Chiang Mai railway station serves around a million passengers a year, making it one of the busiest stations in Thailand. The station building itself was first opened in 1922 when Thailand’s northern line was completed with help from German engineers, though the current construction dates from 1948, since the original was destroyed by Allied bombing … read the full post

Feeling bored in Bangkok? Have you dried up like a coconut husk from a lack of excitement? It’s time for a day of random travel, Bangkok style. Random travel is simply that: motion for the sake of moving. The details of a culture are definitely written in the way that daily life is lived — … read the full post

First, tourism surged in Thailand in the 1960s, due to faster planes, a rise in the standard of living, a simulacrum of political stability, and Nam soldiers needing some R & R. Second, the fundamental question still being asked today arose: should I begin my journey through Thailand in Bangkok or Chiang Mai? After an … read the full post

Headed off to Chiang Mai in Thailand’s north or the beaches down south (or to Penang, Kuala Lumpur, or Singapore)? Want to explore Isaan by motorbike or strike out east into Cambodia? Who’s your best friend for all these long sojourns? The train. Taking the train is how lots of Thais travel; you’ll notice that … read the full post

It’s not been the end that most would hope for — a clean whooshing sound as all of the flood water washed out to sea and left Bangkok licking its wounds and restocking its 7-Elevens. The floods are *not* over — not for millions in the northern suburbs, not for millions who live across the … read the full post

One of the most common Thailand double-headers seems to be a stop in Bangkok and a visit to Chiang Mai. If you are heading to the north, you’ll run into the question of how best to make the journey from the capital. The roughly 600 km trip is pretty painless no matter how you break … read the full post

Sometimes you need to get out of Bangkok for a minute, to some place that is a bit quieter, and preferably cooler. Mahachai is a port town about 45 kilometres southwest of Bangkok. It squats on a bend of the Chao Phraya river as it heads out into the Gulf of Thailand, divided up into … read the full post

Following on from our recent train to Chiang Mai post you might want to consider the daily special express train to liven up the journey. It’s an all-sleeper train with only 1st or 2nd class air-con options. So what’s so special about the ‘special express’? For a start, it has a disco carriage and a … read the full post