Probably both the cheapest and the most authentic pizza I've had in Vietnam. Proper oven, proper ingredients, proper training, no messing around!

And the prices are sure to please. Located within walking distance of the backpacker district. Note the shop is very small, only a few small tables available facing the noisy traffic.

76 Nguyen Trai, District 1
Tel: 9 181 688

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Khao Soi is a speciality of northern Thailand. It's a rich curry soup with soft yellow noodles. Usually served with chicken, sometimes pork, it will be topped with crispy-fried noodles.

At my favourite place at the top of Rachamankha Road you get Khao Soi with a chicken drumstick for 30B.

Try it at a few places so you get a feel for the different variations. Don't order it in a 'restaurant' though - this dish is strictly street food!

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Great burgers, steaks, Tex-Mex food. Cold beers, efficient service, pool table, free monkey nuts, free pop corn ... yeah you've guessed I'm not talking about the Sheraton!

Definitely a 'saloon' atmosphere. Friendly owners as well. All topped off with free wifi. Or if you're not carrying your mobile device there's a computer you can use.

On Rajvithi Road, down from UN Irish Pub.

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The Vietnamese are not backward in coming forward, especially when it comes to asking for donations and their pièce de resistance is the sob story.

Probably the day after travellers first started trickling into the Prince Hotel just after Doi Moi, the local hustlers worked out that these young naive things would fall for anything involving "Communists" or "re-education camp".

Possibly back then there were a couple of ex-lawyers driving cyclos. Back in 1990 that would have made them ... how old? Let's see, 30 years old in 1975 ... so that would be 45. Plausible.

Seventeen years later ... they'd have to be 62 - at the absolute youngest. When your interlocutor is giving you his "doctor" story then weigh up ... is he at least 62? If he is then you'd be advised to take a taxi! (Well you'd be *always* advised to take a taxi, but that's a subject for another tip.)

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The travel snobs, particularly the 'online' ones, pretend to shun Khao San Road yet secretly they make a bee-line there every time they arrive in Thailand.

Firstly what's bad about it? Well it's crowded, infested with touts, some of the rudest staff, some of the most pathetic travellers ... did I say crowded? Give me some room to breathe!

Well that's Khao San Road. Yes I rarely go there - and only when it's a trip to a specific establishment. But I do go to Banglamphu (or 'Phra Nakorn'). That's the name for the district surrounding the eponymous street.

Particularly convenient is the Soi Rambuttri/Phra Athit area. That's the area to the west, behind the Wat, by the Chao Phraya River.

Here you have the wide open space of the Wat, you're close to the river which is convenient for transport, and you're within walking distance of two dozen landmarks on Rattanakosin Island. And you've got your cheap eats, sleep, travel agents and local markets.

Back to Khao San Road itself: One myth is that this is dominated by 'farang'. Absolute rubbish! Local Thai customers began to outnumber the foreigners ten years ago and now in the evening it's 80% locals (mostly students).

If it's your first time to Bangkok try the area around Khao San Road. It's the best spot for exploring the palaces, forts and Wats of Rattanakosin Island.

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Fish & chips, bangers & mash, pasties, pies, ... in Banglamphu!

A clean, airy place. Away from the sewer smells, noise and pollution. Oh My Cod! has seating in cubicles, each with flat-screen TV (you've been warned), outside where you can watch the koi carp, or you can sit at a normal 'cafe' table inside.

Pies and pasties are homemade. Warning: the pasty is big. Don't eat if you plan to walk around the palaces.

Oh yeah they have wifi too.

Located down Soi Rambuttri, turn down the alley near 7-Eleven.

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To get to the new airport you've basically got three options: 1) Taxi 350B, 2) Airport Bus 150B, 3) Khao San Road minibuses 120B.

Now if there are two of you the choice would seem to be a simple one - take the taxi! No need to read on!

If you're alone I'd also recommend the taxi but if you are really saving the baht you've got:

1) The Airport Bus - It's comfortable, spacious and relatively hassle-free. Disadvantages are that it doesn't run to a schedule - you've got to stand there and wait, and wait. This does have one advantage however: You might meet other travellers while waiting and get to share a taxi! One other disadvantage of the Airport Bus is that they seem to take the absolute longest, most traffic-jam prone route. You're at serious risk of missing your flight if you take one of these in the day time.

2) The Khao San minibus - Cheaper than the above, they run to a schedule and they'll come to your guesthouse. Great isn't it? Well you're squeezed in like sardines and some of those vehicles look like they're about to break down. You also have to book in advance, reducing your flexibility. One advantage is that they're in tune with the road conditions so they'll avoid the worst of the traffic jams.

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ChefMoz lists restaurants, cafes and bars. You can browse for what you're looking for by cuisine, rating or location and then you can come back and provide a rating and review. Or you can upload new places you come across. It also links to selected reviews and online resources.

The sections for Chiang Mai, Bangkok and Phuket are the most active.

chefmoz.org/Thailand/Chiang_Mai/
...and other cities in Southeast Asia

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If you've stayed around Khao San Road you'll know what a nightmare it is getting across town during the day. However if you're heading in the direction of Pantip or Sukhumvit there's the river taxi.

The river taxi starts from Fort Mahanak - that's the white fort near the democracy memorial - this marks the eastern edge of Rattankosin Island. It stops at Hua Chang, which is good for MBK Department Store and Siam Square; Pratunam which is near Pantip Plaza and Central World; and Nana and Asok - before terminating near Bang Kapi. See Wikipedia link below for a list of stops.

Short journeys cost 10 baht. Important things to remember if it's your first time:

1) The interchange is at Pratunam - all passengers must change here.
2) Try to sit in the middle so it's easier to see the sign denoting which stop you're at. They're very small!
3) Try to sit near the side - less spray there.
4) Note that they often miss stops - for example they often go straight from Pratunam to Nana - don't rely on counting the stops!
5) You must get your orientation right - there's only one landing at each stop serving both directions of traffic.

The history of the Saen Saeb Canal (Khlong Saen Saeb) is interesting. It actually goes out all the way to Chachoengsao near Chonburi and was built to transport soldiers and supplies to help the war effort with Cambodia. Construction started in 1837 and took three years.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khlong_Saen_Saeb

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This applies especially around the back of Soi Rambuttri near Khao San Road. Every morning I go for my muesli and a group of travellers will be haggling for a trip to the railway station. They're just standing there, looking like they've been just standing there for quite some time and in the interlocution I can just make out "100 baht each" or something ridiculous. For me this isn't a great way to start the day!

These drivers are time-wasters, not interested in using the meter, very interested in taking you for more than just a ride (definitely in the case of the tuk tuks), and getting in the damned way and making nuisances of themselves.

If you want to take a taxi:

1) Haul your bags over to the main road. For our group above that would be either Chakrapong or Phra Athit. Perhaps 50 metres. Yes, the hardships.

2) Flag down a taxi. This is easy, they're coming down the road in a constant procession.

3) Open the door, get in, tell him where you're going.

4) He'll switch the meter on.

5) Get to your destination, pay the fare, get out. (If you need to, you can wait a few seconds for your change. They offer change to the nearest five baht these days.)

While all this is happening your counterparts over at Soi Rambuttri will still be standing around engaging in useless banter with a dead-beat scam merchant who is not interested in turning on the ignition for anything less than a 500% markup.

For your information the trip to the railway station costs 50-60B - that's for the *car* not per person - taxis never charge per person.

That's the drill for taxis now...

If you want to take a tuk tuk:

1) Don't

They're filthy and they spew noxious pollution. That's the drivers I'm talking about. There's no need to take one in Bangkok for any kind of journey. The taxi will always win in terms of price, safety, speed and comfort. Do the locals a favour and help to consign these evil menaces to the scrap heap.

Back to taxis: I find the yellow ones to be a lot nicer than the blue ones. The purple ones are good too.

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You should have no problems hooking up to some free wifi in Chiang Mai. In some parts of the city it's difficult to go 50 metres without stumbling on a bunch of signals.

The densest concentration is probably in the area popular with trendy locals, Nimmanhaemin Road. It seems like every coffee shop and smart restaurant down here provides wifi.

Up in the backpacker part of town you might struggle a little bit, but you can combine surfing and drinking in such pleasant establishments as the Pirate Cove on Ratchamankha Road and Chiang Mai Saloon on Rajvithi Road. There are also a few smart coffee shops such as Wawee's to consider.

For the more serious Internet junkie you'll be looking at rooms equipped with wifi. For this I'll direct you to 'wifi alley', Ratchadamneon soi 1, just south of Thapae Gate. You have the very comfortable Ban Wiang Guesthouse along with the slightly more upscale Boonthavon and Mini Cost. At the end of this alley there's even the more backpacker level Rama Guesthouse sporting wifi! And don't forget the Montri right by Thapae gate - their signal seems to reach just about every cafe in the vicinity.

Others: The Garden Chiang Mai on Loi Kroh Rd, Prince on Tai Wang Rd, Viang Bua on Viangbua Rd and Galare Guesthouse on Chareonprathet Rd.

Of course, there'll be more when you get there.

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Comprehensive, frequently updated listing of restaurants and cafes in Hanoi and other places. Reviews submitted by users and links to third-party reviews. Submit your favourite places and help it to grow.

chefmoz.org/Vietnam/Hanoi/
chefmoz.org/vietnam/Hoi_An/
chefmoz.org/Vietnam/Ho_Chi_Minh_City/
...and other cities.

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