The Platinum Fashion Mall in Bangkok is Thailand’s largest indoor wholesale with over 2,000 shops. If you like the typical Bangkok market but prefer air-condition, this is the place. On our last visit to the capital, I followed my wife to this enormous mall spread over seven floors separated into three zones, and after a couple of hours, I had to drag her out of the damn building. Below are some pictures I took.
Although it can be nice to sit at one of the seafront restaurants along the tourist strips with a Singha beer waiting for the Tom Yam Goong to hit the table, I prefer going local. My best food experiences in Krabi has been in places outside the hustle and bustle serving genuine local food. I highly recommend trying at least one of these restaurants on your trip to Krabi, but count on paying more than the random sidewalk restaurant — it’s so worth it!
Column Bangkok is a hotel in the area of Sukhumvit with ridiculously large rooms including a kitchen and laundry facility. And the best thing: it’s very affordable! We stayed two nights earlier this year and got a room with an amazing view over the high-rise buildings. The view from the pool is even more spectacular, but the pool area was not too exciting so we didn’t spend much time there.
Sukhumvit is probably the best area to stay in Bangkok and the hotel is located close to the sky train station, Terminal 21 shopping center and the famous red-light district Soi Cowboy. Below are some pictures of our room and nearby attractions.
The old city of Chiang Mai is a rectangular-shaped area of 3.6 km² with ancient ruins of a wall and a moat surrounding the wall as further protection from invaders. The fortification was built in 1296 when King Mengrai established Chiang Mai as the capital of Lanna Kingdom. It’s one of Chiang Mai’s main attraction and a must-see, but also a great place to stay when visiting Chiang Mai. Below are some pictures from when we took a lap around the city.
Thailand is a country of beautiful beaches, and I have been fortunate to see quite a few stretches of them; golden, white, seashell covered, powdery, and rocky — I love them all! Below are pictures of 40 Thai beaches in no particular order taken between 2013 and 2018.
We didn’t plan to visit Mae Sa Waterfall on our trip to Chiang Mai; we just happened to pass it on our way to Baan Tong Luang (Long-Neck village), so we decided to stop and take a look. It’s not one of those large spectacular waterfalls, but it’s still impressive spanning 1,500 meters over ten levels. Since this was not part of our plan we didn’t hike all the way up to level 10, but we did four, five levels, and it was a nice little walk. If you decide to come here, don’t forget to bring your swimming clothes as each waterfall forms a plunge pool.
Koh Lanta in Krabi Province is a lovely island with rainforest-covered mountains and a long coastline with beautiful beaches. You might think that this is yet another busy island — but it’s not! Koh Lanta is known for its chill vibes and families come here to relax, sunbathe and swim. However, Koh Lanta is a highly seasonal destination, and the island pretty much shuts down during low season leaving the beaches uncleaned. So if you want to visit Koh Lanta, make sure it’s high season (December – April).
Between 1987 and 1990 the American Jim Carter choose to serve as Peace Corps volunteer in Lam Thap, Krabi working with the Thailand Department of Agriculture. My wife was born and raised in Lam Thap, and thanks to my blog our World Wide Web roads were crossed and Mr. Jim could share his amazing story with me. Back in the 80’s, it was just the most adventurous traveler who knew about Krabi, and Jim had the good fortune to visit some places that are hugely popular today. Below are some pictures I have been granted permission to share.
