As a foreigner, when you hear or read about Songkran, you often hear about the crazy “largest water fight in the world”. It can get really crazy. For three days to celebrate the Thai New Year (which is based on the lunar calendar and actually celebrated throughout much of Southeast Asia) businesses close, workers get […]

This week’s guest post for the ‘Day-to-Day’ series comes from Marie, a French woman who’s currently working and living in Hong Kong. Originally from South France, I now live in Hong Kong. My average day starts with an early wake-up, a jog in the waterfront when the weather is nice (and when my motivation awakened too!), a shower and a […]

It’s no secret that I love Thailand. I simply love it and that’s that. As with any place though, after being here for a while, I do start to become settled in the familiar or desensitized to things that used to surprise me. You know how you never actually go to an activity or attraction […]

It’s that time of year again…Songkran is almost here and that means high temperatures and lots and lots of water. I wrote this post last year, but the information and recommendations still hold true. (I’ve also added in some more tips as well as a section featuring posts from other bloggers who know Songkran well.) […]

Even after more than three and a half years based in Thailand, I still learn, discover or see something new every single day. Every time I come back to the country, people will ask me why – haven’t I seen enough? The short answer is, because I love it, and, no. There are still entire […]

“Once in a while it really hits people that they don’t have to experience the world in the way they have been told to.” – Alan Keightley This month marks the 2-year anniversary of Paper Planes – which feels strange to say since, depending on the day, it either seems like I’ve been doing this forever or […]

Bangkok won’t charm you…at least not right away. It’s massive, intimidating, busy, hot, humid and really kind of ugly. Chances are you may get ripped off by a tuk tuk or taxi driver and you’ll definitely get stuck in traffic at some point. But, give it a little time, and you’ll start to notice how the […]

This past weekend marked my three year anniversary of leaving Seattle and moving to Southeast Asia. Though at the time I didn’t really think of it as ‘moving’, more like I was leaving for an extended trip, I’ve now used Chiang Mai as a home base for longer than anywhere else I’ve lived after high […]

With hundreds of islands to choose from, it quickly becomes overwhelming trying to decide what the best Thai island to go to is. Heck, after three years living in the country and becoming more familiar with all the different options, it’s still difficult for me to choose and organize a trip. (And then I just give […]

Every trip has its own set of packing requirements. For short weekend trips it’s easy to throw stuff in a bag last minute, long backpacking treks require more planning ahead and items that can serve different duties, and moving to a new country is too overwhelming to to think about. How can you pack for […]