In the early days of A Little Adrift I used to have a page on the site completely dedicated to the fun facts and tidbits I discovered in each new country. I called the page “Strangeness” and it hosted the raw, unfiltered and seemingly meaningless quirky facts that rarely make it into my travel stories. …
The pulse of traffic hummed behind us on the busy streets of Bangkok, Thailand. Pedestrians and motorbikes split and converged on the other side of our trio as we negotiated the terms for Laura’s highly coveted shiny green guitar. “Okay, maybe you’ll take 800 baht and a really fun monkey mask?” my friend Laura replied …
Chiang Mai, Thailand is an endlessly livable city. I loved the year I spent living as an expat and enjoying the culture, food, and history of this northern Thai beauty. I spent a fair bit of my time glued to my computer—I work remotely while traveling, freelance consulting since 2008 doing what is now called …
Like a warrior prepping for battle, I cranked the faucet on the sink of my apartment in Chiang Mai, Thailand and listened impatiently to the glugging sounds as tap water slowly filled my water gun’s reservoir. Day one of Songkran festivities were ramping up, (and a day ahead of schedule I might add!) and celebratory …
So, you’re researching how much your life will cost elsewhere in the world and you’re thinking living in Thailand. There’s a lot of information to sort through now. When I moved to Chiang Mai a decade ago, the city was a very different place for expats (digital nomads were scarce but retirees aplenty), and information …
Last week I was complacent. I like my brief expat life here in Chiang Mai. It’s been comfortable, a good social life with the other expats, and it’s been easy more than anything else. I know where I’m going to sleep every night. I know enough Thai that the my vegetarian foodie worries in new …
I wrote this post two weeks ago as I was sitting on the airplane on my way to China and feel like it’s a great way to kick off the coming posts about my whirlwind travels through Beijing, Yangshuo, and Shanghai. Groggy from the rude awakening blaring out of my alarm clock at 4:30am it …
Last month’s Chinese New Year celebrations embraced Chiang Mai’s small Chinatown section with wholehearted enthusiasm. The signature red Chinese lanterns adorned every doorway. Every shop entrance strung crimson bulbs from end to end. And the effect, as evening settled over Little China, was faintly magical. The tinted light tinkling out of the lanterns warred with …