Category Archives: Travel

Cultural Tips for Thailand

“Chang, Chang, Chang,” we all sing, our shoulders tucked into our noses and our one arm hanging to depict an elephant trunk. It’s nighttime, and Jack and Chai have called us up to the conference room to teach us about Thai culture and the Thai language. The first thing that sticks in my head? ElephantContinue reading “Cultural Tips for Thailand”

Floating elephant poo and other awesomeness

“Ele poo! Look out, ele poo!” Jack screams as we wade into the rushing water, elephants at our side. Sure enough, there are huge balls of elephant poo floating by our legs. It’s like the elephants just hold it until they hit their own, big rushing river toilet. Before we get into the water, weContinue reading “Floating elephant poo and other awesomeness”

The Thailand Foodgasm: The ultimate Thai buffet

The lunch bell rings at Elephant Nature Park at noon. Had we really already been there a few hours? The time so far has flown by. And, while I love that the experiences were that supremely amazing thus far, I don’t want the week to fly by. I want to savor every single moment and feelContinue reading “The Thailand Foodgasm: The ultimate Thai buffet”

Escape of the Week: The Dead Sea

I love Israel. I have loved Israel since the moment I visited, on a Birthright program in spring 2001. I remember my time there very clearly. Clashes had just started breaking out between Israelis and Palestinians, and I was really scared to go visit the country. But, I did. For 10 days, my group ofContinue reading “Escape of the Week: The Dead Sea”

Tuk tuks, red cabs … and elephants: arriving to Elephant Nature Park

The drive from Chiang Mai to the Elephant Nature Park is nothing short of surreal: from urban to highway to jungle in about an hour. And from cars and tuk tuks to elephants and ox on the side of the road. We start our first day as volunteers, 23 of us ranging in age fromContinue reading “Tuk tuks, red cabs … and elephants: arriving to Elephant Nature Park”

Hangovers and headaches

I woke up in the morning, curled up in a ball on my bed. I looked to my right, Katie and Isabelle were just waking up, too. My head. I sought to put together the pieces from the previous night. Whiskey and Coke bucket. Chang Beer. Which, apparently, is super strong. Dancing at the reggae bar. AContinue reading “Hangovers and headaches”

Sleep? Not in Chiang Mai

Checking in to Little Bird was easy. I gave my name and showed my passport. Then, I was shown my room, a small thing with two bunk beds, a little wooden dresser and a chest-high locker unit. It was cute, with the mis-matched paint on the walls. And, the doors. The doors at Little BirdContinue reading “Sleep? Not in Chiang Mai”

Speaking for the Elephants … in memory of Mae Sai Roong

Yesterday morning, when I turned on my computer after a night of restlessness, my heart sank. There, on the screen, were two Facebook status updates. One from the Elephant Nature Park & Foundation page stating Mae Sai Roong, an elephant our volunteer group had taken care of when she fell ill on Sept. 10, hadContinue reading “Speaking for the Elephants … in memory of Mae Sai Roong”

Escape of the Week: Budapest

Sometimes, being solo and traveling is hard. You see something so breathtaking, so amazing, such an example of the beauty of the world before you … you turn to convey your joy of the moment … and … nothing. The space beside you is void of anyone. There are times when solo travel is exhausting.Continue reading “Escape of the Week: Budapest”