clarita the adventurista

I’M BECOMING A TRAVEL SNOB. It’s true. We are here in paradise, at one of the most beautiful destinations in the world with emerald green waters and dramatic karst formations jutting out of the water, but all I can think about is how annoying the tourists are. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that we aren’t the only ones that like this whole tropical paradise sort of thing. But seriously, what are all these damn tourists with blotchy red skin and hideous swimsuits doing in my paradise? Can’t they get their own elsewhere!? But let me back up a second. From Ko Phangan we took a catamaran back across the Gulf to mainland Thailand, and then jumped into a minivan with hordes of other travelers heading west to the Andaman coast. From here we were ... read more

GETTING TO CHIANG MAI INVOLVED a bit more than the usual prescribed hassles. We flew out of Hanoi at 8am and arrived in Bangkok a couple hours later, still tired from another early morning. Not wanting to waste an extra day sitting around Bangkok we went straight to the train station hoping to catch the noon train for Chiang Mai. Upon arriving at the station we learned that the train was fully booked and the next one didn’t leave until late that evening. Worse yet, there were only sitting seats left, not recliners, which was important since it was a twelve hour overnight ride. While I sat on the bench and sulked (I was having a – ‘I’m sick of traveling’ - moment) Travis arranged alternate transportation on a double decker V.I.P. bus for that evening. ... read more

WE CHECKED INTO THE HUE HOLIDAY HOTEL a mere four hours after we left Hoi An, a pleasant reprieve from our usual 12-13 hour jaunts. We decided to stop in Hue more out of necessity than desire. We had plane tickets to Bangkok in only five days, and there was a lot that I wanted to see in the north, including Halong Bay, the sight that had attracted me to Vietnam in the first place. Unfortunately there wasn’t a bus straight to Hanoi so had to stop in Hue to transfer; we decided we may as well spend the day there and leave the following morning. Against our wishes our one day turned into three – there were no buses available for the next two days due to the number of people that were traveling for ... read more

Normal 0 LUSCIOUS WHITE SAND! ALLURING TURQUOISE WAVES! There’s just something about the combination of these that makes me go weak in the knees. The word beautiful is not adequate to describe this devastatingly handsome landscape of Nha Trang. A sleek, modern city scape runs parallel to the white sands that slope gently into the clear, aqua waters. Dark forest green mountains jut up over the horizon. Nha Trang transformed us from thrifty backpackers to indulgent revelers without even asking for our consent. We ate delicious food, partied like rockstars, swam in the sparkling waters, a... read more

AFTER SIEM REAP WE MADE OUR WAY to Cambodia’s second largest city, Battambang. We decided to visit Battambang because we wanted to visit a more traditional Cambodian town and we had heard the surrounding countryside was beautiful. We could feel the difference immediately upon arrival – the pace of life was slower, the streets a bit dingier, and the scenery not as picturesque. At first sight it was a little disappointing but after walking around it became clear that this was a much more authentic version of Cambodia and I was happy for it. Since there are no large monuments or attractions in Battambang it doesn’t see many tourists, which means it has a very local, almost provincial feel. A frothy brown river runs through the center of town with small, open face storefronts on ... read more