writer. traveller. life unraveller.
So long, Bert, my bicycle buddy. I’ve known this Dutch fella for a year now. We met in the Hideout, an awesome little breakfast/lunch spot in old Chiang Mai. I spotted him in cycling garb, ready to brave another fierce climb up the long, steep, and winding road of Chiang Mai’s resident mountain, Doi Suthep.... Continue Reading →
There are few things I love as much as I love riding my bike. When I was 8 years old, I’d spend whole summer days riding my bike, making up destinations just to have an excuse to push pedal my way down empty roads spotted with afternoon sun and the promise of something magical. The... Continue Reading →
One of the most prominent questions a long-term traveller has is should I stay or should I go? The Clash had something to say about this. The reality is that we are all long-term travellers, whether we stay in one place our entire lives or move consistently from country to country. No one stays in... Continue Reading →
Recently, I decided that a great way to spend each birthday is to celebrate someone I aspire to be like. Someone with magic good-person dust, willing to sprinkle it into my needy, greedy palms. So on the eve of 38 (written four long years ago), I salute Ms Kerry and thank her, not just for... Continue Reading →
Meet Murray Robson.... This guy is a cracker, a loose cannon, a judgemental narcissist and the funniest, most blatantly honest guy I’ve ever met. I met him on my overnight bus from Bangkok to Pakse, Laos and I liked him immediately. His smiley eyes and toothless grin revealed his good intentions and natural roughness. His... Continue Reading →
Listen here and please forgive my attempt at basic Thai!! There’s this lovely woman in Chiang Mai who reminds me of a tea cozy. She wears slacks like my grandma did and starched floral blouses, and she has baby-fine salt and pepper hair and friendly eyes looking out of a soft round face. She... Continue Reading →
At long last, our stay in Bali reached its end. Three months sped by through a process of one hot sunny day, bleeding into the next, until we arrived at week’s end and wondered where the time went. Into laptops and lazy evenings spent stargazing while drinking hot peppermint tea, wondering why I’m drinking hot... Continue Reading →
One of the travel questions I always get asked, especially by women who haven’t visited the tropics, is how I deal with scary things like giant cockroaches or spiders. The short answer is, I don’t really. I have no method, other than to hope I’m not confronted with one, and when (never if) I... Continue Reading →
Travelling opens your eyes and bewilders your senses. Extraordinary sights abound. Natural wonders and surreal landscapes. Majestic temples devoted to devotion. People with profound kindness, insight, and talent. Rivers that go on for days. Mountains dominating sky. Underwater civilizations in colours and shapes unknown to life on land. And then there are all the things... Continue Reading →
Someone told me I should be writing stories about my travels. But the thing is, I'm not really travelling much these days. I spend most of the year between three places: Canada, my home, and Indonesia and Thailand. I've spent enough time in all three countries that my eyes have become a bit, well, immune... Continue Reading →
colleen thornton 