The Mekong River is the lifeline of Laos. This river originates in the Yunnan Province of China, travels south, forming the boundary between Laos and other countries such as Myanmar and Thailand. The path of the Mekong crosses Cambodia and then ends in southern Vietnam, forming the famous Mekong Delta. One of the most popular things to do in Laos …
Chiang Rai was our final stop in Thailand. This very small town is located in the far northeast of Thailand, not far from Laos and Myanmar. Here the terrain was mountainous and very lush, with lots of palm trees, tea and rice plantations, and banana trees. Since it was January, it was the cool, dry season, but daytime temperatures still …
Chiang Mai, located in the northern part of Thailand, is a popular destination for jungle trekking, getting up close with elephants, visiting hill tribes, and so much more. Like Krabi, there are so many things to do here…tons of activities to keep an active family busy. Our family spent five very busy days here and we composed a list of …
As we traveled north from Bangkok to Chiang Mai we paid a visit to two of Thailand’s most popular historical sites, Ayutthaya and Sukhothai. Both are UNESCO World Heritage Sites and are important places in Thai history. Tyler and Kara honestly weren’t thrilled about touring more ruins and temples, but here they got to explore by bicycle, one of our …
Six months…I can’t believe that we are at the halfway point already. I can still remember stepping onto to the airplane at JKF Airport, that first airplane that would fly us away from the US and out into the big, wide world. We were bursting with excitement and anticipation, and maybe even with a little fear. In these six months, …
Krabi, Thailand is one of the world’s best places to learn how to rock climb. Our family has always had an interest in rock climbing but our only real experience so far was a few climbs up the rock wall at our local gym. While in Krabi, rock climbing was at the top of our list for things to do. …
Krabi, Thailand…paradise. We spent nine amazing, action-packed days here, swimming, kayaking, rock climbing, snorkeling, playing on the beach, and island hopping. Without a doubt this is our family’s new favorite spot in the world. This is such a beautiful place with so much to do…we could stay here a lot longer and never get bored. I took well over a …
Ahhh…we finally made it to the beautiful beaches of Thailand. Tyler and Kara have been looking forward to this for so long, our first real beach destination in almost six months of travel. Some pure fun in the sun has been long overdue for these two kiddos and we arrived just in time for Christmas. Tim and I wanted to …
Bangkok, Thailand…I have fallen in love with this city. I have always wanted to travel to Thailand. Thai food is my favorite in the world, the beaches look incredible, there are ancient ruins all over the place, and to top it off, you can get up close with elephants. Our introduction to Thailand came with a stay in Bangkok. This …
Bagan, Myanmar is one of Myanmar’s most famous destinations for tourism. There are many ways to explore Bagan’s many temples, either by bike, by taxi, by scooter, or by big tourist bus. In our opinion, Bagan is the perfect place to explore by bicycle. The streets are relatively quiet, there are great sandy roads that take you to villages and …
Bagan, Myanmar…a mystical land of temples in a tropical, misty landscape. The best way to see Bagan is by sunrise hot air balloon, a big splurge on our round the world budget, but very much worth it for these bird’s eye views over this beautiful place. Our morning started before sunrise, when we were picked up from our hotel. By …
Yangon, once known as Rangoon, is the largest city in Myanmar. This city was our introduction to Burmese culture, and we had seven full days to spend here. Most people tour through Yangon in two or three days but we needed the extra time to get our Thailand visas. Having the extra time here was awesome…it was great to go …
Khajuraho, India is home to UNESCO World Heritage temples, some of the finest temple art in the world. It is the erotic carvings that make these temples so famous, with some of the carvings featuring images from India’s famous Kama Sutra. Tim and I were intrigued by these temples and these carvings, so Khajuraho got added into our itinerary. We …
Varanasi, also known as Benares, is the spiritual capital of India. This is one of the world’s oldest continually inhabited cities, dating back to the 11th century B.C. Varanasi is a city of pilgrimage for many Hindu and Jain people. It is auspicious to die here and many people are brought here to be cremated right along the water’s edge. …
During our time in New Delhi, our visit to chaotic Old Delhi was a highlight. This is a crazy place, with the traffic, noise, congestion, and even the odd smells we encountered. A walk through chaotic, Old Delhi is something to consider doing on your visit to India. Our Experience in New Delhi New Delhi, the capital of India, is …
After traveling almost four weeks through India we finally made it to the Taj Mahal, wonder of the world. Here is our quick tour of the Taj Mahal in photos. Taj Mahal in Photos On our first day in Agra we went to the sunrise point of the Taj Mahal. Here we had our first views of the Taj Mahal. …
Jaipur is one of three destinations in the “Golden Triangle,” a group of three cities that most people visit even on the quickest trip to India. In the Golden Triangle are New Delhi, the capital of India, Agra, home to the Taj Mahal, and Jaipur, the pink city. From what I read, most tourists do not love Jaipur. It’s crowded, …
Jaisalmer, India, a small city located in the desert just 130 kilometers from India’s border with Pakistan, was our home for five days. When planning this trip and learning that we could go on a camel safari in the desert, sleeping under the stars at night, we all got very excited. What a cool thing to do! We had plenty …
Knowing that I would be turning 40 while in India, I had great plans for celebrating my birthday. But India had other plans for me. The day before my birthday, on a six hour car ride from Udaipur to Jodhpur, I began to have a headache, fatigue, and fever. Tyler and Kara had just gotten over cold like symptoms so …
We spent three days in Udaipur, a city that is labeled as India’s most romantic city and one of its least hectic cities to visit. One of Udaipur’s claims to fame is that it was featured in the James Bond movie “Octopussy.” Hotel Boheda Palace We stayed at Hotel Boheda Palace, a great hotel with reasonable prices and views over …