Is there a perfect trip?

I think we should never ceases to ask fundamental questions about travel. What is travel? Why do we travel? Is there a perfect trip? There are no right or wrong answers. People travel for a variety of reasons, all perfectly valid. But one thing I know, the more I travel, the better I travel, the more I seem to be able to extract overall from the experience. I am not referring to business travel. I am referring to the sort of travel driven by the desire to venture into unknown territory, to learn and experience faraway lands, fueled by wanderlust, curiosity and love for this incredibly varied planet we live in. And the more I think about the ideal of a journey, the more I believe in people. The more I regard the people I meet along the way as the keys to understanding what’s happening, what’s the story, what’s special, what’s true… about wherever we are. Access to people, theirin lies the true magic of travel.

Miguel Cunat

Saskia Fernando Gallery

"Saskia Fernando Gallery was established in February 2009. The gallery organizes and curates exhibitions for contemporary artists working in multiple mediums including painting, sculpture, photography, video and new media. It is inspired and motivated by the creativity and determination of a new wave of artists wishing to be exposed and to be accepted by the world that motivates us.

Offering new works on a regular basis from the finest of Sri Lanka's emerging artists and well-established artists, Saskia Fernando Gallery will continually present exciting, dramatic and provocative works of art in Colombo, while providing exposure to the international art market."

http://saskiafernandogallery.com/

info@saskiafernandogallery.com

61 DHARMAPALA MAWATHA, COLOMBO 3, SRI LANKA

TEL: +94 (11) 7429010

Raan Jay Fai

New York Times Review
"Like rock bands, the best noodle slingers attract groupies. Outside this simple open-air restaurant in old Bangkok, lines of cars, tuk-tuks and motorcycles crawl through the hot air, belching exhaust toward Jay Fai’s al fresco seating. Still, at Jay Fai’s opening time of around 4 in the afternoon, a line waits to be served, and the cook throws handfuls of chicken chunks and noodles into a pan as if she were a metronome on double time.

Jay Fai noodles stir-fried with spicy Thai basil is a dish also called drunken noodles. Some Thais believe the dish got its name because street cooks serve it into the wee hours, when their clientele is the drunkest. The broad rice noodles come out of the pan thin and chewy, as if they could tear easily. Yet they never turn tough, and the chef throws in large bits of sweet Thai basil, the edges seared with a slight soy aftertaste."

http://travel.nytimes.com/travel/guides/asia/thailand/bangkok/restaurant-detail.html?vid=1194733495893

Thai drug sniffing dogs get the sack

"Two Thai street dogs who became ace sniffer dogs at an airport near the notorious” Golden Triangle” opium-producing region have been fired. The dogs, named Mok and Lai, were part of a program begun by King Bhumibol Adulyadej to turn strays into police dogs. Despite their proficiency for drug sniffing, the two were fired for behavior considered unbecoming of a member of the police force. “[Mok] liked to pee on luggage while searching for drugs inside,” said Police Lieutenant Colonel Jakapop Kamhon, said. “He also liked to hold on to women’s legs.” He added that both were just as good as foreign dogs trained for use in drug missions, but they had bad manners because both used to be soi dogs" Reuters

Comments:
by Ha: bad doggie! stop humping the woman's leg!
by Garth: Once a soi dog, always a soi dog........!
by Hoi: You can take the dog out of the soi, but you can't take the soi out of the dog!

Scent of a Thai

"Science is proving that love, like memory, is a slave of scent, our strongest sense. And in the pursuit of sweet pheromones, Thais leave all in their trail. In a mid-1990s US-run survey, around 10,000 respondents from multiple countries each ranked the scent of diverse nationalities on a scale of men to hom. With no whiff to favoritism, the Thais won by more than a nose. Officially the world’s best smelling people, Thais can put their hom-ness down not just to their thrice-daily soap and powder regimen, but apparently to a diet light in dairy, meat and the ranker spices, but rich in pore-purging coriander, chili and lemongrass."

Shrine of the Goddess Tuptim

"Besides Buddhist temples and Buddha Images, Bangkok abounds with numerous small and large spirit houses and shrines to Hindu Gods and animism related deities. One less visited shrine is located on the grounds of the Nai Lert Bangkok Hotel (also known as Swissotel) on Wireless Road (Witthayu Road).

Penises abound at the shrine of Goddess Tuptim. Most are built of wood, and are quite huge, including some which stand 10 feet tall. Follow a brick path lined by knee-high wooden phalluses, and you will arrive at a huge cluster, in varying shapes and sizes, including some adorned with pastel-colored scarves. In an anthropomorphous flourish, some of the biggest penises stand on two legs, and display their own set of genitals near ground level."

Very Thai

"This pioneering insight into contemporary Thai folk culture delves beyond the traditional Thai icons to reveal the casual, everyday expressions of Thainess that so delight and puzzle. From floral truck bolts and taxi altars to buffalo cart furniture and drinks in a bag, the same exquisite care, craft and improvisation resounds through home and street, bar and wardrobe.

Never colonised, Thai culture retains nuanced ancient meaning in the most mundane things. The days are colour coded, lucky numbers dictate prices, window grilles become guardian angels, tattoos entrance the wearer. Philip scoured each region to show how indigenous wisdom both adapts to the present and customizes imports, applying Roman architecture to shophouses, morphing rock into festive farm music, turning the Japanese motor-rickshaw into the tuk-tuk."

http://www.verythai.com/

Prasart Museum

Prasart Museum is in a private house on the eastern edge of the city -this is an unusual open-air exhibition of traditional Asian buildings, collected and reassembled by wealthy entrepreneur and art lover Mr. Prasart.

The place is rarely visited by mass tourists, partly because of it's intentionally limited for number of visitors. The admission is by appointment only, and usually requires one to two days notice, but it makes a pleasant day out and is worth the effort.

Set in a gorgeously lush tropical garden, it comprises about a dozen replicas of traditional buildings, including a golden teak palace inspired by the royal residence now housed at the National Museum, a Chinese temple and water garden, a Khmer shrine, a Sukhothai Period teak library set over a lotus pond, and a European-style mansion, fashionable with Bangkok royalty in the late nineteenth century. Some of these structures have been assembled from the ruins of buildings found all over Asia, but there is no attempt at purist authenticity - the aim is to give a flavor of architectural styles, not an exact reproduction.

9 Krung Thep Kritha 4
A LaneKrung Thep Kritha Road
Huamark Sub-District
Bangkapi
Bangkok
Thailand 10240
Tel: 66 2 379 3601

Chinaman

Studio Naenna

"Located in a charming and peaceful environment at the foot of Doi Suthep mountain in Chiang Mai, Thailand, Studio Naenna offers you a collection of exquisite clothing and eco textiles in ikats, silk, and cotton designed by our founder, many of which are dyed in natural dyes. Under the direction of Lamorna Cheesman, both the city branch "'Adorn' with Studio Naenna" and the main gallery Studio Naenna have a variety of hand woven products to suit all sizes and tastes. Tailor made and export products are also available. Studio Naenna is a learning experience. At our main studio, you can see our products being produced by hand, using natural dyeing, featuring 100% natural indigo vats and backstrap loom weaving. The Studio was founded in 1988 by Patricia Cheesman, an expert in antique, Lao and Thai textiles, and lecturer in Tai textiles, ceramics and contemporary design at Chiang Mai University."

Studio Naenna
138/8 Soi Changkhian, Huay Keow Rd
T. Changpeuak, Chiang Mai
Thailand 50300
Tel. (66-53) 226042
Fax (66-53) 217707