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If you are considering traveling to Southeast Asia, doing the Thailand-Cambodia trip is a favorite of many. The trip from Thailand to Sihanoukville, Cambodia can be a bit startling, however. It need not be.

Southeast Asia is a hugely popular travel destination with millions. This is particularly true now given the brutal economic climate and the fact that most of Southeast Asia is incredibly cheap. A common trip involves flying into Bangkok, putting around Thailand for a bit and then heading over to Cambodia for a bit of rest and relaxation.

If you take this trip, you need to be warned about something. The roads in Cambodia are legendary for their pot holes and the like. As a result, a lot of people cross the boarder at the Cambodian border town of Krong Kaoh Kong and then take a ferry down to the beach town of Sihanoukville. The warning has to do with first impressions.

Krong Kaoh Kong is a border town and not really a nice one. It is very scruffy and there is a feel of tension in the air. I’ve never had problems there, but it isn’t really a place you feel all that comfortable. The town also closes down as soon as it gets dark, so plan on it just being a way station on the way to Sihanoukville.

You might be wondering about the wisdom of coming to Cambodia after getting a look at Krong Kaoh Kong. After a relaxing ferry ride, you are going to start wondering again when you pull into Sihanoukville. We are talking rusted out boats and what looks like a shanty town. Basically, it looks pretty bad.

Do not freak out when you see this. For some bizarre reason, the ferry docs in the middle of the commercial port for Sihanoukville instead of in a nicer area. There are no beautiful, relaxing beaches to be found on this side of the town. Instead, jump on the back of one of the mopeds being offered up as cabs and hold on. You will go up and over a hill and down into paradise Cambodian style. As you come over the hill, you’ll drop through typical Asian neighborhoods and end up on idyllic beach locations where it is nearly impossible to be stressed out.

Sihanoukville and Cambodia are both great destinations. The border areas can be a bit rough, but don’t let them put you off. An inexpensive paradise awaits, so don’t hesitate to give the Thailand – Cambodia trip a try.

Rick Chapo is with NomadJournals.com – makers of travel writing journals that make great travel gifts.

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for further info please check out www.shanesutton.com ‘Fight or Flight’ by Good Dog Films explores an Irish man’s physical and psychological journey through the art and culture of Muay Thai Boxing in Thailand. From boxing gyms to Buddhist monasteries, this is a true story of self-discovery and spiritual healing in a country with unique settings and customs. Directed By Shane Sutton/Peter Mcarthy Produced by Peter Mcarthy/Kerry O Neil total film Runtime: 119 minutes Location: Thailand.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HMY8eA63B6g&hl=en

If you’re a butterfly enthusiast, you may want to travel to Thailand during the month of June for the Annual Butterfly Sighting Festival at Pang Sida National Park. Located in the eastern province of Sakaeo, Pang Sida is host to over 350 species of butterflies including many exotic swallowtail and birdwing species. The best time to observe butterflies is in the early morning, about an hour or two after sunrise.

Located about two hours from Bangkok by car, Sakaeo has a variety of attractions to keep you busy for at least 3-4 days – in addition to Pang Sida, there are the bizarre earth pillars and dunes at Laluk, affectionately called “The Miniature Grand Canyon of Thailand” and some rather small but remarkable Khmer ruins near the city of Aranyaprathet. In close proximity to the Cambodian border, Aranyaprathet has the largest border market in eastern Thailand. Pang Sida Park is about 20 minutes from downtown Sakaeo while Laluk is about 80 minutes northeast and Aranyaprathet is about 1 hour to the east.

Like many cities in Thailand, Sakaeo seems to be relatively nondescript but once you are there for a while, it kind of grows on you. Actually, I find Sakaeo to be a rather pleasant place and despite it’s boring reputation, there is sanuck to be found. Sanuck is the Thai word for FUN. You just have to know “where to go“.

Want to visit Sakaeo Province? Calypso Island Tours offers Explore Sakaeo, an introductory 4 day/3 night vacation package to this ‘off the beaten track’ destination in Eastern Thailand

Bus Goldberg is a seasoned world traveler and the director of Calypso Island Tours, a travel company that specializes in botanical adventures and nature tours to such diverse destinations as Costa Rica, Thailand and the Caribbean. He also maintains his own travel blog, Calypso Island Chronicles which features insightful commentary on traveling in the tropics and ecotourism as well as destination tips, travel anecdotes and humor.

Koh Samui or Samui Island is a very famous island that people around the world dream to visit. It is located in Gulf of Thailand. It is away to the east from Suratthani province around 84 kilometers. There are roads and streets around the island such as Tawee Rat Pakdee road with 52 kilometers long. The one-third area of the island is smooth area surrounded with mountain. The perfect time to visit this island is between January and May.

The interesting places on Koh Samui

Beach – Koh Samui has very beautiful beaches around. Some popular beaches that visitors love to go are Chaweng beach and Lamai beach. Some others are Nar Ton beach, Tong Yang beach, Mae Nam beach and Cherng Mon beach.

Waterfalls – Hin Lad falls, Wa Norn falls and Nar Muang falls are also places that visitors and local people choose to visit.

Hin Ta and Hin Yai (Grandpa and Grandma Stones) are located at Lamai beach. It is a natural wonder of stones in different figures. There is an urban legend that an old couple named grandpa Kreng and grandma Riam sailed their boat to ask for the hand of Grandpa Mong Lai’s daughter in another province. When they passed this Lamai area, the storm sank their sailboat. Both of them were dead and became these two stones as people see nowadays.

Diving area – There are many places for visitors to dive and see coral reefs and fish around Koh Samui. To rent a boat and diving equipment, please contact the resorts or travel agencies on Koh Samui.

Getting to Koh Samui

There are many ways to go to Koh Samui. You can go to Suratthani province by train or bus and then take a ferry boat to Koh Samui, or you can take a flight to Koh Samui directly.

Koh Pangan or Pangan Island is away to the north from Koh Samui around 20 kilometers. It takes about 30 minutes to get there from Koh Samui. Koh Pangan has very beautiful beaches and blue sea surrounded by woods.

The interesting places on Koh Pangan

Tong Sa La – The biggest community on the island. It is the center of merchants and the place where people can get on the boat to near islands and Suratthani province. There are also restaurants, hotels and travel agencies there.

Tarn Sadej and Pangan National Park – includes a lot of green woods and beautiful islands. There are many kinds of wild animals and birds around this park. A rental house and tents are provided for visitors there.

Rin beach – it is a beautiful and popular beach of Pangan island with 2 kilometers long. You can go there by boat from Tong Sa La. There is also an activity for tourists called “Full Moon Party” which is a party on full-moon days. Thousands of tourists come to join this party and make this party well-known to people around the world.

You can find more information about Koh Samui and Koh Pangan at my web blog
http://samui-pangan.blogspot.com

The author owns webblogs about traveling in Thailand

Chiang Mai – http://travel-chiangmai-thailand.blogspot.com
Suvarnabhumi Airport – http://suvarnabhumi-bangkok.blogspot.com
Please visit!