Fireflies in Cherating
It’s pitch black. The only sound we can hear is the buzz of the motorboat, which seems a little too loud for what we are about to do. The trees on the riverbank...
Category: stories
A short walk in Kaikoura
I love walking. I can walk for miles without realising I’ve been doing so and it’s only when I stop, either when I’m back at my room or during a chocolate break that my...
Solitude
I was alone, and yet I wasn’t. Two of my friends had just walked past, their heads stuck in a map, oblivious to their surroundings, and I liked it. I liked it that...
Leaving Yangshuo
The minibus from Yangshuo was not a minibus; it was a rickety, shuddering box on wheels which creaked every few minutes. I had to settle for a hard wooden seat which creaked just...
En route to pizza
We met Paolo- wavy-haired, scruffy and broke- at Paris Austerlitz train station. Aida and I were checking train schedules when he walked up to us with sad, pleading eyes. “I have no money...
By train to Bagan
I’m not sure what time it was, but I woke up with a start. The cold night wind, blowing at whatever-miles-per-hour, had slapped me hard in the face. But it wasn’t the wind...
Hanoi, second time around
I had been here before, and yet I hadn’t. Same same but different, as they say in Southeast Asia. When I said goodbye to Hanoi 11 years ago it was bright and sunny. Now...
Music on the Mekong Express
Here’s an idea: Ride a bus in Southeast Asia if you want to be entertained. There’ll definitely be music (always too loud), and they might play a movie or two. If you’re lucky it’ll...
The Cambodia Landmine Museum
I knew the answer would be “No”, but I asked anyway. “Is Aki Ra here?” The lady at the counter smiled and shook her head. “No, he is out. Out clearing mines.” When I...
Why we travel
THE steps were so steep, my neck hurt just from looking up. The Swedish guy who had passed me earlier was climbing up on all fours, his skinny arms reaching out, looking very...
