The image was carved out with lasers and then laid with gold. When I learned that this is real gold I was amazed that vandalism/theft hasn't been a problem and I am continuously amazed at the loyalty and kindness of Thais and Buddhists.
No matter where you go in Thailand you'll be in close proximity to numerous temples and beautiful sites. I'm grateful for what I have around me, but I also know that I would've discovered equally beautiful locations regardless of my city.
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Logistical Info
The ferry from Pattaya to Koh Larn runs 7 times a day and costs 30 baht (less than $1) for a one way ticket. There are plenty of song taews on the island to take you to the beach of your choice, usually for 30 baht. It's also easy to rent a moped for the day, usually for 200 baht.
The Sanctuary of Truth has an entrance fee of 500 baht ($14). There are usually two traditional Thai dance shows a day, 11:30 and 3:30.
Pattaya Floating Market has an entrance fee of 200 baht ($6) for non Thai people. A Thai work permit will most likely give you a free entrance.
Buddha Mountain is free, but donations are accepted.
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