Accommodation Cost on Koh Tao Accommodation cost on Koh Tao will depend on what is available and what kind of luxuries you need. The cheapest per night rate you can find is about 400 baht (excluding dorms). If you are planning to stay longer, there are quite a lot of “long term” accommodation options available. They are usually charged to you on a monthly basis. The basic accommodation in the form of a bungalow starts from about 7000 baht per month which will most likely have a cold water shower and fan only. If you would like a hot water shower, air conditioning and a fridge, you would be looking…
-
-
How To Use A Bum Gun (Butt Spray) in South East Asia
After eight months in South-East Asia it was inevitable that we would end up using that weird hose sitting behind the toilet in every public and private bathroom. Initially, I didn’t fully grasp the concept of spraying your butt hole, rather than wiping the butt hole (I blame my parents and Western society for leading me down the wrong path), but now having used the butt spray on more than several occasions, I completely understand the notion of showering your arsehole
-
Bangkok to Koh Tao by Bus and Ferry
Despite the many confusing ideas TripAdvisor might put in your head, the cheapest way to get from Bangkok to Koh Tao is using the Lomprayah service. The ticket costs 1050baht per person and includes the bus and high speed ferry.
-
Bangkok Anti-Government Protests
Not sure what happened, but when we were in Bangkok over two weeks ago, there were barricades, razor barbed wire, concrete slabs blocking streets and riot police around the Government House. It was fairly quiet and peaceful though. Now there’s definitely something brewing. We noticed something was different a few days ago when our usual No. 16 bus that would take us to Siam Square from the guesthouse in Dusit just stopped turning up. We waited at the bus stop for nearly two hours before we decided to take a different bus. Turns out our usual bus route has been redirected due to the blocked streets around the Government house!…
-
How To Say Hello in Laos and our First Impressions of Pakse
Laos is such a chilled out place. It is still relatively friendly as it is a new tourist destination. Not as intense with as Vietnam or Thailand. It’s worth learning how to say hello in Laos, or thank you, as it’s something small that the locals will really appreciate. It’s very handy and it’s always nice to wave and stop to say hello to the locals who are just as intrigued with you as you are with them! How do you say Hello in Laos? Sa Bai Di The easiest way to say hello in Laos is to sound it out slowly. Literally read what is written. Sah. Bye. D. How…
-
Bangkok to Vientiane by Night Train
We decided to go from Bangkok to Vientiane using the night train which would leave at 8pm, arriving in Nong Khai at 7.30am. You can’t actually buy a direct ticket from Bangers to Vientiane, so you’ll need to go through Nong Khai. Nong Khai is the border town on the Thai side. We took the local bus No. 53 from Samsen St to the train station and bought our tickets the day before. The train station was old but still grand, as all interstate train stations are, and we were approached twice by helpful women with official lanyards around their necks eager to help us. Trust these women as they…
-
Golden Triangle Northern Thailand Motorbike Loop
The rural north of Vietnam was spectacular, so we didn’t hesitate to explore the northern most region in Thailand. Our base for this loop was Chiang Rai. I recommend ST Rental for a motorbike. They have serious bikes too. I was batting eyelids at an all matte army green 250cc Honda off-road bike, but at 1000baht per day, that would leave nothing of our budget for food and other essentials. Maybe another time. Anyway, we got a Honda Wave S 125, which seemed to have lost a few cc in its many years of service. We packed one green bag plus the small dry bag and set off, dodging the…
-
Off The Grid In Northern Thailand
There’s a reason why the blog has been quiet. We have been heading further north from Chiang Mai after saying goodbye to our friends Scott and Sarah. It is a very special little world up here. Sometimes we go days without spotting another tourist or meeting anyone that speaks English. We order food and bargain room rates by pointing at things and using our little Thai which consists of numbers and “thank you”. The people here are very honest, open and most welcoming. Most places require a bike to get around and it’s best not to expect or research and just go. It is a great adventure. So here’s a…
-
1864 Corners In North-West Thailand
The Mae Hong Son loop in north-west Thailand is known for its many bends. It is claimed there are 1864 of them. In Mae Hong Son itself there is a shop dedicated to 1864 branded souvenirs! I didn’t count them, however I can confirm that there are many, many corners. Some are very sharp and steep. Unfortunately, the benefit of less tourists during the low season means that we got caught in the rain every riding day. Here is how we broke up the ride. Day 1 – Chiang Mai to Mae Sariang The roads are very good during this leg. The main danger being the first half of highway…
-
Data Management – Photo Backup While Traveling
When we set off on our several months long trip to south-east Asia, I always expected us to take A LOT of photos. I had heard horror stories of people that lose or have their SD cards stolen during the last week of traveling, loosing all of their photos. This was not a risk I was willing to take, so I planned for some redundancy. After just over 5 months, naturally the megabytes are mounting up and we are getting low storage warnings on our TF700 Asus tablet, Emma’s iPhone and sometimes even the camera’s SD cards. In total that is 16GB (iPhone), 64GB (tablet) and 64GB (2x 32GB SD…
