Andy HoboTraveler.com Travel Journal

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This is the Travel Journal of Andy HoboTraveler.com

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Thanks to Mom, Dad, Family and Friends and Boy Genius From India

Room Needed in Philippines

< Older Room Needed in Philippines
I need a Free Hotel Room in the Philippines, preferably in one of these three locations.

Manila - Makati - close to Robinsons Mall
Baguio
Boracay Island

The room must have Skype.com-good WIFI Internet inside the room.

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Thammasat University
Rangsit Campus,
Thailand, Southeast Asia
Friday, July 3, 2009
Hotels near Thammasat University
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I have been thinking about this for the last year, and my present need for money has pushed me through the Hotel (Resort) door. The economic situation has decreased my money by about 30-60 percent and truly hampers plans for Africa trips.

For the first 1-3 years of my 11 years of travels, I offset the cost of traveling by trading a free webpage for a room I am returning to the well.

Today I sat down and wrote letters to Hotels on Boracay Island in the Philippines. I consider this one of the best ways to fund an around world trip and now I am going to prove it. Wade from VagabondJourney.com has already made trades of submission on HoboHideOut maybe 10 times.

I need to Beta Test this system… fine-tune it, remove the problems and simplify, therefore going out and doing it is a good idea for the site and me.. and set up support for wanna be Hoboes to learn how to do this.

I have written this letter to five resorts in Boracay, and will continue to write letters until I close a deal, or I will go knock on doors.

Hello,

My name is Andy Graham the Travel Writer and owner HoboTraveler.com website. I will be flying from Bangkok, Thailand to the Philippines in the next few days. I have a famous Travel Blog; I have traveled perpetually for over 11 years and visited 85 countries.

National Geographic top 10 Travel Blog
Forbes.com Top Five Travel Blog
About.com
New York Times
Etc.

Blog Link:
http://www.hobotraveler.com/blogger.html

I am funding my never-ending trip by helping Hotels to submit their Hotels to large Hotel website.

HoboHideOut.com - The Free Encyclopedia of Hotel Rooms
http://www.hobohideout.com

Do you want a Free Internet Webpage for your sleeping rooms? On the other hand, if you already have a website, a good incoming link from a good SEO Search Engine Optimized Hotel website.

I will submit your business to HoboHideOut.com in English and create an advertisement for your Hotel to help you make money.

INCLUDED:

1. Take 100 digital photos of your hotel and place on a CD Rom for your future use.

2. Upload 60 Photos to HoboHideOut.com.

3. Write descriptions of the 60 photos in English.

Cost: Free

I will do this in exchange for living in a room free for 15 days with free use of the WIF internet in my hotel during this time.

I am presently in Bangkok, Thailand and will be flying to the Philippines within the next few days.

http://www.hobohideout.com/philippines
Friday, July 3, 2009

My Cell Phone number in Thailand:
+66847653706

Skype.com: Ooops Omitted Here
Thank you,
Andy Graham
Ooops Omitted Here

How to Travel Blog, - Jobs

Room Needed in Philippines
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Unemployment 2009

< Older Unemployment 2009
9-10 percent unemployment in the USA, every tenth person is not working, is this true? I have been told for years this is the standard unemployment rate in France, Spain and Germany.

I want to know, has there been a reduction in beer drinking or increase?

Unemployment Statistics
http://www.bls.gov/cps/

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Thammasat University
Rangsit Campus,
Thailand, Southeast Asia
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Hotels near Thammasat University
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If the amount of beer drank on Planet Earth has decreases, I will feel confident the world economy is in trouble. In my life experience, I have slowly realized most problems are more psychological than tragic.

I have visited 85 countries, I have traveled the planet for perpetually for over 11 years, I have never seen a person starve to death. I have never seen a person close to starving to death. I have read about this for years, I will testify and witness it is hard to find.

Unemployment 2009
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Thailand Market Shrimp and Fuzzy Fruit

< Older Thailand Market Shrimp and Fuzzy Fruit
I was forced to walk through a Thailand food market that was in front of the Panthip Computer store in Rangsit, Thailand yesterday.

Shrimp, Crabs and fuzzy fruit, it is always a colorful day when walking through the food markets in Thailand; you never know why the market is located where it is located, it is just there. Intriguing, however the smell can sometimes be annoying, as the smells are all in the same soup.

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Thammasat University
Rangsit Campus,
Thailand, Southeast Asia
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Hotels near Thammasat University
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I truly love Shrimp Cocktail; however, I can never buy the cocktail sauce or the horseradish to make my own, and it just does not taste the same.

Large Thailand Shrimp, I suspect they are raised in the Shrimp farms close to the ocean here; I doubt it is natural Shrimp.

Crabs, I have never seen a crab farm, I do not know if they grow them in farms or not?

There are many types of strange vegetables and fruits for sale in Thailand, I always think the fuzzy ones are interesting.

Agro-tourism, - Food, - Restaurants

Thailand Market Shrimp and Fuzzy Fruit
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Doctor Thailand Orthopedic

< Older Doctor Thailand Orthopedic
Today I went to a Thailand Doctor who specializes in Orthopedic problems, and he is now sending me down the line to a nerve Doctor. As best I understand, and I do not speak Thai, I have “mild” degeneration of my bones, all looks great from an Orthopedic Bone Doctor point of view. However, “same same, but different” here in Thailand as in the USA, he is wanting me to talk to another Doctor specialist or neural surgeon, he used words like MRI, Neural, Tumor, Biopsy, etc, and we are stumbling down the Doctors path.

The Thailand Orthopedic Doctor say he studied in Minnesota and somehow gets the word “Mild” and “Wild” confused in English.

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Thammasat University
Rangsit Campus,
Thailand, Southeast Asia
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Hotels near Thammasat University
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I as best I know, I am paying 50 Baht for the meeting with the Orthopedic Doctor here in Thailand. The 50 Baht included the first consultation and then again him looking at the three X-rays that were taken.

I had three X-rays taken today and they cost 450 Baht.

50 Baht for Doctor
450 Baht for three X-rays.

Total 500 Baht

At about 34 Baht to the dollar, I am paying 14.50 U.S. dollars today.

A girl who works as a Pharmacist helped in the navigation of the Hospital. She said,
“Thammasat is one of the few Hospitals that does not change the price for foreigners.”

In the end, there needs to be a meeting of the minds between the doctor and the patient. I truly believe the language problems of Thailand are hazardous to my health. I believe a Thailand Doctor has a better brain than an India Doctor, better conditions, cleaner, etc, however I would be able to talk with an India Doctor better. I am sure I could have a good meeting of the minds with a Philippines Doctor, however not as strict in their standards as a Thailand Doctor, not as clean.

I think it is possible to go to Koh Samui or some large Private Hospital for Farangs here in Bangkok or Chang Mai and pay the same as the USA and miss the boat all together on the "why" of going to a doctor overseas…

I went to the Orthopedic Doctor today in the Thammasat University Campus Hospital here just north of Rangsit, Thailand. It is roughly one hour from the center of Bangkok or maybe about 500 Baht in a Taxi from Khao San Road.

I was extremely happy to be carrying my BlackBerry Storm from Verizon in my pocket. I was able to surf, read my Mobi Books, check out CNN, try to not read about Michael Jackson and play. A BlackBerry often is a better play toy than a business tool, and a great asset in a long lines waiting for a doctor to rush you through.

As best I can tell, these words are what the Orthopedic Doctor here in Thailand wants me to have checked by a neural surgeon, he wrote the words in English on the side of the X-rays, I took a photo with my cell phone.

Health, - Medical Tourism

Doctor Thailand Orthopedic
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Back Pain Relief in Thailand

< Older Back Pain Relief in Thailand
I am in Thailand hoping to solve my back pain problem; my sciatic nerve has been hurting now for at least six months. A doctor told me in Lima, Peru I have a nodule.

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Thammasat University
Rangsit Campus,
Thailand, Southeast Asia
Monday, June 29, 2009
Hotels near Thammasat University
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This is the location of the lump or nodule, although the pain has decreased over the last six months. If I walk too long, carry too much weight or even just lie in bed wrong it hurts. It is continuous with various degrees of pain.

There are two reasons to go to a doctor overseas.

1. You have no choice.
2. Cheaper

I am using the cheaper option however Thailand is in many ways horrible expensive for medical work. A person has to truly know what the price should be or you can easily pay the same as the USA.

How much does is cost to remove a Nodule in the USA, this is a good question. I am hoping to pay 200-300 Baht today to talk with an orthopedic doctor. If this were critical or scary type of medical work, I would return to the USA, at the end of the day, Thailand people do not speak English and are not intuitive to the Western Mind.

I took a 450 Baht 8-11 hour overnight bus from Chiang Mai and luckily they dropped me off directly in front of Thammasat University just north of Rangsit, Thailand.

This is roughly, where I am located; trust me you do not want to depend on maps in Thailand. When I go to a place, I have a trusted person write the location in the Thailand language. If possible, I show the paper to a normal car Taxi and hope he reads. I almost never use a Tuk Tuk because they cost more than normal Taxis.

I expect the doctors here in Thailand to do the same as the USA, they will experiment around and after many trial and error methods, and they will stumble on the solution. The stumbling action I hope is radically cheaper. It is the cost of talking to the doctor that should be cheaper.

It is incredible how bad the Thailand people are in English, in a way I think I should have done this in Lima, Peru when talked with a Doctor there on the problem.

I do not have health insurance; therefore, I am screwed for USA medical services. I am hoping Obama helps give me free medical in the USA… hehehe, maybe I can nationalize in England or Canada and get them to pay… hehehe

Can you empathize or imagine how much fine print there is in a health insurance policy that would say they not need to pay for places like Africa or Asia?

Health, - Medical Tourism

Back Pain Relief in Thailand
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Cheap Swimming Pool Travel Tip

< Older Cheap Swimming Pool Travel Tip
It is often possible to enjoy the swimming pool, sauna, bar and other resort benefits without paying for the expensive room. I enjoy a swimming pool; however, when a Hotel has this feature it often double or triples the price of the Hotel room.

I have paid to visit many Swimming Pools in my 11 years of perpetual travel.

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Chiang Mai, Thailand
Southeast Asia
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Hotels in Chiang Mai, Thailand
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Example:

I am staying in the ThaPae Gate Lodging across from the Top North Guesthouse here in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Swimming Pool at Top North Guesthouse in Chiang Mai, Thailand

I pay 150 Baht for a fan room, with Skype fast WIFI in my room. I walk across to the Top North Guesthouse and pay 100 Baht to use their swimming pool.

The minimum cost to stay in the Top North Guesthouse is 300 Baht for a fan room with no WIFI Internet.

Hotels have “Bundles of Benefits,” as I find my travelers nest, I try to Bundle all the Benefits in the same area, and I normally do not want them all in the same Hotel. For example, I like a restaurant, however I do not like a restaurant at my hotel, I like it across the street or down the block, and restaurants are noisy and often full of drunks.

I rate a swimming pool by the number of Bikinis, not by how clean it is, no Bikinis and a zero rating, I do not care how nice the pool is…

Cheap Swimming Pool Travel Tip
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TripAdvisor.com Gamed

< Older TripAdvisor.com Gamed
Hotels manipulate Hotel Booking sites; they will post good reviews about their Hotel, and bad reviews about their competition.

Boy Genius from India, my partner in HoboHideOut.com sent me a link yesterday.

Is Trip Advisor One Big Joke

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Chiang Mai, Thailand
Southeast Asia
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Hotels in Chiang Mai, Thailand
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Is TripAdvisor.com one big joke?

I would say no, however I could give you a never-ending list of websites, travel writers, newspapers, and television blah blah blah that are a joke, in fact, my guessitmate is 99 percent.

How do I know a Travel Writers is lying?
Their mouth is moving.

Do I recommend you get on TripAdvisor.com, I normally do not recommend anything, however I do recommend everything. Take a lick, a taste of everything, but do not bite.

I do not make reservations, it always seems like the best way to guarantee I live in the worst Hotel and pay the most amount of money. If I get a reservation it is for one night, then I walk around that day to all the Hotels in the area and give them a personal review, then move if needed. I move 80 percent of the time.

I continually move or upgrade.

Hmm Chiang Mai,
Started at Top North Guesthouse at 500 Baht.
Went to P.S. Guest House around the corner at 200 Baht, thinking the WIFI was ok, it was not.
I am now paying 150 Baht or five U.S. Dollars and have unlimited WIFI in my room and I pay to swim in the Top North Guesthouse. I will not tell you where, however hope to put on HoboHideOut.com.

TripAdvisor.com is ok, not so bad, they are trying to do a good job, and the people writing the reviews are always giving them a top rating, because people who write reviews like to send people to read their reviews. (Read that sentence again it is the secret of the internet.)

Never trust anyone in the travel industry, including me, sometimes I make mistakes.

I know one thing, the less I pay for a room, the less I worry about whether I got a good deal, there is a point where I know I did, and the majority of tourist and travelers are in a constant state or worry or trying to check.

300 plus Diggs, I think they game it...Twitter, Facebook, it is all a game, it is not real life.

TripAdvisor.com Gamed
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