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Take the road less travelled and visit Chin State, a land of misty skies, towering pine trees and exotic flowers. Reigning over this remote state is Mount Victoria, the third highest mountain in Myanmar, home to diverse ethnic tribes and several rate species of birds and orchids.

It’s dark and the city is sleeping. The air is cool compared to its smothering heat during the day. Dogs can be heard barking a few streets away, and footprints in the sand tell a story of the people who left them a few hours before.

Burmese people love festivals and ceremonies! The majority of those celebrations are religious events and everyone, young and old, eagerly awaits the chance to participate in any festival (or ‘Pwe’ as we say in Burmese). 

When a strong and steady on-shore breeze blows in Goa during the month of November, the locals call it a turtle wind because such weather normally heralds the arrival of the rarest migrant visitors to the Konkan Coast: Olive Ridley marine turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea). 

 The newly opened Elephant Conservation Center marks a new era for conservation of the Asian elephant within Laos, and offers a unique experience to visitors wishing to contribute to the protection of this endangered species.

Shinta Mani Siem Reap is an upscale boutique hotel that offers you the opportunity to enjoy a luxurious holiday while, at the same time, helping the disadvantaged in Cambodia.Created by acclaimed architect Bill Bensley, the hotel showcases 39 contemporary rooms and public spaces in Khmer inspired design just a 15 minute tuk tuk ride from the magnificent temples of Angkor Wat.

The Nehru Trophy Boat Race, the most colourful water sport in Kerala, is conducted at Punnamada Lake in Alleppey, just over an hour from Cochin, on the second Saturday of every August. This prestigious cultural event of Kerala attracts spectators from all over the world. The Nehru Trophy Boat Race is a festival for the people of Alleppey the main attraction of which is the sporting spirit among the participants.

We asked two of our Indochina Specialists, Chinmay Vasavada and Simon Fransham, to tell us some of their favourite places, foods and experiences from the region.

The delicious set breakfast of boiled eggs, toast, jam, orange juice and strong sweet coffee, taken on the rooftop with magnificent views of the Annapurna range, was becoming a little too familiar. Our days had been spent cycling, strolling and rowing around or on Fewa Tal, the picture postcard perfect lake. We even had a ‘local’ restaurant where the waiters could second guess my order (a cold beer and veggie burger, incidentally). Pokhara, Nepal’s premier trekking hub, had been a fascinating and enjoyable companion for the past few days. However, it was time to move on.

Thailand came to town at the weekend with the ‘Visit Thai Festival’. Having joined TransIndus recently after living in Bangkok for a while, I jumped at the opportunity to ‘visit Thailand’ for the day.