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Photos: Bangkok’s floating art market
Buried on the west side of Bangkok is Khlong Bang Luang, what I like to call Bangkok’s floating art market. Perhaps it’s their version of Talad Noi art district in Bangkok’s Chinatown. Either way, it’s a charming collection of galleries and shops including one where you can make your own art. My favorite discovery was…
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Things not to do in Laos
This isn’t a list of taboos to avoid when visiting Laos but a lesson that sometimes the best thing to do when traveling is to not do anything. One of my favorite quotes from the movie Office Space is “I did absolutely nothing, and it was everything I’d hoped it could be.” Laos in general,…
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The day I accidentally hiked Hong Kong’s 2nd highest mountain, Lantau Peak
Hong Kong has proven to be an unusual mix of frenetic city and island life. The city itself is located on an island divided by a mountainous spine that separates the urban center in the north and a natural landscape in the south. My first hike here was up a ridge called Dragon’s back where…
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Happy New Year from Hong Kong!
Happy New Year everyone. I am going to interrupt my blog posting sequence for a couple weeks so I can post two stories related to the new year in a timely manner. I was looking forward to spending New Year’s Eve here, because Hong Kong is known for its fireworks display. And while I did…
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The time I paid to work on a rice farm in Laos
I’d learned from my last visit to Bangkok that I really do enjoy taking tours. It’s ironic: as a tour guide, I’m reluctant to enlist someone else to show me around a place, but I also know the value of having a local’s perspective. Most tourists to Luang Prabang visit the area’s waterfalls and caves.…
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What is there to do in Luang Prabang, Laos?
From French colony to Chinese economy Luang Prabang, pronounced Loowong Prewbong, is a time capsule preserved from when Laos was a French colony. As one of my hostel mates said, “it has the best of France without the French”. Indeed, a stroll around the town reveals wine shops, coffee houses and bakeries tucked inside charming…
