Some personal notes...
About Sukhumvit
Sukhumvit is the third largest highway in Thailand, after Phahonyothin highway leading to the North and Mittraphap highway leading to the North-East. Sukhumvit Road leads all the way from Bangkok to Cambodia and is therefore symbolical for my travels in South-East Asia.
About the author of this site.
Every evening at 8 pm my father used to watch the news on tv and in the nineteen sixtees and seventees the dominant item in international news were the reports on the Vietnam war; every evening the map of South East Asia appeared on the (black-and-white) screen. Being a young teenager in the early seventees, I realised that something utterly dreadfull was happening in that part of the world then, triggering my interest in daily news about this area with a focus on Cambodia.
Ever since early 1982, it was my strong wish to visit that country. Three years after that, I completed my study and looked for a job with the aim to earn money to travel to Cambodia. Political circumstances and the dangerous situation in Cambodia at that time made it impossible to travel there.
It took me some time to accept that and decided to go to Thailand instead. Thailand because several ancient Khmer monuments are present there, Buddism is almost the same, travel is easy and safe and Thailand has a very interesting history of it's own.
At first being a second choice, from the moment of arriving there I felt a warm feeling of sympathy for this country and its people. It was like a dream come true and I quickly forgot about it not being the first choice - somehow Thailand fitted me.
Cambodia never lost my interest. I remember a holiday in Thailand in1991 when I travelled to places like Buriram and Ubon Ratchatani in North Eastern Thailand where often a view from the Dangrek mountains into Cambodia made me dream about entering this 'forbidden land'. Even in 2002 after rivisiting Buriram the wish I kept for 20 years was still alive.
Finally in 2004 the situation was prosporous enough to visit Cambodia: peace had broken out and proved to be lasting. September is one of the months with much rainfall, but less tourists, green fields, high water levels in ponds and rivers and easy to get permission in my work for a long holiday. So, a 22-year old wish became reality in September 2004. It turned out to be my best holiday and it proved that keeping a wish or dream, even for such a long time, it can still come true. I'm very grateful for that.
The neighbour on the other, western, side of Thailand, Myanmar, was my goal in 2008. I had high expectations, wondered if this holiday could be a match tot my travels to Cambodia. The answer simply is yes: Myanmar is an even more amazing country than Cambodia or Thailand, it's people being about the nicest I ever met. The name "Golden Country" is true. Again, I feel very fortunate to have experienced this.