Asia

Thailand: The pavilion comes with crickets

By John Nathan, January 14, 2009

The mangrove forest of southern Thailand’s Thalen Bay is a strange place, and a place for the strange. The flora stands on spidery mud-sucking fronds. The fauna is just as eerie: grey Macau monkeys sit in tangled branches like primitive people, directing contemptuous stares at occasional intruders.

We were in kayaks, paddling through a tidal world overlooked by cliffs on whose sheer faces clumps of tropical forest cling. From a rocky ledge a snake, the colour of wet slate, lowers itself into the water and s-bends its way round a crag.

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Borneo: Where the wild things are

By Kate Wickers, September 19, 2008

We ogle the orangutans and other beasts in Borneo


I decided that my three small boys - Josh, seven, Ben, five, and Freddie, two -were far too fidgety (not to mention noisy) for a safari. But I liked the idea of a holiday that involved wildlife and adventure. Borneo, which instantly conjures up images of headhunting tribes, vast jungles shrouded in mist and, of course, the original wild man himself, the magnificent orangutan, was the obvious choice.

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Happy cultural revolution

By Daralyn Danns, April 4, 2008

This summer’s Olympics offer a perfect excuse to see Beijing and Shanghai

The Chinese may be worried about the protests currently surrounding the Olympics, but they have produced a no expense-spared, futuristic-looking Beijing that, on August 8, will stun the world.

From the moment you arrive at Beijing airport’s new state-of-the-art terminal, designed by Sir Norman Foster — the world’s largest airport building, and one which works efficiently — you cannot help but be impressed.

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