Low-season Secret Island.

A friend was in country at the beginning of August, so down to Secret Island we went. It was good. My friend showed us how to snorkel correctly. Snorkeling turns out to be a wonderfully interesting hobby. We're going back, even better equipped this time with our own decent-quality snorkels.

Let me post a few photos below. The eagle-eyed amongst you may notice a few clues regarding the actual location of Secret Island.

2026 August 2nd - 6th
Secret Island Trip

Beautiful pond, especially nice for morning coffee bird watching.

My partner happens to be a great trip planner and travel companion. In this instance, she chose a hotel in ตราด / Trat City. It was a newly built place with nice staff, and a very beautiful view from the back patio. I would happily stay there again. It's within easy driving distance of the Trat city lake.

I like my morning coffee. I like some bird watching. Kind of nice to combine the two comfortably from the back patio.

I think the photo below is of Trat's city lake, which is actually named อ่างเก็บน้ำสระสีเสียด / Sra Si Siat Reservoir.

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Toyota Corolla Cross Hybrid GR Sport: Worthy of the Corolla name?

I think so. Based on four years of usage in an extreme environment (heat, humidity, flooding), I believe our 2022 Corolla Cross is worthy of the Corolla name. So far, so good, and nothing to complain about.

Engine is running. Ready to embark on a 400-km journey to ตราด / Trat.

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Lone dinosaur bird again.

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Yard time.

These days, they let me out most evenings. I am grateful for that.

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An interesting sky show this evening.

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อุทยานแห่งชาติป่าหินงาม / Pa Hin Ngam National Park

I like ชัยภูมิ / Chaiyaphum. I like the people. I like the mountains.

How to post this fairly? We visited Pa Hin Ngam National Park. There was a nice view from the สุดแผ่นดิน / Sut Phan Din viewpoint. The rock formations were cool. 

For the Thai people, I'm sure the park was great. There was convenient diesel transport to the viewpoint. There were plenty of spots for photos. Plenty of food on offer at the parking lot area. Mission accomplished.

For me, it was like a well-delivered punch to the gut. I smelled the diesel fumes straightaway. It took me a while to realize that they have an entire fleet of six to eight shuttle buses with diesel exhaust pipes mounted high at the rear of each bus. I smelled them for the duration of our visit.

After the viewpoint and the obligatory photos, we spent an hour walking a well-maintained elevated trail through the forest. It looked nice. It was unbelievably sterile. I think I saw a grand total of two birds. No deer. No squirrels. No nothing. As a museum of what the forest once was, it served its purpose, I guess.

If you are reading this from Northern California or Southern Indiana, be grateful for your beautiful nature and clean air and clean water. There are millions around the world who have never experienced the Earth as it was meant to be.

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อีกาที่ชัยภูมิ / Crows of Chaiyaphum

Wherever I've gone, there have always been crows. I will not criticize them other than to point out the obvious: They are not quiet birds.

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อุทยานประวัติศาสตร์ศรีเทพ / Si Thep Historical Park

Si Thep Historical Park turned out to be a lucky choice. You may have heard me go on and on about the Khmer Empire and how I've got 900-year-old ปรางค์วัดปรางค์ทอง/ Wat Prang Thong watching over me. As it turns out, that is not so impressive.

I knew little to nothing of the Dvaravati Empire, which is what you'll learn about at Si Thep, which goes all the way back to the 700s.

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Thailand needs more sugar!!!

I try pretty hard not to eat these treats, but I do enjoy looking at their bright colors.

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