The night-bus dropped us off at 6 a.m. in a magnificently seedy place - on the backpacker slum of Kao San Road. At that early hour, the ratio of people drinking coffee and people drinking beer was dea
We just arrived in Bangkok. After wandering for a while down small streets and narrow alleys looking for a place to stay, we found a decent hotel to live in for a couple days. Home has become the plac
Bangkok is one of the top cosmopolitan cities in Asia. To get around one can take a taxi, bus, tuk-tuk, motorcycle or walk. But my favorite is the riverboat. Through Bangkok runs the Choa P
The women stared at me in confusion. It's a look I am getting used to. I am standing at a food cart on a busy street in Chinatown ordering steamed dumplings. But when I don't speak Thai, th
Walking through the 13th century ruins of Sukhothai would normally fill me with a sense of historical awe. I'd marvel at the ancient capitol of Thailand, at its Buddhist temples, crumbling pillars, po
Maybe the cold I am battling contributed to my being overwhelmed, but my head swam with the sight before me. We had landed in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam an hour ago. As our taxi driver navigated throug
This morning we woke up to pouring rain - the steady kind of rain that shows no signs of relenting. The kind of wetness that sucks the adventure from you and drives you back into bed. But today was ou
Dalat's cool highland climate is perfect for crops like strawberries, persimmons, cabbage, broccoli, and tea. The vegetables produced here are shipped all over the south of Vietnam and are made locall
On the bus to Nha Trang, the rice fields stretched on for hours. We passed by flat square after flat square, each separated from the other by a short earthen dike. The rice was in various stages of gr
For Thanksgiving we spent 14 hours on a bus. It's rainy season in central Vietnam and it has rained almost constantly since we have been here. As thick gray skies hung overhead, water cascaded down th
Hoi An is a historic town located halfway down the coast between Saigon and Hanoi. It is a place where a simple walk down the street saturates your senses with textures, color, people, and sound - a p
From the beginning of this trip to arriving in Hoi An I have shown much self-control in shopping. All along the way souvenirs have called my name, begging to be bought and taken home: bracelets from B
3:00 p.m. Arrived promptly for night train to Hanoi. Train is delayed until 6 p.m. due to flooding and poor track conditions. 6:15 .,m. Three forty-five train arrive
