Category Archives: Travel

Sleeper Train Butterworth To Hua Hin, 2012

I thought I liked train travel. Not that I’ve done a lot. But I have good memories of ploughing through nocturnal Italy, watching villagers feasting and dancing in a bright-lit square somewhere en-route from Naples to Rome. Or was it Brindisi to Naples? No matter.

I remember the southern French accent of the train driver announcing arrival in Marseilles: “Marsaya”.

Then there was the epic journey from Cochin to Delhi. Sitting up all the way, jammed into a hot third-class carriage with good-humoured Indians, looking out on the parched plains of central India and wondering how or why people lived there. I don’t suppose I’d take a journey like that too well now, but it was great back then.

When we floated the idea of going into Thailand by train instead of flying in as most people do, it gained immediate traction, especially coupled with 3 days in Penang to kick off with. Seemed sorta romantic. Continue reading Sleeper Train Butterworth To Hua Hin, 2012

Travels In Vietnam 2011: Reflections & Wrap-up

I remarked in my intro post that virtually all the expectations of Vietnam I arrived with were to be confounded in the 3 weeks of travelling that followed. I elaborated on this in some detail in my previous post, and more briefly in earlier ones. This final post of the series is an attempt to complete the picture – a summary of surprising aspects of the trip, if you like. Continue reading Travels In Vietnam 2011: Reflections & Wrap-up