I remember a conversation I had in San Francisco as I volunteered to be in the background of a Food Network commercial in exchange for some free gourmet samples. Between takes, I offered up that I had traveled a lot in southeast Asia and the world, and such experiences tended to make me more...
Read more »
There’s something I really haven’t understood in all my travels. Let me set the stage. I’m in Ao Nang, Thailand, walking along a street comprised of the same tacky t-shirt shops, restaurants, tailors, massage parlors, and pubs. I’m wearing my Korean “the foreigner is coming/leaving” shirt with my Nakhon Si Thammarat Buddha pendant. I’m...
Read more »
Despite my recent tales of woe and my dwindling bank account, I can’t deny that this trip has rekindled something I thought might have been lost to time: my inspiration. I had it in Japan when I stepped off the plane and started writing and taking pictures of everything in sight. I had it...
Read more »
These past few weeks in Thailand have given me some much needed perspective. Although I lived in South Korea last year, my travel mantra was in such a funk, I think it’s safe to assume I hadn’t really traveled like vagabonds travel for almost two years. With the opportunities available to one who has...
Read more »
I could deal if this were simply a matter of a few (or several, I don’t know) dishonest scum walking this Earth seeking to rid honest trusting people of hard-earned money. I could deal with that. But in Thailand, scams are institutionalized, condoned and encouraged by those in authority. Let me give you an...
Read more »
Here’s a blast from the past. I’ve had a lot of time to clear out some old files on my Mac these past few days, and came across a submission I had written in 2001 for the Daily Texan, the student newspaper at the University of Texas at Austin. It’s not particularly well written,...
Read more »
“Where are you going?” nearly every Thai person I’ve ever encountered has asked me, sometimes reverting to the popular Thaiglish “Where you go?” I wish I had the language skills to explain that I was staying in this area for a few days and had no desire to accept a ride on the back...
Read more »
