issue 54 - AsiaLIFE Magazine

dispatches
Travel news from around the region and beyond
Brunei Gets Back to Basics
Offering a mild adventure in Borneo's best preserved
rainforest, Ulu Temburong National Park in Brunei benefits
wildlife, science, and visitors. A day tour will introduce you
to great hikes and views, local food, and river travel among
waterways and mangrove islands. Watch for hornbills, butterflies,
gibbons and macaques. Cross the Suspension Bride,
climb the 1,a200 steps to the Canopy Walkway, and enjoy a
buffet lunch near rock pools and waterfalls. You also have
the option to swim, canoe, or go rafting. For more, including
information about tours with longhouses, tent accommodations,
rural living, crocodiles, and campfires, go to
bruneibay.net.
Gem by the River
Boutique hotel The Siam is scenically situated along the Chao
Praya River in Bangkok’s royal Dusit district. The area is an ideal
vantage point from which to explore the city’s historical palaces,
temples and museums. The 39-room hotel was conceived partly by
owner and Thai celebrity Krissada Sukosol Clapp, a member of the
Sukosol ‘musical hoteliers’ family. Each suite has a unique theme,
drawing inspiration from Thai culture through the ages, as well as
original turn-of-the-century oriental artwork and antiquities from
Krissada’s private art collections. The Siam complex also houses
a cooking school, Muay Thai boxing ring and traditional Thai
teakwood houses. For more, visit thesiamhotel.com or call 66 2206
6999. – Ellen Boonstra
Music in Manila
If you can’t get to the United States anytime
soon, let the pop concerts in Manila bring it to
you. The American Idol summer tour stops there
21 September, when the final 10 from the show’s
11th season will perform solos, duets and group
performances. For a little less sugar, you also
can wait till 2 October to catch Keane. Four men
from England make up the alternative rock band
with a pretty soft side. But maybe not as soft as
The Fray, the American band, which plays in
Manila on 11 October. For tickets, go to mtvasia.
com/mini/gigguide.
14 asialife HCMC