Hearing the words Langkawi Geopark may conjure up images of a stone age-style theme park or perhaps a rock garden of grand proportions, but those images would be completely erroneous. The Langkawi Geopark is the honorific moniker of the Langkawi archipelago in its entirety. That’s right, all 99 islands (104 at low tide). And depending […]
Sungai Petani, Malaysia to Betong, Thailand (What You Should Know Before You Go)
Getting from Sungai Petani, Malaysia to Betong, Thailand is relatively fast if you have all your ducks in a row. I did research ahead of time and had surprisingly few glitches in my overall plan. But! I did have a few glitches, so here you go with a basic plan based on my own personal […]
All Aboard! Riding the Rails from Kuala Lumpur to Perlis and Beyond
Train travel in Malaysia is a marvel. Especially along the west coast of Peninsula Malaysia. For a mere RM100 (about 21usd) you can get all the way from KL Sentral to Padang Besar, Perlis and the border of Thailand in about 5.5 hours. Malaysia train travel is an excellent alternative to over-priced flights or long […]
Betong, Thailand: Mini Guide and Tips for First Time Visitors
Betong, Thailand is another one of Southern Thailand’s more interesting districts with a namesake border town. Located in the Thai province of Yala, Betong Town itself is just 10 kilometers from the Malaysia-Thai border crossing in Northern Perak, Malaysia and offers visitors quite a selection of entertainment options. From its extensive history and not-so-secret, sex […]
My Search for Elephant Utopia in Phuket
The year 2000 was a big deal for me. I turned one of those milestone ages, traveled to Southeast Asia for the first time and got my first tattoo. I also rode an elephant. I thought I was pretty cool. It wasn’t until 15 years later that I read a blog post about the plight […]
My Best Travel Hacks For Southeast Asia
In the past couple of years of Southeast Asia budget traveling, I have packed and unpacked so many times I should be an expert by now. But I’m not. Predicting what I might need falls into the ‘Murphy’s Law’ category, which is if I bring it, I won’t need it and if I don’t bring […]
Bad Taxi Experiences from Around the World
Taxi drivers can be a wealth of new town information when it comes to chit chat. And I’ve found that the smaller the town the more interesting the information can be. Almost no topic seems to be off limits when it comes to talkative taxi drivers who love their jobs. I’ve had conversations about everything […]