"Where Joy finds Me First"

I often get asked why I love Thailand so deeply and why I keep finding my way back to its shores, its streets, its quiet corners of calm. 

People assume it’s the scenery, the food, the shopping, the temples, the beaches...... And while those things are amazing and beautiful, they’re not the reason. The truth is simpler, and far more personal:  I like who I am when I am here.

Thailand has a way of softening me.  The irritability that creeps into my days back home dissolves as if it never existed.  The frustration that sometimes sits heavy on my chest slowly lifts.  My capacity to find joy becomes almost limitless—as though joy itself is a natural resource woven into the air.

Part of that comes from the gentle ethos of Buddhism. I’m a Christian, but its teachings—especially the core principle of “first, do no harm”—reaches deep into my soul. There is something profoundly grounding about being in a country where compassion is not just a belief, but a way of life. Even if you don’t speak the language, you can feel it in the way people move, greet each other, care for their families, and approach the world.

And it’s not only people who are treated with gentleness.  Even the animals—stray dogs, street cats—are fed, watered, and watched over by locals. Bowls of food appear in alleyways. Containers of fresh water are placed outside shops. Monks wrap robes around shivering dogs during cool mornings. There is this quiet, unspoken understanding that every life matters.

Coming from South Africa, where life feels undervalued, this contrast takes my breath away. Here in Thailand, each life—human or animal—seems to carry a quiet dignity. People notice. People care. People pause. And that has reshaped something inside me.

Maybe that’s why I feel different here.  Maybe that’s why my shoulders drop, my heart steadies, and my soul feels heard.  Maybe that’s why I breathe easier, smile more, and move through the world with a gentler step.

Thailand reminds me of the person I want to be.

Not just on holiday.

Not just when life is good.

But always.

And so I keep returning—not searching for anything new, but returning to what Thailand reminds me of: that Joy is not something I must chase. It finds me here, easily, naturally, as if it knows my name and it doesn’t just welcome me — it meets me.

"And, as always, I will follow my Hart"