Travelers to Thailand tend to either love or hate Ko Phi Phi Island, the idyllic setting of the movie version of "The Beach." If you fantasize about unspoiled, quiet tropical islands, you'll more than likely be disappointed. However, if what you're looking for is an all-night beach party, Ko Phi Phi will probably knock your socks off. One thing that makes the beach parties at Ko Phi Phi so interesting is the large numbers of people playing with fire. Thai locals perform stunts like poi (dancing/gymnastics with fire) and jump rope with flaming jump ropes, often inviting tourists to join in. Over at Nomadic Matt's blog, Sean Ogle recommends a sobriety check before indulging your inner pyromaniac. Thai beach parties are almost always fueled by innocent-looking children's beach bucket

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In the late 19th century, King Inthawichayanon ruled a city-state called Lannathai in what is now northern Thailand. An early environmentalist, the king was concerned about the preservation of the hill country forests that were under his rule. According to Chiangmai-chiangrai.com, Thai folklore referred these forests as the "home of the Phiphannam, the 'spirit who shares water." Now, modern hydrology has shown us that these forests are the source of all of the rivers and streams in Central Thailand. When King Inthawichayanon died, he requested that his ashes be deposited on top of Doi Inthanon. The area is now a national park, and both the mountain and the forests that surround it are protected, just as the king would have wanted. According to Norman Rubin of Bootsnall.com: Doi Inthan

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When you visit another country, even mundane activities like shopping are transformed into interesting new experiences. As Gadling.com notes, shopping is also a great way to interact with local people and experience the culture of the place you are visiting. If you are visiting Bangkok, one of the coolest shopping experiences is actually located outside the city itself, in the floating market of Damnoen Saduak.  From around 8am to 11am each day, the canals of Damnoen Saduak are packed full of the boats of both shoppers and vendors. This is a great place to buy food of all types, as you can see from the video above. Most of the produce comes from small farms located alongside the canals-about as fresh as you can get! Still, even if you don't buy anything, it's worth a trip just to take

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