Thai thai thai!

I'm a little embarrassed it took me 22 months to get to Thailand. It's just a cheap, direct flight from here...but literally a world away. Happiness and hedonism and healthiness...not words you'd usually use with Hyderabad. Makes for a great destination, you'll definitely want to spend more than a week there.

I wasn't overly impressed with Bangkok, compared to the other cities i've been to of late. The metro is nice and the malls are fun, but the river cruises and monuments are only alright. The city itself didn't seem to have a distinct, unique culture to it. The new night market Asiatique was actually cooler than the ladyboy burlesque show. Highlights were a great (strangely enough, diwali) rooftop part and a great tour guide-ess helped us explore the city and find some good Thai food.

But the beaches, oh those beaches! This is the reason to go to Thailand. The most amazing coastal geography on this planet, lined with perfect beaches. We flew to Phuket Island, picking Kammala Beach as our destination of choice. A good combination of pretty and peaceful, but close to the chaos and color of Patong and the more happening hubs of southern Phuket. Best side trip? Ko Phi Phi. Incredible little island and great little town, definitely would recommend spending a few days there, rather than just taking the tour boat over for an afternoon.

The strangest thing, though? As beautiful as Thailand was -- and it's stunning -- i was rarely tempted to pull out my camera. Beautiful, just not as photogenic as my home for the past two years. so it goes.

Adventures in Sri Lanka

I was expecting, somehow, Sri Lanka to be a bit more "different" from India. It's more green, of course, and more peaceful...but really it feels pretty darn similar to Goa or Kerala in island form. First time I've ever seen Buddhism in tropical incarnation, but on the whole, it doesn't feel as culturally distinct as Nepal...or even Leh.

No direct flights from Hyderabad, have to connect in Chennai (or Madurai, from what i hear). The Colombo airport is old school, no way near as modern as most of the nice, new Indian metro airports. Same with roads, bus stations, train stations and the overall infrastructure. Taking the local bus was dirt cheap, but relatively more difficult to understand than in India. Bus station wasn't well labelled, nor was the staff able to help much, but i always managed to hop out at the right spot.

I had a hard time choosing between surf school and adventure camp for my short vacation, but i finally settled on three nights at Borderlands, a great little camp tucked in the foothills three hours east of Colombo. Great spot to raft, kayak, canyoneer, hike, read and relax, etc. Great food, too. I had hoped to meet some new friends there, but as it turned out, i had the place to myself. i did enjoy the company of the French guide and the local staff, though.

Back in Columbo for a night, the local train was a quick, easy and fun travel option. Mount Lavinia's the southern-most suburb of Colombo, a beachside neighborhood complete with little resorts and beach-side restaurants. Makes a great place to spend a day if you aren't able to get to the nice beaches further south. From the main/central/Fort train station, just take the southern line to Mount Lavinia until you find a passable place to spend the night or eat a meal.