Postcard Moment: Chiang Mai is not about Buddhism
Text: Prime Sarmiento Photos: Prime Sarmiento/Avie OIarte No one visits Chiang Mai without getting even a glimpse of its many Buddhist temples. Temples and monks in orange robes (oh and also elephants) – these are the images that most travelers will always remember about this northern Thailand city. I didn't visit Chiang...
A Solo Female Traveler’s Weekend Guide to Bangkok
Text and Photos by Prime Sarmiento Every city has a certain energy and Bangkok has that distinct feminine energy that I love and relish – enough to lure me to the City of Angels over and over again. I don’t exactly know where this energy is coming from. Is it from temples...
PostCard Moment:Punakha Dzong, Bhutan
In Bhutan, the chief abbot’s winter residence is at the Punakha Dzong. Sitting at the confluence of the two rivers in the former Bhutanese capital of Punakha, this dzong houses many of the country’s historic and holy relics including the embalmed body of Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal. Zhabdrung was the first monarxch to unify the various...
Chillin’ in Bagan,Myanmar
No night bars, no cafes, no cable tv, no malls, no dating scene” how do you exactly ‘chill’ in Bagan, Myanmar? By simply taking the place for what it is, enjoying it for what it can offer, putting in your head that there’s more to traveling than looking for another sex-and-the-city adventure. But perhaps...
This is (NOT) really about Aung San Suu Kyi but….
April 30, 2008 Myanmar It’s difficult not to be political about Myanmar. Not when the whole time I was there, I can’t access the internet nor avail of international publications (except for the Singapore Straits Times. which I’m sorry to say isn’t really my idea of in-depth reportage) because the military junta isn’t exactly...
The Art of Letting Go
First Published October 2005 at www.travelblog.org/bloggers/gypsygal In a workshop about Eros and the Divine, and its significance in writing, our writing guru, Jan Cornall, mentioned that the principle of Eros is about “being alive and feeling alive.” Tapping into that energy, according to this Aussie performance artist/playwright/poet/songwriter, will help us in our writing process. Meditating,...
Temple Tour
First Published September 8,2005 at www.travelblog.org/bloggers/gypsygal Kathmandu — Despite the hot and dry weather (and the fact that I can’t wear shorts and spaghetti straps in this conservative country) and my dizziness (side effect of the anti-malaria tablets that I ingested), I still managed to take a tour around the Kathmandu Valley, visiting some...