@m_levs

Chiang Mai has had a deep Buddhist influence running over the last 1,000 years and this can be felt in the helpfulness, patience and generosity of the Thai and long-term transplants you come across. The city has an active community scene (nomads, spiritual seekers, hikers, creatives), several mountains with hiking spots and waterfalls surrounding the city, over 20 water bodies inside the city -- many have cafes and walks around, several public parks, and over 13 national parks with campgrounds w

(It seems my paragraph formatting is being removed due to the length of my comment, so sorry you'll have to deal with the wall of text if you want to read this, haha) Have been in Bangkok for the past 6 months. I've been nomadic for the past 4 years across Europe & the US, and as someone who is used to walking everywhere and greenery, I found it quite difficult living here. I spent my first 5 months living in Airbnbs, which were fine for around $6-800/m, and for the last month decided to live in

The worst place that I've been to in Asia (& I've been to quite a few). Every interaction with a local is a sales pitch for something. Tuk tuk, massage, weed, food, prostitution, you name it. People look at you as a customer and nothing else. This is very different in other countries in South East Asia. I've had plenty of authentic, non-sales-pitchy interactions with locals in Vietnam, Malaysia, Philippines or Thailand. None of that here. It feels like this place only exists to extract as much

You could do worse, you could do better. Filthy & stressful, you have to Grab everywhere, even a short walk results in dodging aggressive motorbikes. Locals are super unfriendly, way worse than Hanoi, so not sure why everyone raves about how friendly they are in comparison. Poor quality in everything, even the luxury experiences are a total rip-off. Surprisingly underdeveloped too, not even a bar on their observation deck in Bitexco. Internet is really good, but stay as far from D1 as you can -

Cool little town to live in and work from, I was there for 3 weeks in low season. Lots of great restaurants, cafes etc. Nice easy access to the beach, riverside and countryside. Nightlife is quieter, but if you don't care about that, it's great. The Hub coworking there is run by some super friendly people and the new location they are building looks like it should be fantastic..

Trying a month — 3 weeks in, not a fan. Transient.. feels like nowhere. Faint smell of sewerage, not walkable, beach absolutely packed and at the end of the day when the sun backs off (June). Food and coffee is either excellent or terrible, little inbetween.. but that’s fine once you find the good spots.

Two weeks in Hanoi. Really enjoyed the city. Besides, the pollution, a nice charming city. Great access to all the tourist destinations in the north Ha Long Bay, Ninh Binh, Sa Pa. WiFi is excellent. Food is excellent. People are friendly. Not a nightlife person or coworking space but it's available. Cafes are everywhere and yes egg coffee is amazing. Definitely recommend.

avoid going to the waterfalls with weed (or buying any on the way there) It's a very old trick the cops stop & search bikes on their way back. (while the locals try to sell you stuff on the way there)