In October last year, Jesse Mulligan, host of RNZ Afternoons, interviewed me about my recent trip to Laos, the magical Southeast Asian kingdom that holds a permanent place in my heart. Click here to listen To find out more…
Once known as the kingdom of Lan Xang, or in English, “the land of a million elephants”, Laos is, like its elephants, beguiling, charming, fascinating and enchanting. This is the fourth of five stories about Laos. A beautiful country that…
Once known as the kingdom of Lan Xang, or in English, “the land of a million elephants”, Laos is, like its elephants, beguiling, charming, fascinating and enchanting. This is the first of five stories about Laos, a stirringly beautiful country…
Exploring countries with many novel sights, scenes, and cultures can be challenging, and figuring out what to eat when the food is unfamiliar and the menus are puzzling can add to that challenge. So, to answer the oft-asked question “What’s…
In an attempt to answer this oft-asked question, Mytravelroom has selected some recently visited countries where the food was interesting, mystifying, varied, and almost always, delicious. Most of us are aware that Vietnam is world-renowned for its cuisine. As illustrated…
A road trip through southern Luang Prabang left us spellbound by its varied beauty and the simplicity of life in rural and mountainous northern Laos. We had already fallen in love with the country. This short day-long trip cemented our…
To complete a special birthday odyssey in Malaysia, we chose Penang. Why? Penang, a tropical island off the Northwest coast of the Malaysian Peninsula, offers all the ingredients for an indulgent R&R stint—and it was a special birthday, after all.…
Once a booming tin mining town until the 1970s. Todays Ipoh has morphed into a busy, vibrant, cultural, culinary, and architectural hub. With a ton of charm. We visited Ipoh in December 2023. The word “Ipoh” has been a part…
I am writing this having recently returned from a “full immersion” South East Asian trip. Malaysia was the impetus for this extended sojourn. I hankered to revisit because I was born in Malaysia, in a small inland township called Kamunting,…
(Before reading this story, to provide context, I suggest you read Phnom Penh-City Tour ). Silk Island is locally known as Koch Dach Early the following day, Sorya picked us up in his Tuk Tuk. We traveled for 10 minutes…
Six hours after leaving Vietnam, we docked at Phnom Penh. Excited. Anticipating our first experience of Cambodia. Disembarking from our ferry into a hot sticky day onto a very steep and crowded bridge, chaos reigned. Where was our stowed luggage?…
As most of us know, Vietnam is renowned for its food. Fresh, tasty, and authentic. The Vietnamese people celebrate food and treat it as a time to get together with friends and family to share plates of delicious offerings, cooked…
