digital nomad – soloflighted.com

How I Manage My Finances While Travelling

When I was in Siem Reap, Cambodia, I received an email from Claire of TravelingLight asking me how I manage my finances while backpacking. I gave my two cent’s worth and thought that this was a good blog entry to share to my readers. It can be risky bringing all your cash with you inside … Read more

First Impressions of Chiang Mai, Thailand

I travelled from Bangkok to Chiang Mai on a Thursday night and the ride took 11 hours by bus. It wasn’t a grueling transport. I just had to deal with a couple of pesky female backpackers sitting on the back who seemed high or drunk. They kept talking to my seatmate (their friend) about how crazy the party was the other night. Their voices were so loud that everybody could hear them boisterously laughing as if they owned the bus.

Bangkok to Chiang Mai – 500 Baht (you can find cheaper tickets if you search enough)

backpackers, from Bangkok to Chiang Mai

In the middle of the night, they asked one of the bus staff to turn the air conditioning off. The temperature was already unbearable and they didn’t have any jackets/blankets on, but the staff didn’t do anything. Curses flew everywhere which practically disturbed a lot of people. Funny how they previously laughed at their friend for bringing a hoodie in Southeast Asia, but they had to suffer during that cold bus ride that night.

Anyway, the trip ended early in the morning and I arrived in Chiang Mai with arms open.

A monk, eating from his bowl, early in the morning.

For a month and a half, I stayed in Bangkok, Thailand. I flew in from Singapore and arrived in in this urban city with a 30-day visa stamped on my passport, I decided to stay here longer instead of going back to Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Here’s a high-level overview of what to expect about life in Bangkok as a digital nomad.
Note: Expenses mentioned are based on my experiences. Prices may vary depending on your level of comfort.

Khao San Road, Bangkok

Accommodation

We had a friend who was very generous to share her space for us to stay. So we grabbed the opportunity since we didn’t have much time to scour through other places in the city. If we searched hard enough, we could possibly find good deals in other places in Bangkok. But we didn’t because we wanted to save money and spend more on other important things such as food.

apartment in Bangkok

This meant that the hassle of searching for a place to stay was no longer a problem. My friend’s apartment costs about 5000 baht (160 USD) per month.

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.

During the third month of my backpacking adventure, I made a side trip to Singapore and Boracay. I was supposed to be in Chiang Mai or Laos but there were sudden changes of plans that I had to reroute the destinations and go home earlier than expected.

I told myself that I’d be gone for at least six months; however, it wasn’t really something I wanted to carve in stone. The point of this whole digital nomad lifestyle gig is to show to others that it is possible to bring your work with you and travel at the same time. I think I’ve done fairly enough to say that it can be done.

leaving Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok

Singapore

Singapore was not set until the first week of August. I was going to visit the country when I had more money in my bank. I knew that this was going to be an expensive place given that this is a First World country so I wanted more time to save before I check out its attractions. Due to circumstances, I arrived here too soon.

Merlion Singapore

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

How I Manage My Finances While Travelling

First Impressions of Chiang Mai, Thailand

Digital Nomad Life: One Month Plus in Bangkok, Thailand

Accommodation

Six Months on the Road

Transit

Side Trip to Singapore and Boracay

Singapore

Digital Nomad Life: One Month in Siem Reap, Cambodia