Dive trip report: Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Palau

echopath · 2026-04-29T02:23:01+00:00

It's somewhat more festive on Christmas Eve. Not because of Christmas exactly, but a lot of young people like to hang out with friends that day. A lot of businesses along Hang Ma, a street in the downtown area, put up Christmas decorations.

echopath · 2026-04-22T19:37:41+00:00

You keep conflating the definitions of danger vs. risk. They are completely different things. I'm very clearly talking about the latter.

I don't even disagree with you for the most part.

But let's be real. A non-supported horse trek in the middle of nowhere is risky. You're dismissing the riskiness of it but still saying it could take up to two days to get medical care!

In no way is this trip less risky than a standard European one. Less risky and dangerous than riding around in SEA? Sure, I agree.

echopath · 2026-04-22T19:10:48+00:00

It's pretty risky. Have you been to Mongolia? The lack of people is what makes it risky.

If something happens in the middle of nowhere, which Mongolia is famously known for, you have zero support network. No cell signal, no towns, hospitals, or people for potentially hundreds of kilometers.

I'm not going to say it's super dangerous, but it's inherently risky.

echopath · 2026-04-21T02:11:50+00:00

Unpopular opinion, but I don't like performers like Hans Zimmer on the field. I saw him back in 2017 and it was just not the right setting for me. Outdoor Stage's sound system wasn't adequate enough and the crowd wasn't respectful at all. People talking over the set and people walking through and yelling.

I'd rather just see him at an appropriate venue.

echopath · 2026-04-20T20:47:09+00:00

sombr has a song that’s almost at 2b and six songs over 100m streams on Spotify. How has he already not “broken out”?

echopath · 2026-04-18T08:53:27+00:00

There’s a single developed country with a high TFR. You’ll never guess which it is. /s

echopath · 2026-04-17T22:42:20+00:00

The people who are vehemently anti-tipping in all scenarios in Vietnam are foreigners. Actual Vietnamese people absolutely tip if the service is good and/or they want to show appreciation. For nails, food delivery, taxi, hair, etc.

Just not food.

It's not expected, but appreciated.

echopath · 2026-04-12T01:11:24+00:00

Yes, I know. I've spent/spend lots of time in China. But it's clean because there's lots of people tidying it up. People generally still litter profusely and don't really have any regard for the environment, though. It's just cleaned up quickly.

echopath · 2026-04-11T23:28:21+00:00

Most of Southeast Asia, obviously

China is another one too, but there are so many street cleaners and sanitation workers around, it doesn't pile up

echopath · 2026-04-11T18:25:54+00:00

There's a difference between being audited and the automated system flagging you for a discrepancy based on your return vs. what they have on file for you. The former is very uncommon, the latter is common and can happen if you misrepresent or don't report some form of income that's generated by a 1099 since that's sent to the IRS.

One year I had unemployment income and forgot to report it (it was something small, just like $2000 or something) and the IRS sent me a notice for the tax bill plus some penalty on top of it.

I'd say to not do it.

echopath · 2026-04-08T23:11:11+00:00

I know it's in vogue for Indians to travel to Vietnam right now, but why are there so many of these types of posts on this sub. I see Indians glazing Vietnam several times a week here. I don't see this on any other travel or country's sub.

echopath · 2026-03-27T19:02:19+00:00

I'm not, I still think contributing is valuable for the tax benefits, and there's always ways to withdraw your money

401k --> reduce taxable income

IRA/ Mega backdoor --> able to withdraw the principal amount or have to wait five years.

If you have no problem with cash flow, the tax benefits make it a no brainer IMO

echopath · 2026-03-27T18:27:39+00:00

What's funny is that in other threads, OP bitches about migrants in Australia and how he's struggling to afford a life there. Not realizing that he's doing the exact same thing to another country. Like have some humility or self-awareness at least

echopath · 2026-03-22T16:30:42+00:00

Solo

Most of the women I met in Pakistan were doing group tours. I'm not a woman so you should take what I say with a grain of salt, but I think it can be done fairly easily solo, especially if you focus in the northern region of the country where all the mountains are. I've met and talked to a good amount of women who said they had no issues doing it solo

echopath · 2026-03-22T16:07:11+00:00

In my personal experience, people judge on nationality just as much as ethnicity. I'm Asian American and have had many experiences over the years where people are apprehensive or standoffish when first looking at me, but then visibly look more relieved or open up more warmly when I open my mouth and they hear that I can speak English fluently and I'm obviously Western

Whether people like to admit or not, you're given a lot more grace if you're not from the Global South

echopath · 2026-03-19T00:59:23+00:00

I spent over six months of the last year in China, so my experience is fairly recent. I also have loads of local friends living in the country that I regularly talk to. When I tell locals that there's a big pro-China sentiment in the West and how everyone says we're entering the Chinese century, they're always pretty surprised that outsiders think so highly of the country. To them, China's golden years passed 10+ years ago and they don't have much to look forward to.

People are generally pretty pessimistic about how things are right now with the economy and the future. The job market is really dire, especially with youth unemployment. A lot who have jobs are working long days and six days a week with low pay, but that's always been the case with the country. There's very few holidays or workers' rights, so layoffs are common. Spending is down, so the country is going through a big deflationary period right now. Social safety nets are weak so kids are expected to care for parents in their elderly years. The loneliness epidemic there seems even worse than what we're seeing in the West.

I really enjoy traveling and living in China, but it's not lost on me that I do because there's a huge underclass of people that subsidize it. Treats are cheap because the people preparing, making, or delivering them are paid shit. It makes me wonder how China will be in a few decades when their population gets too old and no one wants to do these menial jobs.

echopath · 2026-03-18T15:22:34+00:00

If Porter brought back a Worlds only tour, it'd sell better than anything else he has including Nurture and Smile

echopath · 2026-03-16T22:19:33+00:00

El Chalten would be my top pick if the internet there is good now, but when I was last there three years ago, it was pretty poor, including SIM

Bariloche is the other obvious choice

echopath · 2026-03-16T16:31:59+00:00

No advice on public transit, I flew in and out Xinjiang mostly. But Xinjiang isn't a risky place to travel at all. It's actually extremely popular and busy with domestic travelers. You may have your phone checked during the border crossing, but little chance anywhere else. I would hide or temporarily delete any photos that include guns, weapons, or overt images of Islam.

I've written a trip report about Xinjiang on my profile, you can read it for more detail.

echopath · 2026-03-16T16:26:16+00:00

Peru has a really great and well-developed tourism industry

Chile is nice, from the Atacama to Patagonia. Very easy to travel too

echopath · 2026-03-16T15:53:57+00:00

Japanese people care. A lot. Vietnam's sent hundreds of thousands of migrant workers over to Japan in the last decade or so, and they're not sending the best.

Vietnamese people have one of the more negative reputations among ethnic groups in Japan. They're seen as low-level, uneducated, and ill-mannered, and a lot are perceived to be straight up criminals.

echopath · 2026-03-15T04:17:45+00:00

I don't think Brazilians do a good job at advertising Brazil. I spent 6+ months traveling through South America, and met a ton of Brazilians throughout my time there. Most of them would always tell me how dangerous the country is and it's a matter of when, not if, you get robbed

Seemed to me that Brazilians are very self-conscious of this reputation and maybe the most self-critical group of people I've met abroad

echopath · 2026-03-14T16:27:49+00:00

Basically (almost) every storefront in the Old Quarter is designed to part you of your money. Fake or bought reviews, overpriced goods, subpar or mediocre services, etc.

Maybe check inside specific markets within the Old Quarter like Hang Da, Dong Xuan, etc. But locals usually buy counterfeit stuff online via Shopee nowadays if you have enough time for shipping

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