Cambodia – soloflighted.com

Backpacking Southeast Asia for 9 Months

I resigned from my corporate job last January 2012 because I wanted to go on a long-term travel adventure. I was able to accomplish it by backpacking for nine months in seven countries in Southeast Asia. Vietnam-Cambodia-Thailand-Indonesia-Singapore-Malaysia-Philippines I haven’t exhausted all the places in Southeast Asia which I could’ve done simply by hopping on a … Read more

Why I Keep Coming Back to Siem Reap

In the last two years, I’ve been to Siem Reap five times. In that duration, I also lived in this quaint city for a month. The first time I stayed here, I spent three days visiting tourist spots with a couple of friends.

the famous Angkor Wat

I had no idea about this side of Cambodia except for the Angkor Wat. I was a tourist who only cared about getting as many photos posted on Facebook for other people to see that I’ve been to a world heritage site. But my perspective changed in a short span of time.

After that trip, I told myself that I’d come back once I quit my job and start my backpacking adventure. I did, after a year, and stayed longer.

near the river

Siem Reap

If you’re looking for an affordable place to stay in Siem Reap, you may want to check out Victory Guesthouse. I stayed in this hostel for over 10 days as I wanted and clean hostel available. Bousavy Guesthouse was supposedly my other target, but comparing the prices, Victory seems to have cheaper rates. Fortunately, these two guesthouses were just across each other so it wasn’t hard to find.

Victory Guesthouse
Siem Reap, Cambodia

Victory hostel in Siem Reap

This Victory Guesthouse is a good find if you plan to stay in Siem Reap. I was able to get a spacious room good for three people for only 7 USD (breakfast NOT included).

spacious fan room good for 3 persons

I was doing my daily routine of going online to work when it hit me. I’ve been on the road for six months. Six months! I quit my job in January and I’ve travelled to different places ever since.

Transit

Here’s a list of places I’ve been to in the past six months. Some I stayed for a few days, most I stayed longer. Duration of my stay indicated are just rough estimates.

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam – 2 days
Mui Ne, Vietnam – 2 days
Siem Reap, Cambodia – 1 month
Bangkok, Thailand – 2 weeks
Singapore City, Singapore – 6 days
Cebu, Philippines – 2 weeks
Boracay, Philippines – 5 days
Cebu, Philippines – 5 days
Manila, Philippines – 1 week
Cebu, Philippines – 2 weeks
Manila, Philippines – 3 days
Siem Reap, Cambodia – 1 week
Singapore City, Singapore – 4 days
Bangkok, Thailand – 1.5 months
Bali, Indonesia – 1 week
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – 2 days
Dungun, Malaysia – running on my 1st month

Looking back, it seems that I’ve been to so many places in the last half of the year. It’s not that I can’t go to these places if I kept my previous job working in a contact center. Heck, I travelled to 4 countries and 8 local destinations within 8 months and still kept my full-time job. I’ve also had six consecutive trips in six weekends while juggling my part-time projects online. It just came to a point that I wanted more than the weekend trips.

The other day, my passport visa stamp was going to expire so I needed to go to the Aranyaprathet-Poipet border in order to re-enter Thailand. Only, I was surprised by a policy shared to me at the immigration counter in Cambodia. They asked for 200 Baht since I was going to leave the country (Cambodia) on the same day.

I have a flight next week so the most logical thing to do was have a visa run to refresh the number of days for me to stay in Bangkok.

passport stamps

From Hua Lamphong station, I hopped on the same ordinary train since this was the cheapest option available. I only paid 48 baht to get to the Aranyaprathet border. I didn’t sleep the night before so the 6-hour ride went by quickly. This is usually one of my techniques whenever I hop on long bus or train rides which makes 12 or 18-hour travels a breeze. Of course, just make sure your belongings are secure. I couldn’t tell how many passengers sat beside me cause whenever I’d open my eyes, I had a different seatmate every time. But then, I’d just doze off again because of not having enough rest the previous night.

train ride from Bangkok to Aranyaprathet – 48 Baht for 6 hours

Pardon the lack of updates, I know I haven’t been blogging a lot lately. I’ve been pretty much busy with mostly my online job. My funds have been depleting and I need to stay in one place in order to gain more work hours to earn more money and keep this backpacking journey going.

I also got exhausted trying to keep updating this site since I have other blogs that also need attention. But all is still well and I’m still alive. 🙂

Singapore sidewalk

After a month and a half, I’m back on the road. I got past the immigration counter without them asking for much information. Compared to my experience last February when I was interviewed twice, this time was a breeze. They only asked for my return ticket and I was through. Maybe smiling at them did the trick, I don’t really know. I’m just glad I’m at the pre-boarding area now.

at NAIA Terminal 3

I started my backpacking adventure after I quit my job of six years to see if a digital nomad’s lifestyle is truly for me. I spent two months outside the country but it was cut short due to personal reasons. While in the Philippines, I maximized my time by spending it with family and friends. Being away for a while made me look at life from a different angle which made it a great opportunity to reconnect with people; especially my loved ones.

I also visited Manila, twice; and met a number of travel bloggers, old and new. It was swell to mingle and get inspired to continue this passion of mine by being with them for coffee or pizza.

with Gay, Oman, Dong Ho, Marky and Wendell

with Lauren, Rafael, Lois, Eileen, Jen and Josiah

I received a couple of emails from fellow digital nomads about the cost of living in Siem Reap, Cambodia. These were timely messages as I stayed in this city with a friend for one month. I figured I’d share important factors to consider to help other lifestyle designers who bring their work with them. Here’s … Read more

Meeting Readers On the Road

I had the pleasure of meeting readers on the road while in Cambodia. These were unexpected encounters and it was nice that they spared their time even if they were tired from a long day of temple-hopping. I wrote 20 articles about Siem Reap during my trip last year which has become a guide for … Read more

Old Tourist Couple in Siem Reap, Cambodia

I was hanging out with newfound friends at one of the fish massage areas near the Angkor Night Market in Siem Reap. My friends tried the Doctor Fish Spa and were giggling so hard when the fishes ate the dead skin cells of their feet. I was laughing at their reactions when an old tourist … Read more

7 Lessons from My First Month on the Road

I didn’t realize it’s been a month since I took a flight from Manila to Vietnam to start my backpacking journey in Southeast Asia and become location-independent. I travelled to Ho Chi Minh City and Mui Ne in Vietnam, Siem Reap in Cambodia, and Bangkok in Thailand.

I didn’t maximize the number of days before my passport expired for each country as this month was more of a vacation than anything else. Despite the sudden change of locations, I came across a few realizations and learned some lessons along the way.

1. Stay healthy!

I overdosed on spicy food in Thailand but I still kept eating them. I also didn’t watch what I ate that I ended up having diarrhea for a couple of days.

I can’t afford to get sick. Aside from the cost of medicines, I also wasted time trying to recover my health. I could’ve used the opportunity to work on other jobs that would allow me to generate more income. Or I could’ve used the time to explore other areas in Bangkok.

Thai Food – spicy!

So I’ve been late on the news and I found out that Filipinos have easier access to direct flights from Manila to Cambodia courtesy of Cebu Pacific Airlines. I’m currently based in Siem Reap and I was told that the airline seats are fully booked for April 2012 onwards!

Cebu Pacific Air is set to roll out these Manila to Siem Reap flights 3 times a week starting April 19. I know I’ve had my fair share of adventures during my trip last year and now because of this Cebu Pacific flight, the Philippines can fly directly to Cambodia.

Normally, travellers will have to go by land from Bangkok to Siem Reap or Ho Chi Minh City to Siem Reap and it would take at least 9 hours via bus from Bangkok and 14 hours from Ho Chi Minh. But with this recent news, this is a welcome treat for those who want to see the great Angkor Wat temple.

I arrived in Ho Chi Minh and saw you at the lobby while you were reading your book. You were waiting for me and your eyes showed how tired you were after your flight from Singapore. I just came from a stressful day myself and almost never made it passed the immigration in Manila.

But we showed up and we finally saw each other after a year and a half. That was all that mattered.

White Sand Dunes, Mui Ne, Vietnam

Vietnam and Cambodia, we gave ourselves a week of pure vacation and we made sure to find time for this quick respite despite our busy schedules.

The sand dunes and the fishing village in Mui Ne, the temples of Angkor Wat, the night life in Siem Reap. All of them were great backdrops as we rediscovered each other. I wanted time to stop so we could bask in those moments longer.

Red Sand Dunes, Mui Ne, Vietnam

A lot of people in this blog can see how ‘crazy’ I can get for the sake of having a unique photo taken. I slipped and hit my head on a rock in Bomod-ok falls in Sagada, I stood on top of the lighthouse in Capones Island in Zambales, I jumped off a cliff in … Read more

Backpacking Southeast Asia for 9 Months

Why I Keep Coming Back to Siem Reap

Where to Stay: Victory Guesthouse in Siem Reap, Cambodia

Six Months on the Road

Transit

Visa Run in Aranyaprathet-Poipet Border, New Policy?

Backpacking Update: Singapore and Bangkok

Back on the Road

Digital Nomad Life: One Month in Siem Reap, Cambodia

Meeting Readers On the Road

Old Tourist Couple in Siem Reap, Cambodia

7 Lessons from My First Month on the Road

1. Stay healthy!

Cebu Pac Manila to Siem Reap, Cambodia Flights

Your Suitcase, My Backpack

A Lesson on Responsible Tourism