Notes from the Road: A Month in Thailand

Plus gearing up for one of England’s most beautiful hikes

You might recall that we did an epic month-long tour across Thailand last autumn. Of course, this wasn’t our first trip to Thailand. We’ve each been there well over a dozen times - occasionally for business, mostly for pleasure - during the six years that we lived in Singapore. As a result, we were able to craft what we felt was the perfect itinerary featuring all our favourite experiences and lots of new ones.  

Loving all the peace and quiet of Thailand’s north

This time round, we hopped across several beaches in the Gulf islands; headed north to Chiang Mai with a side trip to a mountain village; and then ended our journey with the big city vibes of Bangkok. This adventure included all the classic Thailand highlights we could hope for: beach time, street food, temples, village life, historic sights, and much more. 

The only thing missing was providing all of you with the complete post-trip report, including where we stayed, where we ate, and what not to miss. Fortunately, we’re addressing that oversight right now by sharing a comprehensive blog post with all our best tips for a memorable Thailand getaway. 

Wandering the temples of Chiang Mai’s old town

This is a great starting place for planning your own trip to Thailand and, for those who are already familiar with this beautiful country, we’d love to hear about your favourite experiences. 

Hoping for sunshine in the Cotswolds

In just a week, we’re heading off for one of our biggest trekking challenges to date: an end-to-end hike of the Cotswolds Way in England. 

We’ll be starting in the scenic town of Chipping Campden and then winding our way through forests, fields and charming villages, all the way to the Roman city of Bath. The Cotswolds region has been officially designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty so there’s no doubt that we’ll be hiking through one of England's most spectacular landscapes. 

While we may not be scaling any mountains - the Cotswolds is better known for its rolling hills - the distance is nothing to sneeze at. We’ll be hiking 164 km or 102 miles and, if that doesn’t sound daunting enough, we’ve decided to travel lean this time round. 

We’ll only be taking what we can carry on our backs and nothing more. That’s right, no cushy luggage transfer for this one - which means we’ll be desperately seeking a laundromat somewhere around kilometre 82.

We’re somewhat concerned about the weather conditions that we’ll encounter this time of year. England is known for its unpredictable weather at the best of times and we’re expecting our share of spring showers. However, as yet another ice storm blasts through our village in Ontario, I’m feeling that even a rainy day in England has got to be a marked improvement on shoveling snow in April. 

If you’re looking for the day-to-day updates of our adventures and misadventures on the Cotswolds Way (and count how many rain days we actually encounter), you can follow along with our Instagram Stories. 

See you on the road,

Stephanie & Gillian