We made it to the country we’d be spending our first full month in, and Thailand did not disappoint! From beautiful beaches to quaint boutique shops and craft beer bars, we felt right at home.

We didn't quite know what to expect from Thailand, but upon arrival, we immediately knew it was going to be our kind of place. Even the bus ride to Kamala Beach from Phuket airport was an adventure… There were no seats left, so we had to sit on a stool right next to the driver and in amongst all the passengers' luggage! We got to Kamala Beach in one piece, and it was lined with bars, restaurants, smoothie stands, massage stalls and other touristic merchandise shops, and the people seemed really genuine and friendly. The sea was crystal clear and it was just such a relaxing vibe all-round.

We were feeling pretty peckish, so we stopped at one of the beach-front restaurants on our way to the hotel and for the first time, we saw pineapple fried rice on the menu! Tora jumped at the chance to give it a go, and unbeknown to us, if you order pineapple fried rice at this particular restaurant, it is served by a person in a chicken suit who brings it out to an insanely loud song! Everyone in the restaurant watched as Tora was presented with fried rice served inside of half a pineapple with various flowers and other pieces of fruit stuck in it to make it look like a chicken. After a flight and a lengthy bus journey, we were so tired, we didn't know if it was real life or we were tripping balls! Unfortunately for the slightly red-faced Tora, it was real life.

The few days that followed were so relaxing, and we enjoyed our first dip in the Andaman Sea. There isn't a huge amount of things to do at Kamala Beach, but there is a good selection of bars and restaurants, and obviously the beach itself to just bask in the lovely sunshine and watch the world go by. Tora also reached out to their brother-in-law who was staying in Thailand for a while. It turns out, he was located only a 20 minute drive from Kamala Beach and we arranged to meet up that evening! It was great to spend some time with him, play a few games of pool together, and hear about everywhere he's been in Thailand, which got us even more excited for the weeks ahead.

Next on the list was Phuket Old Town! Again, we didn't know what to expect, but we jumped on the local bus and headed East. The bus ride was interesting, to say the least. The buses there have no windows - just open areas where the glass would usually go, no back, and the two batteries lying on the floor, exposed to the elements. There's benches around the side of the bus and a wooden bench in the middle that goes from the front to the back. Anyway, it got us there in one piece, and as we drove into Phuket Old Town, we could tell we'd love it there. The buildings were so colourful, and we even saw a couple of tap rooms! We got off the bus and went straight into the first bar that took our fancy because I was absolutely starving (shock!).

We spent our days in Phuket Old Town just wandering around the streets, and exploring the quirky shops filled to the brim with lovely clothes, souvenirs and jewelry. There was quite an upmarket feel to the place, despite a lot of the shops being touristy souvenir-types selling the typical tourist's elephant pants/t-shirts. Despite the fact the clothes had elephant prints on them, they were a nicer style than the rest we'd seen… but I still refused, out of principal, to be walking around Thailand in a pair of shorts covered in elephant patterns!

One evening, we went into a restaurant called Reach. It was fully vegan, and was run by a wonderful young couple who were hoping to employ ex-prisoners to help rehabilitate them and give them a chance to get back on their feet. The couple chatted to us after we finished our meal, and told us the touching story of how the toddler who was running around the restaurant came to be. She was the daughter of the owners' friend and his girlfriend. When his girlfriend fell pregnant, they were worried that they didn't have enough money to bring up a child, and unfortunately found themselves dealing drugs to make ends meet. Within a couple of weeks of their new “career”, they were caught by the police and arrested. The mother actually gave birth in prison, and that's where the baby spent her first few weeks on earth. The baby had an older sibling, 21, who was unable to take care of her because he was a drug addict. However, he was allowed to sign the adoption forms on behalf of the couple, and therefore signed the baby over to the beautiful couple running the restaurant. The warmth of the couple radiated more and more as they spoke of their beliefs, the child's upbringing and how they'd already done a similar thing with another baby for the last 10 years, before she ended up back with her mother once she was released from prison. Their dream was to reduce the (already very low) prices of their food, to give everyone a chance to eat in their restaurant no matter how rich or poor they were. They were true angels.

Going back to the tap rooms I mentioned earlier, we visited a couple and within 5 seconds of being in the first one, we were transported back to the UK as we gazed at the menu full of proper beers. After being presented with the two options of Singha or Chiang (both, lager) for the duration of our trip, it was a real treat to sip on a nice local IPA. This place was called Full Moon Brewworks, and it was decorated with floor-to-ceiling spray paint murals and had a beautiful beer garden out the back, taking you away from the bustling streets and into peace and tranquility.

The next tap room was Yes Brewery. It had a cool atmosphere and the staff were so friendly. It was pretty dead at the start, but soon filled up when the band started playing. Before the band, we enjoyed listening to the local pianist who sat by the window playing beautiful tunes, including two of my favourites: Nuvole Bianche by Ludovico Einaudi, and River Flows in You by Yiruma. He was great… and very underappreciated, I thought! The band that followed him were a vibrant and energetic band from the Philippines. The lead singer was fabulous and she nailed every request she was given by the audience, including us.