2. Selling that same motorbike for $250 after riding it everyday for nine months. That’s $62 for nine months of transportation. 

 

3. Buying a brand new set of dirt tires for that bike for $30.

 

4. Fixing pretty much anything on that bike for $5. 

 

5. Bum guns. They’re a little weird to get used to at first but after a couple of days you come to realize that cleaning down there with running water is so much more hygienic then just wiping with a bit of toilet paper. Why has the rest of the world not caught on to this? 

 

6. Buying alcohol at 7-Eleven.

 

7. And there is a 7-Eleven at every corner so you never have to go without a walking beer (or cider or wine cooler or whatever you like). 

 

8. And there is always a bottle opener on the counter so you can walk out of the store and down the street whilst drinking. 

 

9. No one will give you a strange look if you pick up a stray cat and bring him into a restaurant and let him sit at the dinner table with you. 

 

10. It’s perfectly acceptable to have a 10-foot diving board over a 6-foot pool. If you hurt yourself it’s your own fault. 

 

11. It’s ok to go days and days without wearing shoes. Do you even still own a pair? 

 

12. Getting an hour long massage for $8.

 

13. Eating out for less then $4.

 

14. Buying a bucket of alcohol, yes a whole bucket of a very strong mixed drink, for $6. 

 

15. Being judged by Thai people based on what level of Candy Crush you’re on. 

 

16. Taking your shoes off before going indoors, and leaving them at your own risk; shoes are public property. 

 

17. No traffic patrol, go as fast or as slow as you want, at your own risk.

 

18. No cops for that matter. Funny how a little island with no cops feels like the safest place you’ve ever been. 

 

19. Traveling across the entire country for $30.

 

20. Seeing just how much you can transport on one little motorbike. If you are Thai, that means your entire family and all of your belongings. 

 

21. Being covered in cuts and scrapes is the norm, but hey, you can clean wounds  as good as any nurse now. 

 

22. Fresh coconuts are as easy to buy as drinking water.

 

23. Curry. Can’t get enough of it. 

 

24. Being able to watch the sun rise over one coast and the sun set over the other coast on the same day. 

 

25. A trip to the doctor costing $5.

 

26. Being able to buy almost any medicine over the counter, so you can just skip that $5 doctor’s visit. 

 

27. Wearing summer clothes year-round.

 

28. Not caring what your hair looks like. If it’s dry you’re doing good. 

 

29. Running into a minimum of ten people you know per day, just out and about, and actually stopping to talk to them.

30. Commuting 15 minutes to work all the way over to the opposite side of the island and fighting for road space with two other bikes.

31. Never being more than 30 mins walk from home if things get crazy at night.

32. Zanzibar. That is one restaurant that will be irreplaceable for a good, anytime, go-to meal. 

 

33. Being surrounded by people who have come to the same conclusion about life as you: that it’s not about wealth or material gain, but rather about enjoying what we have and living in the moment. 

 

34. This: