Just been back up the tracks for a trip on the train from Khon Kaen to Udon and I have to say it is more boring than ever.

I am a long term resident of KK so a bit biased after 15 years but Udon has never had any appeal.

No matter how much I visit the place I still dislike it.

Khon Kaen has changed and I miss the old days when there were just a handful of expats but understand why others have moved in.

When I first arrived there was little or nowhere you could go for western food or meeting up however since then the expat bars have flourished but the old comradeship has disappeared.

There was a local internet site that was a focal point for a while but then got taken over by newcomers who subsequently fell out with themselves.It is now in terminal decline.

However Khon Kaen still has a buzz Udon has never managed.

Or am I wrong?

Over the past couple of months I have visited both KK and Udon on separate trips. I spent a few days in each. I came away with an overwhelming preference for Udon. Hard to cite specific reasons for that. Udon struck me as more compact, so walking was not a chore. The markets, hotels, restaurants, and the area in general around the train station coupled with the big shopping mall (Central Festival?) made everything easy.

Depends what you want from life doesnt it? At 62 yrs old Im quite happy to live life without a 'buzz'. I just want a basically comfortable, affordable, convenient, friendly & relaxed, stress free life. Udon has become very familiar to me over the last 8 yrs and I like it. At first it felt more like a town but it is now definitely a city, but I still like it. Seligne2 sums it up well. I walk and ride my bicycle mainly around this area when Im there, and I would add to this a walk around Nong Bua, the quiet landscaped lake behind the railway station to give me a daily dose of nature that Im used to. Maybe if my Thai lady came from KK and not Udon, which is why Ive spent so much time in Udon, then Id feel the same way about KK which I dont know at all beyond a couple of overnight stops many year ago. Who knows?

I tend to like Udon better myself.More happinings.But I like the shopping mall at both places equally the same.

Both cities have changed over the years.I try and visit them both and other cities in Thailand.Never boring.

I find them same same more farangs in udon that is the only difference. better airport in udon

I find them same same more farangs in udon that is the only difference. better airport in udon

And 40 mins to the border

No contest Udon is far far better than KK, far better restaurants and far more things to do, Udon 10 KK 2

i have difficulty comparing shades of grey.