To Travel Different Roads
Thailand has been just wonderful so far. The Thai people are friendly, kind, and generous. They also seem to be very accepting of other people and how they wish to live. I am absolutely impressed by all this and frankly find it entirely peaceful and relaxing.
Thailand is a stress free environment for me and I love it.
**I should mention Thailand is hot, like really really hot. It is currently April and daily temperatures are highs in the 90 to 95 F and lows at night are 82 F.**
This is an average day in Thailand. Monthly cost $530 USD. I eat out for all my meals and spend between $7 and $10 per day.
On the left are bikes, motorbikes and helmets just out of site all sitting unlocked in the condo building where I live. This area is easily assessable from the main road. My understand is that people leave everything unlocked because stealing what does not belong to you is wrong. Therefore they do not do that. Such a novel concept. Rows of helmets are sitting on a bench.
On the right is a common bus in Thailand. I have described to my friends and relatives back home how crazy big buses and bill boards are in Thailand and while everyone says they understand you can tell they really just don’t understand. Therefore, I have included a picture of a bus passing along beach road Pattaya. Somewhere in there a driver sits and apparently sees out the window. This stuff is wild to see.
To Travel The World
It is easy for me to think about traveling the world. Actually getting out and seeing what the world has to offer is so much more challenging for me. My comfort zone is sitting in front of a computer. I rather love that.
I realized one day that I would either always “think” about the man I wanted to be, or I could take risks and go be that man. I have decided to take the risk. So far it has been a great adventure.
From Pattaya to Koh Chang
From Pattaya to Koh Larn
From Pattaya to Koh Samui
I grew up poor. My parents never had money and life was always a struggle. They strongly believed in saving for their kids future and seldom spent any money on themselves. They always tried to save every penny.
When my parents died, they left behind a small house and a large savings account. This went long way in helping my sister and I get our lives going. I will always appreciate what they did for me. I do regret that they did not spend at least a little on themselves to enjoy life a tiny bit more. But that was not their style.
I am trying to follow their example, with the added twist of traveling smartly and affordably.
My world travel adventure… is just me, with my camera, going wherever the road takes me. I always try to keep myself safe and to do few things that put me in danger.
It seems to me that the world is big enough that it holds a near endless number of places I can safely visit that are both wonderful and affordable.
Current destinations are Thailand, Philippines, Singapore, New Zealand and Australia.
It was obvious to me that if I was going to take this adventure seriously, I should buy a real camera instead of using a phone. I bought a used Nikon D7100 for a very reasonable price and have been extremely happy.
Interestingly enough, having a real camera rather than using a cell phone has actually helped me on my trips. People see seem to have a different idea of who I am and what I am doing. Many people just assume I am a professional photographer. This has already opened up some doors, otherwise closed.