Long weekend in Thailand

Thailand marked 5 December, the birthday of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej (King Rama IX) — a deeply meaningful day celebrated nationwide with ceremonies, tributes, and acts of kindness.

It remains one of Thailand’s most important days, also recognised as Father’s Day. It is a day off for schools and government offices. Many take a long weekend and travel away to the beach from Bangkok. So this weekend a normal sleepy Cha-am beach is hectic with local tourists enjoying the 'winter sun'.

I wanted to share my photo from the celebrations — proudly wearing my yellow polo shirt to show respect and honour this special occasion. 💛

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Sri Lanka: the highs and lows of a month long trip

After a month of exploring Sri Lanka, we've packed our bags, ready to head back to the UK. I want to share some of the highs and lows of our adventure. Highlights Cheap : Our British pounds stretched remarkably far and we only spent a total of £1440 per person. The breakdown: £750 - Etihad indirect flights (1.5 hour stop off in Abu Dhabi) £690 - Bed & Breakfast, dinner, all transport (bus, train, taxi), cultural entrance fees, hospital treatment, laundry and grocery shopping. The People : Incredibly warm and hospitable, very friendly and eager to help. They really enjoyed stopping for a friendly chat on the street, and we felt genuinely welcomed as English tourists. Scenery : The views were breathtaking, particularly the hill country from a train. Weather : Consistently hot and sunny. To avoid the intense heat, we found it best to travel very early morning. Lovely Beaches : Beautiful and clean, though the steep drop off and powerful waves made sw...

Big Buddha

This week I visited Wat Paknam Bhasicharoen in Bangkok. The temple dates back to the Ayutthaya period, but a lot of what you see today is newer. The most striking feature is the massive Buddha statue (about 69m tall), completed in 2021, made of bronze and visible from quite far away. There’s also a large stupa (around 80m high) with detailed interiors, glass, green tones, and a central crystal structure. Getting there is easy via the MRT Blue Line or taxi. Definitely worth a visiting if you're exploring the Thonburi side of Bangkok.

Onwards from Sigiriya to Galle

Our journey from Sigiriya to historic Galle was a tale of two trains – one a nostalgic throwback, the other a test of endurance. We began our day by heading to Habarana train station. H abarana, like many stations in Sri Lanka, felt like stepping back in time. The ticketing process was entirely manual, with a gentleman appearing just before departure to issue tickets – cash only, of course! Another employee manually lowered the crossing barrier. Our previous train journeys in second class had been comfortable, but this 5.5 hour trip to Colombo was a different story. The seats were grimy, and the heat was stifling. We were thankful to finally pull into Colombo, an hour behind schedule, which meant we missed our connection. Luckily, we only had an hour's wait before boarding a new second-class carriage to Galle. This train was a marked improvement, and we settled in for the final leg of our journey along the coast. Galle city is a UNESCO heritage site, ...

50 something on her travels

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