We've Worked in... Phuket

We are planning to leave Thailand in May so we decided to get out of Bangkok for our final weeks. We found a nice place in Phuket on AirBnB and decided to live the (sort of) island lifestyle for a while.  This is one of the things I love about having a non location specific job!

We've Worked in... Phuket

We came to Phuket with our friends Nick and Ging. Nick and I came to Phuket in 2011 and studied Muay Thai for a month. I had a fight at the end of our training as you can see here:

With a record of 1-0, I retired undefeated from Muay Thai. Not wanting to put that at risk and with absolutely no demand from fans to see me return to the ring I decided to try something new. Agi and I signed up for Crossfit at a new gym in Phuket called Unit 27.

Our new routine during our time in Phuket has been going to Morning Glory sessions, coming home and recovering then starting work. I have heard that doing a workout in the morning gives you energy for the rest of the day. That is not the case in my experience! I feel better for doing more exercise and I am happy to have done it but I generally feel knackered for the rest of the day.

During our time in Phuket we have had a revolving cast of guest stars. 3 different groups of friends came to catch up with us which has been amazing. Eating out and going to the beach has been a real treat. It makes it difficult to fit work in sometimes but it's totally worth it.

We have friends with a young kid so going out partying wasn't an option with them. What's the next best thing after raving? Dinosaur themed mini golf!

I wish we had done more of this sort of thing during our time in Thailand but I'm not complaining. We had a great time in Bangkok but I sometimes forgot that there are other places to go. Today we are leaving for a 4 day liveaboard diving trip in the Similan islands. After that we are going up north to Pai to spend our last few weeks in the mountains. Agi has been begging for mountains for months. Life is good.

Another great trip enabled by freelancing. Get in touch if you'd like to know more.

We've Worked in... Hong Kong

As has been documented on this blog here and here, Agi loves to run. This time she signed up for a 100km ultra marathon across Lantau island in Hong Kong. We weren't alone as the other members of Agi's running club the Bangkok Runners came too. We decided to fit in some sightseeing either side of the race... and of course, it wouldn't be a no9to5 holiday without doing some work!

We've Worked in... Hong Kong

The first day was very quiet as Agi did not want to walk or move much to save energy for the race. We were staying with one of Agi's friends who had recently and conveniently moved from Bangkok to Hong Kong. It's nice having friends around the world! We did some work from his apartment on the 47th floor with an incredible view of Hong Kong bay. I've worked from worse places.

In the evening we took the ferry across to Lantau island. We met up with Agi's friends there and I left them to start their race at 11:30pm! I took the ferry back to Hong Kong and walked from the pier to our apartment. Hong Kong is a beautiful and lively city at night. Lights shine from every building and the streets are full of people. I was tired after my 3km walk but Agi had just started her 100km.

On Saturday I got up and did some work. I had the day to kill so I had found the Hong Kong Tabletop Gaming Group on Meetup. I met them in a nice cafe and we spent a few fun hours playing a role playing game. Agi runs amazing races and I play nerdy games. Afterwards, I went out and roamed the city. Hong Kong is a nice city to walk around as there is so much to see; British shops next to Chinese markets, street art, people practicing Tai Chi in parks. It's a good work out too as there are endless stairs and hills.

Agi finished her 100km trail run in 22h37m. An amazing accomplishment. She spent the night on Lantau island and we met up on Sunday morning for a well deserved (by her) brunch with the Bangkok Runners. Afterwards we went for a walk around the city and took the tram back to our apartment.

Monday was mostly work, again from our office in the clouds! I have worked in some dingy offices in my time and our 47th floor office beat them all hands down. In the evening we walked to the waterfront where there is a music and lights show every night. Spotlights and lasers shine in time to music played over loudspeakers. It's great and totally worth seeing if you visit. We also checked out Comix Home Base, an art gallery / event venue dedicated to comic art. It's free and quite interesting.

Hong Kong was a lovely break from Bangkok if only because it was cold! It was a nice change to wear long trousers without sweating. Another great trip enabled by freelancing. Get in touch if you'd like to know more.

We've Worked in... Chiang Mai

This series is about places that we’ve been able to visit because of our freelance lifestyle. This isn’t just so that I can share my travel photos; there is a larger point! We have been able to take more holidays or stay longer because we could combine our work with travel. I want more people to get involved in online freelancing and I hope that this series will inspire you. Yes, you.

We've Worked in... Chiang Mai

Despite living in Thailand for a year and half and visiting multiple times before that I had never been to Chiang Mai. Agi visited in 2009 and loved it. When my parents visited Thailand we decided to take advantage of the opportunity and the four of us headed up north for a week.

Things started well as we were staying in a traditional Thai house made of teak. It was absolutely beautiful and a real change from our apartment in Bangkok. On the first day Agi went off to do an 80km run in the hills with some people she knew through the running club in Bangkok. I took my parents for a more sensible walk around Chiang Mai. The town is lovely, there are temples everywhere. It's also a foodie's paradise. One evening I had a Mexican / Thai fusion meal; pork enchilada in penang curry sauce. Delicious! Check out Ole Gourmet if you are in town.

We took a day trip to Doi Inthanon, the highest peak in Thailand. I had to laugh because there was a big sign stating that you were at the highest point in Thailand when you could clearly see steps behind the sign and a higher point beyond that. The main photo for this post is from the small shrine on top of the mountain. I loved the moss covered elephants. Also on the mountain were two pagodas dedicated to the King & Queen. These were spectacular and the views down into the valley were captivating. Definitely worth a visit.

Obviously Agi and I had to work some of the time we were there and it was an absolute pleasure! Our hotel had a covered seating area outside. The temperature was perfect, there was a cool breeze from time to time and we never got too hot. I'm seriously considering moving to Chiang Mai after this, Bangkok is too damned hot.

My mum had her birthday while we were there and she wanted to go and see elephants. She was adamant that she didn't want to go somewhere that teaches elephants to do tricks or offers elephant rides. We found the Thai Elephant Care Centre, a place that cares for elderly and sick elephants. She had a wonderful time there. We helped feed the elephants, learned about the medicines that elephants need and helped bathe the elephants in the river.

All in all Chiang Mai is a wonderful place. Nice Thai food, not too hot, plenty of sights and activities. I can see why everybody has been telling me to go there for years!

Another great trip enabled by freelancing! Get in touch with us and see how you can freelance and have more holidays.

We've Worked in... Taiwan

This series is about places that we've been able to visit because of our freelance lifestyle. This isn't just so that I can share my travel photos; there is a larger point! We have been able to take more holidays or stay longer because we could combine our work with travel. I want more people to get involved in online freelancing and I hope that this series will inspire you. Yes, you.

We've Worked in... Taiwan

I may have mentioned before that Agi is a passionate runner. Seriously, as I write this she has gone to do a 50km run (a marathon and a bit) for training. Well, Agi has a friend, Karen, from the running club in Bangkok, who recently moved to Taiwan. Agi, her other friend Monika and Karen all wanted to do a (no joke) 100km trail run (up and down MOUNTAINS!) in north Taiwan. So off we went!

There were a number of set backs before we even left. A typhoon came in and laid waste to the proposed running trail so the organisers cancelled the race. In its place they offered a (paltry!) 15km race for everyone who had registered. Being the intrepid adventurers we are, and because we had already bought our plane tickets, we decided to brave the typhoon rains in Taiwan. On the way there we flew with V Air, an airline I'd never heard of, but they were great. They bring their mascot down the plane for photos during the flight!?

We had a day in Taipei to kill before meeting up with our friends so we went exploring. We went to the top of Taipei 101, which had a disappointing view on account of the typhoon (duh). However we did get to learn about the world's largest and heaviest wind damper through a bizarre video narrated by the damper babies. I have to hand it to the marketing people at Taipei 101. They took a 660 ton steel sphere and made it into cute / scary characters that they can sell. The video is simultaneously extremely strange and really interesting. Take a look, it's only 2 mins.

We stayed in a capsule hotel which was kinda cool. Although we were warned NOT to turn off the AC as we would probably suffocate... that's the button right next to your bed... which you might accidentally knock during the night... sleep well!

I did some work the next morning in the hotel common room. If you're a digital nomad who wants a cheap, comfortable night in a nice area of Taipei with a good working space then I can recommend Inn Cube Minquan!

That afternoon we got a train up to Fulong in the north where we met Karen and her family. It's a really nice small town. We were staying in a campsite on the edge of town so off we went to set up the tents! The next day Agi, Monika and Karen went off to do their run while I explored the area with Karen's husband Ben and their two kids Manu and Eddie. Quote of the day:

Me: That's a cool t-shirt Manu, what is it?

Manu: Pokemon

Me: Who's your favourite Pokemon?

Manu (raises eyebrow): Do you even know about Pokemon?

We went to the beach, wandered around the town and visited the temple. I do like Chinese temples, if only because there are not enough dragons on European churches.

After Fulong we went to stay with Karen for a few days in Taichung. We did some great things:

• Went to the hot springs where everyone was too scared to go in the nude section
• Road bikes around Sun Moon Lake which looks like a lake in the Italian mountains
• Stuffed ourselves with food at the night market. They even had good bread which is sorely missing in Thailand!

I was able to fit in some work each morning because I bought a Taiwanese data SIM card (one of my freelancer top tips). $15 USD for a 4G card with more data than I could use! All in all we had a great time and I would love to go back to Taiwan and see more of the country

Another great trip enabled by freelancing! Get in touch with us and see how you can freelance and have more holidays.

Top 5 Tips for Working Freelance When Traveling

This week we have been featured on One World 365, a great site with loads of information about meaningful travel opportunities. You can see a short excerpt below, head on over to the site to read the full article:

I have been working and travelling as a freelancer for the past 15 months and I love it! My “offices” have ranged from a coffee table next to the beach to my lap on a very small aeroplane. I am trying to encourage more people to get started in online freelancing as the opportunities for travel are amazing. You can read more about my experiences travelling and freelancing at no9to5.co. Being able to work anywhere is really cool but it does have its own challenges. Here are some of my top tips to make your life easier while you are travelling.

http://www.oneworld365.org/blog/top-5-tips-for-working-freelance-when-traveling