Sunrise at Rong Kwang

Sunrise at Rong Kwang - North Thailand

I love sunsets and sunrises, so when traveling in the early morning and passing Rong Kwang near Phrae in North Thailand I always make a stop along route 101. Because it is a great point for a stunning sunrise over the mountains and rice-fields. I always love it!

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An old suspension bridge in Nan

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You might be wondering what that is there hanging over the Nan River in the small village Hat Pha Kon in Nan province. Well it is an old suspension bridge for people and following Thai safety standards it is not removed although it is not in use anymore already for many years. About 50m from this old suspension bridge is a brand new road for cars and people. For more information about the beautiful Nan province in North Thailand see Destination Travel Guide Nan, Thailand.


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The Rice Field Project Part 37 : Slow, slower and slowest

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As part of Living in Thailand, the Rice Field Project follows our journey of buying land, preparing it for building our house and finally building our house. This is part 37, to read the other parts click The Rice Field Project. The first 3 months with the construction crew did go fast and 70% of the house was done. But the it started to slow down. And now even more. As said the contractual planning is mid June, but I was promised to try mid March. But mid February it was sure that mid March would not be possible, but before Songkran (mid April) the house should be finished. But now at 1 April (no joke this time) I am sure the house is not going to be finished mid April. That would be not such a problem if that delay was not caused by late ordering of material or just no people coming to work. So I just had a bit pissed off conversation with the construction company with the question if 30 April the house would be 100% finished? And they said yes, sure! Well I will ask them again tom…
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Traveling in Nong Khai province in North-East Thailand

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Last year I did make a posting about counting all the provinces I had been in Thailand. And I saw I have been to (stayed in) 48 provinces out of the 76. So in the coming months I will travel via my postings from the most southern province I have been to the most northern province, with some photos and information about each province. This is part 23 of the 47 (out of the 77) provinces where I have at least stayed overnight once. Nong Khai province is a northern province of North-East Thailand and the gate-way to Vientiane in Laos. The all province borders along the Mekong River as border to Laos. The capital town is of course Nong Khai, originally famous for the ferry to Laos and the IndoChina Market, but since the building of the Thai-Lao Friendship bridge as International Thai-Lao Border the number of people coming to Nong Khai has changed. For me personally it was probably in 1997 that I was for the first time in Nong Khai town, while traveling to Laos. Later when I was living in …
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A noodle shop as tourist attraction near Sila Phet

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Traveling around in Thailand there is always somewhere a place to eat, also in Nan province. This new noodle shop is along route 1170 between Tha Wang Pha and Sila Phet. And it is not just a noodle shop, it is a tourist attraction Thai style. Instead of a normal cup the noodle is served in a huge bamboo cup with huge chop-sticks. The bamboo cup is made from gigant bamboo trees that grow in Nan province. And instead of sitting in a shophouse you sit here in a huge open-air sala in the rice-fields, with walking paths thru the rice-fields. A perfect place to make selfies! For more information have a look at Phaiyak Noodle Restaurant. For more information about the beautiful Nan province in North Thailand see Destination Travel Guide Nan, Thailand.


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A day at the Department of Land Transport

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While living in Thailand I always try to do everything by the book, as far as possible at least. So when I wanted to buy a car and drive myself in Thailand I went to the Department of Land Transport to apply for a Thai Driver License for a car. In those days in 2003 it was very easy, just show your National & International Driver License and you will more or less get your Thai Driver License. I applied only for car and was asked if I not wanted to have for motorcycle also. Yes, of course! So after paying less as 1.000 Thai baht I had my Thai Driver License for Car and Motorcycle. You will get to cards. The first cards were only valid for 1 year, after 1 year I did get an renewal for 3 years. And after 3 years normally you would get an driver license for the rest of your life. But just before my renewal the law changed and from that day on everybody gets an maximum of 5 years valid driver license. No problem, but every 5 years you will have to go to the DLT to get an renewal. Not …
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Traveling in Nakhon Ratchasima province in North-East Thailand

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Last year I did make a posting about counting all the provinces I had been in Thailand. And I saw I have been to (stayed in) 48 provinces out of the 76. So in the coming months I will travel via my postings from the most southern province I have been to the most northern province, with some photos and information about each province. This is part 27 of the 47 (out of the 77) provinces where I have at least stayed overnight once. Nakhon Ratchasima province is the biggest province of North-East Thailand and also called the Door to North-East Thailand. Of course the the capital town is called Nakhon Ratchasima and it is the biggest town of North-East Thailand, home to many factories. Nakhon Ratchasima is most times just called Khorat (the old name) and it thanks its early economical growth to a USA airbase during the Vietnam War.

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Travel Advisory from the Royal Dutch Embassy in Bangkok

"In the North and North-East of Thailand (like Khon Kaen, Mae Hon Song, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Nan, Lampang) the air-quality is very bad because of the seasonal burning of farm-land and smog. Some regional airports could be closed. For air-quality information see the website of World Air Quality Index." Personal add-on : This seasonal burning in March & April is not only a problem of Thailand but also in Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia. Although it is a recurring problem every year since I am living in Thailand now for almost 20 years, I think it has never been so bad and took so long as this year. And again although it is an recurring & predictable problem it seems to me that none of the involved countries have been very serious in tackling the long-term reasons that create this smog problem.

My personal advice would be that if you are sensitive to bad air quality you should check a website like Air Visual and make your own decision about traveling in North and North-Ea…
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Traveling in Nakhon Phanom province in North-East Thailand

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Last year I did make a posting about counting all the provinces I had been in Thailand. And I saw I have been to (stayed in) 48 provinces out of the 76. So in the coming months I will travel via my postings from the most southern province I have been to the most northern province, with some photos and information about each province. This is part 27 of the 47 (out of the 77) provinces where I have at least stayed overnight once. Most people will know Nakhon Phanom as the gateway to explore the limestone mountains of Tha Khek in Laos. But Nakhon Phanom is a nice town to stay along the mighty Mekong River. Of course Nakhon Phanom was originally the trading town with Laos & Vietnam. And Nakhon Phanom gained economical status during the Vietnam War when the US Airforce did build & use the airport in Nakhon Phanom. Personally for me it was in 2012 that I was for the first time in Nakhon Phanom town, as part of a trip following the Mekong River from Nong Khai to Ubon Ratchathani. I…
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Traveling in Lampang province in North Thailand

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Last year I did make a posting about counting all the provinces I had been in Thailand. And I saw I have been to (stayed in) 48 provinces out of the 76. So in the coming months I will travel via my postings from the most southern province I have been to the most northern province, with some photos and information about each province. This is part 28 of the 47 (out of the 77) provinces where I have at least stayed overnight once. Lampang province is just before Chiang Mai province and is located in between the mountains of North Thailand. Lampang town along the Wang River is a small provincial city that is home to many old Lanna style temples, small streets with old wooden houses. A bit like Chiang Mai must have been 30 years ago. For Thai people Lampang is famous for its ceramic factories. I think that 70% of the ceramic sold in Thailand comes from Lampang. Lampang town is one of my favourite places in North Thailand and it was around 1995 that I came for the first time in Lampang. I…
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