Not so long ago, my fine self and Chris went for a 4 day motorcycle ride in the North East (Isaan Region) of Thailand. Leaving from Bangkok on friday evening, we rode first to Korat. On the Saturday we did the long stretch form Khorat to Ubon. The ride from Ubon to Surin on the Sunday was more leisurly. On the Monday we almost made it back to Bangkok without getting drowned by the rain... almost.What follows is a photo account of some of the highlights. Immediately upon entering Isaan we found the locals to be very friendly... ...well most of them. The first real highlight of Chris' trip was being able to order genuine Isaan som-tam in Isaan. Having had bad bowel related experiences on previous bike trips, I opted for the safer Khao Pad Moo. As you can see, the tourists were lining up for this well known attraction. We were lucky enough to meet 'Karl the curious Kwai' on our journeys. Unfortunately he was not very helpful as his map reading skills were somewhat lacking. When travelling, I always try my best to fit in with the locals. There are scattered ancient Khmer temples all over the southern half of Isaan... ...scattered idiots too! On the road... ..although to be honest, it's not that smart to take photos with one hand while riding your motorbike at 120kp/h. Looks good though. Eeeny, Meeny, Miney, Mo....!Fortunately we were lucky enought to meet Zooza's cousin Somchai, who was kind enough to give us directions.  The whole family invited us in for a bite to eat, but seeing how busy they were, we politely declined. Khao Phra Viharn, just on the Cambodian side of it's border with Thailand is a must see attraction. Long cobbled paths seperate the 4 main sections of the temple until you finally reach the summit. It has a real eeerie sense of history to it. And is at least as beautiful as Ayuddhaya or Sukkothai in my opinion. No, I wasn't about to relieve myself."You buy postcard Mister?" Chris was asked for the 5000th time in 60 minutes. 600 metres up, the 210 degree panoramic view from Khao Phra Viharn is unrivalled,As if he hadn't already accumulated enough bad Karma, Chris threw caution to the wind and humped a sacred statue.Next stop, Surin. It's actually quite a picturesque and lively little town...  ...romantic too. More friendly locals.This shot simply rocks.  The grey clouds finally caught us on the way home. Beautiful none the less.For anyone who wants to see something really different, self-drive tours around Isaan are a serious option. You can go and stp where ever you like, decent hotels are never hard to find, the foods is delicious, the people friendly, and scenery unique. I highly recommend it    

cute curious buffalo : )

absolutely superb pics !!! pity i can't ride a f**king motorbike !!

Great pics mate. . . thanks for sharing.

CiaranM [ absolutely superb pics !!! pity i can't ride a f**king motorbike !! ]

> exactly what i wanted to say...

Just a question : is it a thai version of "easy rider" ("born to be wilddddddd...") ? Anyway you gave meaning to the word "friends" in thailandfriends. ;ppppppp

Great pictures hope you had a great time

Bangkok is a great place to start riding a bike guys, you either learn really quickly, or you die. It's a matter of surivial ;op

Dangerous guy !!!!!

Really nice pics and hilarious comments. I'm too scared to ride. I fell off a bike when I was 16 and got dragged across a road - ended up with the 110 kilo bike on top of me.

Nasty wounds, even nastier scars - still have em

yoh fella, was cool trip u did, i had been made one too with my ex kik~!<lol like when I was 19

we drove from bkk to Ratburi, Kanjanaburi and out of town til area call 'sang-kla-buri' there are almsot border of Myanmar ... was pretty cool

trip some wasn't too far, even if u have only weekend trip

;-)

damn it! i love motorbike, i grow up with motorbike!!

Good pics...Funny too! :-)

Wow!!! Awesome pics Punisher! I ride all the time, about 5000 miles a year on average and this is something I would really like to do someday. But driving in the central Bangkok traffic does seem a little sketchy. But like you say, the learning curve is accelerated!

Frog Legs: I was born dangerous! ;op

Princess: Perhaps we can compare scars at the Anniversary party, or afterwards at my aprtment! ;op

Nong Sonny: You look like a Biker Babe, girl! ;o)

Ling Baah: Bangkok riding looks a lot worse than it really is. When you are in control (real or perceived) and going with the flow, it is not so bad.

Love & Vacanti: Cheers!

ok ... what lunatic wants to teach me how to crash ... i mean ride a motorbike ???

Sure I'll teach you, but not on MY bike ;op

Nature, pubs, mountains, speed, and friends... how true Gilgamish, how true. After riding your Duke however, I think some of the enjoymant might be lost if you were on a 125cc.

doesn't ur ass get numb from riding the bike for long periods of time?

great pics =)

ahhh,, now i know who is your partner :wink: had fun together ?? )

great pics...what bikes you guys have??

why don't you invite me to go there??? well, next time when you come piri i will not give you my special sauce then...wink wink...

When I saw your picture of Karl I wondered if you saw any of the famous "sick buffaloes" I hear so much about on this site.

Anyway thanks for sharing...

Hey, I finally know what CMG_UK looks like undistorted!

Great story....and a fun trip it seems. I will be wandering around the Udon area the next week or so which might also be a laugh.

Wow!! That's awesome!!!!

The pic of you with the bell around your neck is truly beautiful...

many boys would consent to that....but where's the white wooly fluffy stuff...

to keep your ass warm...

There's 400,000 jealous sheep staring at you right now....

imagine what mum would say??????