Having lived and travelled through Thailand back in 2009, it’s no secret the country holds a special place in my heart. The mystique of the people, cities, and natural beauty are not to be understated, and it pains me to watch the country suffer through disastrous the recent flooding. While donations are the best way to help out, participating in their economy by travelling there is probably the second best way to give back, and hey, you’ll get an amazing adventure out of it at the same time. If I had to limit my argument

Unreal good Cost per Quality ratio
Thailand has managed to become one of those countries that offers a safe, exciting, easy adventure without breaking the pocketbook. Prices for living, accommodation, and transport within Thailand have remained low while not hampering on the quality of the services – from metros, to taxis, to last minute friendly tourist focused bus lines. By and large the most expensive line item for your trip will be the flight. Flights from the US tend to run on the high side (excluding west coast airports like LAX), but flights from Europe tend to be a lot more manageable. Flight specialists such as DialAFlight can source a cheap flight to Thailand for only £369 from London (to Bangkok including taxes).

High Activity Density
I find Thailand to have a highest density of urban & natural activities (more…)

I recently visited Ethiopia for a very brisk vacation to ‘try out’ Africa. The trip was far from ideal, but I never really expected it to go amazing from the get go given my lack of preparation. After experiencing some of the country and talking with numerous other more veteran Ethiopian travelers at guesthouses, I feel that I can shed some light onto budget traveling in Ethiopia. Here are a few of the main points.

Highlights

First of all, here’s a rundown of the highlights of Ethiopia:

• Injera – the national dish. It’s tasty, just spicy enough, filling, and cheap.  50 Birr  - ($3)
• Coffee – Very cheap, very good. Some of the world’s best, and definitely has a distinct flavor. Coffee, Machiato, and Espresso all are a must. 7 Birr  - ($.40)
• People – The people are very nice and friendly. Ethiopia is safe…relative to the rest of Africa.
• Women – Ethiopian women are unbelievably beautiful. I have never seen such a high density of stunning women in my life. Just don’t be a creep and expect a price.
• Heart wrenching – Poverty is everywhere. HIV is everywhere. Prostitution is rampant. Mentally prepare yourself, but if you give 10 birr to everyone that asks you won’t make it more than a week.
• No Budget Backpacker infrastructure - Overland travel is very time consuming and/or expensive. You can’t just show up and expect cheap transport. Plan accordingly.

Arriving in Ethiopia

Odds are you’re flying into Addis Ababa. (more…)

Things have been rather quiet here as of late, but I expect that to change as I get back on the off the beaten trail. Roughly 3 weeks ago I moved to the Middle East, for work, on a 6 month contract. Following my graduation in May, the stars aligned and called me to the Gulf. So far, it’s been a pretty rocky ride. Many struggles, low highs, and very low lows. But slowly, I’m starting to get settled in the Arab world. I expect life to continue to get better every day.

The majority of my time (think 55 hours/week) will be spent working tirelessly recounting beans for companies. Not quite as glamorous as ’studying’ in Bangkok, but this is what being a grown up is I suppose. My free time will be spent sleeping, surfing the interwebs, staying hydrated, and getting fat on Middle Eastern food.

Pertaining to this blog, I have a plan for some fresh new content and articles. As my scarce free time and holidays allow, I’ll be exploring the region as much as possible myself. Furthermore, I’m already lusting over a nice little swing through greater Asia when I’m finished working here. So be sure to stay in tune for some new articles in the coming days, weeks, and months.

London is hardly renowned for its cheap shopping opportunities. Most people who visit the city for some retail therapy will do so with a healthy bank balance – or at least a sizeable overdraft – to support their extravagance purchases.

But venture beyond the high street boutiques and up-scale shopping malls, and it’s more than possible to snap up affordable goods in London. Often it’s just a matter of knowing where to look.

Hot Spots

It is even possible to head for notoriously expensive shopping areas and still pick up some bargains. Kensington High Street, for example, is best known for the ultra exclusive Harrods department store, yet just a stone’s throw from the famous old shopping mecca are numerous inexpensive shops such as Warehouse, Topshop and Oasis.

The same is true of several other districts including Regent Street and Oxford Street – both home to designer stores but also cheaper high street names.

London Markets

Another happy hunting ground for cheap goods are London’s markets. (more…)

I’ve been all over the ‘travel to europe because it’s cheap’ thesis a little lately if you’re an american, and this post will be further evidence of this train of thought. Fall off-season travel is approaching as travel companies across the board begin offering different deals and incentives to fill rooms, flights, or seats. Europe, still, again?

Why Cheap off-season Travel to Europe NOW:

1. Cheap Euro. The flight to the US dollar and away from the Euro is still prevalent. The medium term outlook on this does not seem to benefit the dollar given the rough shape the US economy is still in even after all of the spending and US dollar devaluing.

2. Off-Season Deals - the summer travel season is over, (more…)

After 5-6 months of living in Bangkok, Thailand last year, I have a feeling it will always be my second home. Culture, food, people, weather, and cost of living- all appeal to my very western upbringing seeking a radically different travel experience. I continue to be surprised by how my travel critic peers tend to agree with my love for Bangkok, even while the city is the center of a political firestorm that has flared up too often as of late. Namely, Travel + Leisure named Bangkok the number one city of 2010despite its political issues, with its northern, much smaller sister Chiang Mai taking #2 on the list.

There have been a plethora of posts on Bangkok’s ‘Top 10’, one of my favorite being from CNN: 50 reasons why Bangkok’s the world’s greatest city. However, many people have asked me about my trip lately (i.e. during interviews) and I’ve tripped up a few times in my efforts to succinctly sell my experience in the World’s greatest city in 2 minutes. So with some reflection, here are the top 10 reasons answering the question “Why travel to Bangkok?”

1. Thai People

Straight chill waves. Peaceful, nice, accepting, and relaxed. Perfect, Western-friendly culture for confused travelers. There are obviously scams and touts like everywhere in Asia, but just use common sense.

2. Food

Say goodbye to too-sweet $15 American pad thai, and hello to $1 street Pad Thai glory. A decent diet can be made up of a rotation between noodle dishes, rice dishes, street fruit, and plentiful international cuisine.

3. Cost of living

Overall, there’s an extremely friendly cost of living (more…)