A Dream In Retrospect Ask us when we first conceived the idea of travelling the world and we'd be hard-pressed to pinpoint the exact moment. We guess it was an unaddressed desire simmering just below the surface like a volcano waiting to erupt. The I'd-like-to-travel-the-world-one-day kind of feeling that hits you when you see some travel show about exotic places, exquisite cuisine and the largest this or the biggest that. And erupt it did, its effects fanning out over countries and continents and across a span of almost two years. And now, here we are, 82 blogs, 60,000 [View Full Entry]

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Ancient saying: Man who go through airport turnstile sideways goin to ... Bangkok In the fulness of time, when the moon was in the third phase of the second crescent, we sneaked into Bangkok. It was at the crack of dawn on some random day in the year 2551. That's right! 2551 B.E. And, herein, lies the reason for the tardy updating of our blog: we had to time-travel 500+ years into the future. If you believe that, well, we've got some prime real estate to sell you on Mars. The 'time difference' is because Thai years are counted as the [View Full Entry]

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We arrived in Ayutthaya by bus in the quiet hours of a Tuesday morning. By taxi, we made our way from the bus station to somewhere 'central' and from there, we began the all-too-common search for lodging. We found a crappy little bedroom in a house-turned-inn, secured our belongings and went in search of breakfast. Over breakfast, even as the city awoke, we mulled our options for exploring Ayutthaya and its surroundings. Finally, we settled on renting bicycles for day one's exploration of the nearby sites and a moped for day two. Founded in 1351, Ayutthaya was an island nation bounde [View Full Entry]

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The city of Sukhotai (meaning ‘Dawn of Happiness’) was, up until 1238, a part of the Angkorian (Khmer) Empire when two ambitious Thai princes, Phor Khun Pha Muang of Muang Rad and Phor Khun Bang Klang Thao of Muang Banyang, rallied together to oust them. Sukhotai became the capital and official start of the Thai nation and Phor Khun Bang Klang Thao, the first king. After changing hands a few times, the kingdom finally passed down to King Ramkhamhaeng, the Great. He, one of Thailand’s greatest warrior-kings, expanded Sukhotai far and wide even opening up dire [View Full Entry]

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Morning's first rays lightened the dark streets. We were in Chiang Mai - a clear 700 km north of Bangkok - and looking for room and board. Oh, wait! Let's bring you up to speed. When you last checked in on us we were at the bus station in Phetchaburi just about to buy tickets for Bangkok when we got some 'good news'. A direct bus to Chiang Mai and yet another chance to skirt Thailand's chaotic capital was too good an opportunity to let slide. Chiang Mai's pull was its proximity to the green, relatively unspoilt highlands of north Thailand. [View Full Entry]

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A sugar-coated, milky-smooth voice, coming out of bright-red, lipstick-plastered lips of the bus' male steward, whispered delicately in Vibert's ear. In a language he couldn't understand. At Midnight! This was Vibert's dream. He shot upright from his recliner seat, his panicked eyes struggling to adjust in the harsh white glare of the bus' florescent lights. Shanna eyed him curiously. Over the public intercom flowed the sugar-coated, milky-smooth voice, coming out of bright-red, lipstick-plastered lips of the bus' male steward. It was midnight and, apparently, w [View Full Entry]

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After two glorious weeks on two glorious islands we knew, instinctively, that it would be a while before we sprouted 'land legs' again. 'Mainland legs', that is. But we had to try and so we chose a destination that, although not an island, could only be reached by boat. Getting to Railay required the skill and patience of seasoned travellers. First, the boat ride from Koh Tarutao back to the Pak Bara pier, then a bus to Krabi, the jump-off for forays to the ever-popular, over-crowded Koh Phi Phi and Phuket. From Krabi we thumbed a 'songthaew' for a 40-minute ride [View Full Entry]

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The options were simple: a tent or a sparse, over-priced room. We chose the tent (surpriseeeeeeee). A short walk from Koh Tarutao’s ranger station revealed 4 more tents set up under the shade of a few trees in a designated camping area. We chose to ignore the designated area (surpriseeee) choosing instead to pitch tent amidst a cluster of trees a good way upwind. Like seasoned troopers, we laid out the tent, fitted the ‘rafters’ and carefully tied down. Then we strung up our hammocks and stood back surveying our handiwork and thinking “…brilliant [View Full Entry]

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"Which way to Thailand?", we asked. He moved out of the doorway, raised a crooked hand and pointed. Our eyes followed his outstretched hand. He was pointing down a long dark road. Groaning, we saddled up. Apart from the solitary old man, nothing or no one seemed awake. Or maybe, because it was pitch black, we didn’t see another soul. Memories of being stranded on the roadside at 4 a.m. in Yangshuo, China came rushing back and now, just as then, we cast constant, furtive glances over our shoulders. Far ahead in the distance, lights beckoned. Emerging from the darkn [View Full Entry]

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The mainland of Malaysia receded in the backwash of the ferry as we settled in for the 30-minute ride. This would be peanuts compared to the 4 hours bus ride we had just completed from Cameron Highlands to the pier at Lumut. Our destination was Pangkor Island (Pulau Pangkor) - a small, green enclave off Malaysia's west coast. The concrete dock led to a reception room which, in turn, led outside to the parking lot. And in the parking lot was a most unexpected sight: a fleet of pink (yes, pink) mini-buses turned taxis. The driver quoted a fare for the [View Full Entry]

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