April 9, 2008
After a day of bus travel, I arrived in Chanthaburi, the City of the Moon. Contrary to the name’s translation, the city’s main draw is gem stones. As the hub of the global gem stone trade, visitors can ooh and aah at piles of gems being inspected and purchased at Read more…
April 7, 2008
The morning brought indifference and a lack of motivation. Embarking upon a day of travel requires more than knowledge of bus stops and schedules but an accessible brain ready for the challenge. Energy both physical and mental. A good breakfast helped and I marched out of my room determined and Read more…
April 6, 2008
Wanting to make the most of a day here in Kanchanaburi (or getting lazy?), I booked a leisure day tour to hit a variety of sights in the area. My air-conditioned mini-van brought me to Sai Yok National Park, a 500 square-km park that includes the Sai Yok Noi waterfall Read more…
April 5, 2008
Last night I awoke to the pounding of the tin roofs around my guesthouse. Startled and helpless,I thought the worst. Transient looters? Back-alley bandits preying on the seclusion of my rented room? Drunken tourists? Emerging in the morning, the noisy culprit was clear. Mangoes. They were all over the place Read more…
April 4, 2008
Parade for the novice monks. My view of the Hilton. Sofitel’s very worthy topiary garden: Little Thai guy who played peek-a-boo with me the whole bus ride North.
April 2, 2008
After last evening’s a 1-hour boat ride from Ko Samui, where I was determined not to spend the night, I found myself amidst more of the same tourist hustle and bustle on the home to the infamous Full Moon Party, Ko Phangan. After trekking the entire island for cheap accommodations, Read more…
April 1, 2008
With mixed emotions, I headed towards the Donsak pier in Surat Thani to catch a boat to Ko Samui. Surat Thani is the gateway to this heavily developed and very expensive island and my home last night, the slick dealings and price of my room clearly foreshadowing the hell that Read more…
March 31, 2008
I toured the beautiful Phang Nga Bay by longtail boat with the aforementioned American couple and a previously unmentioned German couple. (I’m the fifth wheel!) The Americans had recently moved from Seattle to India where wife just got a 2-year teaching contract at a primary school and is now on Read more…
March 30, 2008
After a good deal of time in Phuket Town, it was time to change home base. Being as far South as I’d get in Thailand, I headed North to Phang Nga Town. Phang Nga hosts a nice variety of attractions, the most famous being Khao Ping Kan, often referred to Read more…
March 29, 2008
My trip to the Similan Islands, a cluster of 9 remote islands within the Andaman Sea, is a marked departure from my budget-savvy habits. Their inaccessibility and price steering most backpackers to other more developed islands (and those with reputations for the “party hardy”), I couldn’t resist the opportunity to Read more…
March 28, 2008
di·chot·o·my division into two mutually exclusive, opposed, or contradictory groups Bangkok Guest house cell, Sweety Guesthouse Vegan chocolate cake, Ethos Restaurant Beached “Bitch face”, Thai restaurant by Sea Gypsy village, Phuket “Lil Miss Sunshine”, Nature Beach Resort, Ko Chang Beached, Part II Non-seclusion, Ko Phi Phi Don, Phuket Seclusion, Cape Read more…
March 27, 2008
Today I spent the day within the organized itinerary of a tour excursion to the islands Phi Phi Don and Phi Phi Ley. Phi Phi Don serves as means to get to the very remote Phi Phi Ley, the title beach from The Beach. My experiences are far-better described through Read more…
March 26, 2008
Waking up determined to sustain positivity, I took a shower, partly blaming yesterday’s perils on my absence of a morning shower. I paid for another night at On On and booked a full day tour to Ko Phi Phi Don & Ko Phi Phi Ley for the next day. So Read more…
March 25, 2008
Today marked a milestone in my trip, the flight to the Southern island of Phuket. Gateway to Thailand’s most visited outer islands and beaches, Phuket is the largest island in the country at 570 sq. km. But Phuket is a destination all its own, home to many beautiful beaches, many Read more…
March 24, 2008
I splurged on a “VIP” bus for the 2 hour ride to Nong Kaen. So what does VIP mean? Larger upholstered seats that recline with a massage option, more legroom, no local stops, no herding in as many people as possible, crisp AC and a cozy blanket. All for a Read more…
March 22, 2008
After an unforseen overnight stop in the large city of Khorat due to bus snafus, I woke and quickly boarded a bus to the sleepy town of Phimai. Originally planning this visit to be another day trip, I regretfully checked into a dorm just to be able to explore without Read more…
March 21, 2008
Here is a photo recap of the tasty morsels I munched on in Sukhothai, Phitsanulok, Phimai and Nong Kaen. I must make special mention of Ban Thai Guesthouse‘s food. The best I’ve had in Thailand so far. The menu is huge and they sub tofu for meat in any dish. Read more…
Saying goodbye to Sukhothai, I traveled East just about an hour to Phitsanulok. I planned just a quick day trip and boarded a bus further East after my sightseeing was through. Michael, the German cycler, and the woman who ran the guest house in Sukhothai both gave high praises to Read more…
March 20, 2008
Meet Michael. I spent the afternoon with him, by chance, and learned a good deal about this Buddha fellow I’ve been photographing. After returning to my guest house from the historical park with the remainder of the afternoon at my disposal, I decided to carry on with plans I had Read more…
I spent the day in Old Sukhothai. Wandering around the lush grounds of Sukhothai Historical Park by rented bicycle, I left with my clothing a shade darker and soaked in sweat. It is very, very hot here in Sukhothai. Actually, the country’s highest temperatures are here: currently 36.2 C at Read more…
March 19, 2008
Discovering there are no real redeeming attractions in the Golden Triangle area, I decided to begin heading South to Sukhothai, a 7 hour bus ride from the very enjoyable Chiang Rai. Although the meeting point of the Thai, Myanmar & Laos borders within the river appealed to me, this was Read more…
March 18, 2008
Getting way too comfortable in Chiang Mai, it was time to move on. I headed further North to Chiang Rai via 3rd class bus along with the locals. After a few hours uphill, I was at Chiang Rai. Along the way I had devoured the my 5 large greasy spring Read more…
March 17, 2008
Cooking a four-course Thai meal with ingredients picked from the local market and from the grounds of an organic farm, I brought my appetite and anticipation from the night before. The full day class, offered by the Chiang Mai Thai Farm Cooking School, gave me yet another escape from the Read more…
March 16, 2008
I knew Elephant Nature Park would be an amazing experience when I booked a full-day tour… back in August of 2007. The 50-acres of jungle, mountains and river about an hour North of Chiang Mai is a sanctuary for 31 elephants, ages 4 to 76, rescued from illegal logging companies, Read more…
March 11, 2008
With travelers passing through Chiang Mai from all over the world, the city caters to their bellies with care. Vegetarians also get special treatment, as every restaurant and food stall offer us options, often very easily veganized. Here is a sampling of some of the goodies I’ve tried here in Read more…
After a layover in Bangkok, I headed up to Chiang Mai, the tourist epicenter of the North and gateway to hill tribe villages and treks, the Golden Triangle (more on this next week) and a variety of National Parks, including one boasting the highest peak in Thailand. Although the variety Read more…