Summers in China are horrible. They’re hot and humid and anyone who sets foot outside is instantly soaked in sweat. When I lived in Shanghai, I escaped to Kashgar in the far west of China for the summer. The temperatures are even higher there, but the complete lack of moisture makes life much more pleasant. […]
Inle’s Floating Gardens and some Buddhist Hypocrisy
After visiting the temple, we got back on our boat and headed into another floating village. This one was even more photogenic than the first and I shot another 200 photos. By now the sun was at its hottest, but I still had no interest in holding an umbrella while trying to [read more…]
Village Life on Inle Lake…Yes, it Includes Souvenir Shops
After puttering down the lake for a while, we eventually arrived at the village of Ywama to visit a local market. Our driver parked our boat and dropped us off at a long, covered walkway lined with makeshift stalls manned by local vendors. The vendors might have been local, but [read more…]
Real and Fake Leg Rowing Fishermen on Inle Lake
“Skip it. It’s too touristy.” If you’ve done any traveling, you’ve probably heard this phrase. Some travelers shun any destination or activity seen as popular and will even go so far as to berate others for not doing the same. They don’t seem to understand that places become touristy for one simple reason: [read more…]
Pisang to Ngawal: A Hard Climb to Beautiful Views
We woke up the next morning dreading the day ahead. Trekkers have two options on the Pisang to Manang section of the Annapurna circuit: the lower route along the valley floor or the upper route 400 or so meters above. We knew the lower trail would be faster and easier, but we’d heard multiple times [read more…]
Why I Hated Muang Ngoi and Why I Didn’t
Other travelers are a great source of accurate and up-to-date information, but be careful taking any advice you get at face value. I’ve gone out of my way to visit places lauded by backpacker after backpacker only to end up disappointed; I’ve also visited places despite steady advice to avoid them and ended up having […]
Oh no! Bangkok’s Grand Palace is Closed Again!?!
“The palace is closed.” If you’ve been anywhere near the Grand Palace in Bangkok, you’ve likely heard those words. No matter what day you heard them or who said them, I can guarantee one thing: the palace was not closed. You don’t even have to be near the palace to hear those words. On my […]
How I Enjoyed a Terrible Terracotta Warrior Tour in Xi’an
Most group tours are a waste of time and money. Tour guides drag you from one shop, often thinly disguised as a tourist attraction, to another, with a quick stop or two at an actual attraction in between. On full-day tours, they feed you lunch at an overpriced restaurant and when the day is over, […]
Even Indiana Jones Would Get Lost in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Station
I recently learned that Japan boasts 45 of the world’s 50 busiest train stations, including the first 23 (source: rocketnews24.com) . The top three are all located in western Tokyo, a few stops apart on the Yamanote circle line. The busiest sits in the middle and sees almost 4 million visitors per day. Welcome to […]
Seoul Convenience Stores Beat Most of its Bars
Seoul has no shortage of bars and clubs, but we did most of our drinking at convenience stores. In a city with three major nightlife districts—Itaewon for military personnel and those who like sleazy bars, Gangnam for those who enjoy overpaying for everything and Hongdae for those who prefer to have fun on a night […]
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