Cardiff Insiders; Abroad #ChiangRai1

An introductory video to the mini series following a Cardiff Insider on his travels after University. Cardiff Uni and the city alike boasts a multicultural environment and a plethora of societies, many of which open the door to learning about other countries and cultures.

The area of Thailand that I shall be based/ am based in is at the Northern most point near to the golden Triangle (look it up, its fascinating stuff). It’s called Chiang Rai and that means its nothing to do with the party strips down south. As popular as they may be, this is real slice of life stuff. My parents having been living here for a while now and I myself spent may months in Chiang Rai prior to University.

I would say – and this is not for want of trying to talk the university up – that it was a far smoother transition into university life than I had expected back in 2014. One of the key factors in that is that Cardiff is far from being a one dimensional university. There is a lot of pressure to pertain to the standards and expectations of an all inclusive, all welcoming university but Cardiff really is that. Therefore, the opportunities to explore new avenues and meet a wealth of people was evident from the off. It was not so much a step back but an equally interesting stepping stone into learning more about the people and the place that I would be moving to.

Anyhow, I am back in Chiang Rai after a lengthy hiatus. This is not a trip that is exclusively linked to Cardiff University. I did come back of my own accord and to see family, obviously, but its a glimpse of something outside of Wales and it’s also a snippet of tackling fresh environments with the experience of three solid years at a fresh University.

The second video is as self explanatory as they come so look out for that!

Joe