I made it to Chiang Mai yesterday. Here’s a pic of me with a buddy. More images and text soon.
Categories
Tag: Travel
Categories
Off to Chiang Mai
I’m leaving on the night train this evening for Chiang Mai, in the northwest of Thailand. Never been up that way before, so I’m excited.
I’ll try to post from there, but can’t promise anything. I’ll likely be in Chiang Mai and surrounding areas for several days or week (though if I really like it, of course, I’ll stay longer).
In the meantime, check out a couple of Bangkok-related Gridskipper posts I’ve made this week — one’s about Saxophone Pub, and the other’s on the Chatuchak Weekend Market.
(And by the way, for those of you who’re into RSS, there’s now a feed available for all of my Gridskipper dispatches.)
Categories
A Week in Bangkok
A few observations after being in Bangkok for a week (my first lengthy return to the city since 2002):
1. Thai cowboys rule:
I spotted this dude at the Chatuchak Weekend Market yesterday (where, incidentally, there appears to be a thriving market for apparel from small, private universities who most people outside of the American southeast have never heard of; i.e. my alma mater).
2. Elephants are fun to feed:
This precocious pachyderm and his handler came up to the restaurant where I was eating. I paid 20 Baht (about US $.50) to feed him some fruit.
3. Siam Square, the neighborhood where I’m staying, is a satisfying mix of commercial and residential districts with a small tourist-related street (hotels, guest houses, restaurants) set off to the side. The place is buzzing with activity; here’s a shot I took from an elevated Sky Train platform one night:
4. On my previous Bangkok visits, I’d never been to Jim Thompson’s House; it’s well worth a peek. Though photography isn’t allowed inside, I snapped this pic outside the gates, along the banks of one of the city’s many khlongs (canals); for some reason I really like it:
5. The food. My God, where do I start? I haven’t taken many pics of the gustatory sensations I’ve been sampling simply because they seem too myriad to document. I’ve been eating most of my lunches and dinners at street-side food stalls, which are cheaper and tastier than the foreigner-oriented joints, and I can only say this: I am in culinary heaven.
The rest of my pics so far are in my newly-created Thailand photoset.
Categories
Greetings from the Land of Smiles
I’m writing this from Bangkok. Arrived here yesterday on a direct flight from Kaohsiung. I’m staying near Siam Square. My belly is full of red curry with pork. I can taste Singha beer on my lips. The high was 92 degrees today. I can smell exhaust fumes from the tuk-tuks buzzing by outside. The air is dense and thick and sticky.
I absolutely love Thailand.
Anyway, I’m long overdue on some updates.
First: the conclusion of my Korea trip.
The photo above should explain the madness of my last evening on the town in Seoul. Went out to a bar in the Shinchon area with my brother and his friend John. And, among other things, the guy above was dancing with his head stuck in a lampshade. Other photos from the night can be seen at the end of my Korea photoset.
Best small world moment of my trip so far: Yesterday I received an email from a woman named Aly — she teaches English in Seoul and I met her that evening. Turns out she read a post Rolf Potts made in which he pointed to my blog; she checked out my site and hey, turns out she recognized me. She, too, knows Rolf and was inspired by his travel manifesto “Vagabonding,” and reads his site. And, interestingly enough, I’d seen and bookmarked her blog after Rolf linked to it last month. So I sat there that evening not knowing that I’d read her site before; she sat there and then ended up reading mine later inadvertantly after seeing it’s on Rolf’s blog. It’s enough to make your head spin, I tell ya.
Anyway, I’m pressed for time, so in my next post I’ll relate some tales from my splendid week in Taiwan. Bye for now.
Quick note: I just discovered that the (now infamous) Korean french fry-encrusted corn dogs have been featured on SupersizedMeals.com and CityRag.
In other news, a couple folks have emailed to see if I’m okay after the landslide in the Philippines. Not to worry. I’m still here in Taiwan.
More photos soon. I promise.
Categories
Still in Taiwan
Sorry for the silence that’s descended upon Newley.com of late. I’ve been largely away from the Internet, but that’ll change soon. Will be in Taiwan a few more days. After that, well…like I said before, that’s for me to know and you to find out. Having a great time here catching up with friends from last year.
In the meantime, check out a couple of Gridskipper dispatches I penned from Seoul.
Categories
A Visit to Namhansanseong Park
Yesterday I spent a couple of hours hiking around the snowy trails in Namhansanseong Park, which is close to my brother’s neighborhood. The place is quite isolated, even though it’s fairly close to Seoul, and it boasts some interesting temples.
Despite (or perhaps because of) my poor choice of footwear, I only fell down (as is my tendency* here) once.
[*In case you missed it in the comments, Mike W. claims my recent spills have to do with my biorhythms.]
There’s some interesting stuff on TV here. Sure, you’ve got your math equations (above), but you’ve also got Chinese checkers, wrestling, and my personal favorite: not one, but two channels devoted to video games. Best I can tell, guest players show off their moves and share tips.
Categories
Notes from a Week in Korea
Some thoughts after being here in Seoul for a week:
— It’s cold.
— I thought I’d seen dogs cute-ified during my year in Taiwan, but Koreans seem to take fashion-inspired dog-mods to a new level. In the photo above, you’ll notice that the pooch’s tail and ears are dyed pink. Which is awesome.
— Some sights and neighborhoods I’ve seen so far include: Namhansanseong (“South Han Mountain Fortress”); Dongdaemun (“Great East Gate”); Gangnam; and Itaewon.
— Though I expected to encounter it, the heavy US military presence here is remarkable. The American base is in downtown Seoul; US troops (of which there are 37,000 in the country) are visible out on the town at night; and the American Forces Network Korea broadcasts on TV and over the radio.
— I’ve been brushing up on my Korean War history; it’s interesting to see the extent to which North Korea figures into the South Korean national consciousness. I recently came across Guy Delisle’s graphic novel “Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea.” It is absolutely mind-boggling — a fascinating look at the bizarre totalitarian state that exists just 30 miles north of Seoul.
— The Korean recycling scheme is mandatory, extensive, and seemingly quite effective; plastics, paper, and non-recyclables are separated in households and then sorted into various outdoor bins. And, notably, food-scrap-recycling containers collect bits of leftovers that are ultimately fed to pigs.
Categories
Welcome BoingBoing Readers
Hello, BoingBoing readers. I’ll be traveling in Asia through June, so please consider subscribing to my RSS feed or adding a bookmark (del.icio.us or otherwise) to this site.
Okay. Back to the originally-scheduled programming…