​Peter visits Asia`s famous Mekong River on the border between Thailand and Laos. During a recent trip to Ubon with my friend Pattarasri, we went along with some of her family to see the famous Mekong River and the Buddhist Wat (Temple) built into the walls of a cave near where the Mun River runs into the Kong (Mekong) River.

Peter takes on a little look around a Thai neighborhood, Lad Phrao 101, Bangkok, Thailand.

​Peter captures footage of a Royal Visit to a school in Lat Phrao 101, Bangkok, Thailand.

​Ayutthaya by Train - Easy to get to by train as it is only 90 minutes away from Bangkok, Peter visits the old Thai capital of Ayutthaya and captures some of the spectacular sights in this video. There is also some visitor information towards the end of the video.  Ayutthaya is an ancient capital and modern city in the Central Plains of Thailand, 85 km north of Bangkok. Founded around 1350, Ayutthaya became the second capital of Siam after Sukhothai.

​Khaosan Road, Bangkok, Thailand at Night... Khaosan Road comes alive after dark. Backpackers from around the world and local Thai`s party until the early hours. Take a look and see the Khaosan Road atmosphere in this short video.
Music Credit: EDM Detection Mode by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...)
Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-...
Artist: http://incompetech.com/

​(This blog post, originally published by the author at www.lovelyplanettv.com on 18 February 2016 is freely available to share, embed, distribute by anyone on the understanding that a credit is given to the author and a live link to www.lovelyplanettv.com .

How to change your life from mediocre to marvelous through travel even if you`re broke!

By Peter Quest

Just two years ago back in 2014, my life was at an all time low. Then I decided to travel the world. I only got as far as S. E. Asia but the experience I gained there was enough to give me a new outlook on life.

Unlike a 25 year old, for a 60 year old, the thought of just packing everything up to travel the world isn`t as common an occurrence.  But, even at 60, if the circumstances are right, then why not? Circumstances in my case were that I had no job, no prospects, no wife and my children had grown up got married and fled the nest. I was also suffering a bit of a depression having lost a long time ladyfriend and then almost losing my home. With no sign of the tunnel, let alone the light, I took the decision to do something I was passionate about while I still could, before it was too late. That something was to travel the world.  

The only problem was, with no job and no money,  how could I afford this new lifestyle? 

It was then, through sheer determination, that I stumbled upon Workaway, a website which puts travelers in touch with non profit organisations and charities (called NGO`s) and individuals across the world who needed a little help in exchange for a free bed and often free meals too.

I`ve since discovered there are more websites of this nature such as HelpX who can also put you in touch with those who need help in return for free accommodation and meals. And Woofing.  WWOOF  organisations connect people who want to live and learn on organic farms and smallholdings with people who are looking for volunteer help. 
Alternatively 'couchsurfing' is another method of finding free accommodation overseas whereby you can find a host to put you up in their home in exchange for nothing more than friendship and them getting to know someone from a different culture.  And Global Freeloaders  is a network of people willing to accommodate travelers completely at their own convenience, in any way that they can. Completely free of charge.

I was also a keen videographer and website designer so my profile on workaway explained that this was the kind of help I was able to offer and I targeted those NGO`s who were asking for help with online marketing. I also did some research and eventually found numbeo, a website which enabled me to find those countries around the world which offered a much lower cost of living than here in the west.

Within a few days, I`d had half a dozen or so invites. Most of the invites were from NGO`s in South East Asia which I`d targeted anyway because of the lower living costs. In the end, for my first project, I opted for a few weeks on a remote farm near Lanchang in Malaysia.

This farm was owned by the Malaysian arm of an organisation called Iskcon (International Society for Krishna Consciousness) simply known by many as the Krishna`s. Although I wasn`t a religious person, I was a spiritual type of guy and, more importantly, I was eager to learn about new philosophies and cultures . And so the prospect of joining the Krishna`s in Malaysia was very appealing. During my stay I was also invited to film at their Malaysian headquarters in Kuala Lumpur and at their temple in Penang and I made many new lifelong friends along the way.

The other problem I had was how to pay for my flight and so I set about trying to find a part time job.  Luckily Christmas was approaching and so I managed to obtain temporary work in  the local branch of a large computer and electronics store and saved like crazy for my airfare.

During this first lone travel experience to the other side of the world, I discovered hospitality and kindness and a much gentler way of life. Not only that but at 60 years old,  I also discovered myself. Traveling alone in a foreign country makes it vital to overcome any problems you encounter. There`s no one else but you to solve the problem.  It teaches you to think on your feet and act accordingly. Having said that, traveling alone, does not mean being alone. You naturally meet and chat to all kinds of people along the way. If you`re naturally outgoing you`ve got a head start. If you weren`t outgoing at the start, you certainly will be after you`ve done it for a while.

I mixed with the locals and learned about their culture on my first adventure and I also met fellow travelers, mostly younger than I but occasionally around the same age and discovered that most long term travelers have a similar mindset to my own. They are often disillusioned with life in the west, want to help those less fortunate in the developing world and attempt to find ways of making a little online income to help fund their travels. 

There are many websites that one can use to facilitate making an online income such as... Freelancer and  Upwork    or , if you have a talent you can turn into a digital service, you can create 'gigs' on Fiverr.

Since that first trip I`ve been back and forth to SE Asia, often for periods of 3 months or more and have been to projects in Thailand and Cambodia too. In Thailand especially, I discovered a gentler pace of life, wonderful, hospitable people and now travel to live there more often than I live in the UK.  
Travel certainly turned my life around and, if you give it a chance, it could turn yours around too..
 
About the Author: 

A Digital Nomad, Peter Quest films as he travels and has a personal Vlog at www.lovelyplanettv.com . He has also developed a new website for backpackers and other tourist visitors to the Khaosan Road area of Bangkok - www.khaosanroadtv.com - Khaosan Road, Bangkok, Thailand and the surrounding area brought to life on video.

A Portrait of Soi Rambuttri, Bangkok, Thailand - Peter captures interesting observations as he takes a stroll along the complete length of Soi Rambuttri (from The Gypsy Bar near the far end, up around the back of the temple and then down and across the main road and along to the bottom (or top) of the road)  near Khoasan Road one Monday afternoon in late January 2016. The Soi is a  little quieter on Monday`s as it`s 'cleaning day' and some of the Thai businesses stay closed for the day. A funky little video with effects and a little people watching produced by Peter Quest of www.lovelyplanettv.com
Music Credit: MondaEDM Detection Mode by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1500026
Artist: http://incompetech.com/

​'A Portrait of Khaosan Road'... Watching the world go by and other observations one Saturday afternoon in late January 2016 in Khaosan Road, Bangkok, Thailand. Produced by Peter Quest/ www.lovelyplanettv.com / www.khaosanroadtv.weebly.com

​Peter Learns Thai... In this video Peter attempts to learn some Thai words with his friend Konika, the lady who runs the bookshop on Soi Rambuttri near Khaosan Road, Bangkok, Thailand.

​Thailand Tourism Festival 2016 Part Two. Highlights from the Opening Show... Peter captured the highlights from this years spectacular opening show at the 2016 Tourism Authority of Thailand showcase event held at Bangkok`s Lumphini Park between 13 and 17 January.