@carterlized

Chiang Mai used to be N.1 for the digital nomad life. It is still great and you can find really cheap apartments (300-400$) and restaurants (2-3$ for a main). Wouldn't recommend staying there during the burning season. The best area is Nimman, but it's also the most expensive. You can stay in the old city that's very nice but that gets noisy during the weekend for the night markets. Last but not least, very safe city. All in all would go back in a heartbeat.

I really enjoyed my first week here, but as I got to know more locals and heard their stories, I was disturbed at the security situation. Almost everyone I met has horror stories about being robbed at gunpoint, robbed by the police, and in one case even drugged and robbed by a taxi driver. It's not even safe to walk a short distance at night (locals told me to just take Uber). Beyond the security issues, scams also abound, and the covid policy is wacky, with hand sanitizer being forced on you ev

Amazing, large and accessible beaches. But the vibe is not there yet. It still feels like an "old" vacation place: tons of families, retirees, couples and sex tourists. The hip, young crowd you can find in Canggu for example is not there yet. There is only one decent coworking spot, not a lot of specialty cofee places. Most DNs stay in Rawai, which is OK - just a long street in a non-swimming beach. If you live there you will have to drive 15mins to go to the beach (Nai Han, Kata, etc). The infr

Good: - Great local food - Portuguese people are amazingly friendly - Vibrant DN community. It's like the city has been overtaken by remote workers. You will see everyone working on their laptop everywhere you go. - Amazing views whenever you want; you can just get a beer and climb to one of the viewpoints to see the sunset. Easy and magical. - Super cheap Ubers, easy subway Bad: - Housing prices. I'm not kidding, it's the worst I've ever seen. Ultra overpriced. I guess that's the problem when

Putrajaya is the only place I would recommend due to its close proximity to the airport. The Shaftsbury Hotel is modern with two convenience stores, pharmacy, restaurants, dental, and more in the actual building. There is a rain fountain in "mall" of the building that would be Putrajaya's attempt at Singapore's airport one. The location is also literally right across from the bigger mall that has restaurants, international grocery store, movie theater, bowling, electronics, etc. It's a safe a

I visited Prague on more than one occasion and tried something new each time. I really wanted to enjoy it, but unfortunately it turned out to be one of my least favourite cities. Perhaps it was just me, but there was an overwhelming sense of distrust and dislike towards foreigners, you have to try pretty hard to blend in if you want to experience the life of a local & avoid the tourism. I met some wonderful people and and there’s some cool communities to be part of, but another extended stay

Pros: * Very clean - lots of hand sanitisation places and people wear masks + streets are clean * Great, cheap public transport * Very beautiful city and good parks * Pretty good Italian and asian food Cons: * Coffee shops seem to have mostly gone and been replaced with lots of Starbucks and other chains. * Food / drinks is very expensive in most parts - Local beer is quite cheap though * Barely any night life to speak of - everything closes at 11pm Other Info: COVID restrictions are very stri

Tokyo has so much to offer and so much to do. It is easily overwhelming. Whereas I usually take my first week to explore a place Tokyo’s sights just kept on going. I remember ending up in a hidden cocktail bar, a mexican rooftop party with 1 meter margaritas, spending a whole day going only to French places(?), visiting a store that only imported 2nd hand hiphop apparel, and throughout it all the best michelin star ramen. It just seemed endless, completely unrelated and incredibly fun. Six wee