I was staying on Khao San Road in Bangkok for a couple of days before going up to Kanchanaburi, the Bridge on the River Kwai. I kind of like the backpacking district of Banglamphu. It was not a case of saving money; the whole area was electric, and you feel so alive. I had only…

My name is Carl. As I write this, I’m in Bangkok staying at the Grand Four Wings Hotel in Bang Kapi. This is the last week of July 2024, and I came to Thailand for the first time last week on the 24th. I am an Australian of African origin, and I live in Western…

I met a Thai woman I’ll call Mint in Pattaya about 18 months ago. She was 32. I met her in a bar in Soi Buakhao. Although she didn’t work there. She was having drinks with another girl and we got talking. Later that night, she told me straight that she was a freelancer. No…

I was sitting on the edge of the bed putting my socks on after taking a shower, ready to go to work. I remember this like it was yesterday because my wife started shouting at me like she had done so many times before over the past few months. This time stood out because I…

Call me Martin. I’m 51 from Newcastle, and I’ve been coming to Thailand since 2018. I’m divorced, my kids are grown-up, and I work offshore. So, I tend to get decent blocks of time off rather than normal holidays. A couple of years ago, I met a woman I’ll call Joy in Pattaya. She was…

I was in my early 20s when I discovered Buddhism and I believed it was the answer to many of my problems at the time. The feeling like I needed to get ahead, the feeling like I needed to be able to achieve something was always at the front of my mind. As soon as…