Studying in Nonthaburi
My home base was Nonthaburi, just north of Bangkok, where I took an exchange minor in Integrated Digital Marketing at Panyapiwat Institute of Management (PIM).
One fun link between campus and everyday life: PIM was founded under CP ALL, the company that operates 7-Eleven stores in Thailand. Those familiar signs were everywhere, so the connection between my studies and the world around me was hard to miss.
Follow the streets, follow your appetite.
Bangkok made a big first impression. In Chinatown, the colour and energy of the streets pulled me towards the food stalls. I tried fresh local dishes, along with some more unusual bites—including insects. There was always something new to look at, smell or taste.
I remember some meals costing around 37 to 80 baht—roughly one or two euros at the time. That felt incredibly affordable from my European point of view. But a low price for a visitor can still be a meaningful amount for someone who lives and works locally. It made me think twice about calling a place “cheap” as if everyone experiences its prices in the same way.
More than one side to a night out.
I got to know Bangkok’s nightlife, and weekend trips to Pattaya brought a different change of pace: evenings out, visits to animal parks and time to explore the city’s landmarks. The intricately carved Sanctuary of Truth stood out for its scale and detailed wooden architecture. Back in Bangkok, seeing Wat Arun glowing beside the river after dark gave the city another mood altogether.
The best connection was being present.
If Bangkok was constant motion, Khao Sok was the reset. Over four days in the natural surroundings, we went river tubing, kayaking, visited a waterfall and joined a night-time jungle walk. The landscape alone was enough to slow me down.
For roughly half our stay, there was no internet. I expected that to be inconvenient; instead, it felt like a gift. No steady stream of notifications, no doom-scrolling—just the people around me and the place we had come to experience. I remember how good it felt to be properly present.
Sometimes the most memorable part of a trip is what you finally get to tune out.
Room to breathe.
Calm water, forested hills and floating lodges made Khao Sok feel a world away from the city. The night walk added a little wildness too: you never quite know what you might spot in the trees.
Thailand kept changing the view.
From Khao Sok, my memories stretch out to Phuket and the Phi Phi Islands, where the sea and steep green islands create a completely different landscape. Inland, Ayutthaya offered another kind of perspective. It was once the capital of Siam and became a major centre of trade and diplomacy; today, its temple ruins make that history feel close enough to walk through. The city is recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Wildlife stops, wherever I go.
I’m a big animal lover, so visiting a wildlife park or zoo is something I often try to make room for when I travel. Thailand gave me plenty of animal encounters to remember—from an elephant up close to a capybara visit and seeing the hippos that included Moo Deng. They added a playful, personal thread to a journey full of cities, landscapes and culture.
So, is Thailand the land of smiles? For me, it was also a place of contrasts: busy streets and quiet water, late nights and early adventures, new flavours and familiar routines seen in a new light. I arrived for an exchange and left with a wider view of the world—and a reminder that travel is less about ticking places off a map than learning to see through someone else’s perspective.
Three months in Thailand gave me more than memories of where I went. It changed the way I look at the world.
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