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• Getting a visa to Burma in Bangkok

  First published: 23 Apr 2011
  

  Getting a visa for Burma (Myanmar) in Bangkok can seem difficult as there is a lot of conflicting information out there, but the process isn’t quite as hard as some would have you believe. Getting the visa is fairly straightforward, but making sure that you have all of the necessary documents available is important. Also … read the full post

• Gay Songkran: Something for the boys

  First published: 14 Apr 2011
  

  While it might not completely follow the spirit of Songkran celebration, an extra benefit of everyone getting soaked is many fine, fine gentlemen in tight, wet T-shirts. Don’t act like the thought didn’t cross your mind. Bangkok offers a Gay Songkran (ahem, wet) dream to those that want to get out and get wild. Silom … read the full post

• Songkran: Where to go in Bangkok

  First published: 13 Apr 2011
  

  Bangkok is amazing during Songkran. As millions migrate back to their hometowns, the Thai capital is freed from its choking coil of traffic and can become downright bucolic. While this temporary desertion can make getting a cab or tuk tuk a bit of a challenge, the buses and trains are still running (time to invest … read the full post

• Songkran: What happens at the wat?

  First published: 11 Apr 2011
  

  Brazenly spraying small children with water guns and getting attacked by old people with garden hoses is all fun and games, but what’s really going on here? It’s time to head to the wat for some answers. At the wat, you are going to find tons of people making merit. Making merit is the concept … read the full post

• Songkran: What’s with the water and chalk?

  First published: 10 Apr 2011
  

  Songkran is the welcoming of the new year, which is celebrated in the last period during which farming is dormant before the rains come. Traditional songkran celebrations focus on the renewal of the earth and the home. Wats, homes and Buddhist statues are cleaned. Often, the statues are removed from their wats and paraded around … read the full post

• Songkran: How to Avoid It

  First published: 09 Apr 2011
  

  Welcoming the New Year with a gigantic water fight might seem like the best idea ever, but sometimes our inner curmudgeon says “get off my lawn, you meddling kids” with nary a trace of a smile. What to do? It’s time to avoid. Unfortunately, in Thailand, if you want to avoid Songkran it’s going to … read the full post

• Songkran: Overnight Trips from Bangkok

  First published: 08 Apr 2011
  

  Have you had just about enough of Bangkok, thank you very much, with its devil may care attitude and many, many dousing/powderings in celebration of good luck and the new year? A last minute change of scene might be just what you need to truthfully say saawadii pii mai! No really, grab that rain poncho … read the full post

• Songkran: How to prepare

  First published: 06 Apr 2011
  

  Songkran is the arguably the biggest party of the year in Thailand- it’s New Year’s Day, the Fourth of July/Guy Fawkes Day/Canada Day/Australia Day, and the last day of elementary school, all rolled into one huge week. Songkran was traditionally the time when Thais poured water on statues of Buddha to refresh and clean them, … read the full post

• Ice skating… in Bangkok

  First published: 04 Apr 2011
  

  Who doesn’t want to wear sweaters, mittens and scarves when you’ve grown up wearing shorts and flip-flops? Who doesn’t want to re-enact all of that ice skating that appears in every Hollywood film made around Christmas? Who will fill this ice rink in the tropics? Thai teenagers will. They are all over ice skating in … read the full post

• Getting around Bangkok in a tuk tuk

  First published: 28 Mar 2011
  

  There are two ways to approach tuk tuks in Bangkok: the let’s-have-an-adventure way, and the cold-light-of-day-I’m-a-Thai-grandma way. Both have their time and place. First, the brass tacks. What, exactly, are tuk tuks? They are a cross between a rickshaw and a motorcycle. You can fit three people comfortably. In Bangkok the body is blue and … read the full post