Travelogue
Hua Lamphong and the Siam Railway - 30 March 2013
In the Pathum Wan District near the geographic centre of Bangkok sits Hua Lamphong, the city’s premier train station. Officially, it’s known as the Bangkok Railway Station, but nearly everyone calls it Hua Lamphong or “Who Lam Pong” depending on your pronunciation. Hua Lamphong was once the grand old lady of the Siam Railway. These days it’s rather lost amongst Bangkok’s notorious traffic congestion and nearby building works for yet more traffic. The beauty of Hua Lamphong is that it’s a rail hub for both Bangkok and Thailand. Eventually it may also be at the centre of extended rail travel for much of mainland Southeast Asia and on to China.The station is run by the country' natonal railway and was opened in 1916. You can get to Hua Lamphong from Banglamphu, Bangkok’s main backpacker haunt by taxi, moto (bike), tuk-tuk or best of all; by public bus. The 53 bus is the most fun. Red-striped and made of industrial plate steel with bare wooden floor boards, the 53 is an Isuzu built like a tank with a clutch to match. The fare seems to be 8 baht regardless of how far you travel, the tickets dispensed by a conductor with a tubular coin retainer also used to neatly clip each ticket. The 53 does a circular route passing through Banglamphu along Thanon Phra Athit following some of Bangkok’s canals to Hua Lamphong and back to Rattankosin Island and the Grand Palace via Semnang Market. Semnang is a dizzying maze of lanes and was once Bangkok’s red light
The Tinat Restaurant - Phnom Penh - 28 February 2013
On the corner of Streets 154 and 51 is one of the best value diners in Phnom Penh, the Tinat Restaurant. The Tinat isn’t included in any guidebook, a blessing in disguise, and the hard working Khmer-Chinese owners do nicely anyway, thanks very much. It’s not on any list of places you want to be, there are no Michelin chefs, no fancy
Farewell to the King - 01 February 2013
In Phnom Penh on 4 February 2013, the final chapter in the life of one of Asia’s most extraordinary characters will be played out – the cremation of the former King of Cambodia, Norodom Sihanouk. The fact that the King Father as he is known, has been dead for three months is just another facet of a long, fascinating and at times, controversial
Koh Samui - Some Like It Hot - 05 January 2013
From the air under the tropical sun Ko Samui looks like a green jewel, an emerald bordered with a white sandy fringe and palm trees surrounded by light blue water. It doesn’t look too bad from the sea either. However you arrive, you’ll soon settle into the easy pace of island life. Officially, there are seasons in the Gulf of Thailand
Shopping in Phnom Penh - Rub a Dub Markets - 02 December 2012
One of the most easily identifiable landmarks in Cambodia’s capital, Phnom Penh, is the New Market or Psar Thom Thmey or simply Psar Thmey. Psar is market and Thom in Khmer means big or grand, so it’s the "New Grand Market". The market sits one block east of one of Phnom Penh’s main thoroughfares, Monivong Boulevard, towards the river occupying
Koh Phangan - Full Moon Parties with the Hounds from Hell - 05 November 2012
Ko Pha Ngan in the Gulf of Thailand is known as the land of coconut trees. The name of the island is derived from the local word for ‘sand bar’ of which the island has many. For years Ko Pha Ngan was a favourite with Thai royalty, especially Rama V, a moderniser and fifth king of Siam under the House of Chakri, whose portrait dominates many a
Ko Samet - Treasure Island, Pirates and Travel Agents from Hell - Ko Samet - 05 October 2012
Ko Samet (or Koh Samed) is rumoured to once have been the den of pirates, and to this day it’s believed there’s hidden treasure on the island. It has gained a reputation as a laid back paradise where the emphasis is on spending as much time as possible doing as little as possible. Ko Samet (also Koh Samed) lies three hours drive east of
Football in Cambodia - The Beautiful Game in the Kingdom of Wonder - 20 September 2012
Football in Cambodia, the self-styled Kingdom of Wonder, doesn’t scale the heights of the Beautiful Game in other countries. There are no huge stadiums, well, there’s one old one, no large crowds “doing the Poznan” and singing en masse or waving scarves and flags, no massive pay cheques on offer or transfer fees, and no superstars. A few people
The Road Most Travelled - The Expats Guide to Cambodia (Part II) - 20 August 2012
The road most travelled in Cambodia work wise for expats is the world of foreign language teaching mainly English, but also as a former colony French, and these days to a lesser extent Korean and no doubt, Chinese. But most plunge into the world of English language teaching in a plethora of institutions, some functional and some not so
