by Matthew Allison | Apr 14, 2025 | Asia
Why I Traveled to Northern Laos Seeking the Last Traditional Hill Tribes A Lifelong Fascination with Remote Cultures One of my biggest motivations for travel has always been the chance to encounter unique tribal communities, especially those still living in...
by Matthew Allison | Apr 11, 2025 | Asia
Last Stop Chiang Mai: A Reunion in Thailand’s Northern Heart Temples, Street Food, and a Final Night with an Old Friend Thailand is a country I’ve visited no less than six times over the past 30 years, and I’ve always enjoyed my time there. I’ve spent over a week in...
by Matthew Allison | Apr 11, 2025 | Asia
Saigon Stopover: A Night in Vietnam’s Wartime Capital Exploring a Legendary Journalist Hotel and the Cu Chi Vietcong Tunnels en Route to Laos As part of a longer 10-day journey to trek through remote hill tribe villages in northern Laos, my friend Sterling and I made...
by Matthew Allison | Nov 1, 2023 | Asia
Exploring the Cold War Legacy: A Journey to the Polygon, Kazakhstan In November 2023, I traveled to Northeast Kazakhstan for a week, drawn by my fascination with the Soviet era. Kazakhstan was once part of the USSR, and few places embody the Cold War’s tensions and...
by Matthew Allison | Jun 4, 2023 | Asia
May 2023: I first fell in love with the Buddhist regions of the Himalayas in 1998, when I visited Ladakh and Zanskar in northern India, spending several months traveling and trekking in the region. Since then, I’ve returned to trek in Bhutan (2005) and in Tibet...
by Matthew Allison | Mar 10, 2023 | Asia
March 2023: As part of a larger “babymoon” trip through the Pacific Islands, my pregnant wife, Paula, and I spent three days in Taiwan. I had only experienced Taiwan during layovers in the past, so this was my first proper visit. A major motivation for the...
