Asian Travel Blog

Located along an idyllic sweep of beach looking out onto the Gulf of Thailand, Hua Hin has been a resort for well over a hundred years, and much loved by generations of Thai royalty.

Many of the old buildings from the 1920’s have been preserved, and there is a delightful antique, wooden railway station, and row upon row of white villas. The town centre has a distinctive feel all its own, because the original charm of the place has been retained. By the shore there are original wooden fishermen’s piers, which give the place a feel of almost stepping back in time.

Don’t forget to try one of the town’s most famous noodle shops, Jeak Peak, which was established more than sixty years ago. Here you can get generous bowls of seafood noodle soup and plates of delicious pork satay.

Hua Hin has an abundance of top hotels: the Hilton, the Hyatt Regency, the Marriott, and many more. Most of the hotels run spa treatments as well, offering massage, saunas, jacuzzis, and holistic health advice.

And Hua Hin is not without its festivals. Every September is the rather novel King’s Cup Elephant Polo Tournament, with teams coming to the town from as far away as Sri Lanka and Europe. This event raises money for the National Elephant Institute, and also includes parades and other activities. In June, it’s the Hua Hin Jazz Festival which provides three nights of local and international jazz on several stages on the beach. In March the skies dramatically and beautifully fill with colourful kites at the annual Kite Festival.

With its old world charm, Hua Hin is a Thai resort not to be missed.

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Having already developed a liking for Chinese and Indian food in the UK, moving to Japan opened up new food possibilities.

In Japan I found slightly different variety of Chinese food, and enjoyed eating garlicky gyoza dipped in chilli oil, vinegar and soy sauce. Gyoza are a bit like a Chinese verion of ravioli, with a little parcel of meat or prawn wrapped in a type of thin pasta. I also found in Japan the popular Chinese dish known as Ghengis Khan, which is stir fried slices of lamb with vegetables.

Another discovery in Japan was Korean food, and I once had a great meal at a Korean restaurant in Kyoto, where we had fried garlic, delicate slices of raw liver – yes, I really didn’t realise how raw liver could taste so good – and then grilled meat and kimchee.

From Japan I visited Thailand, and here I was willingly seduced by yet another variety of food. The Thai food combines the fieryness and spice found in Indian food, with some of the crispiness and soupiness of Chinese food. I fell in love with Thai green curry, which I now often make at home. An additional feature of Thai food which makes it so tasty from my point of view is the plentiful addition of coconut milk and pulp which I so much like.

One feature that runs throughout all of Asian food is rice, and I am sure that this is one of the reasons why I like it so much. Although British, I am more a fan of rice than of bread and potatoes.

In future posts there will be more mention of Asian food – hardly surprising since it has so much to offer the tastebuds.

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If anyone asks me what my favourite food is, the answer is simple – Asian food. I really do love just about all of it.

As a resident of the UK, my love of Asian food probably started with the excellent Chinese restaurant in my small home town, run by a couple from Hong Kong. The crispness and freshness of the ingredients grabbed me at once, as well as the delicious flavours of char sui, (red cooked pork), duck, and other exciting dishes. Having discovered Chinese food I was then eager to try other establishments, and with other foodies went to restaurants in Leeds and Birmingham.

Then it was Indian food, and many a time, when out with friends, we couldn’t decide whether to go to an Indian or a Chinese restaurant. I once heard that to eat Indian food is to take a glimpse of heaven, and I have certainly found this to be true, with the irresistable flavours, the spiciness, the rich sauces, and the lovely scented pillao rice. My friends in the UK who come from Indian families recommended Indian cookery books for me and other Indian food enthusiasts to try, and we cooked up some very passable and tasty dishes of our own.

Then I moved to Japan, and discovered how delicious sushi can be – particularly liking the sushi rolls. Here I also discovered many different kinds of noodles, from the lovely ramen with pork that you can have in the small ramen shops after a night out, to the fine, white somen that are so cooling in the summer. I also discovered miso soup, which I still have to this day.

Being in Japan also led to other new food findings, which I shall relate in the next post.

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I don’t know if I should tell you about Choeng Mon – it is a very peaceful, quiet resort, and it will be great if it stays that way, so, shhh – keep it to yourself. Choeng Mon is on the north coast of the Thai island of Ko Samui, and is made up of a series of bays of beautiful soft, white sandy beaches. The waters and the beaches of this area are very clean. Choeng Mon beach itself is a small bay with a wide sandy beach, with a rock formation on one side and a small island that you can simply paddle out to on the other.

The area is very family friendly, and so it is a great place to take children, and they will love playing on the undisturbed beaches. The whole area is fairly upmarket, with the hotels coming within the three to five star categories, hence budget travellers are not particularly in evidence around here.

As well as enjoying the beaches, which are great for swimming and sunbathing, other popular activities are snorkeling, and scuba diving.

There are a fair number of boutique-style restaurants and cafés throughout the area, including beach restaurants where you can admire the excellent night view over the bay, while enjoying a good Thai meal. There is also plenty of international cuisine of different types available, catering to visitors from all over.

The hotels regularly lay on Thai dancing in the evening, which is fascinating to watch. Overall, the nightlife is relaxed rather than noisy.

Choeng Mon is one of the best places to go on Ko Samui.

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If you are looking to travel in Asia and would like to stretch your dollar, Thailand may be the place for you. Thailand offers a wide variety of destinations such as beautiful beaches and green mountains. In addition, you can experience a wonderful culture, generous people and some of the best food in the world.

Compared to many other Asian destinations such as Japan or Singapore, Thailand offers the budget traveler a way to enjoy being on vacation without having to spend a fortune. Both housing and food can be found at reasonable rates, even at the most popular destinations. In addition, travel within Thailand is very affordable as well. This includes trains,  boat and airline travel. Because Thailand is a relatively small country, you can get around quite easily and see what a variety of beautiful places the country has to offer.

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