Back in America

In July I made a surprise return back to the US. Thank you all for following my adventures through Southeast Asia over the last couple of months. It was the trip of a lifetime and I visited so many amazing places and made countless memories that I won't soon forget.

I hope I was able to bring some adventure to your lives through the many photographs that I took. Now its back to the real world for me and back to pondering the question of what to do with my life. If anyone is interested in purchasing prints from my website www.citritefoto.com/travel please contact me and I'll set up that feature right away.

Staying a safe distance from Bangkok

I am currently in a small village in rural Thailand near Nakhon Ratchasima, 4 hours away from the mayhem of Bangkok, safely enjoying the laid back pace of life and cooler weather (highs now only in the lower 100s - 38c) at the start of the rainy season.
Making Tom Thai

I've made my way to an internet cafe where I am currently working on uploading pictures from my last 2 weeks of travel.

After Cambodia, Sopit and I took a bus to Bangkok on May 9th where we stayed in her sister's apartment for two days before heading back to Kolat on the 11th (Nakhon Ratchasima).
Heading Back to Kolat

On the 13th and 14th we took a short trip to the beach where we stayed on the beautiful island Koh Laan.
Koh Laan

Next, we returned to Kolat for the celebrations leading up to Sopit's friend becoming a monk. Eating and drinking (Chang beer and Thai whisky) took place all day followed by more eating and drinking which was topped off with music and Thai dancers.
Going to Learn Buddha

Some other albums that I've recently uploaded include:
The Bayon (Cambodia)
Roluos Group (Cambodia)

Angkor Wat Pictures

Finally finished uploading some of my pictures from Cambodia. Just follow the link to "Cambodia Pictures" at the top of the blog. You'll find pictures from Angkor Wat and another gallery of Ta Prohm (the temple famous for the trees growing out of it). These are just two temples out of more than a hundred in the area surrounding Siem Reap. More pictures to come as soon as I can get them uploaded. I took about 500 pictures every day this week so its been taking a lot of time to sort through them all and upload the best ones.

Enjoy the pictures and post some comments. I get an email every time a comment is posted both on my blog and on my website so I can see it and respond. This is a great way for me to keep in touch with everyone back home and it also shows me that people are actually looking at my site.

In Siam Reap, Cambodia

On Monday we made the border crossing from Thailand into Cambodia and took a taxi for 2 and a half hours to Siem Reap. I wasn't looking forward to the drive because I had been told that it was quite a rough ride and can take as long as 7 hours but luckily there was a new road built just two years ago :)

Today we explored a few of the many amazing temples located just outside of the city. We left at about 5:30 this morning to catch the sunrise at Angkor Wat but unfortuantely it was a little cloudy but the light was still really nice and it didn't start getting too hot until about 8:30.

After lunch at a street restaurant next to some volleyball courts we explored Ta Prohm and then came back to the hotel and took a nap.

We had some pizza for dinner and then went to The Bayon for sunset.


There are so many temples here and they are all much bigger than I had imagined and are absolutely breathtaking.

I'm working on uploading pictures to my website right now...hopefully i'll get some more up today or tomorrow....

3 New Galleries

Just finshed uploading 3 new galleries to www.citritefoto.com/travel/thailand. In other news, we had a short downpour this afternoon! It provided a much needed break from the triple digit heat we've been having and made for a very pleasant AC-free evening. On top of that it cleared the haze a little and I was able to see that Chiang Mai is surrounded by mountains on at least three sides! I had no idea because all I had been able to see until now was haze.

4 New Galleries on the website!

Follow the link on the right to my website and you will find 2 new galleries of markets in Chiang Mai, some views from my apartment balcony, and a gallery of my visit to an elephant camp.

Enjoy...and be sure to post comments!

Songkran Day 2 - Apr. 14

whole celebration summed up in one word: wet

Songkran (Thai New Year) Day 1 - Apr.13

see wikipedia article for explaination: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Songkran

Massive concert/celebration short walk down the road from the condo

Making Some Salsa

Yesterday I was craving some salsa. I realized I could find all of the ingredients I needed to make it...here is the result:

http://www.citritefoto.com/Travel/Thailand/Making-some-Roses-Salsa/11796423_tYKZE#833292065_QEnaW

Check out my website....

Some of you may have noticed a lack of posts here lately. I've been spending a lot of time uploading all of my pictures to my website www.citritefoto.com/travel/thailand

Questions and comments are highly appreciated!

Food at Warorot Road Market

Mmm....delicious blended fruit drink. I've tried the watermelon, cantaloupe, and apple. Watermelon is the best!
'

Tasty soup with with garnishes of sprouts, cabbage, cucumber, green beans and herbs.
12 baht! Accompanied by my blended watermelon drink.

The fried squid left of the sign were pretty tasty.

Ratchdamnoen Road Sunday Market

Delicious ice cream with the best and freshest cone I have ever had! ...still hot from the press.

Temples along Ratchadamnoen Road

Chiang Mai Zoo

Doi Suthep 1

As in so many chapters of Thai history, an elephant is closely involved in the legend surrounding the foundation of Wat Phra That, Northern Thailand’s most revered temple and one of only a few enjoying royal patronage. The elephant was dispatched from Chiang Mai carrying religious relics from Wat Suan Dok. Instead of ambling off into the open countryside, it stubbornly climbed up Doi Suthep. When the elephant came to rest at the 3,542-foot summit, the decision was made to establish a temple to contain the relics at that site. Over the centuries the temple compound grew into the glittering assembly of chedis, bots, viharns, and frescoed cloisters you see today (taken directly from my Fodor’s guidebook).

Stairs leading up to the temple. Lined with mythical snake-like rice-field-canal-protectors.

Outside the entrance to the main temple compound

Outside the entrance to the main temple compound

Inside one of the main rooms (photography is allowed as long as you're sitting).

Doi Suthep 2

Road heading up into the mountains. The archways with a picture of the king are fairly common on all roads throughout Thailand. It was about a 30-minute ride up a very curvy road in the back of a songthaew (converted pickup with 2 benches in the back, see previous post) 60 baht round-trip (less than $2).

Inside the temple

Inside the temple

Inside the temple

Doi Suthep 3

Inside the temple compound

lantern for lighting incense and candles to honor Buddha

Evening sun splashing on the tiles inside the entrance at the top of the massive stairway leading up to the temple.

Morning View

I rented an apartment in Chiang Mai for a week. Here's the view from the balcony.