Sometimes you start a journey with the best of intentions and expectations. Sometimes it all falls a bit flat. You have dreams of a fun little road trip – two motorbikes, three people, more than enough cameras, and the promise of tea tasting and charming hilltop villages. It will be great, you think. Just think of […]

Christmas in Thailand is always a little strange. It’s the nicest time of the year meaning, instead of clouds, cold temperatures and depressing darkness – like I’m used to in Seattle – every day is clear, sunny and, well, pretty much perfect. The weather combined with the fact that Thailand is a Buddhist country and […]

After spending the majority of the past four years in Southeast Asia, I sometimes forget what my “normal” habits, beliefs and routines were like before. I’m still madly in love with Thailand and I appreciate every single day that I get to spend in the country – the temples haven’t lost their charm and the […]

Tonight I walked down a street in Chiang Mai I’ve been down a hundred times before. I’ve been down it a hundred times because I’ve now been based here for four years. It’s the longest time I’ve had the same “home” since high school and feels like a lifetime ago that I was working in Seattle and […]

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 […]

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 […]

The last two weeks have been a blur of islands, temples, mountains, markets, motorbike rides, boat trips and festivals… Having visitors always gives you the opportunity to show off your favorite spots and do things you wouldn’t do otherwise, like spend a week in nice hotels, go on impractical day trips instead of working and […]

When I first left home and moved to Thailand two years ago I wasn’t really stressed, anxious or worried before I left. People would ask me if I was scared to go, and I wasn’t at all. I wasn’t really excited either, or didn’t feel as enthusiastic about it as I thought I should. Instead […]

Everyone knows the Land of Smiles is filled with sunshine, lady boys, cheap eats and tuk tuks…but there are several things, especially when it comes to what is actually legal or illegal, that may surprise you.  Here’s what you don’t know about Thailand:

Traveling around countries where English is not spoken, you often see various signs, information pamphlets and menus employing some interesting uses of the English language.  Sometimes silly, sometimes poetic, sometimes confusing and sometimes downright nonsense – funny English signs in Asia rarely fail to amuse. My favorite menu item that I’ve seen so far was […]