Children play loudly in the yard of the school next door to the site. Do they know what happened here? I ask myself. Do they know that children their age, along with their parents, were killed here daily, beaten against trees, hacked with machetes? For their sakes, I hope they don't know just … [Read more...] about Remembering the Killing Fields
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Photo Friday: Doi Suthep, Chiang Mai, Thailand
Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, known as Doi Suthep for short, is Chiang Mai's most well known temple, set at the top of the mountain and a nausea-inducing songthaew ride from the city. The sacred site is important for many local Thais, but once you've reached the drop off point, you're only just … [Read more...] about Photo Friday: Doi Suthep, Chiang Mai, Thailand
Photo Friday: Chiang Rai, Thailand
Decapitated heads, arms outstretched in pain and, oddly enough, characters from horror movies are visible throughout Wat Rong Khun, better known as the White Temple. True faith is suffering and pain, says the temple's creator Chalermchai Kositpipat of the modern Buddhist temple. Sammi and I took the … [Read more...] about Photo Friday: Chiang Rai, Thailand
On Penance and the Power of Voice
Four years ago, on my first trip to Thailand, I was naïvely excited about getting up close with an elephant. I visited a camp, rode an elephant and was entertained by the shows and paintings. Saying I didn't know any better would be a cop out. I was so captivated by the creatures that I wasn't … [Read more...] about On Penance and the Power of Voice
The Top End: The Real Australia
If you want to see Australia for what it once was, long before the migration of European convicts and where the Aboriginals may have first arrived themselves, there's only one place left to find it. Australia's Top End is a wealth of protected wildlife and natural forests and each is known for … [Read more...] about The Top End: The Real Australia