Arrival in Singapore We took a bus from Malacca to Singapore. At the border, you get out and go through a customs and border crossing building where they remind you many times of the strict penalties for smuggling drugs into…
Malacca
Malacca Riverside The entire city of Malacca is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and one of the oldest cities in the area. The city is located in a strategic trading route between Asia and the Middle East / Europe /…
Georgetown, Penang
Arrival in Penang Penang is an island in Malaysia once colonized by the British. The British settlement of Georgetown is now the largest city on the island and in the greater metropolitan area including the mainland settlement of Butterworth. Malaysia…
Chiang Mai
Welcome to Chiang Mai Chiang Mai is the largest city in northern Thailand, about 430 miles north of Bangkok. It is also a former capital of the Kingdom of Lanna. The Old City is surrounded by an ancient wall and…
Hồ Chí Minh City
Around Town in Hồ Chí Minh City We stayed in the Backpacker District of Hồ Chí Minh City, formerly known as Saigon. The city has a lot of traffic, but the flow seemed to be more organized than in Hà…
Hội An
Arriving in Hội An Hội An was one of our favorite places in Vietnam. It’s a small town of about 120,000 people and the whole area is recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Throughout history, Hội An has been…
Đà Nẵng
Đà Nẵng, Street Food, and Orange Hotel Our plan was to take the sleeper train from Hà Nội to Đà Nẵng, but the train was booked — we flew instead. Linley had a very sleepy Vietnamese neighbor on the plane…
Hà Nội
Hoàn Kiếm District (Old Quarter) Our hotels in Hà Nội were located in the Hoàn Kiếm district (a.k.a. the Old Quarter). The streets are small, the sidewalks covered in motorbike parking or nonexistent, and the health code not enforced (if…
Seoul
We Arrive in Seoul & Mago Guest House The KTX train got us from Gyeongju to Seoul quickly and comfortably. When we got to the Seoul train station, the food court was a welcome sight. We then took the Metro…
Busan, Part 2
Haeundae Beach Haeundae Beach is one of the most popular beaches in Korea. In the summertime, it’s packed with people and umbrellas — but when we visited, the beach was nearly deserted even though it was 80 degrees outside. Sunny…