Ratna writes

Today, we took a road trip from old town Chiang Mai to Doi Inthanon National Park and the Mae Klang Luang Village , about a 1.5-hour drive. Our first stop was the imposing Wachirathan Falls , whose source is the Mae Klang River. From there, we drove by car to the Ang Ka Nature Trail , a short and flat boardwalk stroll through cloud forest, that takes you to the summit of Doi Inthanon, at 2,565 meters high.  The trail featured a tangle of sphagnum moss, mushroom varieties, and rhododendron plants (which flower starting November.) It was my first time seeing a verdant wetland at such high elevation! Next, we visited Chiang Mai’s famous pagoda at Nabhapolbumisiri. The complex features twin pagodas, dedicated respectively to King Bhumibol and Queen Sirikit. This signature Chiang Mai view is stunning, and equally stunning was the fog that befell us while we shivered through the visit on this particular day. At lunch, an inviting green curry and tom yum soup at a local homestay thawed...

Hội An is an extremely charming town, preserved throughout as it looked in the 18th century, with the Thu Bon River winding through it, a river system used in the 10th century to trade with the Vietnamese highlands, Laos, and Thailand. The old town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and in the 18th century, Hội An was considered by Chinese and Japanese merchants to be the best destination for trading in all of Southeast Asia. Its importance as a port declined with the end of Nguyễn rule at the end of the 18th century, due to a turning away from foreign trade and silting of the river upstream. As its use for trade reduced, so did its contact with the rest of Vietnam. The 1990s saw efforts to revive and preserve the city by a Polish architect and conservator , responsible in part for the Hội An we were able to see this weekend. The beauty of the town lies in walking around and letting it saturate you, the bright mustard walls of each building adding a uniformity of joy to each of Hội A...

At 12:30 today, we boarded for Macau at the the TurboJet pier at Shun Tak Centre in Sheung Wan. Upon arriving in this charming special administrative region, we fumbled with a few casino buses before taking a cab to Senado Square , a paved town square that was a meeting place for the Portuguese and Chinese in the 16th century, and comprises part of a UNESCO World Heritage site. The brilliantly colored St. Dominic's church lies at its north side, while the main road is to the south. Mama and I only had about 4 hours in town until our 7:00pm ferry, so we used this super handy article to prioritize our sightseeing. We walked about 5 minutes north to the Paço Episcopal da Diocese de Macau , situated in a very pleasant square next to the Cathedral of the Nativity of Our Lady. Next, I was too keen to see the mint green Dom Pedro V Theatre, the inside of which we perused as I perched on an ancient chair and re-juiced my phone battery. Around the back of the theater lies St. Augustin...

This is the story of how Udai and I accidentally ended up scaling Sunset Peak in Lantau Island, ranked one of the top three hardest hikes in Hong Kong.  With an inflated feeling of accomplishment after last week's hike , I was all too willing to believe my husband when he said "I remember Sunset Peak being even easier than MacLehose Section 2..." (If you intend to use your quad muscles again after this trek, I strongly suggest considering MacLehose over this peak.) But I took him at his word and we arrived at the Tung Chung MTR Station Sunday morning, which we quickly realized is ludicrously busy because it connects to the Big Buddha. After spending 2 hours in the process of discovering that cab drivers waved us away rather than go to Pak Kung Au (the starting point for our hike), we almost turned back to go home when we saw the lines for the buses that go there. But we figured out that since bus 11A doesn't go to the Big Buddha, it's the most efficient route to...

We set off for Sai Kung this Sunday to check out Section 2 of the formidable MacLehose Trail , a 100-km network of stunning scenery. We chose our section because it's a 13-kilometer stretch that is relatively flat (though there are two major uphill sections that last 10-15 minutes). This was our route: From Sai Kung, we got dropped off at Sai Wan Pavilion , a good landmark to use for the start of Section 2! Although there's no signage for a good 20 minutes after this point, if you can follow other hikers or use GMaps to get started, you're soon rewarded with this view. About 15 minutes later, you'll come upon a map of the whole MacLehose Trail that'll give you a good idea of where to go! The first major built landmark we came across was Sai Wan Village, which has a tourist information center, a couple of spots where you can grab a Pocari or something to eat, and a public toilet. Beyond the small booths was Sai Wan Beach, sprawling and scenic though slightly better s...

So much of taking in this unassuming city is letting yourself stop and notice things in the in-between. Kyoto does not seem to seek to wow and amaze; it is simply being, and you are invited to join. The city is often sleepy; nights in downtown tend to wrap up by 9pm, but this introverted older sibling of Tokyo is a joy to discover, slowly. Rather than a checklist of things to tick off, let this serve as a general guide of areas to be in, and allow the place to befall you. You could use this guide and have a completely different experience from us, because there is hidden history in every corner, and you could visit the same neighborhood and discover completely different shrines and gardens from the ones that we saw.   Grounds of Ginkaku-ji That said, this is what Udai and I would do for two full but not-too-full days in Kyoto. Day 1 Ginkaku-jicho shrine Walk down Philosopher’s Path Lunch at Cafe Ren Ginkakuji Dinner at Vegan Ramen UZU Day 2 Tenryu-ji temple Wander Arashiyama for l...