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30 January 2010 with no comments
I went on a really fun dirtbiking trip in Laos in February 2009, but being the idiot I am I lost my camera in a taxi along with the 200+ photos I took. This time, I’m going to keep an eye on my gear and make sure I’ve got something to show for my time there.
Off to Udon Thani on the 6th, and then over to Vientiane the next day. I’ll be pulling a 60+ hour week before then to make sure I don’t have to spend a second working once I arrive. Bring on the Beer Laos and fun mountain roads.
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8 January 2010 with no comments
I didn’t really have any goals for last year. I left university about halfway through the year, expanded my online work so much that it’s grown from a weekend income to something I do full time, and generally improvised when it came to life, travel, and everything else.
This year I think I need a bit more structure. I was really slack about business stuff last year, and I keep looking back at months where I could have earned a lot but slacked off too much. This year I’m going to get a nice dual screen home office, quit working on a 13″ notebook, and actually get some stuff done.
Some rough goals, which will probably change anyway:
- At least $5,000USD average profit per month.
- Visit three new countries (starting this February with Hong Kong/PRC and hopefully at some point North Korea)
- Head back to New Zealand for at least a couple of weeks.
- Learn fluent Thai (spoken and written) by December.
Obviously the last one is going to be difficult. I judge fluency as being able to hold a detailed conversation in Thai, eg. bitching about Thaksin or discussing a reasonably complicated book. Stuff like ordering food obviously doesn’t count.
I’ll check back next January and see how I’ve done.
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8 January 2010 with no comments
Between Christmas and New Years, I got the hell out of Bangkok and headed to north Thailand for a week-long road trip. After meeting some new friends on the train, we arranged to meet up in Pai for a night of camping and chilling out by the river.
I headed into Chiang Mai city to find a motorcycle. Last time I was in north Thailand I did a 5-day road trip on a tiny Thai bike — a 110cc Honda Wave. It ended up costing less than $5 per day for the rental, but riding long distance on such a tiny bike wasn’t a comfortable experience. This time I spent a little more (still only about $20 per day) and rented a Honda CB400 instead. It’s no supersport bike, but for a five day tour it was more than enough.
The view from our campsite in Pai.
My friends hung out in Pai for the next day, but I felt like getting out. Pai is fun, but it’s a pretty touristy town. The main drag feels like it could belong anywhere in Thailand — the same mix of internet cafes, inauthentic Thai restaurants, and souvenir shops that you see in every small holiday town. That said, once you’re out of the town itself Pai is absolutely beautiful.
The road from Pai to Mae Hong Son was err... scenic.
Route 1095 is a real experience when you’ve got a decent bike. I doubt I could handle it on a bus — there are thousands of corners, mostly hairpins — but on a bike it’s one of the best experiences on offer in Thailand. I’ve rented bikes in northern Laos before, and while their roads are difficult to get through, they’re nowhere near as fun as north Thailand.
Stopped for lunch somewhere on the way to Mae Hong Son.
Mae Hong Son itself is really nice. It’s tiny, very scenic, and feels significantly less synthetic than Pai. I guess most backpackers leave it off their itinerary because it’s so far from Chiang Mai. If you’re up north and have access to your own transportation, it’s definitely worth a visit. I know you can fly in too, which probably isn’t too expensive. Either way, for a couple of days it’s a much more relaxing place to hang out than Pai.
I think everyone takes this photo when they're in Mae Hong Son. My camera sucks for low light stuff, so it turned out pretty bad.
Day three was spent visiting local mountains in the area. I first tried to visit Doi Pui, which looked pretty remote and untouched. Unfortunately, the road got pretty dodgy and my road-built CB400 didn’t really get too far up it. Next time I’m in north Thailand I’ll get a Honda XR and tour the dirt back roads. There’s a huge network of them, and it looks like it’s possible to go from Chiang Mai all the way to Mae Hong Son without touching tarmac for longer than 10km.
After turning back about 10km up the Doi Pui road, I ended up going to Doi Inthanon about 100km away. It’s Thailand’s tallest mountain, which isn’t exactly a huge achievement. The view from the top was awesome, and really showcased north Thailand’s Morrowind-style terrain.
This was the calmest part of the Doi Pui road. 2km upwards it turned into mud and gravel.
One of the buildings on top of Doi Inthanon.
The next few days were divided between riding back to Chiang Mai via Mae Chaem and trying to fix my semi-broken bike. The CB400 started losing all power after about 8000RPM, which for a small four cylinder bike effectively means it had very little power for climbing hills and overtaking things. It would still move, but the ride back to Chiang Mai was made a little less interesting as a result. Mr Mechanic were really cool about it, and even offered to refund some of my money (which I turned down).
All up, for a quick holiday it’s difficult to go past Mae Hong Son province. Get your own transport though, since going everywhere on a bus with a bunch of drunk backpackers isn’t the best way to travel. A little 110cc bike costs under 150 baht per day, my one was 600 baht per day, and a car can probably be found for about 1200. Either way, get your own ride and you’ll end up seeing a lot more than you would from the window of a bus.
Not the worst place to break down. On the way to Mae Chaem, north Thailand.
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31 December 2009 with no comments
I started blogging last year, and ended up killing it off after ~5 entries. My life is significantly more interesting now, largely due to me living in Asia, traveling more often and actually having a half decent job. I read a decent amount of blogs already (although significantly less than I did 6 months ago) so it makes sense to have my own.
With a bit of work I’m hoping this can become a decent resource for people looking to see what it’s to live in another country and work online, just without the bullshit self promotion that every other ‘lifestyle design’ blog seems to float by on. When you see me start writing articles on how to ‘break free’ from the corporate world with my sick eBooks, feel free to spam my comments section with whatever nasty affiliate product you want.
