It should be fairly obvious by now that I have an affinity for Thailand after an umpteen amount of trips down there. Only reason why I don't live there, well at least not yet, is the economics isn't as good as working and living in China. Even so, retirement in Thailand is a darn fine idea. If not that, then medical tourism, or certainly just tourism in general.
My favorite time of year in SE Asia isn't the dry season, but actually the monsoon. This may seem strange, but for the type of travel I do, namely bicycle travel, the monsoon is the ideal time. The rains happen in the afternoon and evening most of the time, and other than that, it is cloudy with temperatures not as searingly hot as they'd normally be. Another huge benefit is that it is low season which means less crowds and better discounts.
There is no real official stating time for the monsoon, but it is usually around now as marked by the Thai New Year, or the Songkram Festival. This is the water festival to mark the end of the hottest weather season and celebrate the monsoon arrival which brings the rains and the cooler weather. Fittingly enough, they go around dumping water buckets on everyone at this time, especially in Bangkok.
Unfortunately I've never had the opportunity to visit Thailand during Songkram due to my work schedule, but I follow the news and other peoples' bike blogs to see what's going on. I'm now quite looking forward to seeing the monsoon kick into higher gear, and for the low season to approach so I can head on down there --- which of course is where I'll be this summer.
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