Missing in action

                                                 Time

Time flies, this saying is so suitable for my lifestyle. Living and working in a very BIG, BUSY city is very time consuming, but can also be very fun. Never running out of things to do is a great way of living. Always want to be busy and do as much as possible when you are in a foreign country. I have been so fortunate the past 3 years to be able to live in such a beautiful country. Learned many things and experienced so much. My journey is slowly coming to an end, but I will never forget YOU. I have decided to go back home early 2018, since I haven't seen my Father and Sibling in nearly 3 years. I have decided to make a post today to tell you in more detail what I've learned and experienced in Thailand.

1. Culture.

I've been to a few other countries and met many people on my travels. Thais most certainly have the kindest hearts of all. Caring, loving and mostly giving. They won't think twice to walk that extra mile for you. What better to ask for in a new friend. Food is definitely the center of all occasions. Families are close with each other, normally they all live in one house ( 2-3 generations).

2.  Nature

Thailand has extremely beautiful beaches all over ( a must go if you plan so). In the past 3 year I did try to go to the beach twice a year. Great way to relax and unwind with you feet in the warm waters. In Thailand there are many Islands to visit so make sure you get to plan your next holiday here.

In the next few hour I'll upload some of my picture of where I have been. Make sure you come have a look. Share with your friends and don't forget to leave a comment. You can also subscribe to my blog and follow me.

PS. I'll be going on holiday soon, 2nd week of April. Going to do some Island hopping. I'll upload many pictures so make sure you come back.

XOXOXO Happy holidays everyone

Niel Malan

The Decision

The decision

26 September 2016

Today two years ago I've arrived in Thailand. With little to no knowledge what so ever.
Was it a mistake, hell no. Best decision I've ever made, "biggest also".

I said my goodbye's, board my plane and never looked back once. The land of Smiles are
truly a remarkable place, tropical and full of adventures. Here in this post I will answer
the most frequently asked questions and give my personal feelings towards the answers.

So the questions I get oh so often.

Q: Why Thailand when other countries are better?

A: Well why not Thailand!!!! When I decided to teach abroad, I had a few options (Countries)
   to choose from, I chose Thailand because at that moment it made the most sense. Yes Thailand
   has its ups and downs, but this ride has been a journey unforgettable.

Q: Do the eat cats and dogs in Thailand?

A: No!! No!!! And again, No!!!! Like us foreigners they hate the idea that people eat a mans
   best friend. Well according to my Thai friends they don't eat dogs and cats, BUT someone
   did tell me the Border poorer regions do eat cat and dog. How much the truth hold on that
   I just don't know.

Q: What steps should I take if I want to teach in Thailand, where should I begin?

A: Well, get all the information 1st, then plan, plan, plan and do more planning. Always good
   to be prepared. I will go into more detail about this later in a separate Blog Post. The steps
   I took, the do's and don'ts and what, what.

Q: Do you need a Degree in Thailand to teach?

A: Yes and No. You only need a Degree to obtain a work permit. Can't apply for a work permit if you don't have a degree. Needed for the process. But you can work in Thailand without one. Illegally of coarse. But the schools do it that way. Without a degree they just pay you less, and you need to do border hops every 3 months. But hey, it's all part of the fun ( choose a different country every time, see new places).

This brings me to the end of my post. If you have any questions, need any information or want to leave a comment,  please do so. Be on the look out for my next Post. Make sure to follow me on my blogging site, share with friends and leave some comments.

Have a peaceful evening.

Niel

My time in Thailand

                       Traveling Thailand Hassle Free

What to know;

Thailand like "they" call it "the land of smiles" is truly a beautiful country with a rich culture
like none other place I've visited so far. I've been in Thailand the past 2 years and it's been the
best experience so far. The food, people, culture, style just about everything is just so different
to what I'm used too back home. Arrived in Thailand 23rd of September 2014, I remember it like yesterday,
that moment I left the airport in Bangkok, the thick wall of heat hit me right in the face just to realize
how hot Thailand really are. I knew it's going to be hot but didn't expect this kind of heat, but you do
get used to it. So let's talk about some topics and get some order in the house....

Food:

Spicy, Spicy, Spicy, unless you ask for not spicy. Not all of the foods are spicy but the majority
of the foods are. I like it though. I believe it kills all germs. Most of your foods contains either
rice or noodles; Pork, Chicken, Duck or Seafood and let's not forget the loads of Chilies. If you look hard
enough and far and wide you'll sometimes find Beef, but not so popular. Oh!!!!! Very important fact to
mention, Thailand doesn't eat cats and dogs. I've heard that the Thailand Border towns do eat cats
and dogs, been there once again didn't see any of that anywhere so until I can prove it's true I will
say it isn't. Okay let's add some Thai terms for food:

Not spicy = mai ped
Chicken   = Gai
Pork      = Moo

Average price of street foods are 35-45 Baht ( about $1) ( 1 dollar = 35 Baht)


Transport

Thailand have a big variety of transport, not all are in the best of conditions but it adds to the
experience of it all. Let's name a few and give some price estimates.

1.Taxi's - I think it's about 6 baht per kilometer, but depends on traffic. (charge fee even no movement)

2.  Buses - Air con Bus about 15 - 25 Baht single trip ( short distance buses)
        No air con Bus 9 Baht single trip ( short distance Buses)

3. Songtae - It's a pick up truck with seats and roof at the back, very popular and cheap, about 7 baht a trip.

4. Van - Air con Mini Bus, charge anything from 10 -35 baht depending on how far you go. 35 baht can take you
         so far as 20km I think.

5. Tuk-Tuk - It's like a motorcycle wagon taxi, Personally I never take these, they make their own prices when
             they see a foreigner. For about 4-5Km they can charge up too 200Baht. CRAZY!!!!!!



Hotels and Backpackers
Thailand have a wide range of places to stay, hotels, B&B, Backpackers and some Apartments. The prices also vary from
really cheap to really expensive. Currently I'm living in an apartment with just the basics. With a partly furnished room
it doesn't come to expensive. The more you get the more you pay. My room is about 180 baht a day which isn't too bad at all,
but some rooms can go up too 400-500 baht a day depends on where you live. Let's see, you average per day room at an island
can start at as low as 400 baht a night up too 2500 baht a night. if you are their for the adventure and experience and don't
really care about what it looks like then I would say go cheap and do all the things you want to do. So many activities can't
miss out on any. From Banana Boat, snorkeling, scuba diving and hikes and trails, you can most definitely stay busy all day.
Islands are a bit more expensive than the inland, but over all it's affordable.


Shopping

Not much to say about shopping, plenty of places to go and lot's of money to spend. Let's give a list of Shopping Malls you
can find around Bangkok.

1. Siam Paragon
2. Fashion Island
3. The Mall Bangkapi
4. MBK Center
5. Central World
6. Terminal 21

And the for some Markets you MUST visit, (street markets)

1. China Town
2. Jatujak Green (JJ Green)
3. Silom Night Market
4. Minburi Market

Well this bring everything to an end. I'm looking really forward if anyone have any questions, I'll surely answer them to the
best of my knowledge. If I missed anything please tell me and I'll make another post on this topic and share what I can. Hope
this post were informative as intended to be. Hope too see you all soon in the "Land of Smiles".