There were representatives from the Tourism Authority of Thailand, flydubai and the airport, women in traditional Thai dress, flowers, photographs and a formal welcome before we finally emerged into the city. It was also where we met Nana, our lovely Thai guide for the next five days. Warm, funny and seemingly impossible to fluster, she would become our interpreter, organiser and source of local knowledge, while somehow keeping a group of journalists and content creators moving in roughly the same direction.