Chiang Mai was the center of the Lanna Empire eons ago. Naturally isolated from the distant Capital of Bangkok, due to a forbidding mountainous terrain all around, Chiang Mai has a provincial feel. More laid back, less hurried and easily…
Reflection on our journey ~ metaphorically and mechanically. Chiang Mai, Thailand
Locals ask the question “Where are you from?”, which is fairly easy to answer…. (South Africa, France, Chicago, Nicaragua) compared with the question travelers ask us, which is “Where do you live?” The answer is not so easy. We no…
Southern Thailand ~ Beaches, a new culture and martial law.
Once again, being in a country where something “happens” is very instructive. When we leave Bangkok after 10 days, the crisis that is playing out in the streets of Bangkok remains opaque. It doesn’t seem clear how the…
Wat Phra Keo ~ Temple of the Emerald Buddha. Bangkok, Thailand
Wat Phra Keo has some of the most stunning architecture in South East Asia. The emerald Buddha Wat Phra Keo is the holiest of all Thai wats. The small green jade statue of the Buddha, high on its golden altar…
Wat Po ~ a magnificent ode to Buddha. Bangkok, Thailand
Bangkok’s oldest and Thailand’s largest Wat (temple complex) is Wat Po. Wat Po houses a giant reclining Buddha – 46 meter long, and 15 meter high. When you walk in and see this HUGE, gold figure which completely fills up…
Bangkok ~ First impressions (and tastes!) from the Kingdom of Thailand
There are few things (for us) more exciting than being about to land in a new country… A Thai adventure is around the corner (or down the runway, more precisely). Our beaten up, written up, tagged pages of our travel…
Adam’s Iphone pics of central Viet Nam.
For years, our son Adam nurtured a twin passion for gastronomy and photography. For a while, we thought he would become a professional photographer, but the pull of the kitchen proved stronger and he became a chef. Still, Adam has…
Saigon ~ Good bye Viet Nam, for now…
We are on our last stretch, making our way toward Saigon, a.k.a. Ho Chi Minh City. Bus travel, we have found, is exceedingly easy, other than for the fact that it’s best not to look at the road ahead because…