Don't Pack Aspirin

A few days until your trip and you are in panic mode, what should you pack?

You're off to a foreign country and while you decided to pack light, suddenly you are thinking about bringing aspirin, multi-vitamins, sunscreen, boxes of band-aids, disinfectant spray and so on.

 

DON'T

 

All you need to worry about is underwear and socks.  Seriously that is what I found the hardest to find in South East Asia and from talking to other travelers, digital nomads, and expats, they agree that in third world countries those are items hard to find.  Unless you want to wear tighty whities and grandpa socks Made in China that are 100% synthetic and who knows what chemicals they contain.

 

Shoes are another important item.  Especially hiking shoes if you intend to go for a decent hike.  Be sure to break them in.  Sure you can find shoes just about anywhere in the world, but are they going to be a good quality and will they have the style you like in your size?  In South East Asia you just need to walk into a shoe store and they see your size 11s and will quickly wave you off "no have". 

Or you can pay full on regular price for a shoe you can get back home at a discount and really don't like at all.

 

Really all you need is a couple shorts, some shirts, underwear, socks, and shoes.  Everything else you can pretty much grab on the road.  Of course you want to research your destination a little bit to ensure the item you want to buy isn't more expensive and hard to find where you're headed. Like that crazy 30% import tax on foreign made products in Thailand that can go up to 100% for some appliances.

 

You'll also want to check the voltage, and you're better off bringing a NutriBullet if the voltage is compatible.  It doesn't hurt to do a quick google search for <your country name> online shopping <appliance name> to see what prices are like and what's readily available. Like dishwashers and countertop dishwashers in Thailand, forget about it.  Plastic storage containers in Thailand, sure but same price as in Canada.  Unless you want to go down to "Supercheap" and try your luck at one Made in China.

 

The point is, don't pack the Aspirin. In Thailand for example you won't find it at most Drugstores but sure enough every Pharmacy sells them dirt cheap and in strips of 10 so you don't have to lug around an entire bottle.  Not that I'm a fan of Aspirin anyway, although I did once nurse some plants back to health by crumbling some up and spreading it in the soil.

 

 

Oh yeah the one thing I tend to always pack is some Viennese Coffee from my travels to Austria Europe:

 

 

When it comes to trading, the same logic applies.  Don't get every single indicator you can find or someone raves about.  There are so many schmucks trying to flog their dashboards, indicators etc.

Guess what, they all pretty much show you the same thing in a different way.   You'll get by with just a handful.  3 maybe 5 at most.   Pick a few Moving Averages like SMA 50, 200, MACD, Bollinger Bands and you're good to go.  Click here for some more advanced indicators I created.

 

The point is, don't get tempted to over analyze, and keep it simple.   Pack your undies, socks, wear your best all around shoes, buy flip flops at the beach, and bring enough clothes to fit in a bag pack.

Coworking Office Spaces in Thailand

For digital nomads and expats alike, having an office space can be a must to separate work & life or when space is limited at your accommodation.

Office spaces can be rented in Thailand at reasonable rates however with it comes added headaches, drama, and overhead expenses.   Unless you have a business visa & work permit and intend to run a business that's brick & mortar or has several employees, I wouldn't recommend it. And even then...  why run a business in Thailand, but that's another story.

Coworking Office Spaces are open concept workspaces with your typical office equipment.  Wifi, Computer Desks, Office Chairs, lounge areas, a reception, and break room facilities.  Some coworking spaces even offer mail box services.  Really convenient but as always, remember in Thailand you always want to ship with EMS or registered mail and only to secure locations/people.

Simply put, you can work in isolation, focus on your work, away from distractions at your home, and still part take in water cooler talk if you want.

Packages start at only a few dollars per hour and you can purchase different packages like weekly, monthly, or block packages of 10 hours and more.

The best part is that you aren't committed to your typical 1 year lease and ongoing monthly expenses.

Regus is one coworking space I would NOT recommend. They are expensive and remind me of a bank that has so much red tape and bureaucracy that they are more of a hassle than a convenience.

UPDATE:  A new website has emerged that has simplified finding a coworking space!  Shared Desk

Here is a list of coworking spaces in Bangkok thanks to Chris The Freelancer:

I'm planning my next adventure and stumbled upon this awesome coworking website. Appears to be global and UI is similar to your AirBNB type of websites, easy to use. Quite slick!

Bangkok- Hubba - Ekkamai http://hubbathailand.com/
- Pah Creative Space - Ekkamai www.pahspace.com
- The Hive - Phrom Phong http://thehive.co.th/
- One Day Forward - Klong Toei http://www.onedaybkk.com/forward_type_price.html
- Wolf Coworking Space - Silom http://wolfwork.co/
- Launchpad - Silom http://www.launchpad.co.th/
- Draftboard - Chit Lom http://draftboard.co.th/

Here is a list of coworking spaces in the rest of  Thailand thanks to the facebook group Digital Nomads Thailand

Koh Lanta

- Star Work: https://www.facebook.com/StarWorkChiangMai
- Mana: https://www.facebook.com/manaspacechiangmai/
- Pun Space:
     Nimman: https://www.facebook.com/punspace
     Tha Phae Gate: https://www.facebook.com/punspacethaphaegate

Koh Lanta

- Kohub*: https://www.facebook.com/kohuborg

Koh Phangan

- Koh Space: https://www.facebook.com/kohspace/
- BeacHub: https://www.facebook.com/beachub/

Koh Tao

- Tao Hub: https://www.facebook.com/TAOHUB.THAI/

Krabi (Ao Nang)

- Phansa Space:  https://www.facebook.com/phansa.space/

Pattaya

- Anchor Space: https://www.facebook.com/anchorspace

Phuket

- Stash*: https://www.facebook.com/STASHatPhuket
- Hatch: https://www.facebook.com/hatchphuket/

* means it also provides accommodation 

Visa Rules

When you start traveling more and stay for longer periods of time then you need to start getting familiar with Visa Rules.   I never used to pay much attention to be honest, I have a Canadian Passport and most countries will issue visa on arrival.  Even when I lived and worked in Europe for a couple years I never ran into any issues even though visa rules say I can only spend 6 months out of the year in Europe.  Perhaps having been born in Europe helped and speaking German fluently.  It sure helped when getting pulled over doing 220km/h in a 120km/h zone, but that's another story.

Now that I live in Thailand I have to pay closer attention to Visa Rules.   The Thai Visa Rules just changed and now you can only get 30 days on arrival (via plane) and renew 1 time for another 30 days.  Thereafter you have to leave again and re-enter.   Entry by land can get you less time, 15 days.  And border guards now check for proof of at least 20,000 Baht.

Some other visa options are a work-visa.  No thanks! :)   Retirement visa, age 50 and up.  (Still have a few years to wait on that one) which gives you a 1 year visa that is renewable every year.   Or in my case an education visa which gives you one year and can be renewed once, maybe twice, but you have to leave the country and come back.   Since I want to learn the language and have time on my hands this is what I chose.   Traveling every 60 days and re-entering is another option but to be honest I don't want to go because I have to, but rather travel when I feel like it.  With an education visa (as with work and retirement visas) you can also buy motorbikes, cars, and get Thai driver's licenses).

Lately I have been getting the travel itch again and I'm starting to miss some aspects of Western lifestyle.  So I'm considering going back home to Vienna Austria again for a couple weeks and potentially set up shop for 6 months out of the year.  There or in Malta.   Or perhaps Spain.  Somewhere warm would be nice with European food and culture.  Only downfall is that the food, although very good, isn't as healthy as Thai cuisine, and sure is more expensive to dine out.

Oh one visa I forgot is the family visa, if you are married to a Thai or have Thai children then you also have one year renewable visas without needing to re-enter Thailand.

When it comes to Visa Rules you are best off checking your destinations visa laws if you plan on staying for 30 days or longer.   Some countries like Russia, China, Vietnam, and Cambodia are tougher too and you need all sorts of paperwork.

You have heard of first world country problems.  Well I suppose you can call these Day Trader problems.  I don't know about you but I like to stay in a place for more than a few weeks and set up some sort of a comfortable trading environment.  Budget-wise being able to rent long term has it's benefits too.  1 week in a hotel is the equivalent to 1 month's rent in a house.  So it pays to stay longer.