Thailand

My first visit to Thailand came during my gap year before college. One of my friends from my tennis academy in Florida, Tawan, was from Bangkok, so while traveling through Asia to cover tennis tournaments in Hong Kong and Singapore, I made it a point to visit him. Thailand was unlike anywhere I’d ever been. From weaving through Bangkok on the back of motorcycle taxis to wandering late-night street markets, it felt like a completely different world.

Over the following six years, I returned to Thailand several times. I explored the laid-back city of Chiang Mai, the limestone cliffs and turquoise waters of Krabi, and the beautiful Phi Phi Islands. I also got to spend more time with Tawan. Through him, I met many of his friends, and on one visit we spent a weekend together at a music festival deep in the forests of Chonburi.

One of my favorite trips to Thailand was for the Extraordinary Travel Festival in Bangkok, a gathering of some of the world’s most passionate travelers. I listened to presentations from a globetrotter who had visited every country without flying, an adventurer who had climbed the highest peaks in every country in Africa, and a woman who had completed every country in the world at the age of 79. Spending time with people who had devoted themselves to such ambitious and unconventional goals was incredibly motivating.

Few countries have given me as many reasons to return as Thailand. Every visit brought new experiences, new friendships, and another reminder of why it remains one of the places I most look forward to visiting.