Poste restante

Right place, right time - and life was never quite the same again

When in your life were you most cool? For me it was a wild night out in New York in 1989

Aug 3 • 

Mark Hodson

8

3

January 2024

Photo essay: Vietnam, 1992

I was lucky to be amongst the first few independent travellers allowed to visit this dazzling, dynamic country. These images capture a nation on the…

Jan 8, 2024 • 

Mark Hodson

9

7

How to slow your perception of time

Travel might not actually extend your life, but new experiences and adventures will make you feel you've lived longer, particularly in midlife

Jan 1, 2024 • 

Mark Hodson

14

9

December 2023

Travel is awesome, but how can we experience real awe?

That feeling of deep connection and wonder is elusive and fleeting, but we can create the circumstances where it's more likely to strike

Dec 27, 2023 • 

Mark Hodson

27

14

October 2023

Welcome to midlife, Lonely Planet

As the iconic publisher marks its 50th birthday, it's trying hard to stay relevant. Where to now?

Oct 1, 2023 • 

Mark Hodson

15

2

March 2023

Here’s your dream holiday and it’s free … but there’s a catch

You won't remember any of it. Still interested?

Mar 15, 2023 • 

Mark Hodson

7

2

How it feels to live in a liminal space between tourist and resident

Working remotely in Thailand, enjoying ultra-local slow tourism and finding things to do while my girlfriend is at work

Mar 11, 2023 • 

Mark Hodson

9

2

November 2022

I really messed up this trip to Laos. But that's okay

It's not always easy to find the right path

Nov 28, 2022 • 

Mark Hodson

13

1

Going on a trip? Close your eyes and listen

In an era dominated by visual imagery, where everyone is a photographer, we tend to neglect the other senses. What does a place smell like? How does it…

Nov 11, 2022 • 

Mark Hodson

2

October 2022

A romance in Thailand 30 years ago. But in the light of new photographic evidence, how reliable is my memory of events?

In the early 1990s I was backpacking around South East Asia when I had a brief love affair with a Dutch woman, who I’ll call K.

Oct 25, 2022 • 

Mark Hodson

6

September 2022

All those travel photos of other people's children. Where are they now?

Like many Western tourists, I've enjoyed taking pictures of kids in developing countries. But now I have mixed feelings.

Sep 6, 2022 • 

Mark Hodson

2

1

August 2022

Saigon, 1992: the most thrilling experience of my life in travel

The sheer luck of finding myself among the first independent travellers in Vietnam for 17 years, just as this extraordinary city exploded into life to…

Aug 25, 2022 • 

Mark Hodson

6

3