It was a Friday morning and I was laying in bed looking at my friend's Instagram stories. A was relaxing in Koh Chang. X was hiking somewhere beautiful. Z was drinking in Koh Phi Phi. 

Why was I still in bed????  Why am I not out there traveling or exploring, despite the loom and dread of COVID-19?  Clearly, we haven't had any local cases in almost a month. That's when I decided to get up and take a day trip somewhere nearby. 

Nakhon Nayok seemed like a good idea as it's on my immediate bucket list (as part of visiting every Thai province). 

So began our spontaneous journey to Nakhon Nayok, a province known for scenic landscapes, wildlife, waterfalls, and national parks.

First stop - Montreux café and farm

After driving for a bit more than 1 hour, we arrived at Montreux café and farm for lunch (since we left around 11 am). We took some pictures, ate our food, and then took some more pictures. I don't think we stayed longer than 45 minutes. 

Naturally, I ordered Kapao Gai (chicken with basil) and my wife ordered macaroni with seafood. 

I like that you can enter the farm for free. The food isn't expensive either. Our two dishes combined was just 195 Baht. 

It's a really beautiful land and space for locals or tourists to visit. I think there is a lot more to see and do here but since we had limited time, we had to move on. This was just the outskirts of Nakhon Nayok.

Bamboo Tree Tunnel

Seems like Thailand is good at having their version of famous attractions from around the world. This one is a bamboo tree tunnel, somewhat reminiscent of the one in Japan. 

It took about 30 minutes to get there from the farm, so not too far. The roads in Nakhon Nayok are also very wide and easy to navigate. 

Obviously this place is not as fascinating or impressive but it's kind worth of the worth the trip - for your IG. You can also pay your respects to the temple here.

Now we took some time to decide where to go next. We sat in the car looking at the itinerary, map, and interesting places to visit. Another farm was listed that wasn't too far away.

However,  on the way, we noticed beautiful mountains on the side. So yet again, a spontaneous decision and we started driving towards the mountain. This detour actually led us to the Armed Forces Academies Preparatory School. The way there was quite scenic.

We made our way back to the main road and then just drove around, aimlessly.  Part of travel is to wander and to get lost.  Without a plan. It's really exciting!

More gorgeous scenic views of the fields and mountains. In fact, this road leads to Khao Yai. Since we have been there many times, we took a U-turn and headed towards the town/city of Nakhon Nayok.

Here again, we just drove around. We tried to find a place to eat or take some pictures. That's when I came across this little park by the river. If you're wondering where - it's at the end of Sena Phinit 1 Alley. 

Early dinner at Rimnam Riverside Nakhon Nayok

Not far from the little park, we found a restaurant called Rimnam Riverside Nakhon Nayok. A great place for dinner.  The staff was extremely friendly (spoke perfect English too), the food was delicious and the restaurant had a pretty nice view.

These 3 dishes + water only cost us about 500 Baht. Not bad considering includes a whole fried fish!

By the time we finished our dinner, it was getting dark. It was time to head back to Bangkok. 

Sadly we didn't get to see or visit many places as planned (due to time constraints and closures because of COVID-19). I would have liked to see Nakhon Nayok's waterfalls, mountains, and reservoirs. 

Maybe next time.