Angkor Wat is by no means the only jewel in the ancient Khmers Empires crown with other temple treasures like Bayon and Ta Prohm you are hard pushed to see half the delights on a 3 Day Pass. This is especially the case if you are like us and decide to go by peddle power instead of tuk tuk which is admittedly a pleasant way to see the Angkorian delights and surrounding countryside but under the blazing sun it is a slow sticky way to work your way around the temples and it eats away valuable viewing time but for those [View Full Entry]

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Be prepared to have your socks blown off if you are wearing any in the heat of Cambodia by making a trip to Angkor Wat. Angkor Wat has a reputation for been one of the most magnificent temples in the world and it will definitely give the Taj Mahal a run for its money (though it is a hefty 40USD for a 3 day pass to visit Angkor Wat and surrounding Temples in the Angkor Archeological Park it is worth it). Angkor Wat was first on our 3 day exploration of the temples of Angkor that formed part of the capital [View Full Entry]

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Sometimes traveling on a budget just doesn't pay off. The Lonely Planet Guide called the road from the border to Siem Reap as The Boulevard of Broken Backsides and after a grueling 6 hours after crossing the border into Cambodia I understood why. We departed Thailand early in the morning to head to the border at Aranya Prathet (Thailand)/Poipot (Cambodia). The journey on the Thailand side was ok though we were crowded into a mini van but at least it was air conditioned and so the 5 hours passed in mild discomfort only. We made it to the border and our [View Full Entry]

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Just a very quick blog entry to show a few photos of the result of doing what I had said I wanted to do for years - have my hair braided. Decided that with the ratio of hair braiders on Ko San Road in Bankok nearly equal to the number of tourists that is was an opportunity not to be missed! 4.5 hours later and in the early hours of the morning it was finally finished I was now the proud owner of very long and very heavy head of braids. Though it has taken several days to get used to [View Full Entry]

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Well last few days in Thailand before my Visa runs out and I head to Cambodia. Spent most of the time just hanging out with my friends in Thailand rather than doing the tourist trail thing though there was a trip to look around the Siam area of Bangkok - the place for Shopping Malls and Shopping Plaza. But mainly my time has been spent in the very much not tourist area of Bangkok in the Laksi Area where my friends live and experiencing the local street market where we could buy fresh vegetables and meat if we felt like cooking [View Full Entry]

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After all the partying it was time to recharge our batteries and what better place to do this than on the little island of Ko Jum, an island with only electricity by generator for 3 hours a day, no big hotels and no parties only long sandy beaches and tree covered hills and the only form of transport a limited number of scooters for hire. The intial plan had been to head to the island of Ko Lanta but having traveled in 10 different vehicles in 12 hours including ferries, buses, mini vans, back of jeeps we arrived late on the [View Full Entry]

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Ko Pha Ngan is the Party island of Thailand hosting the famous or infamous Full Moon Parties at Haad Drin Beach but me and the gang arrived too late to experience the Full Moon Party which happened a week before on Christmas Eve but as the party island it seemed like the perfect location to see in the New Year. The Full Moon Parties are probably considered world's biggest beach party that is until your are their for New Year - a think the beach at Haad Drin hosted the biggest party in the Universe to see in 2008! From early [View Full Entry]

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Well the Christmas vacation started in Ko Tao - ok so I am already on a long holiday but the rest of the gang aren't. Accompanied by Ricardo, Ben, Karni and Jay we took a overnight bus and speed boat to the little southern island off the east coast of Thailand. But before we set off there were a few last minute essentials to be done. For me this was finding that perfect Bikini to hit the beach with but not being of the petite asian build this meant making a purchase in Ko San Road where European sizes are available [View Full Entry]

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IT'S CHRISTMAS TIME!!!!......but this year with a difference. This was my first Christmas not spent with my family and it was definately going to be different having extended by travels and arranged to meet up with my friend Ricardo in Thailand. We met up a few days before Christmas and stayed at his friend's place (now my friend too) , Ben's. I was surprised and delighted to find that Thailand actually did celebrate Christmas having arrived with the impression that as a predominately Buddhist country there would be little or no sign of Christmas but how wrong can you be! Thailand [View Full Entry]

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The Grand Palace is a complex of buildings in Bangkok, Thailand and the official residence of the king of Thailand from the 18th century to the mid-20th century - the official royal residence to Chitralada Palace. Construction of the palace complex began in 1782, during the reign of Rama I. Having read in the book 'Places to see before you Die' that this is one of the top places to visit in the world then I was definately not going to miss it whilst in Bangkok. And Wow, Wow and WOW - it proved to be a amazing day out. Accompanied [View Full Entry]

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