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Little Zoo Cafe – Bangkok Exotic Animal Cafe REVIEW

Sure, you may have heard of a cat cafe, but how about a cafe where you can play with a raccoon or a fox?

The Little Zoo Cafe, Bangkok’s exotic animal cafe, has a new branch in Siam Square, just off Siam BTS. We visited to see what it’s all about.

As you drink your coffee, you might be greeted by one of the several friendly and playful little dogs that wander around, happy to meet all the visitors.

If you purchase one drink and one food item per person (reasonably priced), you can enter a special area for an up-close encounter with the more exotic animals. Only a small group of people can meet the animals at a time, and the animals are rotated throughout the day. You can only enter the exotic animal area with a staff member, who will guide the visitors, teach a little bit about the animals, and make sure that both the animals and the visitors are safe.

Little Zoo Cafe is located at Siam Square soi 11, just off the Siam BTS.

Opens at 11am. We recommend arriving early to avoid the crowds, and to get the best chance to visit the animals before they get too tired and go away for the day.

While we don’t always agree with exotic animals being kept as pets, in our opinion, the animals at the Little Zoo Cafe seem to be well-cared for. They are rotated throughout the day to prevent the animals from getting stressed, and seem to be well-fed and well-groomed.

LINE Village Bangkok!

Bangkok-based fans of the popular LINE messaging app and LINE Friends rejoice! After several years of anticipation, the LINE Village Bangkok is finally open!

The store officially opened a few weeks ago, but due to its popularity, the queues were very long. Now, it’s much easier to get in and browse!

The store is located on the first floor of Siam Square One shopping mall, connected by walkway to BTS Siam station.

… and this LINE tuk-tuk!

When you live in Bangkok, you quickly learn that LINE is the go-to messaging app. SMS, iMessage, and Whatsapp haven’t taken off in Thailand, instead, it’s all about LINE! The store is full of cool LINE merchandise; everything from pens and notebooks to socks, postcards, dinnerware, and more!

The LINE store is phase one in the LINE Village project. A second floor,
supposedly to hold some sort of amusement park (?) is set to open soon.
We have no idea what that entails, but will be excited to check it out!

Open from 10:00am-10:00pm.

1st floor, Siam Square One –

991 Rama I Rd, Khwaeng Pathum Wan, Khet Pathum Wan, Krung Thep Maha Nakhon 10330

BTS Siam Station

Visiting the Bangkok National Museum

Visit the Bangkok National Museum located just next to Sanam Luang near the Grand Palace.

You can get there easily by taxi, but the far more fun way is to travel along the “River of Kings” by blue-flag tourist boat (50 baht) or orange-flag ordinary boat (14 baht).

The seat of the Uparaja was the Front Palace. This changed in the late 19th century with reform to the rules of succession, and the Front Palace was eventually converted into the Bangkok National Museum. Now, the National Museum houses an impressive collection of Southeast Asian art.

Admission to the museum is 200 baht. A visit to the National Museum is an excellent way to spend an afternoon after a morning sweltering in the heat at the Grand Palace.

<img src="https://lbconvert.travel.blog/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/7d7b4-img.jpg.org/Attraction/National-Museum–67

Chanthaburi, Thailand – A Short Guide

On the eastern coast of Thailand, about five hours from Bangkok, Chantaburi is far from the most well-known province in the country. In
fact, I would be surprised if a whole lot of foreigners even know about
it. That’s a shame, because Chanthaburi has lots to offer for a weekend away from the city.

You can easily reach Chanthaburi by bus from the Eastern (Ekkamai) Bus Station (Ekkamai BTS).

Chanthaburi Old Town

The biggest attraction in the Old Town is Chanthaburi Cathedral, the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. It’s a beautiful old Gothic church that sits directly in the center of town. Visitors are welcome to enter, look around, and take photographs.

Jao Lao Beach

You’ll need to hire a driver to get to Jao Lao Beach from the Old Town, but once there, you won’t want to leave. Jao Lao is a black sandy beach in a quiet section of the Thai coastline. It’s beautiful, peaceful, and relaxing. There are plenty of resorts lining the beach, all offering accommodations at a variety of prices, as well as restaurants.

Namtok Plio National Park

Namtok Plio means gracefully dancing waterfall in Thai. As you might guess, a waterfall is the main attraction, but there’s a lot to see besides that.

The park, in the tropical rain forests of eastern Thailand, is home to all sorts of creatures, including mongooses (mongeese?), tigers, porcupines, and all sorts of exotic birds, though of course they don’t come anywhere near the visitors center.

Just beyond the statue is a moss-covered chedi, a Buddhist monument. Though it’s also from the era of King Rama V (late 19th / early 20th century), it feels ancient. Coming to it on the jungle path feels like you are discovering some hidden ruin.

National Park Passport

and collect a new stamp at the park headquarters!

Video: A Weekend in Chanthaburi

Ayutthaya, Thailand – A Short Guide (Day Trip from Bangkok)

Ayutthaya, the ancient capital of Siam until its defeat in 1767, is located just north of Bangkok.

Ayutthaya is all about history. The ruins of the old capital still stand on a defensible island in the Chao Phraya River, easily traveled by bicycle, motorbike, or hired tuk-tuk.

Because of its proximity to Bangkok and its history, Ayutthaya is one of the cheapest and most exciting day-trips that you can take from Bangkok.

<img src="https://lbconvert.travel.blog/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/62cda-img.jpg) and depart every hour or so. The journey is slow and leisurely, taking about two hours through the countryside with several stops along the way.

There is no reserved seating and tickets are on a first-come first-served basis. Arrive early to ensure a window seat for the best views and experience!

The train station is directly at the river. It’s quite simple to cross on the three-baht ferry to Ayutthaya Island, where the historical park is located.

<img src="https://lbconvert.travel.blog/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/b7d5b-img.jpg-$2.00) for a day. Bike rental almost always includes a map with the top sites highlighted and a suggested route to follow. Ayutthaya Island is small, and it’s not difficult bike around. It can get very hot in Ayutthaya though, so bring a hat and sunblock! Stay hydrated! Bottles of cold water is available nearly everywhere, sold by vendors on the road side.

There is some traffic, so please remember that

cars in Thailand drive on the left-hand side of the road.

Tuk-Tuk

Ayutthaya’s fleet of iconic and unique tuk-tuks look markedly different from those in Bangkok. They curved front has been compared to everything from a Japanese samurai helmet to Darth Vader.

You can find tuk-tuk drivers waiting almost anywhere in Ayutthaya. You can hire a driver for the day for around 300-500 baht ($10-$15).

<img src="https://lbconvert.travel.blog/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/3540b-img.jpg), but on holidays admission is free. Admission goes towards upkeep and maintaining the historical park.

The most famous thing at Wat Mahathat is the head of a Buddha image that has been overgrown by the roots of a sacred tree. This is a holy site, and some Thai Buddhists will make offerings and prayers here.

Just next to Wat Mahathat is Wat Ratchaburana, which contains a royal crypt you can climb down into. Inside the crypt, look for the remains of the beautiful fresco paintings on the walls.

If you’ve got an extra day in Bangkok, or if you live in the city and want to spend a day out in the country, don’t miss Ayutthaya. It’s cheap, quick, and easy to get to; definitely a site worth visiting!

VIDEO: Day Trip to Ayutthaya

Learn more about Ayutthaya and 9 other great day trips outside of Bangkok in our e-book, available on Amazon for only $0.99!

Collecting Stamps in a Thai National Park Passport

Maybe you’ve heard of the Passport to Your National Parks program from
the US National Park Service, but did you know that Thailand’s has its
own version of the park passport program?

Koh Samet

to stunning jungle waterfalls like Erawan, the Thai national parks are all beautiful and worth visiting, and that’s what the passport encourages people to do.

For just 100 baht (about $3), you can pick up a passport book at the headquarters of any of Thailand’s 147 national parks. After that, any time you visit any national park, just go to the headquarters or visitor’s center and get the park’s unique stamp for FREE!

Namtok Phlio in Chanthabri shows some of the famous monuments that you can find in the park, and the stamp for Erawan depicts the mythical three-headed elephant from which the park gets its name.

So get out and explore Thailand’s national parks! My goal is to collect as many stamps this year as I can. I think it’s a great way to encourage people to visit the parks and discover some of Thailand’s most beautiful places.

Singapore: 9 Free Things to do

This multi-story temple contains several important Buddhist relics and lots of beautiful art. In the basement, a charitable group serves FREE daily vegetarian meals to any visitor, although donations are accepted and appreciated.

Originally meant to teach Chinese values, the park depicts scenes from classic Buddhist and Confucian works, as well as famous Chinese literature. The most famous attraction is the “Ten Courts of Hell”, a spooky cave-like feature depicting the Confucian afterlife theology of punishment and rebirth.

It’s weird for sure, but it’s free and definitely worth spending a few hours exploring.

Haw Par Villa MRT

3. Watch the Nightly Light Shows

Singapore lights up with flashing lights and lasers during its three nightly light shows! You can catch them all in one night with a little planning:

Start out at MRT Harbourfront for the 8:00pm Crane Dance Show at Sentosa Resort.

Next, hurry to the Gardens By The Bay for the 8:45 Garden Rhapsody, where the big metallic trees and fountains light up in crazy colors.

MRT Bayfront, MRT Harbourfront

4. Gardens by the Bay

After seeing the Garden Rhapsody, you might want to see the beautiful Gardens by the Bay in the daylight.

MRT Bayfront

5. Changi Prison Museum

If you are interested in history, you won’t want to miss the well-preserved and moving Changi Prison Museum. During the Fall of Singapore in the Second World War, 50,000 Allied soldiers, mostly British and Australian, were captured by the Imperial Japanese Army and held at Changi.

Today, it’s a museum. It’s worth it to check out an audio guide, and listen to the surviving POW’s telling the stories of the prison in their own voices.

It’s not actually free to get to Sentosa Island, but walking on foot across the short bridge to the island costs only S$1. You can spend a day at the tropical sandy beaches with a cold drink and beautiful views.

7. See the Art along Haji Lane

Do you like street art? Singapore has a reputation as a straight-laced and serious city, but there are plenty of places in the city that buck this trend. Singapore is a vibrant, fun, and cool place to be, you just need to know where to look.

Of course, the biggest draw is the cool street art that covers the walls of the shops along the lane.

Bugis MRT

8. Explore Chinatown

One of the city’s most atmospheric and interesting neighborhoods is “Niu Che Shui”, Chinatown.

Besides being full of amazing food on “Food Street”, Chinatown has a number of beautiful and fascinating temples and charming shop houses to explore.

MRT Chinatown

9. Go Hunting for Merlions

The “Merlion” – half fish, half lion, is the tongue-in-cheek, yet official symbol of Singapore. There are three Merlion statues throughout the city. Can you find them all?

Comic #26 – Texas

Comic #26 – Texas – 21 June 2017

We all have an image in our minds of a place before we go there.

Before I moved to Bangkok, I had no idea what to expect. I was imagining something more like Phnom Penh or Hanoi than the big, modern, efficient city that is the Big Mango.

It’s funny to me, that whenever I tell people over here that I’m from Texas, they immediately think of cowboys. There aren’t so many cowboys in Dallas. It’s not the Wild West!

When Pinky visited me in Texas for the first time, I wanted to take her somewhere special. I wanted to take her to see cowboys, so she could send pictures back home to Thailand so that her friends wouldn’t be disappointed.

Besides having lots of museums and restaurants, the stockyards are

THE

place to go for cowboy culture in North Texas. Back in the day, this was the heart of the cattle industry in the region.

cowboys on Main Street

We were not disappointed!

Texas is pretty awesome!

One Day in Narita Town: Spending a Layover at Narita Airport

I don’t think many people visit Narita Town. I mean, why would they? Narita is close enough to Tokyo that the airport is pretty much just known as “Tokyo Airport”. Most travelers take the Narita Express train directly to downtown Tokyo or to the bullet train station for the exciting start of their Japan holidays.

Here’s how to spend a comfortable (and budget) one-night layover in Narita Airport, Tokyo, assuming you arrive in the evening and depart sometime the next afternoon.

Sleeping

Save money and check into the clean and affordable Ninehours Narita capsule hotel.

Despite its name, you can check in and stay for a full night. When you check in, you will be supplied with a fluffy towel, pajamas, slippers, and a toothbrush. After a long intercontinental flight, nothing feels quite so good as a hot shower and a great sleep. The hotel is open for check-in 24-hours, so you can get a hot shower and a rest no matter what time you arrive in Tokyo.

The private capsules have wifi, electrical outlets, and a white noise machine. The hotel is always dark and quiet, and it’s easy to fall asleep.

The next morning, feeling refreshed but with nearly a full day until your flight, why not take the JR train into Narita town? After breakfast at the airport cafe (included with your capsule booking), head to the JR station inside the airport, and board the JR for the 10-minute ride into the town. The ticket is only ¥250.

The major site in town is Narita-San (Narita Mountain), which is the site of Shinsho-ji, the New Victory Temple. It’s just a short walk from the station, and clearly marked in both Japanese and English signage.

Not so many people visit Narita town, so it barely gets more than a footnote in most guidebooks, but it turns out that it’s actually worth visiting, especially if you are short on time. There are a number of shrines and pagodas, and Narita-San complex itself dates back to the year 940!

Besides that you can enjoy walks along the beautiful trails up the mountain. Stretch your legs and get a little exercise between long, cramped flights.

Back at the airport, head to one of the coolest spots at Narita Airport – the rooftop observation deck. Buy a box of takoyaki and a beer, and bring them up to the rooftop to eat, where there are plenty of chairs, tables, and vending machines. You can watch the planes taking off and landing.

https://ninehours.co.jp/en/narita/ 

Booking.com

My Three Favorite Cities in Asia

My Three Favorite Cities in Asia

Living in Thailand for the past four years, I’ve come to realize that the biggest benefit of being a teacher is definitely the annual term holidays! As the hub of air travel in the region, living in Bangkok has allowed me to find cheap flights across Asia. In my travels, some places just feel special.

These are three cities that for one reason or another have a special place in my heart, and keep pulling me back time after time.

Siem Reap, Cambodia

See: pictures from Cambodia

Read: The Long Road From Pub Street

Watch: Kingdom of Wonder

Siem Reap is absolutely charming. I didn’t necessarily love it the first time I visited, but something kept pulling me back. Maybe it’s the 45-minute flight from Bangkok and the simple visa-on-arrival that makes it the perfect destination for a “visa run”, but over the years, this sleepy old-world town has grown on me.

Siem Reap is best known as the gateway to the vast and mysterious Angkor Historical Park, home to the legendary Angkor Wat, the “Eighth Wonder of the World”.

<img src="https://lbconvert.travel.blog/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/c9119-img.png draught beers.

See: Five Things to do Besides Visiting More Temples

get tickets to Phare, the magnificent Cambodian circus that serves an amazing purpose
take a boat ride past the mangrove forests and the floating villages on Tonle Sap Lake
visit the Angkor National Museum, a new museum with excellent collections and exhibits about the Khmer Empire
take a cooking class on Pub Street and learn about Cambodian cuisine

Kyoto, Japan

Kyoto is all about culture and history. The capital and seat of the Japanese Emperors for over one thousand years, the city is full of historical treasures, beautiful temples, and traditional Japanese culture. It’s not uncommon to see people wearing traditonal kimonos in the streets of Kyoto.

What can I say about Kyoto, besides that it is just beautiful? It is without question the most beautiful city I’ve ever seen in my life.

See: Kyoto – A Short Guide

Watch: Beer and Ice Cream

visit Kinkaku-ji (the Golden Pagoda) and Ginkaku-ji (the Silver Pagoda), and sip delicious matcha tea under the sakura blossoms
climb Mt. Inari and find out what the fox actually says
get a blessing at Kiyomizu-dera, one of Japan’s most popular and beautiful temples
have an unforgettable dinner at my favorite restaurant, Kyo-Chabana!

Hong Kong, China

When I went to Hong Kong, I immediately fell in love with the city. Hong Kong isn’t normally the type of city that people fall in love with, but it just sits right with me! The truth is, I have a lot of friends who live there, and I originally went to visit them. When you have local friends to show you around, you can get a much better feel for a place than when you travel around as a solo tourist.

What to do in Hong Kong:

take the glass cable car to Po Lin Monastery to see the world’s largest seated Buddha statue on Ngong Ping Plateau (my favorite thing to do!)
take the 1880’s-era Star Ferry across Victoria Harbour
take the ferry to Macau and spend the day exploring the former Portuguese colony, and China’s other Special Administrative Region
ride the funicular to the top of Victoria Peak, the highest point in Hong Kong

Let us know what you think! Leave your comments below. Have you visited one of these three cities? How does your opinion compare to mine? We would love to hear your thoughts!