Some travel notes

Just some travel notes.

In 2004 when I set off solo travelling around Asia, I loaded my backpack with around 3 or 4 Lonely Planets to cover the first batch of countries on my roughly sketched itinerary. Invaluable for my travels, especially for relatively-difficult-to-navigate India, but amounted to a medium sized rock in my backpack. Some say guidebooks have had their time. I would disagree, but I would say the best tips often come from fellow travellers. You find that when you’re on the road, or even before you travel. I’ve had some of the best advice from people I’ve met along the way.  A work in progress to help fellow travellers out, I’m occasionally adding some travel notes about places I know well, and writing the odd longer piece here and there.

About me

That’s me in Ayuthaya, Thailand

I’m Simon. Travel and music and life are what get me out of bed.

After making my way through a Geography degree in Wales, I’ve been spending a large portion of my youth either travelling, working in travel, working or studying in various countries around the world – predominately Asia. Until last year, I was based in northern China for four years. During that time I studied Chinese (Mandarin) language at Tsinghua University, Beijing on its Chinese language programme. I’d absolutely recommend it if you’d like to go back to school. I did an academic year and have since continued self-study. I am thoroughly passionate about Southeast Asia and China, and wherever I am living – presently London – my heart remains in Asia.

That small town thing. Anyone that spent their formative years in a small valley town will know the feeling of wanted to get beyond the hills and see the wider world. For me this was a town in northwest England. I’d spend hours spinning a globe around, whichever country my finger would land on, that’s where I planned to travel to as soon as I could. Travel has been my thing ever since.

Sound. As of 2020, my travel prospects (both work and leisure, have been looking pretty rubbish) so I have been focusing on developing my production skills beyond my Youtube travel videos (which I may one day share with you), and I’ve been training in Location Sound Recording. It’s a fascinating area of work, and I have so far learnt so much. Now, I am, like so many others during the pandemic, hoping to get out there as soon as possible and start working.