I cannot remember why we decided on this destination. We did not know much about Thailand and even less about Phuket, except that that it had a beach and of course we had heard of it in context to the Tsunami. But staying in Singapore, we wanted to s... Read More

Well.. it was a last moment trip which i planned to go to Thailand and visit "Tiger Temple" I am not sure how many people are aware of such a place in Thailand or even heard of it !! I missed it last time when i went to Thailand cause of shortage of ... Read More

I know I know, I was missing from Ghumakkar for quite sometime but there are always reasons. I was travelling extensively and enjoying it too ! Ghumakkar has become a very big family now and it’s difficult to know or remember all members. But, whe... Read More

To the north east of Phuket, is the island of Krabi. Between these two, is the famed Phi Phi and many other islets. Phi Phi, which amusingly is pronounced Pee Pee, is equidistant (40KM) from Phuket and Krabi but for all administration purposes it is ... Read More

Ayuthaya, about 75km away from Bangkok had been a revelation. It was like being handed a surprise gift months after your birthday. Did the usual tour of the Sleeping Buddha, Buddha-head-in-the-Bodhi Tree, the ruins and the headless statues (gruesome)... Read More

Koh Panyee What do you do after an exhilarating canoeing in the sea, amidst limestone rocks and mangroves? Eat Lah (that's how a Singaporean would say!) The Floating village of Koh Panyee - a maze of houses built entirely on stilts was our lunch ... Read More

Day 3 Post our visit to the exotic Phi Phi, we had the landscape of Krabi in mind. As luck would have it, Krabi tour runs only twice a week and was unavailable for the next day. One of the tour agents shared our grief until we told him we had alr... Read More

It looked like in our bid to go for day trips to Phi Phi and Phnag Nga, we had been using Phuket only as a transit place. This being our fourth and last day here, we decided to have a dekho of our host place. So we rented a car with driver for full d... Read More

What is it that a traveller feels after a wonderful trip – is it a déjà vu evolving around a sense of ending; is it exhilaration about new found memories; is it an overbearing desire for a next trip; is it a melancholy of coming out of a most swe... Read More

Thailand as a tourist destination (by itself or in combination with neighborly Malaysia/ Singapore, etc) has been in vogue for some while in India. But unfortunately, majority of the schemes, offered and availed are ‘package tour’ varieties. W... Read More

Bang Saen, a beach destination in Chon Buri province is situated 100 kms south east of Bangkok along the Bight of Bangkok. Same beach stretches to Pattaya, which is some 30 kms further south. Bang Saen is a haunt for Thais families from Bangkok, who ... Read More

Indigo flight lands at Suvarnabhumi International Airport, Bangkok at 10.45 AM, local and before time. We deplane; go through the motions and find us lined up at immigration counters. The long queues are made up of diverse nationals with varied dr... Read More

Kamhpaeng Phet (Diamond Wall) is one of the provincial capitals of Thailand. It is a historical town some 350 kms north of Bangkok, roughly midway between Bangkok and Chiang Mai. The Historical Park here is a UENSCO World Heritage site with royal pal... Read More

Chiang Mai (meaning ‘the new city’), is a 900 years old city with a character. It is probably the most important city in Northern Thailand in terms of trade & commerce, history, culture, religion as well as tourism. Chiang Mai has traditional... Read More

Thai version - “Krung - Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom Udomratchaniwet Mahasathan Amon Phiman Awatan Sathit Sakkathattiya Witsanukam Prasit” Pali-Sanskrit version (its origi... Read More

In deference to the wishes expressed by some Ghumakkars, I devote this concluding part to practical issues for the visitors viz. expenses, practical tips etc. Most of these have already been covered in previous posts and here it is more of a compilat... Read More