Rachdamnean Hotel Kamphaeng Phet

... up at the night market. I certainly felt like an outsider there- a feeling I must get used to. I didn't have to energy to sign my way into ordering anything interesting, so I went for the easy choices: sushi, donuts, and iced coffee (all for about $2.50!). I sat by the river - quite beautiful- as the sun was setting, and then I witnessed by first aerobics in the park!! Apparently this is quite common in Thailand....it was pretty funny. When I got back to the guesthouse I ...

... so yeah, let's get in the strangers' car! As we got on our way with Jackie and Thor they asked what we were doing in town. This told us that probably not a lot of backpackers bother to stop here. Kamphaeng interested us because of its Thai ruins. Many foreign visitors head to a bigger sight in Thailand called Ayuthaya which boasts its historic temples but we thought this smaller sight would be ...

... heaved a sigh of relief when KP finally swung into view (and Jabba out of it). KP is nice. Not overrun with tourists like Bangkok and Chang Mai (well, that was especially true in January). The first voices we heard as we stepped into Three J's Guesthouse were Dutch. Turned out to be bit of a Dutch enclave with one long-touring Dutch girl, Margo, and a freshly alighted Dutch couple, Thomas and Jolanda. Locals ...

After Ayuthaya we got a train to Phitsanulok, but this time we travelled 2nd class. It was much more like a western carriage and we got free food and drink, but in all honesty I preferred it in 3rd class. There's no air-con there but there are slide down windows, no free food but locals selling stuff from baskets, no reclining seats to sleep in but hard seats that keep you up and speaking to random people. I think travelling as cheap as possible ...

Continuing my tour of Sukhothai-era ruins, I've headed just over an hour southwest to Kampheng Phet. Arrived at the Three Js Guesthouse (not sure what the Three Js are, I'll have to ask) which is a beautiful place with bungalows set in and around a garden. Quite an improvement from the relatively cell-like accomodations of Khao San Road. I rented a bicycle (yet again) and rode over to the nearby old city. Seems like every town around here is built right ...

Flew to Chiang Mai on Sunday, 12 March (yesterday). I haven't really had a chance to take in Chiang Mai yet. The guesthouse I booked myself into wasn't great. My room over looked the loudest highway in Asia, so I dropped my bags and spent the evening looking for new digs, which I did find in the end. Started another Thai Massage course today at the Thai Massage School of Chiang Mai. So far so good. You get picked up from your ...

... funny. (J: and also really NASTY, when we were served yellow water. Don't worry we didn't drink it.) And then we went to this absolutely gorgeous theater with VERY comfy seats to see Brokeback Mountain. After all was said and done, it was 11 PM and we were on target to go to the bus station. When we got to the bus station, there was a lot of confusion and miscommunication, but what it came down to was there was no night ...

"Responsibility does not only lie with the leaders of our countries or with those who have been appointed or elected to do a particular job. It lies with each of us individually. Peace, for example, starts within each one of us. When we have inner peace, we can be at peace with those around us." His Holiness, The 14th Dalai Lama. The Nobel Lecture, December 11, 1989 News from Thailand. 5 Dec is the King's birthday and Father's day in Thailand (as people consider ...

... have a photo taken. It all sounded like fun until we were asked to sign an indemnity form " the Monks could not be held responsible for any loss of life or limb..." A strange smell filled the air!!! We walked out on our own two legs and both agreed it was a risk well worth taking.

... arrived in Kanchanaburi, north west of Bangkok, and have been loving the area... We've been staying on the Kwai River, very close to the "bridge over the river kwai", and spending our days exploring the surroundings. We rented a mo-ped (vespa) and have used it to go to remote villages in the area and to just drive around all day... We returned this afternoon from a three day adventure to the northern area of Kanchanaburi, where ...