Ngapali Beach was the last stop in my Myanmar tour. Rumored to be named by an Italian explorer after his home town, this beach is a popular Myanmar attraction and it's easy to see why. After about 2 weeks of travel here in Myanmar I didn't realize how ready I was for some rest and relaxation, and a little luxury, so it was a real treat. Luxury in this case meant an incredible beach with little need to go anywhere. The food was plentiful and good and the accomodation private and comfy. My days were spent going for runs in the morning, swimming in the warm waters, playing frisbee, or visiting the fishing village down the beach. I was still traveling with the two Germans and one Swiss I met in Mrauk-U. Other than me, ... read more

Mrauk-U was the former capital city of the Rhakine Kingdom in the pre-colonnial era. In order to pay his respects to his Buddhist beliefs a local king built hundreds of pagodas throughout the landscape. It doesn't quite rival Bagan in scale but folklore says that every single hilltop was capped with a golden pagoda. Even now the hills teem with spires of dark stone and glinting gold. When the Rhakine Kingdom was torn apart by rivals, the king hired Japanese samurais as personal body guards. This all occurred just prior to the arrival of the British, expanding east from India. A busy and fascinating time although not well documented. Nowadays Mrauk-U is only accessible by boat from Sittwe for tourists. The crowds that plague Bagan are non-existant which allows a very nice opportunity to sink everything ... read more

For the first time in my life I feel I have been to the edge of the earth. I sailed in forgotten waters off the coast of a mostly forgotten country, was rescued by squid fishing gypsies, walked on dense uninhabited islands and virgin stretches of sand, dove lush reefs as well as devastated reefs, swam into nurse shark caves, and even encountered the Myanmar Navy, all in 6 short days in late November. My adventure began November 21st when I flew a puddle jumper from Yangon to Kawthoung, an island bordering Thailand on the Myanmar side. We touched down 3 times in that journey and only once did we have a smooth landing. Have you ever landed front wheel first in a mid size passenger jet? If you have you probably haven't lived to ... read more

I don't mean to blame Vang Vieng itself for the low success ratio. Although i haven't really let it off the hook entirely. Vang Vieng is the kind of place that exists because it's between two other travel destinations (ie-Luang Prabang and Vientianne.) They've catered to the backpacker quite successfully and rather extensively. It has plenty of facilities for us mangy westerners, but it's gone so far as to suck the very soul out of us wanderers. It is here however that I wish to seperate Vang Vieng the town from the surrounding countryside. Vang Vieng the town: The last thing I want to do while in such a wonderous land as Laos is watch American basic television programming. However...and I still haven't forgiven myself for participating but I'll explain later...that seems to be what's ... read more

Luang Prabang was the one time capital of Laos, and currently it's second biggest city. Of course in Laos a city doesn't actually feel like a city as I know it. It feels like a nice mid-sized town where everyone more or less knows one another. The people aren't in a rush, they smile and wave, and they're in no way interested in hawking you. You may get two offers in a row from a tuk-tuk driver, but that's about as aggressive as sales people get. The main road isn't bustling with traffic. Crossing the street you barely need to look both ways. And that's partly thanks to the fact that they refuse to rent scooters to us foreigners, which is a great idea to reduce noise pollution and ensure the tuk-tuk industry stays strong. And ... read more