Set along an expansive and picturesque stretch of the Mekong River in southern Laos, the ultra laidback border town of Savannakhet is a great place to pick up a Thai visa. The Thai consulate here is far quieter and more relaxed than the embassy in Vientiane, and spending a couple of days lounging riverside while … read the full post

In a fantastic departure from the way that nationalism (as a concept of nationhood, not a political system) was traditionally explained, Benedict Anderson posited that nations are nations because we, collectively, decided to believe in them as nations. It’s easy to see the logic in that as you travel around Southeast Asia. While the ethnic … read the full post

This post last updated January 21, 2013 Getting a visa to India in Bangkok takes a little longer and is a bit more complicated than for most other Asian countries, but it’s not rocket science if you know where to look. It is also 100% not necessary to have a third party take care of … read the full post

Ignore all of the touts in Khao San Road and don’t worry about finding a travel agent to process your visa to Vietnam — it’s insanely easy to get by yourself (and cheaper). You will need: two passport photos (available on the way to the embassy), the visa form itself (available here, or at the … read the full post

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