Category: Travel
August 6th, 2013 — 2:59am
Another colourful Thai event to mark Khao Phansa, the start of the Buddhist rainy season retreat is tak bat dok mai, floral almsgiving which takes place at the beautiful Wat Phra Phutthabat in Saraburi. The special annual event has become so popular that it is now held twice a day for two days in order
July 30th, 2013 — 10:11am
Here’s a sweet treat for the end of the day. I’ve got a soft spot for Asian desserts and these little putu piring from Malaysia are impossible to resist. ‘Putu’ is a generic Indonesian-Malay word for the dough and ‘piring’ means plate. The mix of rice flour, grated coconut and flavourful palm sugar are lightly
July 29th, 2013 — 9:12am
A must on any travel itinerary, the UNESCO World Heritage town of Ayutthaya is just 86 km (53 miles) north of Bangkok. In recent years, the town has flourished on the back of increased domestic tourism and there a great choice of small resorts and homestays plus excellent restaurants. If you are a bit of a
July 29th, 2013 — 3:23am
Last week I was in Ayutthaya for Khao Phansa, the start of Buddhist Lent. Often referred to as the rainy season retreat, it is a period when monks remain within the temples and devote themselves to study and meditation. This starts on the first day of the waning moon of the eighth lunar month in
July 19th, 2013 — 4:31am
In the afternoon of the second day, Jao Paw Guan is carried on a bamboo rocket in a procession that heads to Wat Phon Chai temple. The procession almost includes monks lifted head high on wooden platforms and revered images of Buddha. There’s an air of celebration to the whole affair and it gets particularly
July 18th, 2013 — 6:44am
I’ve recently returned from one of Issan’s most colourful annual events, the Phi Ta Kon ghost festival. It was my first visit for more than a decade so I was interested to see how it had changed. I was joined by Richard Barrow and we had a great snapping the event and eating good Thai food.
July 4th, 2013 — 3:01am
While working in KL, I met up with my old mate and photojournalist, Pein Lee. We spent a few night’s chomping on braised pig’s ears at local eateries, and propping up the bar at Sam’s, chatting about photography, future projects, and the Malaysia’s current political malaise, until kicking out time. Pein’s talk is as direct
July 3rd, 2013 — 1:30pm
A post is long overdue. To be honest I have a huge backlog of web-worthy images as the past few months have been spent completing three new books on Cambodia and Thailand for my publisher, John Beaufoy. More on these when they hit the shelves of Asia Books and elsewhere in October. More recently, I
March 3rd, 2013 — 7:01am
I must confess that I am a bit of a foodie. And I live in the right place to indulge myself. Thailand, indeed South East Asia, is a paradise for adventurous eaters. An added bonus is that I love photographing in vibrant markets, snapping food vendors and the nosh on my plate. Last year I entered
January 11th, 2013 — 5:01am
Music lovers in South East Asia, mark your calendar. The Penang World Music Festival 2013 has just been confirmed for March 30 and 31. Once again, the colourful event will be held at Quarry Park in the Penang Botanic Gardens. Organised by Penang Tourism, this year 12 bands will perform including Mu from Portugal, Kimi
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