Pt 12 – Erawan National Park & The National Anthem

Saturday, February 6th, 2016

I slept in while Trevor snuck out early to score the free hostel breakfast. I was too hungover to eat anything. I decided to give eating a try, but headed straight to the bathroom to get sick the second I took a look at a fried egg laying on a bed of toast. I returned to bed to try to recover before we headed out on our walk to the bus station. Once we located the bus station, we got a ride to the “Hop Inn” to ditch our packs, then returned to get our tickets to “Erawan National Park”. My sweet husband got me a green tea to help settle my stomach.

We’d have limited leg room available during the hour and 30 minute-long ride to the park. When we arrived, we bought our tickets, then I tried to eat something again. As delicious as Thai food is, it wasn’t the least bit appealing in my hungover state. I ordered the chicken nuggets and fries instead, struggling to keep them down. I managed to eat most of it.

The hiking and scenery were excellent at least! Some people were jumping off the waterfalls, some were sliding down the smooth rock slides into the pools below, and others were swimming, sunbathing, or letting the fish munch on their toes.

There were several waterfalls to hike to, but the one all the way at the top was the most magnificent, even though it was only a trickle. Sadly the pictures didn’t turn up.

We hiked back down the mountain a little bit and Trevor hopped in for a swim while I sat on a log and let the fish nibble at my feet. That pool was a little bit swampy so we hiked further down to a much deeper, less muggy pool where I eventually took a dip as well.

When we walked towards the exit, there was a bus waiting so we jumped onboard. We were happy that we did, since they announced it was the last one back to town. As the departure time approached, the bus got more and more crowded. We were happy we got a seat, but as the bus filled, it didn’t make us that much more comfortable. The couple in front of us kept stepping on my toes until we got closer to town and people slowly started to unload from the bus.

Once we arrived at the bus station, we had to stop in our tracks immediately. I was scolded by a police officer for not being prompt enough, as the national anthem played over a loudspeaker. This occurs twice daily all across Thailand, and when it does, you better stop what you’re doing and stand still our of respect! Trevor says the anthem reminds him of Disney World.

We grabbed some quick grub off the street before returning to our hotel. With hangover and all, I still managed to enjoy my day, but I was sure glad to take a nice warm shower and curl up in bed again.

Jump Back to Part 11: A Grumpy Driver, An Unforgiving Sun & Happy Hour

Jump Ahead to Part 13: Wrong Stop, Reptiles & The Bat Cave

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Start from the Beginning at Part 1: Mumbai to Chiang Mai