Southeast Asia continues to splatter Awesome and Weird onto its diverse, fantastic canvas.

Recently in Chiang Mai, Thailand JD and I marveled at ancient temples whilst sidestepping lady boy lookers.  We ate delicious pad Thai with a dessert of tarantula from a street stall next to McDonald’s.  We went whitewater kayaking through proper rapids, and quickly paddled out of the way of elephants bathing in the river.  They waved goodbye to us with their trunks when we moved on.  In the wake of the beloved king’s death, there was no alcohol served, except sangria and margaritas at Mexican restaurants.  In Bangkok, the millions of mourners who flooded in from across the country were met with stands of free food, free drinks and free tea to anyone who wanted it in the spirit of the king’s generosity.  As we learned, we were also welcome to partake.  We bypassed the magnificent paintings of aspiring Thai artists and, instead, bought beetle wing earrings as souvenirs.  We tuk-tuked through alleyways of the Sweet, the Strange and the Sublime.

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