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ThaiTrails

    Choui Fong tea plantation and why green tea is magical

    06/04/2016
    by

    I always used to think my mom was crazy when she was drinking green tea before. When she lived in Norway, she drank cup after cup after cup. I now know she is, as always… one step ahead of me. After I moved to Thailand I joined Tom on the tea train and had some tea once in awhile, but I never really liked it. After its popular days I was hearing things about the benefits of green tea, but I’m a very sceptical person when it comes to all these claims everyone has on what’s healthy and not and don’t really bother starting anything until I’ve done enough research myself. Especially when it’s something I don’t even like the flavour of, or find a hassle doing. So after a couple of years back in time after I had looked up studies on green tea, I felt dumb for not trying it out.

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    You gotta try out this lychee green tea, it was full of sugar but so delicious!

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    NO PICKING TEA LEAVES!!!

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    I need one of these… heheheh

    It’s so easy and available pretty much everywhere. And, now I actually REALLY enjoy it. I told you guys how I’ve started to drink coffee now… well started and started, but I do run up and get iced coffee in my breaks if I don’t feel like I can perform a 100%. Anyways, that shit is full of sugar and weird stuff… delicious, but full of shit. I gotta say tho, I do feel like a teenager having shots for the first time every time I drink it. After I started dieting again, this is unfortunately not within my calories, so I got back to the tea again.

    I have around 4-5 cups a day and I’m awake and focused all the time. It’s a different feeling, it feels a lot more healthy. But it doesn’t only contain caffeine.  It also consists of 0 calories, AND makes me full a lot longer. Which is awesome for people trying to go down in weight. There are also studies showing that it improves your brain function and might even protect your brain against alzheimer’s and parkinson. It also increases fat loss by boosting your metabolism (hello dieting again!!!),has anti anxiety effects, lots of antioxidants that *may* lower the risk of various types of cancer, it lowers your risk of infection and promotes good dental hygiene. Ah, there are too many things to mention here….

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    <3

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    That’s how excited tea makes me!

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    Get some finger food while you’re there… I recommend the springrolls and dim sum on the highest.

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    We went to go Choui Fong tea plantation while we were visiting Chiang Rai and staying at the Anantara elephant camp last weekend. You bet we brought loads of delicious green tea home…It was such a wonderful trip and I loved every single thing we got to do. I’ll take you guys on a tour of the hotel soon. It was amazing, and there is so much love for nature and the people up there. I can’t wait to share more!

     

    XOXOXO

     

    -A

    Road trip to Phu Kradung

    01/04/2016
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    One of my favourite trekking places in Thailand must be Phu Kradung. It’s actually quite the workout and the reward you get when you reach the peak is just amazing. We all know how it is to trek around Thailand during winter times, or anywhere with a jungle terrain. It’s pretty dry and pretty much brown the whole way. Now I’m not saying I’m not a fan of that. It’s an easy terrain to walk in (if it’s not wet), but there isn’t much view other than bamboo and some green leaf and ancient elvish trees. I love to walk around and pick up leaves and things that I imagine doesn’t belong in the area and then dream about the evolution of the plants and where they came from. It’s on these nature trips that you truly appreciate those things you learnt in biology class and it really makes me rethink the world. Like seriously. I think that’s why I love the nature so much. I love my quiet times and getting to unwind and just think and think and think.

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    There are some viewing points on the way up

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    You can rent bikes and go to see all the pretty sandstone cliffs

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    Beautiful sunset… this was on the way back tho, if you do want to watch the sunset or sunrise from the mountains you need to spend the night

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    Fuji of Thailand, Phu Pa Poh also in Loei province.

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    Our bungalow we stayed at in Loei, right outside Phu Kradung national park

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    Cabbage field in Petchabun, right after ascending Phu Tubberk.

    Anyways, now I’m totally off the subject which was the rewarding view you get on top. There’s viewpoints pretty much everywhere and so many beautiful cliffs you can chill at. The sky is turquoise blue and the sun is shining in a pleasant way. You have two options, you can either ascend in the early am and descend in the afternoon or you can camp on the top and stay a couple of nights. Next time I will do option number two, as there is plenty to see on the top. We walked up in the morning, and was pretty sad to find out we had to descend by 2 pm the latest. I guess it’s better to be safe. I think the expected time to go up is 4 hours, but if you have a decent fitness level and don’t spend too much time eating or chilling on the way up I think you can do it in around 2.5. And by the way the food on the mountain is delicious. It could be partly because of the exhaustion and that we didn’t eat on the way up, but mmmm. You gotta make a pit stop! We had some amazing omelet and pad krapow moo.You can rent bikes on the top to look around the mountain too, so I’d recommend you be by the gate when they open at 8 am to get a good start. I was really sad to not spend the night there, but then again it was FREEZING during night-time. I’m already dreaming about going back.

     

    What’s your favourite nature spot in Thailand?

    -A

    Chillin in the Thai rainforest

    09/03/2016
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    As I mentioned earlier we were planning to go camping for our trekking and nature trip up North for Tom’s birthday. We had bought our camping gear beforehand and was ready to go. Little did we know about the cold weather that was lying ahead of us. I mean it was FREEZING. It’s already cold up North/Northeast during the winter months, but this time it was extra cold, and they actually told us it was the coldest day this year. So, we played it smart and rented bungalows as we went, which was still pretty cold. Let’s just say we did not use the aircon in any of the places.

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    Entrance to the hotel from the main road.

    On the day of Tom’s birthday, we wanted to stay somewhere nice, so we went on Agora to see if we could get a place with a nice view or even a place with a pool we could hang out by. There were LOTS of options. At this time we were heading to Phitsanulok. After Tom got some time thinking he thought it would be nice to stay somewhere eco-friendly, which I think was a great idea and started googling up something while Tom was driving. This led to me finding the Rain Forest Resort which lies in the outskirts of Phitsanulok. The drive was around 3 hours from Phu Kradung and we arrived after sunset. The hotel is beautiful, full of nature and animal sounds.

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    Thea pathway into the jungle and our bungalow.

    It’s kind of weird as the hotel is located right next to the motorway, but once you enter the hotel, you see greens for as long as the eye can see, and a nice river running through. Now don’t go expecting some Khao Sok or Pai scenery, but for what it was, and where this was located it was beautiful. We got a bungalow with a river view which was perfect. It had a nice outside area where you could chill on the balcony and connect with the nature. It was even nicer the next day after sunrise where you could go and chill on rocks at the river, or even something more comfortable as shaded seating raised on pillars. You can also get a massage there, which we unfortunately didn’t have time to.

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    Perfect spot to be in your own thoughts…

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    So serene <3

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    B R E A K F A S T

    The breakfast was nice too, and they grow their own vegetables. It was so good we actually bought some for home. I was so jealous when Tom chose a salad instead of fruits, as I expected it to be a normal Thai salad. You know the kind with Oak salad, tomatoes and carrot served with this weird slimy white sauce from Big C… I wished they baked their own bread though, or made their own jam. We didn’t have dinner there, so it might be more homegrown things on the menu then.

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    You can chill by the river and get a massage here. Perfect spot!

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    Birthday boiii, so cute!

     

    All in all, we were very satisfied with the hotel. The rooms were nice. It was possible to unwind in the nature, even if it was next to the motorway…. The reason why I mention this twice is because we read beforehand that it was noisy but we did not experience this at all. BUT, we did get a bungalow on the river. I think the hotel rooms are located by the road. Meaning, you will be dissapointed if you’re out for a quick stop and saving money. But if you love nature, and don’t mind spending the little extra. I think you’ll really like it. And also, be prepared for some lukewarm showers, which was pretty cold during the winter months.

     

     

    Xxxx

    -A

    Maya Music Festival

    28/02/2016
    by

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    Had so much fun during Maya Festival last weekend, I honestly can`t wait for the next one. The lighting was out of this world, I`m not even exaggerating. Just look at the stage for example, I love how it is a giant. Perfect way  to represent Thailand. Tiesto must be one of the best Dj’s I’ve seen live. What a performance. There was even fireworks. Love how it was in Pattaya and being able to go to the beach the following day… We also found this amazing hotel called Momento. It`s pet friendly, have a nice pool bar, and AMAZING food is located only 5 minutes away from the beach. What a dream place… Life is so much better by the sea… Pattaya is definitely not the dirty city everyone wants it to be. I used to live there 4 years ago, and never experienced this dark side everyone is making it become. Unless you’re one of those people who visit walking street and gogo bars every day… then obviously  you won`t get a good impression, but neither will you by visiting Khaosan road and Soi Cowboy every day in Bangkok…

    Cheers to many more weekens like this!

    xoxox

    -A

     

    Love all around!

    15/02/2016
    by

    Valentines day. Vday, The day of romance. Or for some, the 14th of February. I think it’s great that we have a day of the year where we show the ones around us that we love them. I mean some DO NEED a reminder, so this a great little alarm. 

    Love my bottom from Khongboon swimwear!

    It doesn’t have to be your boyfriend, it can be a day to cherish your other loved ones too. Like your parents, siblings, friends…  Personally I’ve never celebrated valentines day, not while in our outside of a relationship. I can’t even remember what we’ve been up to on valentines day in the earlier years. But I do remember something about the gym! I like to think that we spend enough time and give eachother lots of love every other time of the year too.

    Finally got to pop that bottle of wine I brought back from Spain…

     

    Koh Rin in the background

     

    Diego became a zombie… we went to have dinner at Rimpa Lapin and I liked it a lot. Fresh and tasty seafood and great atmosphere. The food is just as great as Mum Aroi, and the decor might have been even better!

    This year, on valentines day we celebrated a friend of ours birthday on a “love” yacht. We boarded at Ocean Marina in Pattaya, took the boat out to Koh Rin and Monkey island, and watched the sun set while sailing along the shore of Pattaya. I think this was a perfect celebration of love and a new year passed.

    What did you do for valentines?

    Xoxox

    Amazing Thailand

    09/02/2016
    by

     

    View from Phu Khradueng

     

    Zen moment on the way to Maholand cave


    These past few days we’ve been exploring the north of Thailand in provinces like Petchaboon, Loei and today Phitsanulok. We’ve found some amazing unseen places, beautiful mountains and green scenery as far as the eye can see. I fell in love with the trek up to Phu Khradueng and can’t wait to go back again. I’ll definitely make you guys a post about it so you can go yourself. It’s BREATHTAKING. Today we’ll be checking out some temples and waterfalls in the area and just enjoy ourseves as it’s babyTom’s bday.

    Xxxx