I had trouble figuring out how much time to allot for Bangkok. Hitting Thailand’s capital just before leaving Asia was unusual; most travelers end up there closer to the beginning of their trips, since it is such a major hub for flights. And indeed, I had passed through a couple of times on connecting flights …
I loved Time for Lime so much, it was hard to leave. But I decided to spend my last two nights on the other side of Koh Lanta, in Old Town. The east side of the island is pretty undeveloped because the beaches aren’t really swimmable there, and it sounded like an interesting place to explore …
Koh Lanta was a good place to slip into laziness. With two weeks on the island, I had no agenda, and quickly fell into a pattern of long beach walks, cat cuddles, reading in my hammock, and yoga at Oasis Yoga. I frequented the local market and was charmed by small interactions, like when I …
My flight home to New York was out of Bangkok, so where better to spend my last few weeks in Asia than in the Thai islands? There are tons, and although many travelers understandably hop around them to experience as many as possible, I wasn’t interested in doing that. At the tail end of my …
Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, was probably the place I was most nervous to visit. Very few of the travelers I met liked it, and it is notorious for motorbike thefts: men on motorbikes will ride by your tuktuk, grab your bag, and speed off. But it was also the place where I could …
Most travelers who explore Cambodia outside Angkor Wat head to the southern beaches or French colonial towns like Battambang or Kampot. But I had had my heart set on Kratie, a tiny town on the Mekong River, ever since I read you could see the endangered Irrawaddy river dolphin there. These funny looking guys are …
There aren’t any official animal shelters in Siem Reap, but when I googled around I found Siem Reap Pagoda Cats, a one woman show run by expat Josette Vanneur. Josette goes each morning to a local pagoda to take care of the many cats living there. I contacted her and she got back to me quickly and …
The temples of Angkor Wat blew me away. But I was also looking forward to spending time in Siem Reap. From my research, it seemed like a cute little town with good shopping and tasty food. I planned for a week in Siem Reap so I could have some days off from temple hopping to …