Having found out I had to go to Vientiane for a meeting my first reaction was #@!* — what a trip, or words to that effect, until my wife pointed out there was a Chiang Mai to Udon Thani flight (CNX-UTH). This is extremely convenient, with Nok Air running a twice-daily flight for a little … read the full post

I am a sucker for any experience that will allow me to imagine I am living in a Brontë novel. To my mind, any window to the past is a delight, be it a 19th century read, or old-world architecture and eats. While staying at the Mandarin Oriental will be out of my price range … read the full post

Bangkok is one of the best cities in the world for street food (I would argue the best, but proof is not actually in the pudding as the pudding quality is unfortunately subjective). There are noodles and rice and fish and pork and, uh that green looking thing and that mushroom that looks like a … read the full post

Easily one of the cheapest ways to eat in Bangkok, and in Thailand for that matter, is to pull up a chair at a streetside food stall selling ready-made Thai food served either on a plate, or in little plastic bags for takeaway. While you’ll find all manner of Thai food served in this fashion, … read the full post

Just as each country has a famous dish or two so too does each country have its famous beverage — or three. In Bangkok, the celebrity beverages are aimed at helping drinkers to cope with the heat. In between guzzling vats of water, which you should be in this climate, take a chance on Thailand’s … read the full post

Despite the drunken-backpacker Khao San Road cliche, real beer can be hard to find in Bangkok. There are a few places worth checking out, including House of Beers and BeerVault, but brewpubs aren’t common. Enter one of our favourite beginnings to an evening: Tawandang German Brewery. Tawandang is a brewery only as Thailand could imagine … read the full post

The Akha are probably Thailand’s most visible ‘hill-tribe’ group and these days you certainly don’t need to go anywhere near northern Thailand to come across them. The sight, and sound, of an Akha woman with a wooden frog will be all too familiar in any of the country’s tourist hot spots, from Phuket to Khao … read the full post

Surprising how many people can stay several days in Chiang Mai and remain oblivious of the — by city standards — plentiful and varied bird life. Being a leafy town and with forested mountains not far away in any direction, you don’t need to go hiking in the national park to see some pretty exotic … read the full post

You know a place is something special when you stumble upon it by accident, realise its awesomeness, and subsequently cancel the rest of the day’s plans in order to stay and enjoy. This is what happened to me at Suan Rot Fai. I really had every intention of making it to the largely talked about … read the full post

Some people wake up on a lazy Sunday and require coffee and newspapers to collect the shattered pieces of their weekend selves. Other people want bottomless bloody marys and eggs benedict with hollandaise sauce to ward off Monday’s coming. I am the person who requires steamed pork buns and shrimp wrapped in lovely wonton wrappers, … read the full post