January 9, 2013

How Do Travel Bloggers Make Money?

When it comes to traveling, there is one question I always get, “How can you afford to do it so much?”. While this was my most pondered questioned as well a couple years back when I saw all these scurvy bastard travel bloggers living the dream, I have gotten creative in the way I earn an income, and now, I have joined their slimy ranks. The main takeaway from this post is that while it looks like us travel bloggers are just perpetually on vacation, we are in fact working part of the time as well, so if you can…

January 4, 2013

My 2012 in Recap!

2012 was a great year for me. It started with the purchase of my first condo (with the cash fronted by my pops) on South Beach in the first few days of January. I like my new place a lot and it has really become a great home base for me. I got around a lot this past year (take that as you will), and here is a brief recap of all the places I had the privilege of visiting in 2012. In January, I flew up to NYC to work the JC Penny Re-branding event (now they’re called JCP, how progressive…). I love the…

December 25, 2012

Honeybuns for The Homeless – My New Xmas Tradition!

The plight of the Jew on Christmas is a pretty standard one. We are usually confined to our beds from hangovers as going out on Christmas Eve is one of the “holiest” nights in the Jewish Calendar. I made no exception this year as I had a couple of friends in town from Philly (Jews too) and I took them to the Motzoh Ball, a “Jewbilee”at one of the top clubs in Miami, this year held at LIV. I had a good time, but it was pretty weird being around that many Jews in the same place! Well, after my slow…

December 18, 2012

Tap into Tasmanian Treasure in Hobart

A guest post from Ward Remoken. The land of Tasmania is one of legend, mystery and pristine natural beauty. Located in the center is Hobart, the island state’s capital city. The city earned its nickname “On top down under” from its early days as a penal colony to its enviable status as a tourist destination today. The city is actually the second oldest in Australia, and its residents are called “Hobartians.” Lonely Planet recently awarded Hobart seventh place on its “Best in Travel 2013” list. Finding exciting things to do during your stay in Hobart is easy: Begin by…

December 11, 2012

Muay Thai with the Guys…Not with little umbrellas.

Thailand is just one of those countries you could easily get stuck in, be it the painfully beautiful beaches and countryside, to the bustling always-on metropolis of Bangkok, you will see many Farangs (foreigner in Thai) who come on vacation and never leave. Be it the draw of beautiful South East Asian arm candy (a dirty old man’s dream) or the chance at becoming the next greatest Muay Thai Boxing champion, I met more than a handful of expats that came to Thailand to be someone they weren’t somewhere else. Upon arrival into Bangkok, I saw a ton of advertisements promoting…

November 26, 2012

Seven Days in Seattle!

So after my two months in Asia, I had to spend two days traveling to get all the way across the world back to Miami where I spent three days gathering some clothes, Couchsurfing my own couch (not kidding), and then flying right back out to the furthest possible place I could in the continental United States, Seattle, Washington. Why such jet setting you ask? Well my friends, even travel bloggers have to work sometimes. Although I have basically become pretty location independent with supporting myself (this blog, my other site Top Spot Travel.com and my web development business), I still don’t…

November 19, 2012

Why Vietnam is an Awesome Destination for Backpackers!

After just getting back from two months in South East Asia, I have already been thinking about my next jaunt there as I felt like I just scraped the surface. One country I didn’t get a chance to enjoy was Vietnam, so when Lela Lake offered to write a guest post about why it’s a cool country to check out, I said sure! Check out her top choices for places to see while visiting Vietnam. From professional globe-trotters to “gap year” explorers, travelers are discovering how they can tour in Vietnam for a fraction of the cost of other destinations!…

November 12, 2012

Why do the Brits Drive on The “Wrong” Side of The Road?

Oh Yea! Another fun edition to my travel stereotype series. After just getting back from Asia, I’m extremely happy to be driving on the “correct” side of the road. I had many near close calls with the streets of Thailand, and was thinking, why the hell did the Brits start this damn trend of driving on the left side of the road anyways? Well my friends, if you have ever angrily pondered this as well, here’s the answer! The British have been riding on the left side of the road for over a thousand years, and way before the common…

November 7, 2012

The Dreaded End of My Big Asian Adventure

If you have been keeping up with me for the past two months (come on, I know you checked in at least every of couple days to see what I was up to…right?), you would have noticed I’ve been ambling my way through southeast Asia. But, unfortunately the time has come for me to head back to my mother land. You know that too-big-for-its-own britches chunk of real estate at the center of the world (at least maps shown in America!) It’s been a great last couple of months and I decided to create this handy dandy (shitty) map of…

October 29, 2012

Polyglots are Sexy!

I’m an American (imagine your grossest Philadelphia accent as you fantasize about me saying that, or, Click here to listen!). In the past, I used to really dread saying I was a member of Uncle Sam’s Elite as I would travel, but as of recently, I’ve come to accept my country, language and generally am grateful that I get to live somewhere where the trash gets picked up, the infrastructure is sound, and I actually have the chance to succeed if I really really really try (being a middle class white guy don’t hurt neither!). But just a few years ago when I…

October 26, 2012

Is Gap Year Volunteering Still Worthwhile?

Guest Post from Andrew Tipp Gap year volunteering. It’s a rite of passage. For years intrepid young backpackers have been leaving home to do some good and see the world. This has naturally resulted in an explosion of volunteering companies meeting the surge in demand for interesting projects, adventurous locations and worthwhile causes. So volunteering is now a gazillion pound industry. But in recent times volunteering has come under fire, with questions arising about the cost of placements, the sustainability of projects, the motivations/expectations of volunteers, the benefit of unqualified volunteers and the effect of volunteering on social and economic…

October 21, 2012

Mountain Biking in Chiang Mai!

So after experiencing the insane hustle and bustle of Bangkok, I decided it was time to get the hell out of dodge and go somewhere a bit more my speed. I had heard about the much calmer city of Chiang Mai in the north west, so I looked for a good flight deal and was up there in just over an hour via Bangkok Airways (legit). My first impressions after landing was there is actually sun, (Bangkok was gloomy every single day I was there), it was super hot, and the city is beautifully cradled between multiple mountains, nice. After…

October 11, 2012

Ballin’ in The Philippines…No, Seriously!

If you’ve ever been to The Philippines, you probably noticed pretty quickly that the Filipinos are freakishly obsessed with basketball. From the traffic clogged streets of Manila, to the most provincial islands and villages, you’ll find guys (and girls) from all ages launching hook shots like Larry B, sniping threes, but most definitely not, dunking. Every megapolis, city, town and shanty cluster has at least one basketball court, and most are even covered to ensure the locals can get their round ball fix during downpours. When it was raining one day, I even played in a few pickup games myself…

October 1, 2012

Best Places to Surf in The Philippines – Siargao!

Inspired by my favorite movie growing up, Surf Ninjas (starring none other than a young, half-Filipino Rob Schneider), I decided to do some research where in the Philippines I might be able to continue my quest to wave conquering. I have already been to Baler, which is a small coastal town 5 hours from Manila and a good place to start learning, but the waves are pretty small for the most part and it’s beach break (reef break is where the good waves are). So after discovering the small Pacific-fronting island of Siargao online, I decided to make my way from…

September 24, 2012

Leg Two of My Big Asian Adventure!

So it has almost been a month since I left sunny South Florida and headed to Asia. So far, everything has been great and I’m still enjoying my time in The Philippines. To date, I have been to Manila, Baler to go surfing, Hong Kong to visit my friend Matt and check out the city, to Cebu City, the island of Bohol to enjoy the beach, back to my Cebu hotel to work :(, and now I’m headed to the hard to reach island of Siargao to try my hand at surfing again. I have a flight to Cambodia on…

September 20, 2012

How to get to Asia on the cheap!

When I decided to go to Asia a few months ago, I was only confronted with one major problem, shelling out for the hefty ticket! I’ve been to Europe a few times, and I’ve managed to do so under a thousand dollars, but to Asia, I was pretty much just seeing any price I was used to paying cubed. With a little hard thinking and research, I was able to land a roundtrip ticket for around $1300, here’s how! 1. Search for a flight leaving from the West Coast Any time I was searching for flights from Miami to Manila,…

September 17, 2012

The City that Capitalism Built – Hong Kong

When I heard my friend Matt from Miami was going to be heading to Hong Kong in early September, and at the same time that I’d be in Asia, I figured it would be cool to meet up with a familiar face across the world. He was there for the CFA (Certified Financial Analyst) annual conference so I was lucky enough to ride on his custom made, Hong Kong tailored coattails into probably the nicest hotel I’ve ever been, The Shangri La in Kowloon. I arrived into Hong Kong on a Monday morning via their ultra modern airport which is…

September 10, 2012

Climbing The Millennium Tree in Baler!

You read right. This crickety 25 year old went tree climbing. No, not up the 20 ft. tall sapling in my mom’s backyard, but to the king of trees, one 600 years old and the tallest of its type in all of Asia. Big ass trees have weirdly been a popular theme thus far on my Big Asian Adventure with a walk through the ancient and impressive Muir Woods in San Francisco (Ya, I know, not Asia, but I was on my way!). Well this time, I was informed of a tree that would impress even a tree snob like…

September 4, 2012

My New Favorite American City – San Francisco!

I just finished a quick weekend in San Francisco en route to Asia, and I have to say, it might take the cake for my new favorite US city. I’ve been here once upon a time with my parents (under 10) and all I can remember is making my mom cry with a double-team whining onslaught with my brother, our shitty 80’s Toyota Carolla rental barely making it up a steep hill and watching the sea lion orgy at Pier 39. Well, deciding to break up the long haul from Miami to Manilla, San Francisco seemed like a good halfway…

September 1, 2012

How Natural Disasters Have Almost Ruined All My Trips!

I have been having amazing “luck” recently while traveling. It is if the planets align, the stars shine bright and Mother Earth does her part as well, sort of. For some reason, every time I’ve planned to go on a large trip within the past year, some sort of impeding natural disaster looms in my destinations of choice, threatening to derail months (well weeks) of planning, money and time invested. Here are three castrophic events in the past year that almost thwarted my big escapes. 1. Massive Earthquake in Turkey Last October, I had finally planned a big trip to…