If you’ve been travelling long distances across dusty, uneven roads elsewhere in Asia, arriving in Singapore will come as a pleasant surprise. From touching down at the ultra modern Changi Airport and driving into the city centre, the journey will leave you pretty impressed. Singapore is so clean […]
Raffles is a name that is hard to miss when visiting Singapore. Of course, the city’s most famous luxury hotel – sadly closed for major renovation during my recent trip – boats that designation. But there are many other examples in Singapore: Raffles Place, the financial centre filled […]
For the last three weeks, I’ve posted a series of blogs focusing on the lasting legacy of some of Cambodia’s sometime extremely dark history, namely the Khmer Rouge, as well as more ancient times during the Khmer Empire. The country continues to face problems and progress is blighted […]
Sunrise at Angkor Wat is a spectacular sight that’s worth getting up for. As the rose over the largest religious building in the world, monks could be heard chanting in the distance. Sitting on some steps at the edge of a lily pond, with the towers of the […]
For what was once a city of ghosts, Phnom Penh has undergone a rapid transformation in recent years and is today a bustling metropolis. Tuk tuks can whisk visitors through the busy traffic to restaurants serving cuisine from pretty much any country in the world. Happy hour rings […]
Museums around the world are always on the look out for new ways of bringing history alive, but nothing could prepare me for what I was to experience at the Tuol Sleng Museum of Genocidal crimes in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. No fewer than three survivors of this former […]
Thailand may still have been officially mourning the death of King Bhumibol the Great after 70 years on the throne, but Bangkok’s famous Khao San Road was alive with partygoers enjoying a lively night out. The bars with their flashing neon lights and prominent signs like “No ID […]
Passing through pleasant rice and sugar cane fields, our train journey through the western Thailand countryside was a memorable experience. As mountains unfolded in the distance, a serene river, teak and papaya trees and colourful temples could seen closer to the line. The windows could be fully opened […]
“Don’t look, close your eyes,” I was told is the best strategy for crossing the road in Ho Chi Minh City. “Wave your hands in the air, so they can see you and make sure you don’t stop.” Ho Chi Minh is not Vietnam’s capital, but it its […]
They say pictures speak a thousand words. Countless accounts have been written about the Vietnam War but it is seeing vivid images of civilians caught up in the conflict – like ordinary peasants massacred by US forces – that truly help understand the human cost of the military […]
Past In The Present 