Rosie Nguyen started her digital nomad lifestyle of working online and traveling in 2018. She owns the Living List Journey channel on Youtube and Instagram. For 4 years, Rosie and her American boyfriend traveled around the world. Before coming to Southeast Asia, the couple spent 4 months exploring the US and Mexico. In response to Travellive, she shared that Thailand was the first stop in Rosie's series of days traveling to Asian countries.
Thailand
"Thailand is my peaceful place, I've been here for a while and have come back 2-3 times," said Rosie Nguyen.
Rosie Nguyen chose Thailand first because this country is very close to Vietnam, she can easily return to visit her family. Besides, Thailand is a country with flexible spending levels, prices here are suitable for all types of tourism from luxury to independent. Rosie Nguyen loves Thai food, she thinks that the dishes here are diverse but suitable for tourists' taste. She likes Thai papaya salad the most and can eat it every day without getting bored.
Thailand also scores points for its good tourism services and friendly, enthusiastic locals. In particular, the Land of Golden Temples has many festivals throughout the year, so visitors only need to choose the time that suits them to fully experience the tourism here.
"I also really like Thai. There was a time when I was in Thailand for 3-4 months and tried to learn a little Thai," Rosie said.
What Rosie is concerned about when coming to Thailand is the terrible traffic jams in Bangkok. She recommends tourists to use Grab bikes for convenience. On the other hand, the distance between tourist destinations is too far apart, which is also a minus point. Tourists cannot experience the whole land of the Golden Temples if they only go for a few days.
Singapore
Coming to Singapore, Rosie Nguyen was impressed by the cleanliness and modernity that this island nation brings. Singapore has many tourist destinations suitable for photography enthusiasts such as: Garden by the Bay, waterfall in Changi Airport, Universal, Marina Sand Bay.... Unlike Thailand, transportation is very easy and traffic jams rarely occur. Famous check-in areas are close to each other so you can also walk.
"Going shopping in Singapore is great because you can find every brand here," said Rosie Nguyen.
All Singaporeans can use English, so communication and finding directions is easy. However, Rosie feels that Singaporeans are less open and welcoming than people in other Asian regions. When experiencing service at restaurants or hotels, the waiters are often not friendly and happy to welcome. She thinks that she does not have any good memories of service in the lion island.
In Singapore, the cost of traveling is quite expensive. Rosie Nguyen and her boyfriend booked a room at a normal hotel that cost 200 USD/night for a small room. On the other hand, she could not find a room on the Airbnb application. Singapore has many beautiful places but most of them are man-made. Therefore, this country will not be suitable for tourists who like to immerse themselves in the natural gifts such as hills, mountains, waterfalls, etc.
Indonesia
Rosie Nguyen spent 9 months in Bali (Indonesia) during the pandemic. While there, the couple encountered a lockdown but it was not too strict. People could still go to the supermarket a little, but the tourist attractions were all closed. Rosie Nguyen believes that Indonesia has a lot of beautiful landscapes and the tourism services here are very high quality.
"Almost every villa I rent comes with a person who comes to clean the house every day for me. They also help me take my clothes to the laundry," Rosie said.
Rosie Nguyen commented that there are many festivals in Bali. The most impressive to her is Nyepi - the Day of Silence. Nyepi is like a New Year's Day here. On the day of silence, all traffic on the streets is banned. No entertainment activities are allowed on this day. All islanders spend the entire day of silence praying at home or at temples.
Bali is a world-famous tourist destination and attracts a large number of tourists. However, the transport infrastructure here is poorly developed. Traffic jams occur constantly. On the other hand, during peak tourist season in Bali, you have to wait for hours to queue up to take photos. The dishes in this island nation are not very diverse and the flavors are not very innovative.
"Sometimes I crave Vietnamese food but there is only one chain of Vietnamese restaurants that has the real Vietnamese taste," Rosie said.
Philippines
Rosie Nguyen believes that the most beautiful time in the Philippines is in September or October, when many places will play Christmas music and decorate in preparation for December.
"The Philippines has a cultural exchange between the East and the West. So a large part of the population of this country follows Catholicism and Christianity, so they celebrate Christmas very early," said Rosie Nguyen.
There are many islands in the Philippines and most of them are clean and beautiful. According to Rosie, the people are very nice and communicate very well in English. If she has the opportunity to return to the Philippines, Rosie will choose to visit Cebu and Baguio. In particular, Baguio has similarities with Mexico, a country Rosie has spent a lot of time visiting and exploring.
The Philippines has quite a few strict rules. For example, when she went to Boracay, the beach management did not allow Rosie to bring anything down there, not even a coconut. Wearing a swimsuit that is too revealing will also get you fined. In addition, the internet in the Philippines is quite slow. Therefore, this country is not suitable for travelers with a digital nomad lifestyle.
