Like us here at WoWasis, if your idea of fun is a weekend of Isaan parades, music, drinking, and rocket launching, the Bun Bungfai Rocket Festival, held each year in Yasothon, is for you. Generally held on one of the first two weekends in May, the festival features dozens of teams launching thousands of home-crafted […]
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Jumbo Queen beauty contest in Nakhon Pathom, Thailand
If the size of a beauty contest can be measured by the accumulated weight of all contestants, Thailand’s Jumbo Queen Contest is undoubtedly the world’s largest. Occurring each year on Thailand’s May 1 labor Day holiday, the contest matches the talent, beauty, and charm of some of the largest women in Thailand. To be eligible […]
Read the rest of this entry »Keeping traditions alive: the Disabled Musicians of Cambodia
Traditional Cambodian music nearly died under the Khmer Rouge, but has been revived all over the country by hundreds of people who, after having been disabled by landmines, learned to play music on traditional Cambodian instruments. Watch a short video of a disabled musician playing the tro, a bowed string instrument. These musicians are everywhere, from […]
Read the rest of this entry »Battambang’s Bamboo Train: Cambodia’s wildest ride?
Watch two short videos of the bamboo train on the move and being assembled! It’s not listed in the guidebooks and there are other similar trains in Cambodia, but for a couple of hours of fun in the countryside, it’s hard to beat this narrow gauge “local.” The carriage is a flat wooden frame of woven […]
Read the rest of this entry »The Good Manner: When your lady friend has wrecked your apartment
The Good Manner: Love & Relationship Advice from WoWasis’ Pa Farang This week’s dilemma: When your lady friend has wrecked your apartment Dear Pa Farang, My heart is heavy, and I am seeking your advice. I have just come home, and my apartment has been wrecked. I am a farang, in this country for six […]
Read the rest of this entry »Festivals by month in Chiang Mai, Thailand
Chiang Mai is the festival capital of Thailand. Every month, there’s a festival that’s fun, interesting, and should be an essential part of your Chiang Mai experience. Here’s what to look for in the yearly festival calendar: January What: Winter Fair When: December 30 through January 8 Note: This fair combines food, dance, music, and […]
Read the rest of this entry »Museums in Chiang Mai and Mae Rim Valley, Thailand
There are a number of interesting museums worth visiting in Chiang Mai proper, and in the Mae Rim Valley to the northwest. Museums in the city of Chiang Mai Chiang Mai National Museum, Highway 11, Chiang Mai. Tel: (053) 221-308. Located 2 km north of the city, the museum specializes in Buddha images, work implements, […]
Read the rest of this entry »Antiquities shopping in Phuket, Thailand
Given its significant number of yearly visitors, it’s not really surprising that the island of Phuket has a number of good stores dealing in antiquities. As in the rest of Thailand, much of the best that you’ll find in these shops in Burmese in origin. With the exception of the Soul of Asia shop in […]
Read the rest of this entry »Sukarno Museum and Memorial sites in Blitar, Java, Indonesia
Born Kusno Sosrodihardjo, Sukarno (also spelled Soekarno) was the first president of Indonesia. He was born in the city of Blitar on June 6, 1901, was overthrown by one of his generals, Suharto, in 1967, and died June 21, 1970. Known affectionately as Bung Karno in his native city, his body was eventually transferred from […]
Read the rest of this entry »Top 3 in Jogjakarta, doorway to Central Java, Indonesia
Jogjakarta (also spelled Yogyakarta) is a beautiful city replete with colonial and traditional buildings, cultural events, and is a terrific central location from which to visit nearby temples such as Borobudur. Travel in Jogjakarta is easy by renting any of the colorful three-wheel becak pedicabs that are plentiful throughout the city. Jogjakarta Top 3 1) […]
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