Bangkok (CNN) — It’s a Wednesday afternoon in downtown Bangkok, and Daniel Fraser is excited.
The Canadian has just returned to the Thai capital from a surveying trip in neighboring Laos and his mind is buzzing.
While there, he stumbled upon a factory filled with old Soviet military equipment, transport trucks and munitions cases — a reminder of this land-locked nation’s significance during the Vietnam War and broader Cold War.
But Fraser’s not hunting for film or TV shoot locations for a blockbuster Hollywood war epic. He thinks this old factory, with its steampunk vibe, will be the perfect setting for a lunch his travel company, Smiling Albino, is planning for an ultra-high net worth client’s upcoming trip to the region.
Fraser understands why some might be confused. Why is he taking a very wealthy traveler to have a meal at a dilapidated industrial site as part of his vacation? After all, Southeast Asia …