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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…
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Giving Manila a Second Chance
Like India, the Philippines is one of those countries I have a love-hate relationship with. Along with Norway, it is one of the most beautiful places I’ve visited, and at the same time I swore I’d never go back. On my first trip to the Philippines, I visited the islands of Coron and Palawan. A…
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Philippine Island Life
After a month in Bangkok, I was ready for some beach time so I took a 2 hour flight to an island in the Philippines. It always sounds funny to say that as no matter where you go in the Philippines, you’re inevitably on an island. The entire country is a collection of islands, over…
