TravelStream™ news feed for member ex-bookkeeper on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/ex-bookkeeper en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sun, 07 Sep 2008 23:13:55 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1216512000/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1216512000/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1216512000/tpod.html Sun, 07 Sep 2008 23:13:55 -0400 The Big One

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Pattaya, Thailand

I flew from Hong Kong to Bangkok today.

Now that I am not working, I need to focus a bit more on money to make sure I don't thrash through my savings and end up destitute. I made a good start to this new approach while I was in Bangkok airport. I needed to make my way down to Pattaya, which is about 80 miles south from Bangkok. I checked the price for my normal mode of transport, the airport limo, which was 3,000 Baht. I then asked information where I could catch a bus and they pointed me in the general direction of a ramp that led downstairs. I wasn't sure if I had followed the directions correctly, but after a couple of minutes I was in an area with no air conditioning and more than a couple of backpackers...this must be it!

There was a desk with a list of four departure times to Pattaya. The last one was 5:15pm but when I checked my watch it was 5:20. To my surprise the lady confirmed that seats were still available and it was only later I realised that I had not adjusted my watch to Thailand time, which is and hour behind Hong Kong; I had a 50 minute wait! The bus cost me 119 Baht, a grand saving of 2,881...absolute bargain!

A trouble free trip down the coast was followed by a short Song Taew (a pick-up truck that is fitted out to be a taxi) trip to the hotel, that cost more that the bus!!!

I had booked a sea view room at the Siam Bayview Hotel and on arrival they explained that my room was not ready and they would give me a complimentary upgrade to a suite for that night. The suite must have been 120 square meters! It was the whole width of the hotel, with a massive bedroom and en suite at one end, a dining / kitchen area in the middle, and a lounge area at the other end. Off the lounge was a small balcony with the sea view. I was so taken with the opulence that I negotiated a good rate to stay in that room for the whole visit (which perhaps was their intention with the initial upgrade anyway as the hotel was not too busy) and needless to stay I spent more than the money I had saved on the taxi fare!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1220843040/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1220843040/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1220843040/tpod.html Sun, 07 Sep 2008 23:08:21 -0400 The Big One

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Shanghai, Shanghai, China

My birthday this year fell on a Friday while I was in Shanghai. Gavin very kindly organized a night out with a group of friends and we had dinner at Lawry's steak house in Xintiandi, followed by drinks at Sasha's. I am now 36, and the older I get the more people seem to claim "you are still young". Perhaps I send out signals that I need reassurance?!

My mum got me the Space Odyssey series of books by Arthur C Clarke and gave them to me when I was in the UK in July. I have to admit that I read them long before my birthday arrived, which is why you haven't seen them on here as a book review. All very good though, and as I read them for a second time I'll include the reviews.
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Hong Kong, China

About a year ago I had a weird infection in my leg.  It got a bit dramatic when the doctor implied that I might need my leg chopping off but then couldn't actually pinpoint the cause.  One of the treatments I had was lymphatic drainage, three sessions of that and the infection cleared up completely and I am, thankfully, still with-leg.

The thing I remember most from those sessions is how amazingly relaxing they were.  I am currently reading a meditation book and its references to relaxation reminded me of the treatment, so yesterday I went back for an hour session to remind myself of the experience.  It was wonderful and so nice to be doing it without a mysterious ailment to worry about.

The treatment is like a gentle massage but rather than focusing on the muscles it focuses on the lymphatic system.  The therapist is able to pinpoint blockages in the system and then works to free those blockages.  I can feel the results there on the table but also a day later I can sense subtle differences, especially in my legs.  The session has many benefits but more than anything it is so completely relaxing.

The place is in central Hong Kong, called the Vitality Centre
The therapist (practitioner?) is Jan Moor and you can find her e-mail on the centre's website.

5 out of 5
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1216533360/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1216533360/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1216533360/tpod.html Sat, 06 Sep 2008 08:04:00 -0400 The Big One

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Pattaya, Thailand

I once spent a day in Pattaya back in 2001. I remember snippets, but as somebody who lived there was showing me around things didn't sink in as much as they do when you are exploring for yourself.

The hotel is right across the road from the beach. The beach itself was a bit of a disappointment; the distance from the road to the sea is quite short, even at low tide, and about half that distance is taken up by row after row of deck chairs, all crammed together and all under the cover of umbrellas which left the area beneath gloomy and claustrophobic. I had pictured lying on a chair on the beach while reading books and slowly roasting, but now I had the choice of sitting on the sand in the area where many people walk by, or going under the umbrellas with lots of other people chatting, sweating and smoking. In the end I gave the beach a miss, save for some long walks.

The beach is lined with some lovely trees, and these add a welcome border with the noisy road. The trees have obviously grown over the months since they were last trimmed, and since this is officially "off-season" in Pattaya it was time to trim them again. This involved a team of workmen watching one guy with a chainsaw make a complete mess of the pavement.

After a couple of days finding my way around and walking for hours, I realized that Pattaya was quite large. I thought about hiring a pushbike, but the mopeds caught my eye instead. This meant I could whiz around at my heart's content, and I covered plenty of ground popping up to Jomtien beach and exploring the factory outlet stores, and most frequently the Tesco's store which supplied me with fruit, drinks and some cheap speakers for my computer (3 quid!)

My favourite part of using the moped was, bizarrely, when I got a puncture! I was miles away from the hotel and hence also from the place that I had hired the bike. I wasn't quite sure what I was going to do but I carried on, very slowly and, as it was a rear puncture, I shuffled myself as far forward as I could to take some weight off the back wheel. I was in a part of town that I had not visited before, and I decided just to try and make my way back to the hotel. I took a turn down a small country road that seemed to be in the right direction, and within 30 seconds I rode past a motorbike repair shop...absolute bonus! 10 minutes and just a few Baht later and I was on my way with a new inner tube and a big grin on my face about the randomness of finding that shop.

Pattaya, if I am completely honest, is a bit smelly. I think this comes from the bins. There is a very healthy nightlife here; almost all the streets near the beach have many bars and restaurants. These places throw out their rubbish at closing time, in the early hours of the morning, and at some time during the following day the rubbish trucks pick it up. However, in the meantime, the sun has come up and works its rotting magic on the contents of those bins, leaving a pungent odour that is consistent all along the beach road. I could be wrong, this might the smell of a local fruit, but I doubt it. Of course all is well by night time when the other senses are the ones to be affronted by a combination of neon lights, loud music, hot girls and lots of beer.

Pattaya is known for its sex entertainment venues. Walking street is one, but by no means the only, focal point of this. There are hundreds of bars lining the main street and its offshoots. There are beer bars, where you are joined by a friendly bar girl within seconds of sitting down. There are go go bars, where you head indoors to witness many girls dancing in very little, looking for a man to choose them. There are massage parlours, restaurants, Thai boxing venues and nightclubs.

The sheer amount of entertainment venues around town was staggering, but the part of Walking Street that I want to dwell on was something that I found fascinating. As you walk along bar street the population is made up of about 50% men looking for fun; stag weekends, married men on "golf" trips, travel blog writers, that sort of thing. 40% were women heading to or from work, or holding up placards advertising the bar that is paying them to wear short skirts and knee length boots. Then there are about 10% pure observers. But here's the thing, I lost count of how many families were wondering along this street staring at the activity. Don't get me wrong, if you are a married couple staying in Pattaya then these bars are not for you but I understand that you are curios to see the comings and goings, but why take your 6 year old kid with you? Admittedly you cannot see any nudity from the street, but if you are staring at lecherous old men with their arms around 19 year old girls then so is your son or daughter. Nice life lesson there, well thought through.

Now, this is a year off to find myself. So the big question: should I get a tattoo? It feels like the right thing to do, very mid-life crisis. But I have no idea what to get, or where to put it. The other thing that crosses my mind is what happens if I do "find myself" and then the tattoo is not in keeping with those findings? I think too much.

Irish pubs are everywhere. That is because there are Irish people everywhere and they do like a little tipple from time to time. They are handy when living in Asia, as they are fairly similar to English pubs and so have quite a homely feel when you need one. Needless to say I found one in Pattaya, on Walking Street.

The ten days I spent in Pattaya were very relaxing. I highly recommend hiring a bike, getting as many Thai massages as your body can cope with (no oil and plenty of pummeling is the norm) and just getting outside. It is rainy season, but I was only washed out one day, which helped to break some oppressive humidity, and the rest of the time the rain cleared up in the early morning.

It was an excellent place to relax at the start of my adventure, it took my mind off work and got me excited about the coming year. I didn't do a number of interesting activities, such as diving or sea fishing, as I was on my own and wanted to wind down rather than filling every minute, but I had such a good time I may be back to do those things and more.

Recommended for nightlife Walking Street
Recommended hotel Siam Bayview
Recommended for snacks Tesco Lotus
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1220578020/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1220578020/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1220578020/tpod.html Sat, 06 Sep 2008 05:29:11 -0400 The Big One

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Hong Kong, China

I am starting to get organized. I have called, texted or mailed ahead to various people who I will meet up with for lunch or dinner in the seven days I have back in Hong Kong. I will also be putting my flat on the market, completing a few more chores that I didn't quite get to last time and packing my next bag.

The last two trips have been two weeks in one location, and have been fairly easy to pack for. Still with my camera, gym stuff, going out clothes and daytime clothes I have managed to fill my big suitcase easily. This next trip takes in Thailand to meet my little brother, Singapore for the inaugural night time formula one grand prix, and England for a week in Autumn. I'll be gone for a month so I need to think very carefully about what I want in that suitcase.

It is a fact of life that a single-way plane ticket costs almost as much as return, so rather than flying one way to all the destinations and flying straight back to Hong Kong I have bought return tickets all the way and therefore I need to 'unwind' myself on the return leg. This gives me a day in Singapore, and a few more days in Thailand for no reason whatsoever. What's wrong with that? I didn't say there are any rules to this traveling lark!

The other cheeky bonus is that I fly from Singapore to London...giving me a chance to fly on an Airbus A380 for the first time. When I was a kid my dad used to take me to Manchester Airport to "plane spot". I'm really excited about seeing the super-jumbo. Don't judge me.
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Hong Kong, China

I keep getting asked why I chose this sign in name, so I'll explain here.  I chose ex-bookkeeper for two reasons:
1) I am an accountant who has quit his job to go travelling
2) Bookkeeper is one of only two words in the English language that has three letters repeated.  I have always liked that fact for some reason.  The other word?  Bookkeeping!
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Shanghai, Shanghai, China

Gavin's new apartment is a stones throw from Xintiandi, which is a popular bar and restaurant area.  I once heard it called the Lan Kwai Fong of Shanghai and though it falls a bit short of that lofty comparison it is pretty handy to have on your doorstep, especially the starbucks that I have popped into the write this piece.  I know, I know, major cliché.

The week has flown by and has been excellent so far.  I feel a tiny bit guilty that Gavin has to go to work each day, but only a tiny bit.  We have been going to the gym most days and last I checked I had lost a pound a day since getting here...long may that continue!

The first couple of days I was here I explored the surrounding areas on foot.  The Bund is a key draw, and the skyline along the river has changed much since I was first here six years ago.   Nanjing Donglu is a long pedestrianised shopping area.  It has all the global brands, plus a few popular local ones, so avid shoppers can get their day-long fix here.  The one frustrating thing was the number of twenty-something men sidling up to me asking if I wanted a cheap watch or other such knocked off items.  This is fine now and then, as I am very obviously not from round here (and if there was any residual doubt I was carrying quite a large camera!) but I must have been approached 15 times along the length of the street.   

Not far from Nanjing Donglu or the Bund is the "old town" area.  This is clearly changing as there were large parts of it bordered off with apartment development going on behind the boards, but there are still many small streets that can be found which are simply stunning.  I found myself wandering around with a big grin on my face as I checked out the small shops that lined the streets, all of which were a far cry from the neon light clad monoliths in the main areas.
I was keeping half an eye out for a locksmith as I needed to cut a key for Gavin's place.  I still don't think I found one but I did find a guy stood outside and empty garage who seemed to have nothing for sale, and he seemed very happy with that as nobody was bothering him.  He did have what looked like, and turned out to be, a 50 year old key duplicating machine and with a combination of grunting and body signals I managed to get 2 keys cut for a quid!

Having hired my moped in Pattaya I decided I needed similar adventure, but the equivalent here are bicycles and I didn't fancy my chances of finding one for hire.  Gavin mentioned that you could buy them from Carrefour but after failing to get the online store locator working I had pretty much given up.  However, there I was the next day back in old town and I stumbled across another small garage type shop which was full of bikes!  10 minutes and $50 later I was road bound on my one-gear, 1950's style, contraption. 


Unbeknownst to me Shanghai has a spectacularly complicated one way system for pushbikes.  Within 15 minutes of buying the bike I almost had two tickets.  I was stopped at a cross roads by one policeman, who signaled me to wait while he ticketed a moped driver who was riding on the pavement.  What can I tell you, the minute he turned his back I, erm, didn't wait!  30 meters down the road a security guard waved to me and pointed down the road; there was another policeman and a great big sign saying no-entry to bikes.  I hopped off and wheeled my bike innocently down the pavement past the copper.  Since then I have kept a very close eye on the signs but this has added at least 20 minutes to each journey as I cannot take a direct route back to Gavin's apartment.  Good job I am flexible with my time these days!


I like to take photos and I have this thing for shots of signs, whether it be street signs or any other variety.  You might see these photos crop up from time to time on this blog.  I make no apology for it and have no explanation as to why they interest me, you'll just have to cope with this quirk of mine.

For the fourth time in my life I went to karaoke.  I was dragged there with Gavin and we had dinner with some colleagues on Friday night.  I think he wanted to bring me as cover for his poor singing, and it probably worked as I am tone deaf.  This was the first time that I have been to karaoke sober, and that didn't help at all.  However with some smart song selections we struggled through, and my tips for those none singers out there:

1)    Tubthumping by Chumbawumba (it is shouting, not singing)
2)    Ghostbusters (everyone knows the chorus and the verses are mercifully short)


With the weekend came golf.  Gavin plays off 4.  I play off about 32 though I am somehow not allowed to take that handicap on the offchance that I have a lucky round and beat him.  This means that on a good day Gavin beats me by a couple shots, and on a bad day he beats me by many.  I'll call him a big cheater here and then never mention it again.  He is a member of Tianma golf club, and they have a decent 27 holes though it is about 45 mins out of town so make sure you allow for that if you are heading there.

On Saturday Gavin had an 8am tee off time, and I was playing at 2pm.  I went along with him and occupied myself with the gym and with my first ever golf lesson.  Ian Watkins is the golf pro at the club and he gave me just a couple of small tips which worked wonders for my game.  Don't get me wrong I was still rubbish, but I haven't played for over a year and I scored 105.  This is quite respectable for me as I have only beaten 100 about ten times before.

Of course the Beijing Olympics have been progressing while I have been here and a very successful campaign for the GB team came to an end on Sunday with a good closing ceremony.  All countries were eclipsed by the Chinese and fair play to them, although I can't help wondering about how they trained their weightlifters, who all seemed to start their lifts only once their competition had finished!

Some highlights for me:
-    The Chinese reaction to Li Xiang pulling out of the 110 metre hurdles...crying in offices!!!
-    Surprise gold from Rebecca Adlington in the swimming, how close was that finish!
-    Usain Bolt not even trying in the 100 metres final
-    The GB cycling team, though I need them to release a DVD as I didn't see all the medal performances
-    The massive cheer that David Beckham got when he appeared in the closing ceremony.  We were in a bar, and the local girls went crazy!


Recommended bar: Big Bamboo
Recommended restaurant:  Di Shui Dong
Recommended for shopping: Nanjing Donglu
Recommended for nightlife: Xintiandi
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1216611660/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1216611660/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1216611660/tpod.html Thu, 28 Aug 2008 06:28:37 -0400 The Big One

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Bangkok, Thailand

After reading The Last Lecture (see other entry) I tried to recollect my childhood dreams. Here is what I came up with:

Achieved:
Earn a good living (I am an accountant)
Live in my own detached house (for about 3 months in 2001)
Live in another country (I thought it would be America, but Hong Kong will do)
See Blackbird SR71 spy plane (I was into model aircraft...there is an aircraft carrier in New York that is now a museum, it has a Blackbird on its deck and I visited in 1998)

Not (yet) achieved:
See aurora borealis
Own a sports car
Learn to fly
Learn to ride a motorbike


I will be trying to accomplish some more of these dreams as I travel. I also wonder if my parents are aware of any dreams that I have missed?

By the way, I highly recommend trying to come up with your own list. I spent a very enjoyable couple of hours with my eyes closed, trying to cast my mind back to when I was seven or eight...it was an excellent exercise in meditation, and to be honest I was relieved to have achieved at least some!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1219818420/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1219818420/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/ex-bookkeeper/1/1219818420/tpod.html Thu, 28 Aug 2008 06:09:59 -0400 The Big One

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Bangkok, Thailand

The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch

Randy Pausch is now dead. He passed away a few weeks ago and this fact was reportedly widely by the media as he had become very well known through events covered by this book.

He had been diagnosed with cancer, but instead of canceling all his obligations as a college professor he decided to keep one; a lecture whose subject matter was "to offer reflections of his personal and professional journey". The nature of his lecture obviously changed after his diagnosis and Randy decided to leave some life lessons for his children. He called the lecture "really achieving your childhood dreams".

The video is on YouTube and has been watched many millions of times. It is inspirational, thought provoking and also saddening. The book fills out some of the background and all the lessons contained within it. I read the book first and was very moved by it.

I find in general that watching the 'movie of the book' is always unsatisfying as you miss a large amount of detail and subtlety after the big screen translation. This is not the case here and if you are pressed for time then I recommend that you just watch the video, it will take less time and will give you 90% of what you get from the book.

This is a must read, or at least a must watch!!! The book is 209 pages and took about 5 hours. The video is about 70 minutes.


4 out of 5 for the book as it does not add a significant amount to the lecture

5 out of 5 for the video.

P.S. If you are a fan of this book, also read "Tuesday's With Morrie" by Mitch Albom which I read earlier this year and is very inspirational in a similar way.
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Shanghai, Shanghai, China

Introducing Philosophy by Dave Robinson and Judy Groves

I have never studied philosophy and I thought that an introduction might be useful, especially if I am to spend a year finding either myself, or the meaning of life.

This book is fairly basic. It spends a page or two on significant philosophers or philosophies through time, and it is also illustrated which pads it out to 169 pages. I took me about 3 hours to get through, including a few re-read mind-bending sections.

As a basic introduction I think it does what it sets out to for three quarters of the book. The historic figures such as Socrates, Plato and Aristotle are covered chronologically and the lines from one to the other are drawn pretty clearly.

Where the book became very confusing is towards the end. Like many sciences, as time has passed there have been ever more specialisms and branches. I read somewhere that 250 years ago it was possible for one person to know everything that was known by all humans. This is clearly not the case today as the body of all knowledge has grown, and it is unlikely that someone that specializes in dentistry, to pick an example at random, also knows all there is to know about jet propulsion and breeding pedigree dogs.

But I digress; philosophy has clearly expanded and branched out like everything else, but I found that the book does not distinguish between what are the main, commonly agreed upon, current issues and what are minor offshoots of the bigger subject. Therefore I cannot readily summarise where philosophy has got to today and what are its greatest challenges.

The biggest issue I had though was wrapping my head around some of the later concepts introduced. I need to re-read, or do further reading about some of these if I am to understand them more clearly. Specifically there is debate about the relationship between language and reality, where some modern philosophers believe we can never separate language and reality as our thoughts are based in language and so our reality is limited to what can be described in that language (Andy takes a deep breath). Now I have never remotely considered this concept, and I get their logic at a basic level, but I am not sure that I agree with it at all. Perhaps that is the point of philosophy and in the end the book has done its job.

4 out of 5
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