Hitting the road (with Jack)
(and the monkey temple and the ice cream shop)
I have been trying to figure out what I want my Substack VS Instagram VS offline presence to be… I don’t know just yet. I have a full-time job… and as much as I love to write, it’s always handwritten. When I do have free time, I want to be as far away from a screen as I can be. Anyway, this story was so special that I needed to write it out & share.
Sawadeekhappp, Thailand! This is my third time here, and I think I am officially in love.
This time around, I have left my Bangkok bubble. Phuket, Chiang Mai, and Hua Hin have hosted me, along with a few days in Bangkok. Week 3 on the road, and just when I was going crazy with how much time I am spending with me, myself, and I, the universe reminded me there is a reason for it all!
This Saturday, I had to get to Hua Hin, a town about 2.5 hours south of Bangkok. My European-tainted mind figured I would just find a train… not putting any thought into the tickets or timetables. After realizing how pricey the train would be, and how utterly complicated it was, I opted to book a Grab (Thailand’s Uber). If I was a better traveller, I am sure I would have planned things better, but I just went on the good faith that a driver would surely take me up on the offer.
After about 18 hours of no driver taking my ride, finally a driver said yes to the ride request an hour before my departure. Serendipitous!
I booked the car for 2PM, figuring I would get work done in the car on this roadtrip of sorts. At the 1 hour mark, Jack, the driver, started to make conversation via Google Translate. He said we would stop for a smoke break (for him, not me, lol). I noticed the S&M green pack of cigarettes he pulled out, so to kill time I ran into the gas station and bought him another pack as a token of appreciation for taking this long Grab trip.
That pack of cigarettes was clearly my golden ticket into Jack’s heart. We started to communicate by laughing, smiling, and talking into his phone.
We hopped back in the car and after a few minutes, Jack spoke something into his phone. He asked if I was in a rush to go to Hua Hin- I wasn’t. Then, he told me he was from Phetchaburi Province, the region we were driving through. He pointed to the mountain ahead and asked me if I wanted to go… I said yes, instantly! He said it was rare for tourists to be there, as it was just seen as a thoroughfare between Bangkok and the beaches.
Jack took me to Tham Khao Luang, a mountain cave temple. It closed at 4, so he raced to get there in time.
I didn’t have a clue where we were going until we arrived to the gate, littered with baby monkeys everywhere you looked. They were absolutely maniacal here- no fear of humans at all. We hiked up and down stairs until we reached the temple, embedded into this cavern. The sunlight poured through the trees from up top, while other corners were pitch-black.
It was one of the most beautiful temples I have seen… and because it was about to close, it was just us and the monks that ran it.
He took me around, dutifully telling me how to pose at each photo opp. The funniest (and most beautiful) part was at one point, there was no cell service (it’s a cave), so there was no way to communicate between the two of us… but the universal mix of smiling, bowing, and thumbs-upping worked just as well to express to each other exactly what we needed to.
We left as the monks closed the temple gates. I thought that was the adventure of a lifetime. But then, he asked if I was hungry. I said I always am. He took me into a small town and showed me where he went to school (!!!). He drove around the town, explaining what used to be in each storefront, until we pulled up to a small shop on the side of the highway that.
He pointed to the posters on the wall, and I obliged to whatever he ordered for me. I was happily surprised when I was served something reminiscent of shaved ice.
Lod Chong (similar to cendol in Malaysia) is a dessert typical of Phetchaburi. It is creamy coconut milk, sweet sugar syrup, and homemade pandan noodles, topped with a ball of ice cream. Jack ordered mine with taro. Lod chong’s literal transition is “through a hole”, which is how the mutant green pandan noodles are made. It was delicious and kismet. The same family has run this Lod Chong establishment for 90 years and counting! Jack remembers going when it was just a street cart that would park outside of his school. I even met the grandson of the original owner, who runs the place today!
After the khap khun ka’s with the owner, Jack whisked me away to our last stop of the hometown tour. The whole thing was so fun, as it was a lot of pointing where to next and me just aggressively nodding OK, as I ate the rest of my Lod Chong in the backseat. We went up a winding mountain road, until we reached a massive Buddha. It was sunset, and there I was standing underneath this giant Buddha.I am so blessed to be experiencing this many sides of humanity.
After the hometown tour, Jack dropped me off at my hotel in Hua Hin. I arrived 3 hours later than expected, but loved every second of this detour. We text now, Jack and I. (Me in Thai, him in English, isn’t that cool?) and he’s driving me back to Bangkok for my meetings on Wednesday.
There’s a reason why they call Thailand the land of smiles… I am grateful that I am in Southeast Asia, where a side quest like this is safe for a female solo traveller. Taking a detour, taking the path unknown is a terrible cliche… but I am buying into it, wholeheartedly. The sanctity of having the opportunity to detour is not lost on me, either.
This is a story that only transpired because I was solo. Being alone forces so many thoughts and emotions to tumble out, often unwillingly. But being alone also allows you to worry about just your self, make your own schedule, and allows the yes moments to happen more often.
So cheers to be alone and saying yes! I love Thailand, and its people, and its food.
Just watched this fantastic deep dive into the Thai economy, it is a must watch!
That’s all I’ve got.
Disfrutaaa,
Shannon
So cuteee
wonderful as always!