London to Lhasa
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/
A first-timer's travels in Asia, by Steve Webben-us2004-05-01T07:12:19+00:00High altitude deserts - Lhasa to Zhangmu
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/archives/002392.shtml
Tibetan toilets are legendary among travellers, and as we found out, they deserve to be. They reach levels of filth, stinkiness, discomfort and/or simple bad plumbing that are seen in few other places in the world. During long days of...TibetSteve2004-05-01T07:12:19+00:00Lhasa
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/archives/002366.shtml
"For many years the 14th Dalai Lama and his 'government-in-exile' have been distorting the policy for Tibet followed by the Central Government." The seat-back magazine, "China's Tibet", on the flight from Chengdu to Lhasa, went on to bombard the reader...TibetSteve2004-04-29T10:25:47+00:00Random walks around Thailand
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/archives/002145.shtml
The popular backpackers' route from Luang Phabang to the Thai border is a two-day slow-boat journey up the river. This was the way I'd originally intended to cross from Laos to Thailand, but by the time I returned to Luang...ThailandSteve2004-04-01T11:36:26+00:00Muang Ngoi and Phonsavan
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/archives/002123.shtml
The debris of the Vietnam war is scattered all over Laos. When I walked up the river bank from the boat landing in Muang Ngoi, I was welcomed by a great big bomb, sitting with its tail fins sticking up...LaosSteve2004-03-02T06:33:14+00:00Carry on up the Mekong - Phnom Penh to Luang Phabang
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/archives/002103.shtml
From Phnom Penh, I followed the course of the Mekong river north, and the scenery became more beautiful the farther I went. My first stop was Kratie, where I hired a boat to take me out into the middle of...LaosSteve2004-02-25T07:32:37+00:00Angkor Wat and the Killing Fields
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/archives/002082.shtml
It was only on my third or fourth day at the temples of Angkor Wat that I started to appreciate how they are more than just a tourist attraction - they are at the heart of Cambodian national pride and...CambodiaSteve2004-02-02T03:40:09+00:00Ho Chi Minh City
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/archives/001875.shtml
Just when you think that the traffic in Ho Chi Minh city can't possibly get any crazier, there's Cholon. The city's Chinatown, Cholon has all of the noise, crowds and chaos that you find in the other districts - but...VietnamSteve2004-01-20T06:29:47+00:00Dalat
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/archives/001676.shtml
South of Hoi An the Open Tour bus route separates into two branches, one continuing down the coast, the other heading inland. I took the latter, up into the central highlands to Dalat. During the French colonial days, Dalat was...VietnamSteve2004-01-10T14:26:25+00:00Hanoi to Hoi An
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/archives/001323.shtml
To reach the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum, you take a cyclo from the centre of Hanoi, past government buildings and a statue of Lenin, to the main entrance of the compound. You buy your ticket and leave your bags at...VietnamSteve2004-01-04T09:44:16+00:00Sapa
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/archives/001199.shtml
Tuan, our guide, chartered a clunky Russian jeep to take us a few kilometres out of Sapa to the starting point of the trek. Despite his earlier reassurances, the trails down to Ban Ho village were treacherous. Going down was...VietnamSteve2003-12-13T10:31:50+00:00Hanoi, and the frozen north
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/archives/001146.shtml
Every time I arrive in a new country, it seems to be in the middle of some kind of national celebration. In Kathmandu it was Dasain, the rather bloodthirsty festival of the goddess Durga; in Bangkok I walked straight into...VietnamSteve2003-12-12T10:08:04+00:00Down-time
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/archives/001133.shtml
Earplug time again. The night bus from Bangkok to Trat boasted a state-of-the-art onboard entertainment system, which played movies and appalling Thai pop music all night. Trat is the jumping-off point for the island of Ko Chang, where I intended...ThailandSteve2003-12-10T11:20:38+00:00Around Mae Hong Son
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/archives/001027.shtml
The day after the Loy Kratong celebrations in Bangkok, Anna and I headed north, stopping at Ayutthaya then taking the night train up to Chiang Mai. From there, a short flight across the mountains brought us to Mae Hong Son,...ThailandSteve2003-12-05T12:31:23+00:00From Halloween to Loy Kratong - Arrival in Bangkok
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/archives/000731.shtml
October 31st, 10pm, and on Bangkok's Kao San Road the street party was in full swing, with witches and warlocks mingling among the crowd, and giant cobwebs and spiders decorating the backpacker hangouts. Beer was 50 baht a bottle from...ThailandSteve2003-11-17T06:54:18+00:00Traffic Jams and Toilets (Two Weeks around Nepal)
http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/webb/archives/000614.shtml
The secret of stress-free bus travel in Nepal is: Don't Look Down! We were travelling on a public bus along the main road out of Kathmandu. Looking straight out of the window I could see the forested hill on the...NepalSteve2003-10-27T12:59:44+00:00