I made it back from Thailand both exhausted and exhilarated, which is how travel is supposed to be. There is an enormous amount to say, which I’ll do first in the various magazine assignments I have as they, unfortunately, pay a little better than you all do. However, a few observations.

First, Thailand is an adult amusement park. That is both good and bad. Good in that tourism is the country’s leading industry and they are experts at it, from hotels to airlines to restaurants (there is no such thing as bad Thai food!) to golf courses to massage parlors. And by massage parlors I mean legitimate ones where a two-hour full-body Thai massage can cost as little as $12 including tip. Bad, if that’s the right word, in that much of the country’s notoriety has been earned for its sex trade, which is also quite cheap and also a combination of amusing and pathetic. But more than one reliable source told me that prostitution/companionship is an acceptable trade over there, a way for young women to make pretty good money (in a country where the average worker earns about $15 a day), most of which is sent home to parents and children. Of course a lot of that is justification, and also helps explain why the country claims a 60% return rate among tourists. Sad, and weird, but true.

Second, the golf in Thailand was a very pleasant surprise. With all the notoriety of China, Korea, and Vietnam, among other Asian countries, as new golf destinations, it’s worth noting that there are more than 250 courses in Thailand and the game has been played there for more than 80 years. Most of those courses are not very good, and many are military owned and operated (the army, which is in sight almost everywhere you go, seems to love its golf), but the other 60 or so range from fair to outstanding. I played nine, spanning the country from the resort island of Phuket in the south, through Bangkok and the resort towns of Pattaya and Hua Hin in the middle, up to Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai, two fascinating old towns in the far north near the Burmese and Laotian borders in the heart of the “Golden Triangle.” Of those nine, four or five were really special, interesting, dramatic, challenging, and fun.

Third, hot. Ohmygod, hot! And humid. There was very little rain, but temperatures were routinely in the upper 90s and the humidity was at least that. Strangely, a few courses are walking-only, others are carts-only. I usually love to walk, but not there. Sorry.

Which leads to fourth, caddies. They are required everywhere and add greatly to each club’s charm: Lovely young ladies, swaddled head to toe for protection from the sun, they almost all speak enough English to be very helpful, are terrific at reading greens, are pretty good at yardages (but never figure in for pin position, only giving distances to the center of greens), will even give a quickie massage to an aching golfer’s back, and are wonderful ambassadors (ambassadresses?) for the country and the game. And like almost everything else in Thailand, they’re a bargain: Fees are usually about $8 a round whether driving the cart or pulling a trolley with the bag. (They never double-carry.) Add to that a tip of another $8 or so and you’re talking a bargain.

I’ll talk about the specific courses in my articles and future posts, and also will include photos when possible. As a teaser, here is a photo from arguably the best course I saw, The Banyan Golf Club in Hua Hin, about three hours west of Bangkok, which was designed by a local Thai architect who moved a remarkably small amount of dirt while carving this course through pineapple plantations. It was a treat.

For more on Thailand golf, and to look into making a golf trip there yourself, check out GolfAsian (their site). A terrific golf-tour operator, they not only know Thailand intimately, they’re experts on the rest of Southeast Asia as well. And like the rest of the country, are terrific at service.