It is a favorite hobby of those on the travel trail to swap stories of places they’ve been, warnings that they’ve heard from places that they’re going, and a raft of advice on what places are worth pursuing and what places should be given a wide berth. One of the most consistently recommended locales from almost anyone […]
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Noodles, Curries, and Rice: The Cuisine of Thailand
Regardless of where I have traveled on my voyage to date, for better or worse, one thing I can always count on finding in every city I visit (besides a deplorable Irish Pub) is the ever-present Thai Restaurant. Thai food is certainly one of the world’s most recognizable and popular cuisines, with the balancing of the 4 major tastes (sweet, […]
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Exploring the History of Siam in Ayutthaya and Sukhothai
Looking back through history, the origins of the country we now know of as Thailand are a debatable topic, as various other cultures (The Mon, Khmer, and Malays, for example) already existed in the region centuries before the arrival of the Southern Chinese immigrant known as the “Tai” — who are largely credited as being the original “Thais” — […]
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“One Please” – Eating on the Street in Bangkok
When traveling through Southeast Asia for the first time, one of most apparent aspects of the culture that will remain in your mind is the unavoidable presence of the street food vendors. Whether they are small carts pulled by a motorbike, full-on trucks decks out with grills and burners, open-air shophouses with chairs thrown out on the sidewalk, or […]
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Glittering Temples, Muay Thai, and Smog in Bangkok
When thinking about the world’s most dubious cities — the places where anything goes, where the party rages all night long, and dirty deeds occur on a regular basis — places like Las Vegas or Amsterdam always spring to mind, but usually the one that takes the cake is the chaotic capital city of Bangkok. Whereas […]
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More of a Good Thing on Thailand’s Southern Gulf Coast
I’ve honestly never thought of myself as much of a beach person, but after the quantity and quality of beaches I’ve been seeing in Thailand so far, I’m finally warming up to the joys of plopping down on the sand and seeing how many hours I can go without moving. After spending the better part of a week along the Andaman Coast, I was […]
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White Sands and Blue Waters Along the Andaman Coast
Though many begin their Thailand adventures in the infamous capital of Bangkok, I choose to save the most notorious for a later date and head straight for what is arguably the most beautiful: The Andaman Coast. This stretch of island-dotted coastline, which lies along the very Southwest edge of the Thailand Peninsula, consistently accounts for a significant chunk of every travel […]
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Pulau Pinang: The Pearl of the Orient
Near the very northwest corner of Malaysia lies the island of Penang, once dubbed “The Pearl of the Orient” due to its mish-mash of Asian and European cultures — a result of its geographic location at the mouth of the Strait of Melaka. This heritage-heavy hot-spot is one of the earliest European colonial settlements in this part […]
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Tower-Hopping in Kuala Lumpur
After growing comfortable with the laid-back pace of life in Melaka, I was in for a bit of a shock when I arrived in Malaysia’s cutting-edge and chaotic capital of Kuala Lumpur. Part futuristic metropolis, part decaying remnant of a former industrial town, and part melting pot of every culture imaginable, you’ll equally as likely to encounter […]
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A Splash of Color in Malacca
After leaving the comfortable confines of Singapore, my next destination was just a few hours up the coast, in that of Melaka, Malaysia. Formerly a historically significant port in the region, Melaka now has the feel of a sleepy, rural town that – whether due to its relatively small size or the growing presence of nearby cities such […]
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March 7, 2012 

