A guide to new world of banking and finance – direct banks, international transfers, mobile wallets, crypto exchanges, and other online investing platforms I often grumble about the high fees associated with international banking when travelling abroad (especially with Australian banks), so I’ve been looking around at banking alternatives. Changing bank accounts is not something […]
Where I’m At: June 2021 – Saigon lockdown 2 edition
Welcome to another edition of Where I’m At – rounding up my travels (or lack of travel) from the last month, and other news. For the best weekly travel reads, subscribe to my travel newsletter, where I curate the most interesting travel reads from around the web. Where I’ve been Having been inside the eerily […]
Europe Rail News – The new newsletter for train travel in Europe
Introducing my latest project: Europe Rail News – the newsletter for train travel in Europe. The newsletter includes new routes, service updates, train travel tips, ticket deals, and features on European destinations by railway. Why start a Europe rail news site? Nomadic Notes is my online home to write about travel and digital nomad life. […]
Visiting every province in Vietnam
Having been based in Vietnam off and on for a number of years, I have been to most of the main tourist hot spots in that time. When the world went crazy in March 2020, I came back to Vietnam knowing that travel international travel was not going to get back to normal anytime soon. […]
Notes on Phu Quoc 2021- The tourism developments that have transformed this tropical island paradise
It had been six years since I was last in Phu Quoc, and things have changed fast there, even by Vietnam’s standards. The last time I visited I called it Southeast Asia’s next big thing. I was thinking in the context of it becoming a more known destination. The megaprojects that now dominate the island […]
Notes on Vung Tau – A weekend at the beach of Saigon
Vung Tau is a coastal city in the Southeast region of Vietnam, in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province. While Vung Tau is technically not the closest beach to Saigon, it’s the most accessible nicest beach to Saigon. Thus it is regarded as “the beach of Saigon”. [A Saigonesque skyline is growing on the Back Beach road […]
Where I’m At: May 2021 – Saigon edition
Greetings from Saigon and welcome to another edition of Where I’m At – rounding up my travels from the last month, and other news. If you are new here, subscribe to my travel newsletter to get the weekly email that rounds up the best travel reads from around the web. Where I’ve been A brief […]
Notes on Con Dao – From prison island to pilgrimage paradise
Con Dao is a group of islands off the coast of Vietnam, about 230 km southeast of Ho Chi Minh City. There are 16 islands, with the largest (Con Son) being home to the main town, port, and airport. [Hon Troc – one of the islands of the Con Dao island group.] Con Dao is […]
Notes on Soc Trang – Big Buddhas and superb soups deep in the Delta
Soc Trang is the capital of Soc Trang Province in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam. It’s not a big tourist destination, but it has some wonderful Khmer temples in and around the city. Soc Trang is the closest mainland port to Con Dao, so this is a faster trip than the boat from Vung […]
Notes on Bac Lieu – Most people don’t go here
Bac Lieu is the capital of Bac Lieu Province in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam. Judging by the lack of travel information online and the small choice of hotels on the booking sites, it’s fair to say that it doesn’t receive many visitors. I was in Bac Lieu partly because it was on the […]
