The seed for my street art obsession was planted in Slovenia. It grew and grew in the Netherlands. Then all of a sudden I had a ticket to Bangkok and a plan that'd lead me to Laos and Cambodia as well. At that point in time I only knew a little about street art in Thailand because a Dutch artist had just been there. Laos and Cambodia were a total mystery. Was there even a street art scene there? I had no idea, so I set out on a mission to see what kind of street art Southeast Asia has to offer. Come along and explore with me!

Thailand

Upon arrival in Bangkok I learned it wouldn't be difficult to find street art in Thailand. Khao San Road is full of stickers from artists from all over the world - it took me about five seconds to find a Dutch Ox-Alien sticker. Tags were literally everywhere, but for guerrilla pieces you need to check out the docks at the klongs, the channels in Bangkok. Boat rides on the klongs are a big thing among tourists, so you can be a typical tourist while checking out local artists' work.


The city is a real goldmine with commissioned pieces scattered all over the place. There is one enormous wall near the Oasis Hostel which was a collab between Ox-Alien, Edo Rath and Thai artist Alex Face. I'd hoped to find this wall because I'd been seeing it on Instagram all Spring long, but cried happy tears when I found it literally a few hundred meters away from my hostel.


Now I'm always a bit more excited about Ox-Alien walls than any other pieces (what can I say, I like bright colors in bland cities), but Bangkok had so much more in store than just some walls from an artist I knew from back home: the old library that was being renovated had loads of murals. The streets in the Khao San Road area surprised me in the best way possible.

After leaving Bangkok for Chiang Mai I wasn't sure I'd see any more good street art. My doubts turned out to be for nothing: Alex Face has also been to Chiang Mai. If you want to see his work you have to explore the streets just outside the old city walls. Old Town Chiang Mai is beautiful, but the street art inside these walls is a little harder to find. Don't worry though, if you take a walk around the outside of the walls you'll see plenty of art without even putting in any effort. Unlike the pieces in Bangkok, Chiang Mai's art is local for the most part.


Thailand was an allround street art success. Which isn't surprising, considering that the country organizes plenty of (international) street art festivals. This year the city of Pattaya was filled with murals. Sadly I didn't get to see those, but that gives me a good reason to go back to Thailand some time.

Laos

I arrived in Laos after one day in a van from Chiang Mai to the border, then spent two days on the slow boat. On my third full day in Laos I set foot in Luang Prabang, where I finally had the chance to see Lao street art - if only there'd been anything to see.
Luang Prabang was weirdly clean. There was the occasional sticker here and there, but no big pieces. Barely any tags. Almost nothing at all. I refused to give up on Lao street art so easily, but things didn't get much better when I went to Vientiane. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that Laos is a communist country. The only big mural I saw was a commissioned piece with so much communist symbolism it made me cringe.


Laos is more of a sticker country than anything else, probably because stickers on telephone poles and lantern posts seem to be the main way of advertising stuff. You can put them up in broad daylight and no one even bats an eye. My favorite sticker was one of a yellow dancing elephant. No interesting mural though: spray cans are strictly used for this kind of stuff.

Cambodia

After a slight disappointment in Laos, Cambodia's street art was a big surprise. Cambodia had everything: stickers, pieces, tags, stencils, everything! Cambodia doesn't really know what to do with street art though. It's waging a war on graffiti while organizing the occasional street art event at the same time. As a result, walls that have been painted during a festival are white washed a few weeks later. This made finding street art in the capital Phnom Penh difficult: even if someone posts a picture and location online today it might be gone tomorrow. Cambodia street art has en extremely short life span, even for street art standards. Keeping your eyes open is a must, and you also need a bit of luck. For example, I never would have spotted this amazing piece if my hotel hadn't had a rooftop bar and pool.


On street level the art disappear within the blink of an eye. It was a stroke of luck that a few pieces hidden behind food carts caught my eye when I was on my way to the Killing Fields. When I went back there I noticed a weird pyramid shape which I'd seen in Bangkok as well. Next to it was a slightly unsettling stencil, the one of only two stencils I saw in Southeast Asia. I had faith in Cambodian street art as I left Phnom Penh and continued my journey towards Siem Reap.


Siem Reap wouldn't be what it is today if it weren't for its close proximity to Angkor Wat. There isn't much to see and do there, yet it had one thing I didn't see in any of the other places I visited: a Hall of Fame. Along the river a construction side that's been boarded off has now the biggest Hall of Fame I've seen since my visit to Utrecht.


There are so many pieces here, but this on was my favorite. As you take the tuktuk from Angkor Wat back to Siem Reap you'll see more pieces by this artist - all bright, colorful and beautiful.


Wandering around Siem Reap will not lead to disappointment either. Illegal pieces in Cambodia are a lot more hidden and harder to find than the ones in Thailand (probably because of the frequent white washing), but they're there if you don't walk straight past dark alleyways. Gotta give my dad props for finding this one.


My four weeks in Southeast Asia were almost over when I left Siem Reap. I returned to Europe with a camera full of street art pictures, a head full of Southeast Asian street art facts and quite a few scraps of paper I'd stuffed into my pockets after putting my own street art stickers up while hunting for the best pieces of this part of Asia. Because how can you love street art this much without making the world a little more coloful yourself? Maybe I'll give you an insight into that adventure as well, but for now let's enjoy one last Southeast Asian street art picture.

I think I've spent most of my online life so far obsessing over pizza. Today that's going to change. Don't get me wrong, pizza is still amazing, but sometimes when you're on the other side of the world, you want to eat something else. Some local dishes, full of unknown spices and unexpected flavors. That's exactly what happened to me this summer. During my month in Southeast Asia I tried many different dishes at many different restaurants. Most of the food was great, but there were three places that managed to blow my mind. Three places with amazing food that I just have to tell you about today.

Saam House Restaurant

Most tourists quickly pass Saam House Restaurant in Bangkok by as if it's one of the city's many dodgy food carts. It's not very surprising when you take into account that the kitchen is a cart in the alley next to the building. This building literally is someone's house, you're seated right on their front porch and almost in their living room. It looks a little bit too weird for most newbie travellers, but there's more to Saam House Restaurant than meets the eye.
First of all it just looks like a really fun place with it's small tables, stools and chalkboards with the menu written on them in bright colors. But the best part is that you can't go wrong with any of their dishes. They have your basic pad thai and the best spring rolls of Southeast Asia. If you're a little more adventurous you can choose one of the countless lesser known Thai dishes on their menu. Just don't mistake a chili pepper for a piece of tomato, like my dad did. It's hilarious for everyone, from the other dinner guests to the super friendly owners of Saam House, but your tongue will die. Don't worry too much about spicyness though, because you can extinguish the fire in your mouth with the best fruit shakes in Thailand. You can pick anything from simple (yet delicious) banana to a mixed smoothie with fruits western ears have never even heard of before. Believe me, Saam House Restaurant will not disappoint you. It's the most authentic dinner experience I had in all of Thailand.
Where: the sois (side roads) of Samsen Road near the Oasis Hostel, Bangkok, Thailand.
Recommendation: the chicken with cashew nuts is a safe choice with an exotic touch that still makes my mouth water to this day. Combine it with a watermelon shake and you've got an amazing meal for about 4 dollars.

The Restaurant in the Alley

Okay, I know I said Saam House Restaurant's kitchen was in an alley and that probably already freaked some of you out, but this entire restaurant is hidden away in a small alley in Luang Prabang. I'm not sure if it even has a name... Anyway, this alley actually has two restaurant, but you're gonna wanna pick the restaurant on the right once you enter the alley. The furniture is all plastic, the kind of stuff we put in gardens here in Europe. Just like Saam House, this restaurant is a family business, which means that the children might just bring you your order. Especially the oldest daughter, who is about 8 years old, likes to help her parents. Don't be surprised if she mixes your order up with that of other guests though - none of the orders are written down and she's doing her best. Besides, thanks to one of her small mistakes I discovered my favorite Lao dish.
Of course the food here is amazing, but what really sold the place to me was the setting. Geckos run up and down the walls and you just might end up with a purring cat by your side at some point during your meal. On the big road tourists pass by on their way to the night market and fairy lights at the end of the alley give the place a magical glow. Perfect place if you're not afraid to step off the beaten track.
Where: the first alley on the right if you turn up Sisavangvong Road from Sakkaline Road in Luang Prabang, Laos.
Recommendation: I'll be forever grateful for the little daughter accidentally putting friend pork with garlic on our table. This dish is simply amazing. The restaurant has fruit shakes as well, but your trip to Southeast Asia isn't complete without a sip of bright green Fanta. Don't be afraid, despite its look it won't make your teeth fall out.

Saffron Coffee's Espresso, Brew Bar & Roastery

I don't drink coffee, but I do eat breakfast. That's why I found myself at Saffron Coffee, a coffee shop that would have stood its ground in any western metropolis with a big hipster population. It's open for breakfast and lunch and every tourist on the Luang Prabang peninsula should go there at least once. I can't say much about the coffee (except that it's made from Lao fairtrade beans, so by drinking your morning coffee here you help the country as well), but the tea was great. A big plus is that you get a class of ice cold water with every order, something you'll appreciate a lot in the crushing humidity of Laos. You barely get time to finish that glass - free ice cold refills all around!


If you're on the go, Saffron Coffee is perfect as well, as they sell brownies and carrot cake. Their breakfast menu is simply awesome. There's bagels and the best breakfast invention ever: the breakfast burrito, filled with potatoes, spinach and tomatoes. Neither breakfast item is cheap for Lao standards, but its worth every single kip. I promise you won't go hungry for hours and you'll have all the energy you need to explore the Luang Prabang area - maybe even by bicycle!
Where: Khem Khong, Luang Prabang, Laos.
Recommendation: You'll regret not ordering a breakfast burrito. All drinks here are great and keep in mind that you're helping local farmers with every order. Don't forget to check out their souvenirs and home ware on your way out. Not only do the pillow cases they sell look awesome, not only can you take your favorite Lao coffee home, these proceeds help the local community as well!


I'm serious, if I ever go to this part of the world again I already know where I'll be eating. These restaurants taught me that taking a risk is totally worth it. Which one would you like to go to?

So... you want to visit Angkor Wat? Well, I can't blame you. The endless abandoned temple complexes in the Cambodian jungle near Siem Reap are on the UNESCO World Heritage List with good reason. But. There's always a but: visiting is not as easy as it sounds. In fact, it can be freaking difficult. That's why I'm taking you on a virtual trip to Cambodia today. Let me tell you how you can survive a visit to Angkor Wat!


Disclaimer: all advice is based on personal experiences and mistakes. Mostly mistakes though. Circumstances might be different for you in real life (especially when it comes to pants).

Are you ready? You are? Awesome! Let's make sure we can actually get there tomorrow, because Angkor is a couple of miles away from Siem Reap and the distances between the abandoned temples aren't small either. Let's go outside and claim a tuktuk guy. If we haggle a little he'll drive us around all day for a good price. Shall we let him pick us up at the guest house at 8.30am? We could try to go around 5am for sunrise over Angkor Wat, but it'll be overcrowded and I don't like people. Especially not early in the morning when I'm still cranky. Besides, it'll be easier to quickly get a ticket if we go later in the morning. So, 8.30am it is? Deal.



...
Uhm... Hate to break it to you, but... Those shorts you're wearing? Those are not the right pants. See that security guy glaring at you? It's because your knees aren't covered. I know, I know, they should've told us half an hour ago when we were still waiting in line to get our tickets, but for some reason they prefer to tell you once you're at the first abandoned temple. Now you're not allowed to go inside any of the temples with those shorts. Lucky for you there are stalls with clothes everywhere just outside the temple complexes to sell pants to tourists like us. Let's go get you some temple-proof, knee-covering pants!



Great, you've got pants! Now don't let the vendors guilt trip you into buying anything else if you don't want to. Focus on the cute little monkeys running around instead. These vendors will be everywhere, near the entrance of every ancient temple we're going to visit. I mean, they call this place Angkor Wat, but that's actually just one of the many temples here. Of course every temple has its own name, but they're quite complicated and hard to remember. And the entrance of every single one of those temples will be crowded with vendors literally grabbing you by the arm in an attempt to sell you something. I know it's uncomfortable, but once you're through the temple gate there won't be anyone yelling at you to by a shirt, to let's get going.



You smell that? The alcohol, I mean? That's fermenting fruit on the ground. Nothing to worry about. Unless you step on it. Seriously, don't step on it. It'll stick to your shoes and then it'll get stuck to the ground again and you'll have to pry your shoe loose. Last time I almost lost my flip flops to those stinky bastards. Don't be like me and kill your flip flops by accidentally stepping on that stuff.



I'm getting hungry and I only have 100 riels, which are worthless even in their own country... Everything is priced in dollars here anyway. Did you bring any? 10 dollars? Shit, we're doomed. You can't exchange money here anywhere, unless you like to get screwed over sideways. Let's see if the food trucks have any decent budget meals. A hot dog and a can of Coke for three dollars is not that bad. Let's have that. We'll figure out a way to pay the tuktuk guy later...

You made it! You've got the right, pants, didn't get guilt tripped, didn't get stuck in the stinky fruit and had a good meal! Now we can fully enjoy this amazing place without having to worry about anything. You'll love it here, it's a mesmerizing place. There are so many old and abandoned temples here in the Angkor area. Bayon, Angkor Thom... It's amazing to see all these places in the middle of the jungle. You don't even know they're there until you're right in front of them, surrounded by beautiful architecture and ancient reliefs, some half covered in plants and trees. They're all beautiful, these temples, but Angkor Wat is the most famous of course. Do you want to climb to the top? The stairs are vertigo-inducing, but the view is worth it. We won't have to stand in line for long; it's usually quiet this time of the day. Let's see all Angkor has to offer.


So, I hope you liked our virtual day out to Angkor. Let's end it with a virtual glass of sugarcane juice. My treat, they sell it everywhere near the bridge to Angkor Wat. You should try it, it's delicious. I guess it's time to take the tuktuk back to Siem Reap and say goodbye. I hope we'll get to travel again soon!

One day in 10th grade geography class a heap of human skulls stared at me from the pages of my textbook. 'Many Cambodians were killed on the Killing Fields by the Khmer Rouge' the caption said. We were studying Southeast Asia that semester and to better understand the current social-economical situation we had to understand the region's past first. Cambodia's past turned out to contain a genocide in more recent times than you'd think. I turned the page; I didn't want countless empty eye sockets to stare at me while I took notes.

Six years later I found myself in a tuktuk in Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh, on my way to the Killing Fields. I had insisted on going there, bringing it up in every Cambodia related conversation. I remembered the heap of skulls from my textbook, the short paragraph next to it that didn't do these lost lives any justice. I had to go to the Killing Fields and learn more about the tragedies that had taken place there.
The tuktuk raced through one smelly street after another, somehow squeezed itself into a small alley where I was sure we'd crush, then stopped at Choeung Ek Genocidal Center, one of the many Killing Fields the Khmer Rouge used in the 70s. When people say they visited the Killing Fields, Choeung Ek is where they went.


As we passed the gates we immediately ended up in a queue to pay the (pretty high) entrance fee. We wanted to go for the simple ticket without audio tour, which apparently isn't an option anymore. We were asked where we were from, then got a brochure in Dutch and an audio tour, also in Dutch. I wasn't so sure about the latter, I honestly feared it'd be a robot reading Google Translate lines... but it was the complete opposite. A pleasant male voice, clearly a native speaker, filled my ears when I started my audio tour and told me about the Khmer Rouge and the Killing Fields.


The Khmer Rouge was what the followers of Cambodia's communist party were called. They were led by an incredibly hypocritical man called Pol Pot, who rose to power in 1975. He'd gotten a great education in France, but upon return to Cambodia decided that everyone with a degree was unworthy of this life. People living on farms in the countryside were the true Cambodians, he decided, so when he became the country's leader he ordered everyone to leave all the cities and evacuate to the countryside. On top of that he deported everyone who disagreed with him and all people who didn't live up to his idea of the perfect Cambodian. You could end up in Choeung Ek for living in the city, for being a teacher, for wearing glasses, for having gone to college. I swallowed a lump in my throat away when I heard that. As a bespectacled former teacher from an urban area I would have been triple doomed in 1970s Cambodia. Suddenly I understood how it could happen that one in four Cambodians died between 1975 and 1978 as a result of genocide.

As I listened to the gruesome history of the Khmer Rouge I wandered onto the grounds of Choeung Ek. All the buildings of the former genocidal camp have been torn down. There are signs showing what they looked like and the audio tour will tell you what they were for. That's the easy and calm part of the visit. When I arrived at the first mass grave my emotions got the better of me.
The people who'd met their end here had been killed with whatever blunt object was at hand, as bullets were expensive and not to be wasted on lesser beings. They were dumped in holes by the dozen, their decaying bodies causing the earth to rise and then slump back, making much of the grounds of Choeung Ek look like a morbid golf course today. You can't walk on these parts of the grounds and wouldn't want to either: to this day bones, teeth and clothes resurface. About once or twice a year these are collected and brought to a better resting place, but still there's a big chance of spotting human remains during your visit.
I blinked back tears as I stood at one of the fenced-in mass graves while listening to the stories of people who'd been in Choeung Ek in the 70s and had lost loved ones there. The fence around the grave was covered in friendship bracelets in remembrance of those whose lives had been taken there. I tugged on the knot of one of my own bracelets, trying to loosen it up. The knot was too tight, but if it hadn't been I would have left one of my own hand-made bracelets there.


With these stories weighing heavy on my mind I walked on. The worst was yet to come. Soon I found myself in front of a tree, which was also covered in bracelets. Here the Khmer Rouge made sure babies wouldn't grow up to become a threat to their ideology by smashing the infants' heads in against the massive tree trunk. When Choeung Ek was dismantled there were still pieces of bone and brain tissue stuck to the bark.
Again I tried to take a bracelet off, but the knots wouldn't budge. I walked on with a bad taste in my mouth.


Near the end of the walking route I noticed my dad almost stepping on a random piece of cloth coming out of the ground of the path. It took my brain a while to register what my eyes were seeing: clothes. Clothes from unfortunate Cambodians who'd met their end right where we were standing. It was surreal and heart-breaking. The dead will never find peace on the grounds of Choeung Ek; their clothes and bones are still trying to escape the earth.


My visit soon ended after that at the Memorial Stupa, where many of the bones of the Khmer Rouge's victims are laid to rest. This was the thing I'd seen all those years ago in my geography textbook. I bought a flower and left it there in honour of all those who'd died on one of the many Killing Fields in Cambodia. All I could think was: 'I'm so sorry this happened to you.'


I left Choeung Ek with a heavy heart, but also hope for the future. Cambodia went through genocide only 40 years ago and is no rapidly developing. It's got so much potential and the Cambodians are making sure their country lives up to its potential. I'm a firm believer that history is there to be learned from, which is why I hope every single one of you visits Choeung Ek if given the chance. If nothing else, it will inspire you to do whatever you can to never let something like this happen again.

Back in Bangkok my parents and I planned a bit of our trip through Southeast Asia: a jungle trek near Chiang Mai, the slow boat to Luang Prabang, then on to Vientiane. We were met with a blank stare from the guy working at the travel agency when we mentioned Vientiane. "Why would you want to go toe Vientiane?' he asked. 'There's nothing to do there. Nothing.'
It probably won't surprise you that we went to Vientiane anyway. Laos as a country is already majorly neglected by most tourists, but its even worse for its capital Vientiane. It's not more or less mythical like Luang Prabang, you can't go tubing like in Vang Vieng and there are no creepy-looking river dolphins like in Pakze. Still there's plenty of reason to visit Vientiane. Let me tell you why you should go there!


There's this thing about Asian cities: they're freaking crazy and chaotic. Vientiane is not really like that though. It is a quite big city, but honestly feels like a small town. Most cities in Southeast Asia drained me both physically and mentally, but not Vientiane. Even the crowded places weren't as crowded as I was used to. Most of the major landmarks are well within walking distance and crossing the street is more or less safe. As far as cities go, Vientiane is laid-back for Southeast Asian standards.


If you're into pretty buildings and want to see some French influences from the colonial area, you have to go see the Patuxay. It's an unfinished victory arch which the Lao call ugly (they even put a sign on the thing saying it looks like a block of concrete), but it's actually pretty awesome. The Patuxay is an amazing mix between European architecture and Lao culture. The walls are decorated with frescoes in Southeast Asian style, just like the windows on top. Yes, you can climb to the top of the Patuxay. It's about four stories high, with gift shops full of communist clothes on every level. Once you reach the top you'll have a great view of all of Vientiane, especially the presidential palace. It's also vertigo friendly; I usually get vertigo as soon as I'm three meters up in the air, but managed to climb the Patuxay without wetting my pants.

Okay, terrible joke, but I had to make it at least once while writing about Southeast Asia. Vientiane has plenty of wats, Buddhist temples. For those who suffer from temple fatigue (i.e. having seen so many temples they all look the same now) because of previous trips to Southeast Asia, it's still worth going on a temple tour. The architecture is slightly different from that of Thai and Cambodian temples and some are also museums. Wat Ho Phra Keo for example is full of ancient Buddha icons. The exterior walls are covered in amazing mosaics and there's a little temple garden. If you want to visit a temple with more historical significance you can go to Wat Sisaket, the only temple that survived the Siamese-Lao war of 1828.
Apart from loads of other, smaller and unknown wats there are also a few stupas, oddly shaped buildings containing relics. So if you're looking for culture. Vientiane has enough to offer.


My number 1 recommendation for Vientiane is and always will be the COPE Visitor Centre on the grounds of the Centre for Medical Rehabilitation. COPE is an organization that helps handicapped people by providing them with the prosthetics and rehabilitation they need, free of charge for those too poor to afford it. The Visitor Centre tells the story of Laos' Cold War history, the victims US bombs make to this day and the way COPE helps people overcome their handicap. There is no entrance fee, but donations are massively appreciated so COPE can provide more people with the medical help they need. You must be completely heartless if a visit to COPE doesn't break your heart and restore your faith in humanity at the same time.

I have a thing for river banks. I hate swimming in rivers because there's fish in the water, but I love sitting on a river bank and watch life on the water pass by. This is much more fun on the banks of the Mekong in Vientiane than... let's say the Maas in Rotterdam. During the day the river banks are quiet, the boulevard almost empty. You can go for a relaxed stroll and look at Thailand on the other side of the water.
At night the boulevard changes. The road is closed off and a market pops up. It's more of a real market, less touristy than the night market in Luang Prabang. But the funniest thing that happens on the river bank every night are the free aerobics and bootcamp classes. A guy or girl sets up some stereo equipment, climbs on a cart and gives instructions like in those group classes at the gym. It's not just great to watch, you're also free to join - which some tourists actually do on their bare feet.


All in all I see no reason not to visit Vientiane. There's nothing to do? Dear guy from the travel agency, you were wrong. You can easily spend two great days in Vientiane - and it's a perfect stop for a break from the awful roads if you take the bus from Luang Prabang to Pakze to see those weird-looking dolphins. So if you're ever asked why you'd go to Vientiane of all places, you now know the answer!