Spending A Birthday Alone In Thailand

As I reached the north of Vietnam during my solo travels, I prepared myself for my next destination: Thailand. Luckily I wasn't as nervous as I was when I started my journey. Vietnam was a fantastic crash-course on entering the chaos and wonder of Southeast Asia.

 

I had been warned by a few travellers I met on the road to prepare myself for the insane party atmosphere the country welcomed. Thailand is far more of a popular tourist destination thanks to its gorgeous beaches and delicious curries, so that brings lots of Europeans and North Americans to the shores, ready and willing to party hard. I'm far from you'd call a party animal. I'm usually the first one to catch the train home from a night out, and I hate the feeling of being drunk and not in total control of my body.

 

Another thing I realized as I boarded the plane from Hanoi to Bangkok: my birthday was coming up. I'd be arriving on the shores of sunny Koh Lanta for my birthday, without knowing a single soul and oceans away from any familiar faces. Usually I'm not a big birthday person anyway, but this hit me different. It was the big realization on how alone I was out here, and how nobody knew a thing about me.

 

But you know what? It ended up being absolutely lovely. I checked into my hostel, rented a scooter, bought some snacks (thank you, incredibly cheap and yummy Thai 7-Elevens!) and rode out to the beach to watch the waves and sunset. I sat alone, listened to my favourite songs (check below), ate matcha KitKats, drank some Thai beer, and thought about everything I'd done in the past year. It's moments like these that ground you, help you reflect on what you have and what you want. It was one of my favourite birthdays ever.

Stay tuned for more!