Langkawi, Malaysia

Langkawi is a beautifully romantic, never-leave-the-hotel type place.  Stay about an hour from 'downtown,' in one of the two secluded hotels nestled in the jungle on the Andaman Bay.  The vegetation is the most lush you may ever see, and the bay calm and relaxing.  Decisions to make while you're there:  pool or beach? kayak or snorkel? cocktail or smoothie? handstand or cartwheel?

• The Andaman - amazing
• The Datai - really, really amazing!

Siem Reap, Cambodia

Visiting Angkor:

• You must hire a tour guide / driver.  Be prepared to wake up very early and be on your feet all day.  Try Bunphen Chan (chbunpheng@yahoo.com / 855-126-306-11).

• If you visit early (get picked up at 6am at your hotel), you can experience the morning sun peering down upon Wat Ta Phrom and its enormous Banyan roots – a wise choice as most tourists (and tour busses!) select this temple as an early evening visit.  

• Touring the 900 year old, grandiose (an understatement) Angkor Wat can take well over two hours, with its sprawling moat, entryway and towers.  But the sites around the main temple are also incredible ... don't miss Bayon within the Angkor Thom site, which is covered in larger-than-life hand carved faces as far as the eye can see.

Evenings in Siem Reap:

• An absolute must:  cocktails at the Elephant Bar at Raffles Grand Hotel

• Spend some time on “Pub Street” (yes, that’s the real name), as well as the quainter side streets which come alive post-sundown.  With $.50 beers at almost every bar and restaurant, there is plenty of people watching and drinking to be done!  

• Spend an afternoon at the artsy, French-colonial-infused-with-art-deco Hotel de la Paix  (try the Khmer rice brandy ... when in Rome!)

Hotels:

• Amansara - nice, but not great
• Hotel de la Paix - speechless!!
• La Residence d’Angkor - nice, but not great
• Raffles Grand Hotel d’Angkor - very nice (if you don't stay here, you MUST have a drink at the hotel's Elephant Bar!)

Beijing, China

SIGHTS

• Temple of Heaven – Neat to see, although if you are limited on time, this one is skippable

• Summer Palace – Pretty.

• Tiananmen Square – It's just a square ... but, it’s a MASSIVE one and also at the entrance gate to the Forbidden City, which is awesome.  One must refrain from “talking politics” – especially in a negative light about the Chinese government, of course – while in this square, as there are undercover policemen looking out for just that (really ... although sounds more and more like the US government ...)

• Forbidden City – Really incredible, and sprawling!  An absolute must.

RESTAURANTS

• Da Dong - enjoy the famous Peking ("Beijing") duck, and pour yourself free wine while you wait for your table
• Hua Jia Yiyuan - bustling!  Enjoy fried spare ribs, fried apples, chop suey, etc., amidst red velvet couches, courtyards and Chinese lanterns.  

Also check out the trendy and bohemian “No Name” bar in Houhai Lake, a lake in the middle of the city surrounded by tons of neon-lit bars and cafes (classier and cooler than it sounds!).

Oh, and there's always the Great Wall of China!

Penang, Malaysia

At Bali Hai, you select your fish from over 50 tanks and they grill it right there, on the spot.  Gigantic crab baked with cheese, fresh grilled red snapper, glass noodles with scallops and prawns ... yummy.

This is the only good thing in all of Penang.

Don't go!

Chiang Mai, Thailand

Things to know about Chiang Mai:

• Nimmanheamin Road - outside and to the west of the Old City, which is like a hip Asian version of Santa Fe.  Lined with galleries, restaurants, bars, cafes, salons, shops and spas, spend some significant time on this end of town!
• Check out Ginger (store); also one at House Restaurant
• D Milk, for dessert / snack:  multiple milkshake/snowcone flavors, 100 jars of gummy and chocolate candies, blueberry pie filling, fruits, and other delights as toppings (you get to choose 4).  And, of course, they layer this Drink O’ Perfection in thirds so that they can pour in Carnation Condensed Milk as they go.
• Chiang Mai’s street vendors are just about as clean as your home kitchen. During the Sunday market, you can spend a whopping $4 on myriad dishes for dinner and dessert, and be stuffed.  This market is better than the night bazaar.
• RESTAURANTS
• Dalaaba - you'll read about this place all over, but it's not good. Skip. 
• The House - this place is awesome. Get there early and shop in the cool stores attached to the restaurant.  You will spend about $30 on an incredible dinner with drinks!  
• Huen Phen – a must visit for lunch or dinner … it’s legit!  Entrees are $1.  Try the Khao Soi.  
• Another to try is Bon Kitchen.
• HOTELS
• Shangri-La - No thanks; I'd rather stay at a hostel.
• Chedi - OMG. OMG. OMG.
• D2 - Nice place.
• Mandarin Oriental - OMG. OMG. OMG. A bit outside of town. (this changed owners and is no longer a Mandarin, but it's tough to imagine it being bad)
• Rachamankha - Nice place, even a little nicer than D2.
• MASSAGE
• Fah Lanna:  Great spot.  You’ll have to splurge, though – massages are closer to $7 instead of $4.  
• Everyone will tell you “you have to see the temple on the hill or you haven’t been to Chiang Mai”.  It’s a temple. On a hill.
• Late February is when there are forest clearing fires in the area.  While the weather is quite pleasant, especially in the evening, the smoke that settles on top of the town is pretty rough (mask-worthy).
• Smart Cook cooking school – a wonderful afternoon!  Highly recommended.  The instructor even takes you to the local, outdoor market.
• Patara Elephant Farm - Instead of an elephant “show” – which is the normal tourist activity offered in town – Patara pairs each person with their very own elephant and trainer for the entire day. You'll learn quite a bit about Thai culture, history, and the elephants’ involvement in both through Pat, the English-speaking, friendly and passionate owner.  You'll perform an elephant health check, bathe the elephant, learn their commands, etc.  The elephants are extremely intelligent – responsive to their name when called, and to commands such as “lay down”, “stop”, “go” (as long as you can say the words in Thai, which you'll learn!).  Then, you will mount your elephant and ride it down an easy roadside path to a waterfall area where you watch them play while you enjoy an incredible lunch made by locals (fruits, coconut rice wrapped in banana leaf, fried chicken…).  The post-lunch trek is much more difficult than the morning trail, along a jungle path that would be difficult even for humans to hike.  It’s incredible how these enormous animals can maneuver through trees and treacherous terrain – with us on top!  The tour is complete with a sunset ride through the mountains and rice patties.  A must.
• There are big tented ‘marts’ with multiple bars inside.  Order of events is as follows:  Sit down at one of the dozens of bars. Order beer.  Tell little girl you don’t want to buy bracelet. Tell little boy you don’t want to buy flower.  Tell little girl you don’t want to buy necklace.  Order one large Chang Beer.  Watch Thai boxing in ring 5 feet in front of you.  Finish beer.  See a Ladyboy bar three bars over –which looks more interesting. Move. Tell little girl you don’t want to buy flower.  Order large Chang Beer.  Ladyboys’ favorite song comes on and they strip down to thongs and do a big dance.  Finish Chang Beer.  Leave.

Luang Prabang, Laos

Luang Prabang is (for now) an UNESCO world heritage center with no Starbucks, no hotel chains, and not a tour bus in sight.

The architecture of this very small (one main road and two smaller ones in the town center) destination is quite beautiful.  Its heavy French influence accounts for teak homes and many colonial style shops and restaurants.

The Apsara is a quaint, perfectly located hotel and and a nice base from which to enjoy the town’s small shops, wine bars and restaurants – specifically, L’Elephant (a lively French restaurant) and Arisai (an incredibly delicious Mediterranean bistro).  

Be sure to climb to the temple on the hill and cool off with Beer Lao and spring rolls at Utopia, a cozy Lao-style chill out spot overlooking the Mekong River.