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Self portrait, 2014.

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Tham Pla - Pha Sua National Park. About 16 km north of Mae Hong Son, and easy to get to by bus. Or an easy and enjoyable trip by motorcycle. Food en pick nick space is widely available, but it  can, or better it will be very crowded on weekends and public holidays. A 500 metre walk along a beautiful river will bring you to the entrance of the cave. Tham means cave and Pla means fish; hence the fish cave. There are loads of fish, they can reach up to1 metre in length, and are protected by a statue of a Hindu Rishi called Nara. If you like to feed the fish don't forget to buy some fruit and vegetables at the car park before heading out to the cave.

Leisure & pleasure; Fish Sauce Island!

 

Leaving Cat Ba Island, take the bus to the ferry dock. The bus will be your companion until you reach the town of Hai Phong. From Cat Ba the ferry will take you to Cat Hai Island. I call it Fish Sauce Island, this is for insiders the best place to buy your fish sauce. And they make it everywhere.  As you will notice on your busride to the other side of the island. From here another ferry will take you to the mainland, to Hai Phong.

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2013 X-mas at MBK Bangkok. A Thai tuktuk dressed up for X-mas.

Leisure & pleasure; sound of silence.

Erfoud to Merzouga, this amazing 55 km trip brings you right to the edge of the pink majestic dunes of Erg Chebbi.  this is 1994, things have changed by now.
'head out from the morning market into the flat basalt desert, keep going until you see the electric wires in the distance. Don't get confused by the many tracks going everywhere. Once you see the electric wires, turn right and drive a parallel route. You will come across a lonely red house on the left. Past the house take a slightly more left bound course, and soon you can see the dunes. Drive past the town of Merzouga, about three to four hundred meters on you can have a fresh beer in a small pub in front of erg Chebbi.'
Despite the lack of confidence in the route description, I headed out. I reached the little pub, just to find out they ran out of beer. But it is an amazing place, and it was a great ride.
Nowadays there seems to be an asphalted road for most of the way, running from Erfoud over Rissani to Merzouga.

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The little island of Koh Paen is situated in the middle of the mighty Mekong river, close to Kampong Cham. The incredible bridge connects the town and the island in the dry season, so it is reconstructed every single year. Koh Paen is a pretty pleasant place for a day trip. Kampong Cham, being one of the larger city of Cambodia, is getting more and more visitors as a gateway to eastern Cambodia.

Leisure & pleasure; local history.

Phanom Rung historical park is located near the town of Nang Rong, Thailand. This old Khmer temple doesn't get the loads of no Thai visitors as other sites do, but it is magnificent nevertheless. Staying in Nang Rong is a bit more challenging then staying in the nearby city of Buriram. Not a lot of guesthouses and rather difficult to find a good selection of food.