Well this is it! The last blog post of my 30 days in Thailand. These past 30 days have been some of the most fulfilling and transformative of my entire life. I’ve made some amazing friends, saw some beautiful places, and ate soooo much incredible food. But before we get too sentimental, we have a day in Bangkok and a full travel day to get trough first (get ready it’s a long one)!

Just because it’s my last day in Thailand doesn’t mean I was going to sit around and do nothing! I’m in the big city of Bangkok! There’s always something to do 😄

There were a few landmarks I wanted to hit that I didn’t get around to at the beginning of my trip! So with this new opportunity, I checked out of my hostel and I set out to see them!

I started my morning with stepping into a restaurant that was filled with only Thai patrons. This has been one of my key tells that a restaurant is good. It was also very close to my hostel and I didn’t see it last time I was here!

I wish it wasn’t so hot in Thailand. Mainly because I want to be more in the mood for soup… the broth here is insane! It’s so good, I’d highly recommend sweating a bit and enjoying a good bowl of soup or spicy soup!

After a lovely breakfast, it was time to go to my first landmark of the day! On my walk I got distracted by a very cheap sock stand that had some goofy socks. So I picked up a few pairs, 5 for 70 Baht ($2)!

After my little shopping spree I continued on a 20 min walk to the landmark. On my way I accidentally walked past another fun memory spot, where Lola, Helena, Holger, and I stayed up till the sunrise my first full day in Bangkok!

After wandering through some fun alley ways and walking a direction I hadn’t been in Bangkok before, I made it to my destination! The first landmark was the Big Buddha temple!

This temple has a 32 meter tall (104 ft) standing Buddha! It also is surrounded by a beautiful temple and a staircase that leads up to the top of the Buddha that has a spectacular view of Bangkok!

It was a hot day, over 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 deg Celsius for everyone else in the world haha). So you’ll start to progressively see more sweat build up on my shirt throughout the day, I apologize 😂 But even with the heat, it was time to trek on to the next location!

On the way I had a food item I needed to get before I left, so I stopped by 7-11 to get it one last time.

Cheese toasties have been one of my favorite snacks while being in Thailand! Unfortunately I don’t think they’re anywhere else in the world, but I guess I’ll just have to have the occasional grilled cheese while I’m back home 😄

After enjoying my toasty on the curb of 7-11 I continued on my walk to the next landmark! This walk ended up being about another 25 min but even in the heat it was quite enjoyable!

I may have been sweating my butt off, but I made it to the second landmark of the day, Sao Chingcha, the giant swing!

This swing was constructed in 1784 and was used in ceremonies back in the day. The swing is no longer there but the frame is!

I then made my way back to my hostel to get more food around that area! On my way I passed by a very interesting lottery area with a bunch of stalls selling lottery tickets. Gambling is illegal in Thailand, but if someone understands how this lottery system works I’d love to know! I saw people walking around selling tickets to Thai locals all the time, but never really figured out what was happening or how it worked.

This walk was closer to 15 min which was nice and after all the walking I was very hungry! So I stopped by one of my favorite spots by my hostel and got one last Thai Basil with chicken and a fried egg!

While I was eating, I received some photos and videos from my friend Emma (back in Koh Phangan), so I wanted to share one that is one of my favorite pictures from my trip!

After a lovely lunch, I wandered around the streets for one last time, walking into shops I had previously ignored and alleys full of stalls I hadn’t seen the last time I was here!

I ended up getting a hat and button up shirt with some of the remaining Baht I had! I was tired out from my adventurous morning that was full of lovely sites, food, and shopping! So I ended up plopping down in the lovely NapPark lobby and enjoying the AC while I decided what time I’d head to the airport.

After about an hour of sitting here I decided I’d finally head to the airport. It was very early (about 6 hours before my boarding time), but my friend Aaron happened to be flying home the same day as me and had a guest pass to all the airport lounges he had access to! So I decided to take him up on the offer to join him and experience the luxury of airport lounges for the first time!

I was lucky I decided to leave when I did because a big storm was rolling in over the city. However, we did happen to hit peak Bangkok rush hour but luckily I was in no rush!

We arrived to the airport after almost an hour drive! I was mixed with so many emotions of sad that the trip was over, happy with how amazing the trip was, excited to see what’s next for me, and very ready to have a few free beers and free food!

I honestly got a bit confused on entering the airport. I wasn’t sure where the international security gate was. But after consulting with Aaron I learned it was on the back wall and quickly made my way to it!

I arrived to a very long passport control line, but it actually moved very quickly! Now, I made a mistake. While I was doing my check, the passport security officer started to look very confused. For whatever reason I just assumed it was because my boarding pass on my phone had no information on the gate. He then passed off my passport to another officer who passed it off to the higher up officer. After he scanned it over (and my boarding pass) he wanders off with my passport 🙃 I obviously was very confused and a bit worried. Luckily he comes back and stamps the exit visa and sends me on my way. Now after further inspection and discussion with Lola… it turns out I accidentally overstayed my visa by a day! Instead of 30 days I actually had 29 days and I neglected to check my visa on my passport! In most cases you will be fined 500 Baht ($15) for every day you’re late, for some reason they didn’t and I’m very happy they didn’t because they definitely could’ve! Learning lesson though so I’ll make sure to check that in the future!

Suvarnabhumi International Airport is deceivingly massive! It has 4 floors and takes up around 8,000 acres (that might include the takeoff/landing strips). So I had a little bit of a walk to Aaron.

Eventually Aaron and I met up, funnily enough near my favorite fast food Taco Bell! Which I believe is the only Taco Bell in Thailand (unfortunately didn’t indulge). We made our way to the first of two lounges we would hang out it!

This lounge was filled with a bunch of lovely snacks and dishes that was all you could eat. There was also Changs and Singhas along with a fully stocked bar.

I definitely ate my fair share at this lounge and had a couple beers too! It was nice to have a free place to lounge, eat, and drink. I thanked Aaron multiple times but he said he would’ve been sitting there by himself anyways so he’s happy to help! After eating he taught me a card game I had never played before called Yaniv! He told me he learned it while on the Trans-Siberian Railway!

We then made our way to another lounge. Each lounge gives you a certain amount of time to stay in it, which I didn’t realize was the case! Not sure when I’ll be in an airport lounge again but good to know for the future!

If I hadn’t ate enough food already 😅 I got more at this airlines lounge. I also ended up chatting with Lola a bit too since we’d be on opposite time zones for a while! I’ve really enjoyed talking with her. Her perspectives on life are refreshing and I’ve honestly never met someone as optimistic as her (I thought I was an optimist but she blows me out of the water)!

But eventually it was finally time to leave Thailand, the country I’ve grown to very much love over this past month. So I said my goodbyes to Aaron (even though we’ll probably see each other while he’s in Kansas City) and made my way to my gate.

We had a minor delay but then it was time to board my first flight, which was stopping in Seoul, South Korea! I really wish I could’ve had time to visit this country but my layover was 5 hours (which isn’t ideal but not long enough to go explore).

I was very excited to have a window seat again! As I said in a previous day, I’m really starting to enjoy them more. They lead to some beautiful views and a lot better sleep!

I then fell asleep for a long time but woke up to some cool views of boats out at sea!

We then arrived in Seoul at 5am and I was very exhausted. I slept till we landed and had a jolt when the wheels hit the ground (one of those where you gasp awake haha)!

After a quick debarking process I made my way to the security checkpoint for going to transfer flights!

I got through very quickly and made my way for my gate.

I had about 5 hours to wait so I was in no rush to find my gate. So I made a pit stop in the bathroom to brush and floss my teeth! Sometimes I didn’t have access to doing this on my overnight journeys on this trip and I disliked that a lot, so it was nice to feel clean!

This airport is another massive one with every storefront you could think of. But of course they were all closed at 5am.

I then made it to my gate where I sat in the same spot for the whole 5 hour layover 😅 To pass the time I texted some family and friends and also worked on this blog post!

I decided I should probably try and stay up till my flight to try and combat jet lag as much as possible. This also led me to seeing the sun rise, which is something I love to see!

After 5 hours it was finally time to board my final flight back home!

The flight home was a nice 13 hour flight. The fight to combat jet lag continued as I tried to stay up till I’d actually go to bed in the US. So I decided to watch the New Super Mario movie to pass the time.

After the movie was over I decided it was finally time to fall asleep! I was insanely exhausted and slept very well. But was woken up when it was time to have a 3am snack… the meals were all over the place on this flight.

And then after watching the movie Emily the Criminal, we were landing in Chicago, Illinois!

I deplaned and made my way to customs, where I zipped through a long line of travelers and made my way to the pickup zone! Just when I got there a familiar car came around the corner at the perfect time!

And with that comes the end of my 30 days in Thailand! I want to thank everyone that followed along, everyone that made this trip so amazing and special, and to everyone that has supported me on this journey and been there for me through this wild period of my life!

I’ll post again soon, something sappier and heartfelt about my trip. But for now it’s time to sleep as I’ve lived through 2 full days of August 25th and jet lag has won the battle!

– Elie