My jaw dropped when I first laid eyes on the 250 ton, three-headed copper elephant that stands 44 metres tall south of Bangkok, but at that point I thought it was just a very big statue. It wasn’t until later that I learned how this massive elephant houses a melange of colour, texture, history, spirituality … read the full post

Tropical flowers reach over our tiny wooden row boat, tickling my shoulders and filling the air with fragrance as we pass. Curious children and dogs peer at us from the porches of stilted homes that hover over the water. A farmer, his boat brimming with fresh-picked pineapples, flashes a smile before making small talk with … read the full post

Fantastic green spaces are found in many Southeast Asian cities. Hanoi has West Lake, Singapore boasts Bukit Timah and Chiang Mai is graced by Doi Suthep to name a few. Yet only Bangkok’s Lumpini Park rubs shoulders with London’s St James Park and New York’s Central Park among the world’s best centrally located urban parks. … read the full post

Right up there with ornate temples and spicy food, Muay Thai (Thai kickboxing) is one of the first things that comes to mind when most think of Thailand. Catching a fight in the world’s Muay Thai capital — Bangkok — is considered a must-do for many visitors, and a good number of them head to … read the full post

Laidback locals laze on the porches of old teak houses sliding by as our boat chugs through another of Thonburi‘s khlongs (canals); children throw food to the fish before jumping in to swim with them; elderly vendors, their faces weathered from years in the sun, cruise past on small wooden boats filled with vegetables and noodles to … read the full post

On its official website, the monstrous Chuchaiburi Sri Amphawa luxury hotel-in-the-making boasts, “Reflecting the community’s values, our hotel cherishes Amphawa’s cultural heritage and aspires to preserve and pass it on for future generations.” It’s a shamefully off-base claim given how this lavish hotel construction project is levelling homes that are more than a century old … read the full post

If all one saw of Bangkok was the glitzy Siam Square shopping district along Rama I Road, they might pass the city off as a place of gaudy shopping malls and materialistic locals who have little interest in spirituality. Yet this maze of malls is still part of Bangkok, and the spiritual undercurrents that pervade … read the full post

Painting, kick boxing and puppetry may not seem to go together, but at master Kruu Lek’s Baan Chang Thai arts and muay Chaiya school, expressive art and mindful boxing synthesise seamlessly. Simultaneously teaching an ancient type of muay Thai known as muay Chaiya along with several forms of traditional Thai art, the school is highly … read the full post

You won’t have to be in Bangkok long before you discover the significance of the Chao Phraya River. A short saunter along its banks will reveal boats packed with tourists, ferries stuffed with commuters on their way to the office, stunning architecture, riverside bars, fishermen after their next haul and – if you’re lucky – … read the full post

Bangkok has many churches, but none carries a historical legacy equal to that of Santa Cruz Church on the Chao Phraya River’s western bank in Thonburi. An artifact of Thailand’s first European settlers — the Portuguese — the church also symbolises the religious freedom and cultural tolerance that’s been a hallmark of the Thai kingdom … read the full post