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I'm currently traveling around SE Asia working on stuff. Just had a very productive week on Don Det, one of the "4000 islands" in Laos. Quiet, beautiful, not mu

by math 14y ago

I'm currently traveling around SE Asia working on stuff. Just had a very productive week on Don Det, one of the "4000 islands" in Laos. Quiet, beautiful, not much else to do there. Not stressed about money as perfectly acceptable bungalow on the river was less than $5 a day. Annoying place to get to however. General comments on doing this: I like to stay in the one spot for a while as travelling is tiring and distracting, and when you are somewhere new it takes a day or so to suss it out to get into a routine. http://backrecord.com/4000islands.jpg http://backrecord.com/4000islands.jpg

illumen 14y ago
Find a good internet connection?
dualogy 14y ago
Is Phnom Penh on your itinerary? Then holler.
- cageface 14y ago
  I'm living in Vietnam but will probably visit Cambodia again before too long. Contact info is in my profile if you want to meet for a drink or something.
  - math 14y ago
    If you're coming to phnom penh, feel free to contact me also (email in my profile). Based here. Great to meet for a drink or something.
- math 14y ago
  It's my base (I live here). Just back. Feel free to contact via email (check my profile).
saravk 14y ago
Thats pretty cool. I'm currently doing the same at Ko Phangan in Thailand spending almost the same (well, maybe a couple of dollars more per day). And i've been more productive working like this than i was at home. Btw, just curious. Does your place have a fast Wifi connection or are you using 3G internet for your work ?
- math 14y ago
  On Don Det the wireless was 3G and very dodgy. I laughed at the sign that said "Free WiFi (sometimes)"
cageface 14y ago
I've done the same thing all over SE Asia before settling down in Nha Trang in Vietnam. I tend to get more done in quiet places like this than I ever did in offices in S.F.
- TheAnimus 14y ago
  For me it was Hoi An, spent better part of a month there with my friends, about two weeks at their farthers family home, which did create a nasty 3G bill. Was able to get a small project finished ahead of my estimates, that has never happened before! However I found Chiang Mai in Thailand to be very good as well, can easily take a day out to Pai if I want something quieter, and it still has a lot of big city facilities!
  - cageface 14y ago
    Hoi An is beautiful. A little too small to be a long-term destination but I think I could easily spend a month there too. Some very nice cafés to work in. Chiang Mai is on my list but Thailand is a lot stricter about work permits + visas so you have to be careful.
    - TheAnimus 14y ago
      My friends have a small shop and their parents are the traditional small holder farming types, so I actually spent most of my time outside of Hoi An during the day in the mangrove trees. With my SLR and a Samsung Series 9 which didn't appear to mind 45°C heat. It really does change how the brain works (I'm back in London atm, longing for such things). I was of course covered head to toe in DEET. Anyone reading these things should know its not all golden! If your not working in the local economy, they really don't mind at all. The worst you'd have to do is show a bank account with some money in. The problem they face is mostly due to tourists who can't really pay their way, the amount of 'White Crime' surprised me, espesually in the smaller towns, pretty much all crime was attributed, rightly or wrongly, to tourists desperate for money. For Chiang Mai its easy to get a 6 month visa, and you can always do a run to the border with Burma to get an easy extension. I would really recommend the north of Thailand, a lot less red light, a lot more relaxed. Ultimately when I was there I was on holiday but I just didn't stop working on my UK based work, I had a couple of laptops with me. All money I earned was payed to my UK company, paying UK rate of taxes. I realise that was a bit silly, and I should have had an HK registered company, and been paying much less tax. However if your US citizen, you have less options in the matter due the whole state of been expat/nondom under US tax law, so YMMV. But no matter how you arrange it, so long as your not working in a bar they won't care at all. Even if you do work illegally I believe the bribes are very cheap anyway.
JustinJ70s 14y ago
Hmmm. Not sure I'd be able to type much without hearing Martin Sheen's Apocalypse Now voice over in my head.
dualogy 14y ago
Your jpg is 404 ;)

by math 14y ago

illumen 14y ago

Find a good internet connection?

dualogy 14y ago

Is Phnom Penh on your itinerary? Then holler.

cageface 14y ago
I'm living in Vietnam but will probably visit Cambodia again before too long. Contact info is in my profile if you want to meet for a drink or something.
- math 14y ago
  If you're coming to phnom penh, feel free to contact me also (email in my profile). Based here. Great to meet for a drink or something.
math 14y ago
It's my base (I live here). Just back. Feel free to contact via email (check my profile).

saravk 14y ago

Thats pretty cool. I'm currently doing the same at Ko Phangan in Thailand spending almost the same (well, maybe a couple of dollars more per day). And i've been more productive working like this than i was at home. Btw, just curious. Does your place have a fast Wifi connection or are you using 3G internet for your work ?

math 14y ago
On Don Det the wireless was 3G and very dodgy. I laughed at the sign that said "Free WiFi (sometimes)"

cageface 14y ago

I've done the same thing all over SE Asia before settling down in Nha Trang in Vietnam. I tend to get more done in quiet places like this than I ever did in offices in S.F.

TheAnimus 14y ago
For me it was Hoi An, spent better part of a month there with my friends, about two weeks at their farthers family home, which did create a nasty 3G bill. Was able to get a small project finished ahead of my estimates, that has never happened before! However I found Chiang Mai in Thailand to be very good as well, can easily take a day out to Pai if I want something quieter, and it still has a lot of big city facilities!
- cageface 14y ago
  Hoi An is beautiful. A little too small to be a long-term destination but I think I could easily spend a month there too. Some very nice cafés to work in. Chiang Mai is on my list but Thailand is a lot stricter about work permits + visas so you have to be careful.
  - TheAnimus 14y ago
    My friends have a small shop and their parents are the traditional small holder farming types, so I actually spent most of my time outside of Hoi An during the day in the mangrove trees. With my SLR and a Samsung Series 9 which didn't appear to mind 45°C heat. It really does change how the brain works (I'm back in London atm, longing for such things). I was of course covered head to toe in DEET. Anyone reading these things should know its not all golden! If your not working in the local economy, they really don't mind at all. The worst you'd have to do is show a bank account with some money in. The problem they face is mostly due to tourists who can't really pay their way, the amount of 'White Crime' surprised me, espesually in the smaller towns, pretty much all crime was attributed, rightly or wrongly, to tourists desperate for money. For Chiang Mai its easy to get a 6 month visa, and you can always do a run to the border with Burma to get an easy extension. I would really recommend the north of Thailand, a lot less red light, a lot more relaxed. Ultimately when I was there I was on holiday but I just didn't stop working on my UK based work, I had a couple of laptops with me. All money I earned was payed to my UK company, paying UK rate of taxes. I realise that was a bit silly, and I should have had an HK registered company, and been paying much less tax. However if your US citizen, you have less options in the matter due the whole state of been expat/nondom under US tax law, so YMMV. But no matter how you arrange it, so long as your not working in a bar they won't care at all. Even if you do work illegally I believe the bribes are very cheap anyway.

JustinJ70s 14y ago

Hmmm. Not sure I'd be able to type much without hearing Martin Sheen's Apocalypse Now voice over in my head.

dualogy 14y ago

Your jpg is 404 ;)