LivingIF | Living to Never Wonder "What If?"

He Said/She Said: If I Ran The North Face

thinkCHUA — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 11:14:44 +0000

Recently we were asked by a fellow traveler if we were sponsored by The North Face, I laughed and said no, I wish (hint: North Face, most of what we carry you made…and is wearing out…if you could help us out…). But if we do have some recommendations for you, or any gear maker that’s listening, to make your stuff more travel friendly.

HE SAID…

The North Face and several other companies focus on outdoors goods, but also make travel gear, the reality is that for many people these aren’t separate categories. As outdoors companies realized that athletics gear and outdoors gear intersect, so does travel. This is an area that there are many simple changes people could make and make a huge impact.

Compressible hiking boots. What takes up the most space in our Base Camp Duffel? Our hiking boots. They are necessary to keep our feet dry and ankles straight, as much as I want to travel with our trail runners, it just isn’t possible boots are required on many hikes. We could buy cheap boots as needed, though when your feet are your transport, quality is worth it, but the weight and size is a bitch. With newer, lightweight materials, such as those in the latest Gore-Tex trail runners, plus some strong, fold-able, sides and you’d have my business.
Wicking formal wear. I love my wicking t-shirts, I have a wide array of North Face, Nike and REI shirts, in fact, I own very few non-wicking shirts these days, but at the end of the day, when I need to look a little more classy, there are few acceptable options. Look, I don’t care to look like I’m camping…even when I am camping. I don’t want lumberjack plaid, printed patterns or giant logos, I want something that can handle the heat, hike, and a nice restaurant. I don’t have the space to pack for separate occasions, just make some things that will won’t get me bounced from a fancy place.
Packing bags. The Pack-IT system by Eagle Creek is doing a great job for professionals, but athletes, outdoors-men, and your Average Joe don’t have such standardized items to pack. We carry electronics (need padding), sharp items and things that need waterproofing. Currently we have a mixed bag of products from Eagle Creek, SeaLine, Sea to Summit, Ziploc, and others. Having seen inside hundreds of travelers packs, I can see there is a huge unmet market need for this. Just meet up with me, I’ll show you the problems we and our fellow travelers have. To steal/modify a phrase from computing, the problems of long-term travelers today are the future problems of the mass market tomorrow.

SHE SAID…

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After being on the road for 14 straight months I consider myself an expert of sorts in travel gear. I know what works and what features I want in each piece of clothing, bag and shoe I use. Unfortunately, I find all too often that my wants are not met.

Is it too much to ask for my bag to carry itself? For my hiking boots to have jet propulsion? Or for our iPhone to set off an alarm when a pickpocket is eyeing up my cash stash? Okay, maybe that’s asking a lot, but realistically I don’t think it’s expecting too much for my pants to have pockets and for my bags to have interior organization compartments. It is astonishingly difficult to come across women’s clothing in particular that has zipper pockets…really?

The lack of obviously useful travel features that are seemingly impossible to find is downright upsetting. Here is a short list of simple features that would improve the usefulness of my gear:

Internal pockets. everything is better with pockets, I understand they add weight, but I just want a small one sewn into the inside seam of the waist band of my pants or the inside of my jacket. I want a pocket that is relatively easy for me to access but damn difficult for anyone else to get their fingers on without first asking me on a date and buying me dinner.
Waterproofing: I want my bags to have at least one waterproof pocket, for say my passport or my camera. So if I get caught in the rain I have one safe haven for my precious items and don’t have to fret if I forgot my rain cover.
Extra fabric: why is it that all the shirts I buy come with an extra button, but never an extra scrap of fabric for a quick repair? Or how about the fact that formal wear such as tuxedos come with extra fabric, but not my camping pants. Let’s discuss how likely it is that my tuxedo/cocktail dress get a tear at a cocktail party versus my camping pants getting a tear on a glacier in New Zealand? How great would it be if your travel clothes came with a small piece of extra fabric sewn into the seam that I could cut off and use to repair a hole-brilliant!

I understand when people say that travel is a lot of work, there are so many things to keep track of, but if you didn’t have to worry about your passport going for a swim, or your money falling out of a non-zipper pocket it would make things so much easier. I’m still holding out for a backpack with a built in flight-pack, but until then I will settle for zipper pockets in my shorts.

He Said/She Said: If I Ran The North Face | LivingIF | Living to Never Wonder "What If?" | By: thinkCHUA

Brunei, Asia Unexpected

LOCAVORista — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 11:51:46 +0000

It’s that way, I said with an air of confidence reserved for those moments where you’re so sure you can’t wait to say “I told you so” later. thinkCHUA grabbed the map, turned it right side up and insisted that the bus we needed surely was the opposite direction, I insisted it wasn’t. In the midst of our heated debate a lovely French woman walked up and asked where we were trying to go. We answered simultaneously, our tongue’s tripping over the unfamiliar words and she immediately knew the mosque we were talking about and offered us a ride.

The most well known mosque in Brunei The Omar Ali Saifuddien Mosque reflecting the moat, accentuating the glittering dome, covered in real gold.

Debate aside we happily accepted her offer and as we started heading towards her car she said “there’s a catch…” There always is I thought to myself, but found she simply wanted our feedback on a tourist brochure she was doing some work on. We ended up chatting with her about Brunei and how she ended up there. Like most expats her husband is in the lucrative oil industry that makes Brunei one of the richest countries in the world.

The stained glass detail of Jame' Asr Hassanil Bolkiah Mosque an example of Brunei's opulence

She filled us in on the slow pace of doing business, or anything for that matter, in Brunei as well as how quiet and relaxing it is. I imagine, especially in contrast to war-torn Libya, the country her family had just fled from. She dropped us at Jame’ Asr Hassanil Bolkiah Mosque, the whole way regaling us with stories of her time abroad. She was so excited for our trip and how she hopes her boys will travel the world and expand their horizons.

The beautiful Jame' Asr Hassanil Bolkiah Mosque

Not knowing what to expect during our time in Brunei we were pleasantly surprised to find helpful expats, quiet streets, delicious food and welcoming locals. Brunei totes itself as an undiscovered oasis in the sea of over-populated Asia. The tourist brochure encourages visitors to slow down and take a break from the mass tourism of nearby cities such as Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. Let me assure you even with all the money Brunei’s tourism board has, I’m not getting a penny to tell you that they are right.

A doorway to the less visited mosques of the less-crowded country of Brunei

Brunei is a beautiful little country tucked in the northern part of Borneo wedged between the Malaysian states of Sarawak and Sabah. While we only spent a couple days in the capital of Bandar Seri Begawan we hope to do more exploring in the future not only in the hopes of meeting more amazing French women, but due to it’s virgin rain forests and stunning mosques. If you are looking for a luxurious respite from home in Asia, I would highly recommend looking into the benefits of a holiday in Brunei.

Brunei, Asia Unexpected | LivingIF | Living to Never Wonder "What If?" | By: LOCAVORista

Snapshot Sunday: Petronas Towers

LOCAVORista — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 11:59:08 +0000

The stunning Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia designed by architect Cesar Pelli.

If you would like to see more of our photos, please visit our Photo Galleries for our images from around the world.

Snapshot Sunday: Petronas Towers | LivingIF | Living to Never Wonder "What If?" | By: LOCAVORista

He Said/She Said: Bucket Lists

thinkCHUA — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 11:14:21 +0000

Listing the things to do before you die is a popular theme. Bookstores are filled with books of places to go, food to eat, and things to die before you kick the proverbial bucket. Several times on this trip other travelers have referenced bucket lists and our travels. Here’s how we see it.

HE SAID…

Whatever I have not done by the day I die I won’t do. As for getting things done, if I died today I wouldn’t worry that I had missed out, not taken advantage of opportunities as they came or regret the things I haven’t done. Therefore I see no need for the so-called bucket list, having one would cause me to miss out on the spontaneity of life.

The reality is that I haven’t lived everyday to it’s fullest, I have wasted much of my time on earth. For example when my friends told me to watch Lost, I watched the first two seasons straight through. I don’t regret a moment of those days spent eating leftovers in underwear. Even after my eyes burned and I never figured out why there was a polar bear in the tropics or why the people couldn’t settle in and enjoy lives like Leonardo DiCaprio in the Beach, I felt good. If I had a bucket list I might have forced myself to do something “productive” or “goal orientated” instead of imagine what dating Kate would be like (great)…good thing I didn’t have a life to-do list staring me down.

Maybe it’s because I’ve taken to heart the idea that if you don’t have expectations you won’t be let down. Maybe it’s because I’m on a trip around the world. Or, maybe because my life’s inertia pushes me forward that I do enough without a bucket list. I honestly think that’s not it though, I think that I don’t believe in bucket lists because I think life should be lived following your passions, doing the things that you want, and if you are you don’t need a list, you can be happy. I don’t want to have to refer to a list to make plans, I don’t want to look down at a every growing list and feel bad; rather I’d just keep living as best I can, day-by-day.

SHE SAID…

Don’t get killed in the Running of the Bulls…attend Carnival in Brazil…walk on The Great Wall of China…eat fresh sushi in Japan, these are the dreams that fueled this trip. If I had never spent time jotting notes in the margins of my work memos I might not have ever gone on this trip (alright, I’m lying…), not due to lack of motivation, but rather it kept me focused. Knowing what it is you want to do before you “kick the bucket” is a great way to also give you a “kick in the pants.”

As a right brain person lists typically don’t interest me, but a bucket list is one I can get behind because it’s putting dreams to paper. It is a constant reminder of what I want to do in life, things I want to achieve, places I want to see and festivals I hope to attend. Without this list the chances of me remembering the myriad of travel adventures I hope to go on some day would be lost in the abyss of my brain.

If I don’t make every one of the bullet points on my bucket list a reality I won’t be upset, but I also can’t ever be accused of not dreaming big. My bucket list has also served as a remedy for my wanderlust on many occasions, if it’s written down somehow the chances of it happening is exponentially higher. I see a bucket list as a cheaper alternative to having an elephant as a pet in order to remember all the things that have tickled my fancy over the years. Without having it written down the chances of me remembering the odd festival in the Shetland Islands that I don’t want to miss is very slim.

Unlike Jack Nicholson, I don’t foresee turning to my bucket list after being diagnosed with cancer and leaving everything behind to check off every item on my list. Because as much as I want to see the Great Pyramids in Egypt that experience will never replace quality time with family or enjoying priceless moments with other loved ones. I also imagine that on my death bed I will be happier to have lived life on my terms, spontaneously pursuing my passions instead of being beholden to an old list of things I once hoped to do before I could even legally drink, but it’s still cheaper than a pet elephant.

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He Said/She Said: Bucket Lists | LivingIF | Living to Never Wonder "What If?" | By: thinkCHUA

Don’t Budget for Long-Term Travel

thinkCHUA — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 11:34:32 +0000

This is Part II of our Dollars and Sense Year 1 Review. Part I, our review of how much we spent in 12 months of travel can be found here.

When a traveler steps on the plane for a trip it isn’t the beginning, rather a step in a process that began long before. Much of the trip is already past, getting to the point of leaving was a result of dreaming, planning, and saving. Any travel that requires you to quit your job, long-term travel, shouldn’t be this way. Long-term travel is best left unplanned.

Travel can be one of life’s great teachers. According to researchers, among the benefits of travel, the ability to look at your life from an outside perspective is the most important (Frontal Cortex). Long-term travel provides an even better opportunity to do this than a vacation (CNN), the longer you are away the more mindful you are at different ways of approaching problems, noticing opportunities, and discovering your strengths.

Prior to leaving in 2010 we had no idea we would go to North Korea, let alone see the world’s largest musical, 100,000 comrades strong.

While stuck in the bubble of home, the familiar becomes the default. We choose jobs that are in familiar industries or with familiar people; we go to familiar places and see familiar scenes. Getting out of your comfort zone, seeing how other people live and doing new things opens our minds, therein providing us an opportunity to learn and grow. Long-term travel is a rare opportunity to see your own life from an outside perspective and discover more fulfilling options for your future than the status quo.

Most people set off on long-term travel consciously and unconsciously for the reasons above, yet the planning crushes the spirit of travel into tactical decisions of dollars, cents and days. Aspirations drift ideas of personal growth to decisions about maximizing dollars and crossing things off bucket lists. Instead of choosing the adventure along the way, taking time to smell the flowers and seizing opportunities as they come, non-refundable airlines tickets become our overlord. Our habit of making lists and checking things off eases our anxieties, but cheapens the trip. Travel should be about the richness of experience, not the completeness of itinerary.

Had we booked flights beforehand we would have missed the chance to crash our best friends’ honeymoon and enjoy New Years Eve from their posh Sydney flat.

Open-ended travel provides the traveler an alternative, it allows people to gain the insights of travel, foster new friendships over months and learn skills that may provide lasting income. Open-ended travel begins with a rough itinerary, very few must-sees, some “I’d like to see”, and dreams to see and experience what is yet unknown. Open-ended travel is as much about a one-way ticket as it is about a mindset to follow one’s heart in the moment, to take opportunities as they come, and willingness to make mistakes with time and money. Traveling this way creates risks as well as opportunities, you just may not make it to some places, but you’ll be rewarded with the joy of travel, excitement and adventure.

In 2010 when we set off on this trip we each had a few must-sees. I wanted to see the Pyramids and LOCAVORista wanted to hike in the Himalayas, but nothing that was required visiting. We made our trip as we’ve gone and have seen more in the last year than we thought we would on the trip. We’ve had epiphanies on what we want to do in the future, things that wouldn’t have crossed our minds if we had been scheduled into motion. We’ve been able to make and nurture friendships across continents, yet live within our means. Our only limiter was money, we knew how much we wanted to spend at the end of the trip and decided that the end date would be when the money ran out, not the clock.

Having met Alinor (second from the left) on our unplanned trip to Myanmar, we didn’t expect to run into her on the streets of Tasmania, yet it provided one of the best nights of the trip.

We proved to ourselves that we could plan and budget before the trip, making it to our departure date was a triumph of these skills. Making sacrifices such as staying in and forgoing fun but expensive social activities made our money go farther before the trip as it has during. Planning the logistics of moving was enough to demonstrate to us that we can make do as needed. We needn’t further refine these skills while on the road, rather we chose to focus on the experience, day-by-day, eyes wide open for new places, people and ways of living.

Looking back I wouldn’t do it another way. I wouldn’t constrain us to a daily budget as skipping a $200 experience that we want to do isn’t worth the $2000 airfare to return at some future point. I don’t want to have flights booked more than a couple months in advance, thereby limiting our time in any one place. I wouldn’t want to have a list of places to go because it would have meant we wouldn’t have visited Japan, North Korea and Myanmar last year, all of which were highlights for very different reasons. It was because we lacked a rigid budget and schedule that we have been able to experience the world as we have, learned about ourselves and our relationship, and made lifelong friends.

Don’t Budget for Long-Term Travel | LivingIF | Living to Never Wonder "What If?" | By: thinkCHUA

Snapshot Sunday: Victoria Spiral

LOCAVORista — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 11:55:27 +0000

The spiral staircase in the Victoria Building, Sydney, Australia

If you would like to see more of our photos, please visit our Photo Galleries for our images from around the world.

Snapshot Sunday: Victoria Spiral | LivingIF | Living to Never Wonder "What If?" | By: LOCAVORista

All Souls Ceremony

LOCAVORista — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:21:07 +0000

I gotta figure after this trip that my afterlife will be pretty plush with all the strides I have made to reconcile things here on Earth. Thus far on the trip I have brought all 32 of my wandering souls back together in Laos, gotten closer to enlightenment by walking in circles in Tibet and cleansed myself in the annual Songkran festival in Bangkok. But, considering I have lived my life from the belief that “only the good die young…” it never hurts to participate in another ceremony that might redeem me enough to help out on judgement day.

The smoke-filled scene of the cemetery in Sagada on All Souls Day

Lucky for me I had just the opportunity I was looking for in the Philippines by honoring the dead on All Souls Day. While in many countries, All Saints Day is a solemn holiday to remember those that have passed on, in the Philippines it’s a day of festivities. November first marks the beginning of the Filipino “Araw ng mgba Patay,” the celebration of the Day of the Dead and the fete continues through the next day, All Souls Day.

A family gravestone with a fire burning bright in front

All Saints Day and All Souls Day are traditional catholic holidays to commemorate the saints and souls of the deceased. The holiday remains an important religious day for the catholic church. However some of the more secular aspects are celebrated by the non-catholic community, such as the practice of turning the entire cemetery into a huge bonfire party. Let me tell you if this is how Filipinos celebrate the dead I can only imagine the party for those still living! Large groups of family and friends spend the day, sometimes even the whole night, eating, drinking and holding reunions at the graves of their loved ones while stoking the fire.

A man tends to the fire at his loved one's grave

The plume of smoke over the cemetery in Sagada created a surreal effect making it difficult to distinguish between those paying their respects to the dearly departed and those celebrating their life with a drink. The atmosphere shifted from Halloween-like shenanigans to deeply spiritual as I made my way through the masses of people and dodged tombstones. It was like nothing I had ever experienced before. One moment I might be witnessing an intimate moment amongst family members as they remembered their deceased loved one and then next moment I could be handed a beer to toast that persons’ many years on Earth.

Two children squatting by the head stones of those that have passed on.

In many ways the fiery party embodied my vision of the perfect funeral, one where there is time for reflection, storytelling and the recounting of good times as well as all the makings for properly celebrating a life well lived. If you ever find yourself in the Philippines for this unique holiday I encourage you to head to the nearest cemetery and join the festivities. Regardless of your religious affiliations you will most certainly leave with a higher appreciation of life.

All Souls Ceremony | LivingIF | Living to Never Wonder "What If?" | By: LOCAVORista

He Said/She Said: Paying the Trolls

thinkCHUA — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 11:54:57 +0000

While hiking in developing countries tourists will often encounter toll collectors charging for bridge crossings or to continue on the trail. All too often these are unofficial toll takers who charge merely for their presence, discerning the legitimate from the enterprising toll taker is difficult and often causes many uncomfortable situations. When you encounter a troll should you pay?

HE SAID…

I’ll be the first to admit: it’s hard to tell if a person collecting money on a trail has any right to. It is very possible that the vast majority of these trolls are just enterprising locals that realize tourists will hand them money for standing there. Even worse, when you see locals walking by without paying you’d be superhuman if your blood didn’t boil. Though I put up resistance, I almost always pay.

Judging the legitimacy of trolls is impossible. While I would love it if all trails and bridges featured government issued signs, people in uniforms, and E-Z-Pass lanes, in less organized countries this isn’t possible. The reality on the ground is that these trails and bridges exist, usually in good condition because of, not in spite of, the locals that do the work. There isn’t a national park service or Halliburton contractors building bamboo bridges in Laos or laying rocks in China. The reason people are coming to visit these places are because of the local’s work, work for which they deserve to get paid for.

Is it possible that the person collecting the money didn’t do the work? Absolutely, but does a highway tollbooth employee in the US build the road? No. Is it possible that the money collected isn’t shared among everyone that helped out? Probably. But, does the collection of money spur additional work, maintenance and improvement of the very thing that brought you to a place? Hopefully.

It annoys me when I pay a fee and a path is straddled with litter or in disrepair. I feel this way in the US as well, why do we pay road taxes when there are more potholes than pavement? Comfortable hiking, no matter where, requires work, care and money, who we pay that money to doesn’t matter as much as the fact that the trail exists, protects the natural environment and is maintained. Paying $2 to a woman in China is still a lot easier than paying $240 to do a “Great Walk” in New Zealand.

SHE SAID…

thinkCHUA has pointed this out before and I admit it, I’m cheap. If I can save money I do. We have taken many a long bus rides and skipped several taxis in favor of carrying our bags just to save a few bucks. So, it really gets under my skin when there is an enterprising local charging me what appears to be an arbitrary fee just for tourists. While I might be all about well maintained paths and bridges that won’t send me plunging into the river below it’s hard to pay these “trail trolls”.

Just like the tuk tuk drivers in Thailand that take you to the wrong border crossing in hopes of getting the best of you, it is hard for me to determine who is “the real deal”. Because it is so hard to determine the real trolls from the fake ones, I shy away from handing over the cash too quickly. There’s nothing that gets my blood boiling more than being taken advantage of, even though I know it’s inevitable.

This is one of those situations where thinkCHUA really balances me out, by pointing out how important it is to support local entrepreneurs. Even if they didn’t necessarily do the work they are aware enough of the situation to take advantage and in some ways that should be rewarded. I also always have to put in perspective how much more fortunate I am than the people that are collecting these fees to support their family.

Ultimately, whether I agree with paying the fees or not we end up forking over the cash. So, while I may want to save money, I know I’m in a position where giving over a few dollars to a “trail troll” won’t break my travel budget. However, those few dollars will make a huge difference for the people willing to guard the track or bridge to collect my money. Sometimes the most important thing travel provides is perspective, which we have both learned several times over this past year.

He Said/She Said: Paying the Trolls | LivingIF | Living to Never Wonder "What If?" | By: thinkCHUA

A Year in Asia: Dollars and Sense

thinkCHUA — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 11:57:56 +0000

Stay tuned for next week’s Part II of our Dollars and Sense Year 1 Review: Why Budgeting for Long-Term Travel is Stupid.

As we visited 109 cities in 15 Asian countries, we wondered: how much is this costing us? $36,524. $3,045/month. $100.09/day. Overall, in costs, places and experiences we went above and beyond expectations.

This took two of us to the eastern half of Asia minus Mongolia and Russia, a total of 15 countries and 109 cities. Admittedly we did too much, moved too fast, and spared very few expenses when it came to sightseeing. Conversely, we saved massive amounts by staying in hostels and preferring street food, but opened our wallets on 18 flights, mostly involving literal or political islands (North Korea, South Korea, and Myanmar, which have closed land borders). We did not use any reward points, miles or other “travel hacking” methods; we paid cash for everything we did.

WHERE WE WENT

As you can see North Korea and Tibet were our most expensive “trips”, costing us almost $6500 for 15 days of travel. These were highlights of the year and we do not regret a cent we spent on these trips. Note that we separated Tibet from China as it would have substantially skewed our China travel costs.

The costs for Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan costs are artificially low due to free lodging through Couchsurfing, family and friends. For more information on the per country costs see “Behind the Country Numbers” at the bottom of this page.

COST BREAKDOWN

By far the largest expense was transportation (airfare and ground transportation), a whopping 31% of our spending. Of course, without transportation there would be no travel, so it’s a necessary evil.

We took 18 flights during the year, at an average cost of $211 per flight, per person. While many travelers have been brainwashed into thinking that airline miles and reward points are the only way to travel, the costs demonstrate otherwise. Simply put, flying discount airlines makes travel easier and more flexible at a negligible cost. Discount airlines neither requires scheduling months in advance to get a seat nor using a hub-and-spoke model sending you on unnecessary flights; discount airlines allow you to book a week in advance and fly direct, often for $100 per flight (learn how we save money booking flights). We would not have been able to travel to the places we did, travel when we wanted, or enjoy the amazing experiences we did if we hadn’t bought tickets as we needed them.

OTHER NOTES

“Gear” was another anomaly that is probably not typical of other travelers. The majority of this cost was new camera lenses ($2100) and travel/medical insurance ($1400).

“Entertainment” is the cost for nights out, it can be translated into beer.

2011 MONEY REFLECTIONS

Overall we’re happy with what we spent. Taking out North Korea, Tibet and gear, our per day cost was inline with what we had “hoped” to spend. The reality though is we didn’t have a set budget, we weren’t attempting to maintain daily spending limits; we focused on doing what we wanted, having once-in-a-lifetime experiences, and taking opportunities as they arose.

While I would love to believe that the best things in life are free or our experiences are priceless, the reality is that travel isn’t free. Without even addressing the lost wages from skipping a year of work, the costs are real. The key lesson from last year: experiences are way more valuable than expenditures. We made the most of our year by focusing on our wealth of time and the fact that the cost of returning to do something dwarfs the cost of doing it while you’re there.

I’ll expand on the true value of our last year and the benefits of traveling without a budget next week in Dollars and Sense Year 1 Review: Why Budgeting for Long-Term Travel is Stupid.

BEHIND COUNTRY THE NUMBERS

Visitors to Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan should expect to spend more than we did. Most of the nights in these countries we Couchsurfed, thereby saving accommodation costs which ran $30-50/day for hostel dorm rooms, or up to $100/day for private rooms. Couchsurfing made the experience of visiting these countries much richer (read about our Couchsurfing Experiences).

Singapore is not the cheapest place to visit in Asia! It was our “cheapest” country because we stayed with family, ate with family, and were taken care of by our aunties, uncles and cousins. If we actually paid for meals and lodging of the quality we enjoyed we would have probably spent at least $400/day.

In Hong Kong we were hosted by a friend, but the savings we may have enjoyed due to free lodging was spent on enjoying the nightlife.

The Philippines and Cambodia suffered from transportation costs. In Cambodia we toured the country by motorcycle, which cost more than taking buses. The Philippines required flights between islands and a short time (3 weeks), if we had stayed longer the flight costs would have been spread over more days, thereby reducing the per day cost.

A Year in Asia: Dollars and Sense | LivingIF | Living to Never Wonder "What If?" | By: thinkCHUA

Snapshot Sunday: Kota Belud Market

LOCAVORista — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 11:58:28 +0000

A vendor at the Sunday Market in Kota Belud, Borneo Malaysia. It is the largest market on the whole island of Borneo.

If you would like to see more of our photos, please visit our Photo Galleries for our images from around the world.

Snapshot Sunday: Kota Belud Market | LivingIF | Living to Never Wonder "What If?" | By: LOCAVORista

LivingIF | Living to Never Wonder "What If?"

He Said/She Said: If I Ran The North Face

HE SAID…

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Don’t Budget for Long-Term Travel

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He Said/She Said: Paying the Trolls

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COST BREAKDOWN

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