Sea Change

MEKONG RIVER—If the first day leaving Chiang Mai was somewhat leisurely, the morning of the second day seemed almost frantic. Well, as frantic as life gets in northern Thailand—which is to say, it’s still remarkably laid back. The owner of the guesthouse gently knocked on our doors at 7 a.m., but I had already, Read More

So I’m back in Chiang Mai, the charming little town that anchors northern Thailand, but tomorrow I head further north, past Chiang Rai to Chiang Khong/Huay Xai, where I’ll catch a “slow boat” down the Mekong to Luang Prabang, the royal capital of the Kingdom of Laos until the communists swept through in 1975 and renamed the whole country the Lao People’s Democratic Republic. I confess, I know next to nothing about Laos, but everyone says the place is beautiful and laid back. I do know they make a tasty beer there, and that the country’s short name, “Lao PDR” generally means “Laos, Please Don’t Rush.”

CHIANG MAI, Thailand—To say the north of Thailand differs from the south is one of the most obvious observations you can make about this country. And by “south,” I mean Bangkok and the surrounding plains and the close-by islands. I’ve not had the pleasure of going to the Deep South of Thailand. Chiang Mai,, Read More