We left Bangkok for a four-day stint on the island of Koh Samui. We stayed at the Coral Bay Resort on the northern end of the busiest beach on the island, Chaweng. A five-minute cab ride from the nicest swath of the beach and the bar/restaurant area of central Chaweng, our resort was on the northern, quiet end of the beach. We had the best of both worlds, five minutes from the energy of central Chaweng but smack in the middle of peace and tranquility. We had a...

On our last full day in Bangkok, we got up early and did what all farang must do in Bangkok - shop 'til you drop. We hit Chatuchak, the weekend market that is the best, craziest market in town. Jen and Naresh had a field day and bought some fun stuff. We introduced them to the serious art of bargaining here. There are basically three major tips to get and keep the transaction going: 1) As soon as the price is offered, ask if they can do better. 99% of the ...

Today Jen, Naresh, and I are heading out to Ayuthaya for a tour of the former Thai capital along with a river cruise back into Bangkok. Ayuthaya was the capital of Thailand from 1350 to 1767, and it used to be a bustling, beautiful city filled with historic wats until the Burmese swooped in and absolutely destroyed it in the mid-18th century. After the attack, the city was so bad off that the King of Thailand decided to move the capital to Bangkok, which has been...

It is finally time for Jen and Naresh to join us in Thailand! The flight from Siem Reap was really smooth, and it was interesting to arrive into Bangkok for the second time in eight weeks. The first time was at the very beginning of the trip, when everything was so new. This time, we understood Thailand much better and could get around with no problem (including avoiding the ever-present taxi rip-off). We got to the hotel at around 11PM. We confirmed that Jen ...

After months of anticipation, we finally arrived in Siem Reap, home of the amazing Angkor Wat. We spent the better part of two days exploring two main sights: Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom City. We didn't know this before we left, but around 1000 years ago, Cambodia was a powerhouse in Southeast Asia. Powerful Hindu god-kings built magnificent cities, conquered areas of Laos, Thailand, and Burma, and duked it out with the Chams in southern Vietnam. From the 7th c...