Off we go! First stop, Los Angeles with Colin and Julie to get us ready for the trip ahead. Such fun. Great dinner and a wacky play then topped off the night with a wonderful sake bar.

LA doesn’t get much better than this. Sunny day and perfect for a trip to the Hollywood farmer’s market. Beautiful and exotic produce, locally raised meat and so much delicious prepared food to eat. Moved on to Reunion for some wine and snacks and then Mirate for excellent mezcal cocktails and tapas. A quick wine at Cavel and stop at LA’s hottest cocktail bar, Vandell and we were on our way to dinner in Venice at Felix- famed for its handmade pasta. Couldn’t have been nicer.

Travel day spent sleeping and pondering the hours that skip away as we cross the International Dateline. At least we were on Singapore Airlines! Surprisingly the flight from LAX was only 16 hours 15 minutes too. 😮‍💨

We were happy to be in Singapore again. Once we recovered from the flight we set off to explore the neighborhood. We always like Kampong Glam with its mix of old shop houses and Arab influences. Mostly just walked about trying to adjust to the weather and time, popping into art galleries and the cultural center along the way. Nice Turkish dinner and wine to round out the day.

After a Kaya toast breakfast we made our way to Little India. Indians and those from that part of the continent have been in Singapore as long as the English have. They still make up about 10% of the population and the neighborhood reflects their traditions and culture. Little India is a colorful collection of shop houses filled with Indian food and merchandise. Their temples are always unique and interesting. The Indian cultural center is only about 11 years old but is a nice recognition of their contribution to Singapore. Excellent Indian lunch too!Finished the day with tasty Japanese fare, always good.

Set out to explore some modern architecture on the southwest side of Singapore. We had to navigate a couple of train lines, but not too bad and absurdly cheap. Seems there is no end to Singapore’s stylish high rises and mixed-use complex’s. Campuses of young workers buzzing about with high-rise apartments nearby. Interesting lifestyle. Worked our way back through Chinatown and enjoyed a delicious Malaysian meal and some live music too.

Something of a touristy day, but we are tourists after all. Hadn’t been back along the Singapore River since our first trip here 12 years ago. Still nice to visit and a boat ride is always a nice option. Nice dinner, friendly people, no complaints.

Arrived at Kualanamu airport outside of Medan around 4pm. Moved through customs quickly and with friendly help from locals boarded a train for Medan. The farmland was lush with crops alongside small villages and shanties, but the closer we got to Medan the denser and poorer the villages appeared. We arrived at the Medan station and struggled to exit to the street where we soon found a near total lack of useable sidewalks and hundreds of motorcycles. We traipsed through mud and over rubble to walk the few blocks to the hotel. We tried to venture out before it got dark, but it became clear this isn’t a place to go walking around.

The 3 hour drive from Medan to Bukit Luwang passed through dense urban sprawl, tropical suburbs, palm oil plantations and rural villages. Sometimes the road was divided and at others we crisscrossed the narrow highway weaving around motorcycles, bikes, pedestrians and trucks. Not for the faint of heart particularly as the road deteriorated. Bukit Luwang is a village that started with rubber plantations and grew into an eco tourist destination. Lodges sit along a river with a narrow path linking them to the larger village beyond. Our room has a balcony overlooking the river (but no AC). Lunch nearby was served with a stick to ward off monkeys which thankfully was not necessary. The day ended with a nice al fresco dinner as a rainstorm pounded the roof.

Ventured off into the jungle today with 3 guides. We passed through some resorts before making the climb through dense undergrowth and huge trees. We were led to an area with two orangutans that swung about over our heads, sometimes sweeping within 7 feet of the jungle floor before climbing back up. We hiked on a bit stopping for a snack of local fruit learning all the while about living near a jungle. Came across a family of gibbons before we made our way to the river. After a lunch on the river bank we tube-rafted back to hotel getting a refreshing soak as we splashed through the rapids. Fun but exhausting day.

We went on a village tour today traveling by tuk tuk. We were able to see so much more of the countryside- school kids on trucks, petrol sold in pop bottles by the road, rice fields- in addition to watching locals make tempeh, tofu, and \240brown sugar. We helped make Gado Gado for lunch too. All great fun.

Off to Berastagi today in the heart of North Sumatra’s most active volcano area. Mount Sinabung erupted just 2 months ago. Berastagi is over 4,500 feet above sea level and for much of the way there we wound through high jungle and rich rolling farmlands. This is where much of Sumatra’s coffee is grown and we stopped at a coffee shop and farm along the way to check it out. Seems most everything grows here. Couldn’t miss the town’s tribute to the cabbage either.

Left early this morning picking up another guide, John, along the way for the trek up to the caldera at Mount Sibayak. Although the volcano hasn’t erupted since the late 1800’s the ground still spews jets of sulpher rich steam all around the caldera. The trek passed through pandan roots and along narrow jungle passes and finally across rock and lava strewn areas to the rim of the caldera. John made us coffee while we took in the amazing view. Great time.

After trekking we went into Berastagi to visit the local fruit market and other sites. Beautiful produce- the mangosteen are delicious, but snake fruit is still my favorite! A large Catholic Church and Buddhist temple rounded out the day. Finished with dinner at Jabu- all outdoor dining and drinking like most everywhere in Sumatra.

Made our way to Lake Toba today traveling alternately through villages and jungle. We stopped in a Batak Toba village where many people still live in traditional wooden houses known as rumah adat. As many as 8 families live in each house on one level- cooking indoors and sleeping on mats. \240The area is all part of the Toba caldera formed by a massive eruption over 7,000 years ago. Amazing place.

Arrived yesterday afternoon by ferry to Samosir Island- an island in the middle of Lake Toba, 3,000 feet above sea level and 1,600 feet deep, and all within an ancient caldera. Toured some of the island today stopping at a local market and visiting a Batak village. The Batak houses here are mostly in the Bolon style with only a single family living in each one. Most have added a section on the back for modern toilets and running water. These are homes that many people on the island still live in today.

Chill day and perfect weather- best combination. We had no actual plans but to relax and enjoy the island. We set out for a walk around the peninsula stopping for a fabulous lunch with a view and popping into shops along the way. We returned to the hotel for a swim in the pool before the late afternoon rains arrived. Nice dinner and a pleasant chat with a couple from the Netherlands (and lots of wine). All good.

Transfer days are never fun and this one was particularly annoying. We were forced to go directly from Lake Tabo to the airport when weeks ago our flight was cancelled and we had to make changes. The ferry was followed by a 3+ hour drive to the airport. Of course our flight was delayed almost an hour but that just shortened our layover in Kuala Lumpur. The flight to Bangkok was another 2 hours. Long day. Odd airport food but not much fun.

Bangkok is always interesting and fun to visit.Our hotel sits on the river and our room has a spacious view and balcony. Being our second trip here there was no sense of urgency to hit the sites so we opted for a boat on the Chao Phraya to Arun Wat. The place was full of tourists in rented costumes being photographed along the monuments. We lunched nearby before heading back and eventually found our way to drinks and dinner on 3 different levels of our hotel.

We never strayed too far from the river today. Our hotel sits in the midst of Wang Lang Market where they sell everything. We crossed to the east side of the river to visit the Amulet Market which had dozens and dozens of booths selling all sorts of little icons-very odd indeed. The National Museum was closed today (without bothering to make that known online) so we made our way to the Flower Market before checking out the Museum of Siam. Loved the revised tour options.

Odd day in that we quickly found the usual ferry across the river was not running for reasons we could not understand. The National Museum of Thailand was worth the extra steps though. Rich history and beautiful art and artifacts. After we walked back over the river (as the ferry’s were still not operating) we soon learned there was a dress rehearsal for the upcoming Royal Barge parade event. Some 50+ long boats or barges with over 2,200 oarsmen moved along the river to chants and thumps of poles. Quite the spectacle. The walk back to the hotel was made interesting by the necessary detour through narrow back alleys and canals. A part of Bangkok most miss.

Our last day in Bangkok, maybe ever, and we took advantage of the comfortable river transit and headed south. The 78 story King Power Mahanakhon is an amusing high rise and Paul cannot resist a rooftop view. Worked our way back north through a huge shopping complex, the Icon Siam, and finally ended back at our humble Wang Lang street market. We will miss Bangkok.

Arrived mid-day I in Chiang Mai old city. The area seems quite the change from Bangkok in both scale and style. The numerous wats and monuments and filled in between with restaurants, gift shops and massage parlors- a tourist destination for sure. Clearer skies and less traffic do make for a pleasant place to stroll and with \240no shortage of food and drink it is hard to complain.