Everyone was right – Little India WAS worlds away from the rest of Singapore. The city-state’s immaculate streets were suddenly filled with every color of the rainbow. Swaths of crimson and azure silk hung from fabric shops; gold jewelry glittered from glass-covered cases. But it was still Singapore – still clean, still orderly, still marvelous! […]
Getting Henna in Little India, Singapore Read More »
Lots of people dream of finding a random island in Thailand, getting a beach hut for a dollar, and spending days doing nothing and spending next to nothing, just chilling on a beautiful beach with a guitar. I’m sorry to break it to you, but that image, more or less, no longer exists. Thailand’s islands
Koh Chang: The Last Cheap Thai Island Read More »
Sihanoukville, Cambodia, may look close to Koh Chang, Thailand, on the map, but the journey’s quite a long one — I’ve been on the road for eleven hours, and I’ve only just arrived on the island. I’m sitting in the back of a sawngtaew on the way to the hippie enclave of Lonely Beach. To
I Watched Him Shopgirl His Girlfriend Read More »
I survived a shipwreck. Saying that feels unreal – like it happened in a dream, or a really bad Lifetime movie. Seriously, did this actually happen to me?! But it did happen, and I survived. This is my story. The Beginning I was invited to join Perama Tours’ Hunting Komodo by Camera tour as a
Adventurous Kate Gets Shipwrecked in Indonesia Read More »
One reason why I returned to Sihanoukville is because I loved it – my ultimate backpacker beach paradise, the land of all-night parties and 50-cent beers and awesome backpackers from all over the world. I also realized that I was running low on cash and had to start living a lot more cheaply if I
Why I Didn’t Get a Bar Job in Sihanoukville Read More »
They are the cutest kids you’ve ever seen, they can swear their heads off in multiple languages, and they can get you to buy anything. They’re one of the symbols of Sihanoukville, Cambodia – the child vendors selling bracelets on Serendipity Beach. You will grow to love these kids, who spend their days selling overpriced
The Adorable, Trash-Talking Kid Vendors of Sihanoukville Read More »
In Southeast Asia, the line between prostitution and dating is often murky. Especially between young local women and much-older Western men. In Chiang Mai, east of Tha Pae Gate, you’ll find dozens of bars where local women wait for Western men to arrive, hoping to become their girlfriends and have access to their money. In
Well, I’ve Been Taken By A Hooker. Read More »
I think I need to give my friend Ste a regular column on this site, because he instigated so many of our adventures! Our Vietnam group, sadly, had just broken up. Dave and Mike flew back to England. Sander and Jitske went on to Cambodia. And since I had no place to be, really, I
The Cambodian Merry-Go-Round of Death Read More »
For our final night together after traveling through Vietnam for nearly a month, we decided to do something special: finally go to karaoke in Saigon! Karaoke is a big deal in Vietnam — as it is all over Southeast Asia. You can find karaoke rooms and studios all over the city, including our neighborhood of
It takes a lot for me to lose my cool. I’ve managed 34-hour bus rides with locals lying in the aisles and smoking cigarettes. I’ve managed beds full of ants and squat toilets covered with cockroaches. I’ve managed scams, strep throat, and sleep deprivation. So when I finally lost my cool and freaked out, what
Meet My Nemesis: Durian Fruit Read More »