Monthly Archives: September 2010

This week we indulged in a quiet weekend at a charming resort in Jomtien, a beach town close to Bangkok.  You know the kind of weekend: eating and drinking punctuated by sitting on a colourful canvas chair on the beach, slathered in sunscreen, saying “Mai Ao” [“No, thank you very much! I don’t want a […]

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As I said last week, Kanchanaburi offers much, much more than just the infamous Death Railway. I was going to share some waterfall shots from our most recent trip and from last year, but I’ll save the nature for some other time in favour of some glimpses into the past, distant past, and living-the-past-in-the-present. It […]

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I love trains and train journeys.  There is something hypnotic about the rhythmic clack of the wheels on the tracks.  And who can resist waving at the people on trains as they pass? Kanchanaburi, about 3 hours west of Bangkok (on a good day), is home to what must be one of the most poignant […]

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During my early years in Thailand, I was invited to conduct some teacher-training in the southern province of Ranong.  This was pretty exciting for me as it was my first foray off the main tourist tracks and into the real Thailand. My hosts kindly took me on a tour of the area: beautiful coastline with mangrove reserves and […]

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Being a visitor in a place is very different from living there.  It’s not so much that we forget where we are, or that we necessarily even take it for granted, but that the business of day-to-day living takes so much of our attention. I was reflecting on this as I ambled out from our hotel, early on […]

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