nomad4ever

On a recent short trip to Vietnam I had the chance to explore the country anew, after having not visited for over 7 years. The Vietnam Lunar Festival Tết Nguyên Đán was just in its last few days, when I touched down in Ho Chi Minh or Saigon.

Over the course of almost 2 weeks I commuted between Saigon and Vung Tau, a beach holiday destination just 125 km south of Vietnam’s largest city.

The overall experience was quite positive, it’s surprisingly easy to get around and make the most of your trip. Vietnam is quickly becoming a modern Asian country, after having suffered so much just a few decades ago.

written by Chris

When things like this happen, it makes me feel that it’s all worth to maintain a website like this over the period of now more than 6 years.

This May, GQ China interviewed half a dozen Bali and Phuket Expats for a July Special Print Issue about people who left the city life behind. It seems more and more Chinese are overwhelmed by their work and life pressure and looking for alternative lifestyles.

So in a 4-hour interview and photo session which took part in the Four Season Hotel in Jimbaran and also Uluwatu temple, I was ‘interrogated’ about how I came to live the life I’ve been living the last 5 years. Here is what came out of it:

written by Chris

The modern working climate is unforgiving. In its never-ending strive for higher productivity and efficiency, employees are a mere cost factor in a firm’s calculation.

A cost factor, that constantly has to be optimized, downsized and monitored for return on investment; restructured and adjusted to fit the firm’s strategies and policies.

What happened to the human factor? To Work-Life-Balance?

Come on – don’t kid yourself! If you don’t watch out for that, nobody else will.

Here is the latest fairy tale from the corporate world, which might just prove that point:

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written by Chris

In spite of the recent Immigration Experience at Denpasar Airport by 2 female travelers from the Philippines, I was wondering, what your opinion might be about Racial Profiling at airports.

Currently a story is making waves on Blogs and Facebook, how 2 Filipina were allegedly obtained, held and questioned for 1.5 hours upon immigration without initial suspicion, or justification – obviously simply because they were traveling to Bali being Citizens of the Republic of the Philippines.

The debate, if their treatment was justified, is heated and sparked plenty of controversy so far. Here is what happened:

written by Chris

In a recent development that may seem like a two-sided sword, 2 of the most famous and notorious American Fast Food Giants make inroads by coming to Bali.

While that would certainly mean more options for fast food and pizza lovers, some might argue also that the original character of Bali might get spoiled even more.

The island is pretty much splattered with foreign franchises already, especially in the over-developed South, where Burger Joints and American(-ized) Fast Food Franchises like McDonalds, A&W, Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts or KFC are operating outlets in abundance:

written by Chris

The Philippines and Indonesia are 2 of the favorite travel destinations in South East Asia for the readers of this website. Quite a few islands in the Philippines, as Bali in Indonesia are very valid options for Expats and early retirees to stay long-term and enjoying the good life in those equator paradises.

The times of expensive flights to reach them are luckily over with the introduction of budget carriers a few years back. Still, it was so far a hassle, if you wanted to commute from Indonesia’s prime holiday destination Bali to one of the other island paradises in  the Philippines. Will that finally change very soon?

written by Chris

If you are a bit longer in Bali, you might notice that the whole tourism industry is based on double standards. Tourists pay more than local residents or Indonesians; as tourists seem to be loose with their money. After all it’s their holiday and they are just out to spend and to have fun.

Shops have a ‘foreigner tax’ or steep discount for locals, while some restaurants have unofficially higher pricing for tourists than for locals. Yes, you are one of those, Warung Sulawesi! There is one area though, where this system is turned upside down. Enter the nightlife and entertainment venues in Kuta, Legian and beyond:

written by Chris

If you are into Electronic Gadgets, you might think that a holiday destination like Bali is not the right place to buy or bargain for the latest toys. Tech hubs like Singapore, Hong Kong and Bangkok dominate this area in Asia.

In general, you are better off purchasing your new Laptop or Android Smartphone in one of those places. But thankfully, things are changing fast and the population of Bali (and its Expat Community) are getting more and more tech affine. This provides new opportunities to sell IT and gadget gear here also and suppliers make increasingly use of it.

written by Chris