I am just a couple of weeks away from moving to Bangkok, Thailand. I've notified my boss and co-workers of my resignation, effective Friday, June 29, 2007. There are a lot of loose ends to wrap up at work prior to my departure, but I'm confident it will get done. There is also the daunting task of packing & storing my stuff. I will only be bringing two suitcases and a backpack with me to Thailand. Considering I intend to fit everything else I own in a single 5'x7'x8' storage unit, the bigger project is selling all that won't fit. Obviously, [View Full Entry]

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It's May 26, 2007. A few months have passed since my last blog update. What's going on? Ahhh, nothing...I'm just in the midst of making final preparations for moving overseas. Well, actually, that IS something. Indeed. Yes, plans are in motion for a move that is quickly approaching... Considering I've been renting this condo in Thousand Oaks, California for 15 years, it's not only remarkable I'm leaving the country, it's quite a leap to be moving at all. :) For all my travels through the years, I've been pretty stable when it comes to a home base. If I move my [View Full Entry]

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My final blog entry for my Jan/Feb 2007 Thailand trip: Taking you back to Saturday, 2/3/07...I didn't want to leave Chiang Mai, but my vacation was coming to a close. Saai and I grabbed a songthaew (sawngthaew?) from Libernard Cafe to get to the Chiang Mai airport outside of town. Our flight back to Bangkok was on Air Asia. For those not familiar with this airline, it is based out of Malaysia but serves many airports in SE Asia. It's a low cost airline with no reserved seats, and no free drinks/snacks/meals. I think it cost around $18 per person for [View Full Entry]

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I've returned to Los Angeles but my blog coverage of my trip to Thailand is not yet done. Let's get you through the last couple of days... My last blog detailed our trek on Thursday, February 1. This update covers our remaining days in Chiang Mai (Friday & Saturday morning). On Friday, we went to Libernard Cafe for lunch (visit #3 of the week!) and added a panang chicken dish to the mix (banana pancake & cafe latte is a given; the panang chicken is also a winner). Afterwards we walked around town to see the beginning of the flower festival. [View Full Entry]

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Chiang Mai is known as a launching pad for hiking treks through the nearby mountains. These excursions often include visiting hilltribes, riding elephants, traveling down rivers on bamboo rafts, and of course, hiking. Some are several days long and include camping. On Thursday, February 1, we went on a one day trek. The adventure started around 8:45 a.m. Saai met me at my Bed & Breakfast, and we were soon off in a van packed with 8 other tourists, a tour guide, and driver. If you do the math, you’ve already figured out - that’s 12 people in 1 van. An [View Full Entry]

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It’s been about 1 year since I was last in Chiang Mai. My circumstances were significantly different in 2006, but this trip has confirmed my love for this northern Thai city. One year ago, I took an overnight train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai. For this trip to Chiang Mai, I flew with One-Two Go, a discount airline. What’s it cost for the 1 hour flight from Bangkok to Chiang Mai? Around $40 each way. We arrived around 1:00 on Monday. There were quite a few logistical issues to sort through that day. We first went to 3 Sis Bed & [View Full Entry]

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It’s Tuesday, January 30 and I’m in Chiang Mai, Thailand. What has happened these last 4 days? Let’s rewind… I arrived at Bangkok’s new airport, Suvarnabhumi, at 2:30 a.m., Sunday, January 28. Considering I left Los Angeles on Friday, January 26, that sounds like a lot of flying. However, the time change represented a good chunk of it (Thailand is 15 hours ahead of Los Angeles). Suvarnabhumi is Bangkok’s controversial new airport that opened last fall. In Bangkok’s continuing efforts to compete with Singapore as the central hub for all tr [View Full Entry]

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I'm sitting in LAX (Los Angeles International Airport) making use of my new laptop. It's Friday afternoon, January 26. I'm waiting to board an EVA Air plane that pulled up to the gate a few minutes ago. My destination? Bangkok, Thailand. Getting through the ticket counter and security was smooth. No lines. No problems. I've got a 13 hour flight to Taipei, Taiwan, and then another 3 hour flight from there to Bangkok. I'm carrying much more than when I last traveled through SE Asia. That trip was 9 weeks long and all I had was an Eagle Creek backpack. This [View Full Entry]

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Not for me... the story: Christmas is spent with family. Always. In all my (umm, few) years, I've always been with family on Christmas Day. Well, this year, Denver got hit with a huge snow storm on the 20th of December. Where does my family live? Denver. Where was I going? Denver. When was my flight to Denver? My flight was on the morning of the 22nd. I should be fine, right? Well, DIA (Denver's airport) shut down, and the flight cancelations just kept piling up... They actually closed the airport for almost 48 hours. Are you kidding me? A closure [View Full Entry]

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It’s been awhile since my travel blog has been updated. The reason for that is quite simple: the travelblog requires traveling, and there hasn't been enough of that. Work has been the culprit, largely keeping me in Southern California these last three months. I did manage to venture out though in August for my annual houseboats trip to Lake Mead, Nevada. In addition, I just returned from a trip to the South, specifically North Carolina, for a friend’s wedding. This was year #11 for me as a volunteer leader for Calvary Community Church’s high school houseboat ca [View Full Entry]

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