All Asia Writings

How to Travel Safe like a Jedi: First Aid Kits, Travel Insurance, and Instinct

Written by Stephen (Sponsored Post) on February 26 2014

Unpredictability makes traveling exciting and like anything else worth doing it can also make it a bit dangerous.  I’ve had my fair share of calamities on the road, but ye must remember the old military saying, “Victory through preparation.” 

There are three things I contribute to my ability to walk away healthy from my travels; a solid first aid kit, travel insurance, and following my gut instinct.

First Aid Kit

If you intend to spend any amount of time traveling having a first aid kit is a no…

The Language of Love: 10 Pick-Up Lines to help you Get Lucky around the World.

Written by Stephen on February 13 2014

The Language of Love: Top 10 Pick-Up Lines to help you get Lucky around the World.

In the spirit of Valentine’s Day and the horrible,  crippling, depressing loneliness that invades so many single people’s lives around the world during this time I’ve decided no matter where you are this February 14th, I’m going to try to help you get lucky.

That’s right the ol’ Shameless Traveler is going to try to help and get you some. I’m not doing it alone though, I’ve asked several local experts (my friends) around…

Superstar: My Acting Debut on a Thai Soap Opera

Written by Stephen on February 07 2014

It was like any other day in Bangkok, Thailand. It was hot; I was eating street food, and working on my blog in my apartment with my Irish roommate Johnny from the famous travel blog OneStep4Ward.com.  Our resident couch crasher hanging out with us for the week was our good buddy and Canadian vagabond Ian from Borderlesstravels.com.  This travel blogger bonanza came together as a result of the three of us teaching an English Camp in South Korea together that involved a lot of late…

Five Reasons Tibet will Change Your Life

Written by Stephen on February 03 2014

As a seasoned traveler the question I get asked more than any other question is, “Where is your favorite place that you’ve been?” For a lot of travelers this is a tough question, because the world is an unfathomably amazing place and each country is unique and special. However, for me this question offers me no trouble. Without hesitation every single time I will say Tibet.  I’ve never encountered a place that affected me so deeply, changed me as human being, or stirred…

Vietnam Motorcycle Diaries

Written by Stephen on January 30 2014

Vietnam baby, it’s a great, great place.  Recently I had the pleasure to write an article for Motorcycle.com about my time riding a Honda Win motorcycle around southern Vietnam, which you should most definitely check out here.

Vietnam is too big for one article though, it’s too big for one book even. With that in mind let’s take a ride through Shameless Traveler’s Vietnam Motorcycle Diaries to get the goods that didn’t make the cut for the Motorcycle.com article. For starts check out this crazy…

Travel Advice: Leave Your Ego at Home and Remember You’re Mortal.

Written by Stephen on October 04 2013

Sometimes it’s good to get your ass kicked. Yeah, that sounds crazy, but there is an element of clarity in it. A good tumble down some stairs or falling off a tuktuk can instantly remind you that you’re not Superman. When traveling around the world and into foreign countries something can happen to your perception. After several months, you get comfortable with the people you meet in foreign lands, you start settling into the mold of a traveler, and you let your guard down a little, sometimes a lot. This…

Weird World Food Wednesday: Eating Bamboo Worms in Luang Prabang, Laos

Written by Stephen on October 02 2013

When in Laos, do as the Laoations do, in this case mow down on some Bamboo Worms.  While backpacking and trekking in the mountains around Luang Prabang our guide was telling us about delicious protein and puss filled Bamboo Worms, which are giant larva that live in the base of bamboo trees. Being game for weird experiences and weird food my buddy Dave (better known as Dale) and I asked if he could find us one. Within seconds he delivered and when lunch came about an hour later he threw…

Interview: Studying Martial Arts in Japan - Shorinji Kempo

Written by Stephen on May 13 2013

Someone once said, “Travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer.” But it is not just travel that makes you richer; it is how you approach it. If your only goal is to check things off a map, then that is what you will do. Your plane will land, you will follow your Lonely Planet, and you will check things off your map, and then you will fly home. But for others, the richest, their approach takes them into forgotten places off the beaten paths. It takes…

One of the most interesting and inspiring people I’ve met traveling: Shaolin Master Hu Zhengsheng

Written by Stephen on April 30 2013

Like many other people I’ve met along the way, when I set out to a life of traveling I was seeking to uncover the mysteries of the world, but also to uncover the mysteries of myself.  Every journey for me is a spiritual one, every new experience teaches me something. However, in my travels I have been a bit more aggressive in seeking internal enlightenment. I sought out holy men and martial arts masters hoping that some of their wisdom, even just a sliver, could be imbued in me. The…

The World on Two Wheels: My Top Five Motorcycle Rides on Earth (so far)

Written by Stephen on March 19 2013

I love motorcycles. Period. I tried to think of several creative ways to start this article to demonstrate the depths of love I have in my heart for motorcycles, but nothing could be simply more true than the fact that I love em. Cars -ok, buses -eh, planes –cool, trains -pretty sweet, -ships awesome, motorcycles -badass no comparison sweetest f*****g way to travel on Planet Earth. In my world that is it and that is all. For those that know me, this fact about my life is no mystery; I…

A Hip Hop Adventure Around the World: From New York to Nepal

Written by Stephen on February 18 2013

The coolest thing about traveling is experiencing people engaging cultures that are not your own, but sometimes something surprising can happen. When you least expect it, you can find people in foreign lands in the middle of nowhere embracing in a culture that is uniquely yours and then re-inventing it with a fresh spin.

For me that culture was Hip Hop and I kept finding it everywhere I went. For those of you not hip to the hop, it originally grew out of the neighborhoods of New York City, U.S.A. Hip…

Myth: The Curse of the Traveler

Written by Stephen on December 03 2012

There have been a lot of discussions and articles about the “Curse of the Traveler” lately and since it keeps coming up over and over again I’m throwing my two cents in.

The gist of the curse is this: the more you travel and the more you experience it will always be harder to find the next place to blow your mind. You’ll never be satisfied and you’ll never find the perfect place.

Holy Ink: Getting a Yak Sant Tattoo in Thailand

Written by Stephen on September 17 2012

What is it that makes us look in a mirror and want something different? What instinct are we born with that makes us cut our hair a certain way or shave or wear clothes at all?  I want to say the artist in me sees a blank canvas when I look down at my arms and skin. The creator in me wants to have a little fun in this life and toy around with the façade a little. The truth is deep down I probably wanna look cool, my version…

One Year of Shameless Traveling and Life on the Road.

Written by Stephen on August 12 2012

“Be content with what you have;

Rejoice in the way things are.

When you realize there is nothing is lacking,

The whole world belongs to you.”

- Lao Tzu

I have officially been traveling for a year now and I have just arrived back in South Korea to teach an English camp and mark the anniversary where everything began.  I have begun to write this post at least five times now to describe what this year has been like, what it has meant to me, and how it has changed my…

The Anatomy of a Cockfight: Vigan, Philippines

Written by Stephen on July 11 2012

There are many times in a man’s life where he reaches precedents that take him into the next realm of progression. For instance, the first time he kisses a girl, his first car, graduating college, and maybe even his first house. That is the “normal” progression. My progression has always been marked by a stranger set of precedents, in this case my first cockfight.

In the setting of the old Spanish colonial city Vigan in the Philippines and just days before my 30th birthday, another milestone, my good buddy and…

Witnessing a Water Burial in Tibet.

Written by Stephen on July 10 2012

Chance can be a backpacker’s best friend.  Some of the most incredible things you see in your travels will happen by simple pure chance.  That was the case in Tibet one morning at about 7:30 a.m. when my guide instructed our driver to pull over so we could see a sacred lake.  The reason the lake was sacred was because the water that filled it drained into it from a nearby sacred mountain, and literally every mountain in Tibet is sacred. As we pulled over and got out the brisk morning…

24 hours in a Bangkok hostel: Hookers, Jugglers, and Hangovers

Written by Stephen on May 16 2012

24 hours in a Bangkok hostel-hookers, jugglers, and hangovers

Hostel life is a real spin of the wheel, you never know how your luck will hold out. You book your hostel on the internet and there are all these glamorous photos and reviews, but you truly never know what you are going to get. There is always the indeterminable human factor.  It’s the factor that can change any hostel situation to anything from incredible to regrettable.

For instance as I’m sitting here in my Bangkok hostel writing this blog post there…

15 Countries in 10 Months and a Moments Rest. A Lot Can Change.

Written by Stephen on May 15 2012

Today is the first time I have really sat still and have not had any urgent location to get to or task to accomplish in about 10 months. At least that’s what it feels like.  10 months ago I started moving, I moved across Asia North to South, started in South Korea and went all the way down through Nepal, then I island jumped around Taiwan and the Philippines. After that I ran around Vietnam and many other countries eventually culminating with me catching a train in Beijing all the…

Trans-Siberian Part 5: The End of the Epic Detour and Almaty, Kazakhstan

Written by Stephen on April 30 2012

On the Trans-Kazak Railway from Astana to Almaty locals told us that Almaty was the “true” city of Kazakhstan.  Almaty was the old capital until 1997 and in the eyes of most of the population was still the heart of Kazakhstan.  As we rolled off the train and entered into the streets we found a very different city than Astana.  The streets were full and bustling with people coming and going with a white cap mountain range circling in the backdrop.

Trans-Siberian Part 4: The Epic Detour on the Trans-Kazak through Astana, Kazakhstan

Written by Stephen on April 29 2012

A detour from Russia to Kazakhstan was pre-planned, but after hearing that Omsk was a bust we decided to waste no time and left the same day we arrived.  Along with this change of country we also changed from rail to road for a brief stint since the train to Astana only ran every couple days.  So after a midnight border crossing and a 15-hour bus ride we pulled in to the virgin mega-opolis in construction Astana.

Trans-Siberian Part 3: Lunch with the Mafia and Breakfast with Spetsnaz

Written by Stephen on April 28 2012

After Irkutsk we had a 3 days & 2 nights journey on the train ahead of us until we reached Omsk. After a little pow-wow we had heard that Omsk was nothing to write home about so we opted for a mega detour to Kazakhstan, specifically Astana. Of course before I jump straight forward to Kazakhstan I can’t skip the details of a very memorable lunch in Irkutsk and an eventful train ride to Omsk.

Before our trip we had heard what we believed were exaggerated stories of…

Life on the Train: Riding on Rails Across the World

Written by Stephen on April 25 2012

One of the first things I really enjoyed when I started truly traveling was riding the train. In fact, it was one the first things I ever did in a foreign country. I took the Korail from Incheon Airport to Seoul to prepare for my first teaching job abroad.  Even then in the beginning it occurred to me that there might not be a more relaxing inwardly thought provoking way to travel.

Trans-Siberian Part 2: From the Deserts of Mongolia to Post-Communist Irkutsk, Russia

Written by Stephen on April 24 2012

After Chinggis Kahn, horse riding in the desert, and hanging out with shamans in Mongolia it was time to get back on the train and head into the great beyond of the Eastern Russian frontier.  And thus the Trans-Mongolian train line ended and the true Trans-Siberian officially began.

The two days journey on the train was spent with a certain anticipation of the super power of Russia.  It…

Trans-Siberian Part 1: From Beijing, China to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.

Written by Stephen on April 23 2012

Three good dudes, Ian, Johnny, and myself, awake at sunrise in Beijing, China, and we set out on the first leg of our Trans-Siberian adventure. We grab our tickets, our bags, and check out of our hostel. Then after chomping down a roadside crepe and dumplings we catch a cab to Beijing Railway Station. Our train is set to leave from the Central Hall boarding gate 5 of the station on train K23 at 8:05 A.M. Hell yeah.

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