TheProfessionalAdventurer

Living Overseas
Where and How to Live Around the World

You decided to sell everything you own – or almost everything – and move to the Land of Smiles. Traveling light, you toss all your clothes into a duffle bag, cram your suitcase with books, DVD’s, photos, and other personal belongs. You carefully slide your laptop into your backpack and then add your camera and the rest of your gear.

One suitcase, one duffle bag, and a backpack - you have simplified your life in to three bags.-This is the trade-off for moving abroad – for the life you’ve chosen. What you cannot sell, you give away, what you cannot give away, you trash. It’s either this or pay to ship everything by container. As much as you would like to do this, it is not worth the money or the hassle. Anything that has any legitimate sentimental value you bring with you, and when your feet hit Thai soil after the long flight, you are ready to embark upon your new life.

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Traveling Overseas
How-to and Where-to Travel Around the World

“This is Burma, and it will be quite unlike any land you know about…”

Rudyard Kipling, Letters from the East (1898)

As Kipling noted, Burma is a rare country in every sense of the word. A journey to the country is akin to traveling in a time machine, transporting the voyager from the new world to the old; to a land time forgot. Alas, the country Kipling knew and loved, Burma, has been transformed, and not for the better. The country, now referred to as Myanmar, has gotten a great deal of press lately, unfortunately for all the wrong reasons.

If writing about the country, it is impossible to do so without addressing the reasons why Burma has received so much negative press. If you plan to visit the country, you will travel upon this backdrop.

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Society and Culture
When in Rome…

Thai women are renowned the world over for their beauty, grace, femininity, and sexuality. They have that certain something that makes them alluring to men and their diminutive stature makes them doll like, while at the same time, womanly.

If you are interested in meeting regular Thai women though, where and how do you go about it? When I say regular Thai women, I am referring to those who have a profession outside of the tourist entertainment industry. This means office worker, nurse, grocery clerk, doctor, lawyer, etc.

There is a degree of difficulty in getting a “nice” Thai woman to go out with you. For most Thai women, dating a foreigner comes attached with the stigma of other Thais believing your date is a prostitute. This alone is enough to put some women off the task.

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Traveling Overseas
How-to and Where-to Travel Around the World

The Intercontinental City Stars Cairo is a hotel situated in the Cairo City Stars complex, which consists of two hotels, an office tower, and the City Centre shopping center. With almost 800 rooms and suites, five restaurants, casino, health club, business center, wireless network and ballroom with the capacity to seat over 2,000 people, it is the largest and most advanced Intercontinental hotel in the world. Located in Heliopolis, it is not as convenient to downtown as the Intercontinental Semiramis, but is still within easy reach of all the major attractions as long as one plans for the horrific Cairo traffic.

I arrived in Cairo in the early afternoon and made the brief journey from Cairo International Airport to the Intercontinental. For security reasons, all cars must stop before winding their way up to the lobby area, but it is typically only a brief stop just to allow a dog to sniff the trunk and around the vehicle.

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Traveling Overseas
How-to and Where-to Travel Around the World

This is an older story – but one of our favorites from a trip to Cambodia back before it was a “mainstream” travel destination. We have heard that the boats running from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap are not as regular anymore and sometimes stop completely. But if you are ever in Cambodia when they are running, RUN to the docks and buy a ticket.

Fast, Soviet/French (same difference) style Hydrofoils make the journey from Phnom Penh across the Tonle Sap Lake. Asking price for a “foreigner” ticket is typically $20-$25, $15 is a good price to pay.

Your hotel can make the boat trip arrangements for you (and pick up/deliver the ticket for you). You will get on a brand new squeaky clean boat for the first 20 minutes, after that you will be transferred to a much older and dirtier boat (the clean ones are a trick….lol).

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Flashpacking
On the Road Doesn’t Mean Unplugged
Gadgets, Laptops and Technology for Independent Travelers and Expats

I have always hated having to pull out my Nokia N90 and click through a bunch of buttons then scan for WiFi or whipping out my laptop and booting it up just to find out that… well, no WiFi.

So I decided to pick up a keychain WiFi Locater, I usually don’t like “this only does one thing” type of electronics but after looking at several online I decided on the Kensington WiFi Finder Plus because if its size and the quality of Kensington products (actually I couldn’t find another name brand WiFi Locator).

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Reports From the Road
Worldwide Dispatches From Independent Travelers on The Road

I have to differ with James in the “Fishing in Pattaya” article (I am one of the “buddies” he mentions). James says that “if you have been to one beach tourist town in Southeast Asia, you have pretty much seen them all”. Now I’m not calling my dear buddy a liar, Far from it. James is one of the most straight-forward guys I know; as a matter of fact he can be candid to the point of awkwardness sometimes. What I am saying is that James has seen and done a lot more than your average traveler. Same things that get us normal guys off don’t seem to lift an eyebrow on James. I am not as experienced a traveler as James is, but I’ve seen my fair share of places. I’d have to say that seeing Pattaya was something I will never forget without the aid of some serious brain trauma. After the trip there, I said to James that this place should be required travel to any male past the age of puberty.

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Packs and Bags
Backpacks, bags, Luggage, Pouches…

Oh the irony! A short time ago I had posted online some photos from a trip I’d taken to Peru and Mr. Grey proceeded into chiding me about my Maxpedition Jumbo Versapack that I had slung on me. I weathered his slings and arrows knowing in my heart that despite what he said, owning one did make me a *tough guy* and it wasn’t the other way around!

Being the upright guy that he is, his decision the have me write a brief review of the “Jumbo Versapack” is the right thing to do for all you professional adventurers.

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Cost of Living Index
Our Regular Feature on Cost of Living in
Different Countries and City’s Around the World

If you are thinking of moving to Bangkok, it is entirely possible to live to live better than back home – for less. The key is to live like a local, albeit a middle class local.

There is an abundance of cheap apartments available, plus you can always find delicious, filling meals for less than a dollar, and there is no shortage of fun in the Land of Smiles.

I make ends meet by exporting goods from Thailand to the U.S., writing, and from sports and wildlife photography. If you can manage your expenses properly, you can work less and have more fun while still being able to splurge occasionally.

To get an idea of the Thailand’s cost of living, take a glimpse at these figures (in U.S. dollars):

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