It was a little painful to wake up at 5:00am, but we had no choice but to catch the morning train out of Jaipur after the Holi Festival of Colors revelry. My cousin and I dragged ourselves out of bed, slung our pre-packed backpacks onto our shoulders, and trudged to the train station—it was early. It also …
India’s Festival of Colors, was tops at my list of travel experiences when I planned my round the world trip. I love festivals, it’s such a beautiful, vibrant way to experience a culture. The rainbow of colors streaking radiantly happy faces during Holi stuck a chord with me. The subcontinent is a huge place though, and …
Traveling Southeast Asia these past months has been an incredible whirlwind. Seven weeks seemed like enough to make the backpacker loop through Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia, but that isn’t even remotely the case. I decided to adjust my itinerary and save Vietnam for another trip, which has allowed me to more deeply explore Laos. …
There’s a sense of poetic chaos to the roads of Southeast Asia. At first glance, there seems to be no rhyme or reason. Cars whizz past, motorbikes weave and pedestrians walk with a nonchalant indifference. This frenetic pace to the traffic baffled me in my first days in Southeast Asia. The streets of Bangkok are …
As much as I loved Luang Prabang (and that’s lots and lots), it was time to head onward and explore other areas of Laos. We knew that we needed to be at the Thai border in a couple weeks so that we could do the Gibbon Experience in the Bokeo Nature Reserve. But between then …
My first morning in the Bokeo Nature Reserve in Laos, I woke in a treehouse to the distant hooting of Gibbons. The monkeys release a high, rising call. As they wake up, their excited calls reverberate across the empty quiet of morning. Although intellectually I knew that the villagers running the Gibbon Experience lived nearby, …
It feels like just yesterday that I was fearful and a bit panicked about the prospect of traveling solo for a year. And yet, three months have passed and the experiences have been like nothing I had anticipated beforehand. I loved my two months in Australia, but the real magic of this trip picked up …
After traveling from Thailand into Laos, and then taking part in a few adventures around Vang Vieng, I settled in the ever-so-charming Luang Prabang. The city has wowed me with it’s quiet pace of life, delicious and affordable eats, and countless new activities teaching about Laos’ history, culture, and people. I am quite taken with the …