Flight MH17 lost above Ukraine

MH17

July 2014 Another sad day for the airline industry. A tragedy for the family, loved ones and friends of passengers and flight crew of flight MH17 from Amsterdam to KL. Words fall short .... why?

In retrospect .... why do all airlines fly over a warzone where ground to air missiles are being used?

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A historical coffee shop with art in Lampang

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While walking on Thanon Talat Gao in Lampang we had a coffee and snack at this lovely coffee shop in one of the most beautiful Gingerbread houses of Lampang. The house is called Maung Ngae Zin's House. Have a look inside in the coffee-shop. They have a nice overview with photos of more beautiful old houses in Lampang. And there is some beautiful art displayed.



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Train stations in Thailand, next station Lampang

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I love traveling by train, especially in Thailand where it is like traveling in time. It is like an open-air museum. Not only the trains itself but also the train stations. They look like they have not changed since they build the first railroad lines in Thailand in 1889. I will try to make a serie of train stations under the tag TRAIN STATIONS, before modernisation will make this all history. This is the train station of Lampang or actually Nakhon Lampang Train Station, about 650km north of Bangkok along the train line Bangkok to Chiang Mai. Next major train station is Lamphun, previous major train station is Den Chai. This train station was build in 1915 and used for the first time in 1916. Lampang train station is build in a mix of northern style and European architecture with many beautiful patterns. The 4 curved entrances give Lampang train station a very typical character. In front of the train station is placed an old steam Kisha Seizo locomotive (no. 728) build in 1936.







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A boat trip between the Lotus flowers at Nong Khai

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About 10 km South-West of Nong Khai is the lake Song Nok Saeo where 6 months per year the lotus flowers blossom. Along the lake are 3 view-points from where you can make a boat trip (in a very small boat). It is beautiful, not only for the flowers but also for the silence, beautiful surroundings and the hundreds of small birds "dancing" above the water. It is a bit difficult to find as the roads to the lake are small, upcountry quality and signs are in Thai (but with photos). This trip should be done between December and April, begin March might be the best time. Another lake with lotus flowers is south-east of Udon Thani at A Sea of Red Flowers.
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Lampang town is famous for its old houses and small streets. At Thanon Talat Gao (the old market street) is Lampang's Weekend market when at every Saturday and Sunday the street is closed for traffic from 17:00 to 22:00 and is transformed into a lovely street market. In the old days the street was called Kad Kong Ta (the market on the road by the port) or Talad Chin (the Chinese Market). Nowadays the street is home to many beautiful heritage buildings and Chinese shop houses. The perfect place for a market like this. See also Lampang's Kad Kong Ta Salking Street @ Sanuk. We were a bit early this time, so no market yet but it is still a nice area to walk around.


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Visiting Baan Sao Nak in Lampang

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Lampang is located about 100km south of Chiang Mai city, along the train line Bangkok to Chiang Mai. And along the Wang River. Lampang became rich because of the teak wood trade in the old days. Today Lampang is famous for beautiful old temples and many old teak wooden houses. One of that houses is Baan Sao Nak, the house of many pillars. Baan Sao Nak was build in 1895 by Mong Chan Ong and Khun Mook Chandraviroj and it was to be their resident. They were Mon ethnics from Burma (Myanmar) and designed the house in a mix of Northern Thai and Burmese architecture. The all house is standing on 116 teak wooden pillars. In 1964 family started to renovate the house, to safe if from collapsing. Most of the teak wooden pillars have been replaced by cement. Baan Sao Nak is open every day from 10:00 - 17:00. Entrance fee is 50 Thai baht (included a fresh fruit drink). See also : Baan Sao Nak.





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