Big news first: After 7 years of traveling the world, I finally have a home again! I moved to Bangkok for good :)
1. Bangkok
It still feels a bit strange to write this, but yes, the world trip has turned into a permanent move. I found a wonderful condo on the outskirts of Bangkok and for the first time in years I have my own place where I can unpack my bag and stay. The plan for the next months is pretty simple: build routines, work, get to know every centimeter of my area, learn Thai and try new sports. Ping pong, cycling and badminton are on the list. Once a month I also want to do a trip somewhere inside Thailand, so I keep exploring the country.
Why Bangkok? Because it is the perfect base for Southeast Asia. Flights to almost everywhere are cheap, everything is super convenient and the price-performance ratio is just great. I pay 11,000 Baht rent for my condo, which is a really good deal for what I get. On top of that I got a 5-year visa, so Thailand can slowly become my long-term home.
Finding the condo was way harder than I thought, though :D Most landlords in my area simply did not want Farangs. I did it the old-school way: no agency, I just walked around, looked at many condos in person and asked around until I finally found the right one. It took some patience, but it was worth it.
My new place also got tested by guests very quickly. I had 3 different Couchsurfers and some friends from home visiting me, so the condo was never really empty. It was a nice way to start, because I got to show people my new home and share a lot of good food and stories.
Besides that, I started exploring Bangkok itself. Two trips I really liked were Ko Kret and Nonthaburi. Ko Kret is a small island in the Chao Phraya river, just outside the city. It is calm, there are no big roads and it is known for its pottery and local snacks, so it feels like a different world compared to the busy center. I explored it by bicylce a few times and stayed overnight on a weekend.
Nonthaburi is the province right next to Bangkok. It has a relaxed riverside atmosphere, local markets and lots of good food, and it is very easy to reach from my side of the city.
2. Penang
In between my Bangkok time I also spent a few days in Penang, where I lived for almost a year. I really missed the food there :D It was great to eat all my favorite dishes again and to see my friends and former neighbors. It felt a bit like visiting my old hometown.
It also had a practical reason: The international trip helped me avoid my 90-day report in Thailand, so I could combine a nice reunion with some paperwork.
I already wrote a lot about Penang in my older posts, so I will keep this short. If you want to know more about the island, check out my previous blog posts about it!
I am really curious how the next months will go and what Thailand will still show me. Let's see what happens next! More from life Thailand in the next posts! :)
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| Walking around condos to find an apartment |
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| Setting up my new place |
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| Condo Cat! |
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| Plant shopping |
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| Sipping beers with visitors from my home town :D |
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| Temple at Ko Kret |
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| Cycling around Ko Kret with Made from Indonesia |
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| Developing Badminton skills day by day |
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| Night market with Pandu & Philip |
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| IT support |
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| The best Pad Kra Pow place I found in Bangkok |
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| Kate and Philip playing Ping Pong |
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| Learning Thai animals |
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| Trying new Barbers Shops |
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| Destiny's cats in Penang, very polite ones :D |
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| Nasi Kandar, one of my very very favorite kind of dinner |
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| Penang depature |
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| Day trip on Philip's birthday, 41 years already :D :D |
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| Royal Thai cuisine at the river |
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| 10/10 ice cream place |
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| Ping Pong training session |
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| Weekend getaway on Ko Kret |
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| My favorite Pad Thai in Thailand |
