When I first arrived at Nyaung-U in Bagan after a short flight from Yangon I was greeted with free wifi at the airport so I thought it wasn’t too bad. Then I saw my “taxi” to the hotel—a horse and carriage. I kid you not. This is a major form of transportation in Bagan—throughout much …
Author Archives: Jason
Now is the Time to Visit Burma
I’ve wanted to visit Burma for quite some time and was really excited when the political situation finally improved enough to make it ethical to do so. Yes, I do worry about such things. Burma has a pretty bad track record when it comes to human rights violations, but they are improving. When I was …
Weekly Photo: Fisherman on Lake Inle in Burma
Lake Inle in Burma is a beautiful lake that reminds me of the Tonle Sap in Cambodia (though not nearly that large). The fisherman on Lake Inle, however, have a trait that is uniquely their own. They wrap one of their legs around a paddle and in a circular sweeping motion they paddle their boats. …
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Weekly Photo: Shwedagon Pagoda
Probably the most magnificent sight in Yangon, the Shwedagon Pagoda, also called the Great Dagon Pagoda, is a gilded, golden marvel. At over 2,500 years old, it’s the oldest pagoda in the world and was supposedly built to enshrine 8 hairs of Gautama Buddha. Whatever the reason it was built, it’s a beautiful site, especially …
Weekly Photo: Borobudur
Borobudur is an ancient Buddhist monument in the Muslim country. Located just outside Yogyakarta in Central Java, Borobudur was built in the 9th century and then abandoned in the 14th with the rise of Islam in the region. Raffles, the famous British ruler of Java, brought it out of obscurity in 1814 and it is now …
No Plan Is The Best Plan
I’ve found when traveling that having everything scheduled and worked out in the finest detail simply makes for a poor travel experience. If you have everything planned out then there is no opportunity of the unexpected to happen, which is where most of the excitement from travel come from. Or, if it does happen, you …
Komodo National Park: There Be Dragons Here
One of the most exciting trips I did was visiting Komodo and Rinca islands in Indonesia. They are famous, of course, for the Komodo dragons that live on them.These giant monitor lizards roam around the islands and tend to hang out near the ranger stations (where they smell the food that is cooking). A visit …
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Weekly Photo: Monkey at Koh Phi Phi Beach
Koh Phi Phi is the island chain made famous by the movie The Beach staring Leonardo DiCaprio. This photo was of a monkey on Koh Phi Phi Don, the largest island in the chain. We were watching a storm coming in an the monkey just decided to join us. By the way, Phi Phi is …
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Weekly Photo: Leaning Tower of Pisa
I visited the Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy in the Spring of 2008. There were so many people running around it was like a zoo! I got tickets to go up the tower, but had to wait nearly two hours before I could go up. They don’t allow many people up at a time—only …
A Day Trip to Ayutthaya, Thailand
Not far from Bangkok—about an hour by car—is the former capital of the Kingdom of Siam, the city of Ayutthaya. Now the UNESCO recognized Ayutthaya Historical Park, Ayutthaya played a major role in Thai history. Ayutthaya was the seat of 5 dynasties and 33 kings, and also was involved in over 70 wars (mostly with the Khmer …