Full Transcript

Dana Blouin

You're listening to Bangkok's change what's going on everyone. Welcome back to another episode of Bangkok strange. I'm Dana blue and as always joined by my co host, Mike Summerville. Greetings, Aloha. Man. What a strange weekend four day weekend song grand replacement holiday is one we're recording this Oh, probably. I just dated. So come out like a week later, but whatever. I'll tell you. Yeah, I think I don't think I met expectations, that's for sure. No, I mean, I was down in pata. And they're like, Oh, yeah, everyone's gonna be coming down here. It's gonna be crazy walking streets gonna be crickets. I mean, there were people there of course. Yeah, but not not so many. No, I mean, I ended I said, Forget it. I'm leaving. taking the bus back. I just I basically worked from the studio. I did work on some design projects gym as well as working on her artwork knit by Gabe. Janet might not so she's working on her embroidery art this weekend for the school that she's out. So she's working on a large piece. But today's topic is one that we both are well versed in is the move to Thailand. The transition Yeah. to being a a full timer and country. Yeah, totally. All right. We might talk about we might talk about otherwise methods gray area, really, we went we might talk about some of the gray areas. And we'll definitely cover some of the others. And you're wearing your strain shirt today. If you're like my strange shirt on Yeah. And as you know, they started out just as a company called foul fashion. They're basically no longer around. I had this patch put in because there was an altercation I had with a girl who thought she should be in my life and was pissed at the other girl was in my life.

Dana Blouin

It must have been Latina.

Mike Somerville

It's no tie. Wow. Yeah. And so she grabbed this thing, big hole in it, right? And this is like five, six years ago. So I'm thinking okay, well, you know what, I'm going to just keep this shirt. And then I'll go to the Philippines and like or I'll be I'll be somewhere I was thinking. I'll be in Thailand and you can walk down the sidewalk anywhere and find some guy with the sewing machine. He'll throw this on Well, I got this put on in the Philippines for 60 pesos.

Mike Somerville

What's that in? 30 cents? 30

Dana Blouin

Yeah, absolutely. friggin amazing, or no, wait, I'm sorry. $50. Anyway, it was something free it was free. Exactly. And then jib. She does the whole knit by jib on this. I was actually supposed to patch this and I was just I never got to it. My legs go by I still haven't done your show. I've made like six bags. I've done a bunch of other projects in the studio. Not done here. Sure. Are you like that mechanic that's got like 17 transmissions in his front yard. Like all of his customers are well taken care of. But he's got like 13 of those like station wagons with the shelf paper on the side of it that look like in the back and his wife's like, would you get those things? He's like, Hey, I'm working on working on nice. That's a fine vehicle that'll make those 16 cars will make Yeah, if you're lucky, it'll make one good one

Dana Blouin

a little bit of liquid nail. Me puts a bond

Unknown Speaker

up

Unknown Speaker

slaps a bond on that baby. You're good.

Dana Blouin

My first car was probably mostly held together by liquid nail and bond. Oh, yeah. Bond bond. That was good. I actually upgraded the fiberglass that changed my life. Because you put the mesh in there. Yeah, because of course all the cars right rusty from where we were from. Also, man the undercarriage don't get that problem here in Thailand car might get waterlogged from the flooding but

Mike Somerville

not a whole lot of that happened anyway California transitioning

Dana Blouin

to Thailand moving here

Mike Somerville

so i think i mean for me right I mean, I started out as the infamous tourist Yeah, came here loved it. Oh my god, I gotta come back I started doing the thing you know, down in wherever I was where I was in pottier was where I was in Phuket whether it was in Nicaragua and also so

Dana Blouin

but it matter you want to be here

Mike Somerville

absolutely wanted to be here as much as I possibly could. And but what about you and what was your first intro to Thailand? as a tourist? No, so technically my first intro to Thailand was 2006 I accidentally crossed the border went backpacking in Cambodia okay. And cross back into Cambodia got arrested spent the night in jail blah blah blah in Cambodia Cambodia what they the park rangers or whatever the fuck they were me up like coming out of the fucking jungle. Okay, what the fuck are you doing? Yeah, and they I'm assuming I'm assuming that's what they said to me and come here. Right exactly. And you know, basically that's what I would say to someone if I was in their job. What the fuck are you doing with

Unknown Speaker

the fucking Yeah, exactly. alien to arrest you

Dana Blouin

and they were like they spoke a little bit of English. I'll come with us. Okay, okay, jump to the back of a little Jeep thing like this is great free ride. I was fucking hiking. Oh yeah, this is great. I'm taking a nap. I was like I was three hours back from where I was first. They took me the other direction like 20 minutes like in here that put me on like a rebar ring and barbed wire cell didn't get asked for ID or anything. I didn't have my passport that was the issue that's Yeah, that's a bad yeah, bad thing to do. That's tip number one me people like oh yeah, I leave my leave my passport in the hotel at least now I don't take it with me. I keep a photo of my passport on my phone. I always keep my passport with that Why? I keep it in the safe. Do you not bring your driver's licence with you and you go on. I have a driver's license. Yeah, that's my point. Like, why is it any different now? Because their passports like very sensitive if you live overseas Yeah, you don't want to lose that. Agreed. So I don't take it out. They have a photo of it on my phone. Yeah. And I have my Thai driver's license you get the you get your visa Yeah, photo of everything I've worked permit rise everything on that. So that is you know what I take with you when you can't This is 2006 I'm in Cambodia right in the hotel backpacking. So they go they get it next day. They let me free, right, whatever, but you literally slept that night in the frickin jail on the dirt floor. Yeah, you didn't be like you didn't say did you tell them like you had the hotel thing going on? Are you like we explained that they went out and did whatever but they didn't let me go till the next day. And maybe walk back we passed or just like whatever I'm just this fucking part of the process. Great story to tell. Yeah, exactly. Spend the night in Cambodia in jail. Right?

Mike Somerville

You were the only one there?

Dana Blouin

No, there was a two other guys sharing a cell across from me. But you had your own cell. Yeah. They were threatening to kill me for most of the most of the day. Probably the first couple hours they

Mike Somerville

seriously you're not joking.

Dana Blouin

No, no, that's when they come here guys. Yeah. Okay, kill you. For what? I don't know. And I think they were just fucking with me. Okay, well, white. And I was young. Right? So I was in my 20s Okay, and I was in my 20s and you know, little little goofy little goofy, big nerdy dude in the middle of Cambodia. Yeah. And I'm just

Mike Somerville

like, whatever I'm

Dana Blouin

getting older. They're probably poachers or something. Who knows? Yeah, it could be you know, given where I got picked up but anyway, so that was your first first like, accidental appearance. And I think that's that's the way they explained to you that it looked like it was coming from Thailand

Mike Somerville

illegally crossing Yeah, got it whether

Dana Blouin

or not that's the case if I if I even cross now. I don't know. Yeah, that's the story. Next time I came here was 2008. So that was really when you came first vacation here is okay. I liked Bangkok Bangkok and one route to Tani. Okay. Not bad. You know good. Good vacation. Overall very relaxing. I was here for song ground. Look. It was very relaxing slash I was here for songkhram those two things.

Mike Somerville

One, right. Okay.

Unknown Speaker

Got it. Yes, it was more of the actual ceremony. None of this. Yeah, drunken Australian

Mike Somerville

will throw an ice water drunken Thai throwing

Dana Blouin

this fun. Their accents. Cooler is a good time. There you go. And good food. Mm hmm. Um, and so then in 2000, and I came back in 2011. Okay. And then in 2014 2013 2013 I guess I moved here to work on a PhD. Okay. Well, good. Another city setback so 2011 Yeah, you came here for another vacation after not being here for three years? Yeah. What was the cause for me? I never lasted. I was never away from Thailand for more than a year. So how did you go through? I wasn't drawn Really? Okay. So it wasn't like I was vacationing other places doing other things in my life for those three years. Engineer, right. Yeah, I was busy with shit. Sure. And, you know, like, yeah, go anywhere. as awesome as Thailand. is now. Yeah, so. Yeah. 2014 I'm sick of being an engineer. Yeah. fucking hate my job. Not I shouldn't say I hate my job. It was. It was a cool job. When I started it. Yeah. But to me, it really just an engineer to MSO is really a dead end job. So

Mike Somerville

for people who don't know,

Dana Blouin

it's a cable company, right? Easy. Yeah. Well, multi system op. Yeah. Right. So but I was an engineer worked on the back end of the internet. Yeah, all that cool engineering. Cool stuff, but it's essentially a dead end job. Right? You're, you're gonna flat out I mean, many guys like you like even your buddies. Right? They're doing that 20 years straight, same check. 3% raise every year health benefits. It makes six figures for the vast majority of your career. But that's it. Yeah, right. Nothing in it takes up way more of your time than it should for the amount of what you need to do. Right. So

Mike Somerville

this is 2014 you're like, dude, I'm done.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, so 20 like 2013? So I'm like, yeah, I'm fucking I'm out of here. So I decided to apply for a PhD programs overseas, Thailand, Hong Kong, Singapore, and then a few in Europe. Okay. And essentially got into every PhD that I applied for Fortunately, I think when you're basically an American, like a white America applying to PhD programs overseas, and it's not like I wasn't applying to like top tier PhD programs. Right. And they they were still like selective, but it wasn't I never question that I would get into Oh, it was going to be your focus. ICT So technically, yeah, for sure. Which is my background. Yeah. So in my master's also in ICT and so I was like, I know I got into everything and a lot of them like, the real competitive part becomes in how you fund it. Yeah, exactly. So I got the first program to actually accept me was in Thailand, okay. And but from a different university and they didn't give me funding. Okay,

Mike Somerville

and Yeah, sure you can come here if you pass. Yeah.

Dana Blouin

So they were like, they basically told me Sure, like, if you want to do another Master's, you can have a full ride. Okay, we don't have funding for PhDs, okay. For this program, right, this particular program, so I was like, Well, obviously not for me because it was intended to be like a part time program. Okay, a night program. So it's like, okay, that's not that's not for me. And then the, again to Hong Kong, to Singapore, to the to in Europe, and partial funding for pretty much all of those. And then the last one to accept me was the one in Thailand, and they gave me a full ride. And it came with like a stipend. Thomas out or wherever? Yeah, okay. Yes, it Yeah. And which I would not recommend anyone go to church, regardless, so, but you know, good scholarship opportunity, you know, a stipend and all this other stuff. So jumped into it. And came out here did the whole like education visa, you know, once the the consulate in Chicago? Because you got to get the at the time at least you have to get that particular type of visa in your home country?

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, yeah. Okay.

Dana Blouin

I know, there are some that are still like that to do in your home country. And so a visa versa. Yeah. And so I did that moved here, you know, sold everything in the US, boom, Thailand. And, you know, it was a good transition, especially because it was outside Bangkok, right. So it was, it isolated me from a lot of other things for a little while, and really kind of allowed me to focus on what I was doing. Um, but, you know, like then transitioning into other types of living here, like long term like you meet a lot of people who I know guys who have been here for 15 years on tourist visas. Yeah. Like funny people breaking the law all over the world. But like, yeah, you're not breaking the law. You're just skirting it. Right? Like, you're there literally, like, going by the letter of the law. Like they leave for a day or two, they come back. So visa run is a big thing here. Right? Like, yeah, if, if you don't have a, a year long visa or multi year visa, you'll hear people talk about especially tourists talk about, oh, I've got to do a visa run that means, you know, they're at the end of their 3060 or 90 day visa. And they have to go and leave the country. Yep, come back and get a new one. Yeah, basically, you leave you come back and you get a stamp for the amount of time that's good. In fact, I was planning on doing that my visa run I get a stamp for a year right because I have this retirement view so the way that I got back in United States The idea was okay, cool. I'll cruise over to Cambodia for like a day. Let's come back. Yeah, exactly. Because you know, basically I mean the only people that go there other than backpackers that get arrested Yeah.

Dana Blouin

No, you go there come back down

Mike Somerville

back so I'm over there I'm thinking I'm going across the border and you know get my scumbag check. Yeah, and then come back over get the stamp bam. I can stay in Thailand for another year. Yeah, and I'm thinking oh my god this COVID thing no worries because I'll just be and I you know if I leave Thailand right now Game Over game over I can go to I can go to Cambodia and after basically 24 hours I'm good to go I can cruise around in Cambodia. Yeah, but that's not gonna happen. Alright, so yeah, so that's true. So there there are guys that are doing that. But you're here obviously like totally aboveboard, you know, you got your education visa. Now the transition into that was it really how much different was it than the transition to going to a university in the first year in other words, you've got like the whole not necessarily a dorm room, but you've got a place you live let me talk about the door. Well, you stayed in the dorms I had to is for your PhD requirement for my scholarship. Oh wow. Okay, and let me tell you about this bullshit fucking room maybe I was a bigger than this. No. Okay, small Yeah,

Dana Blouin

nice in my room and no windows and probably

Dana Blouin

not a lot of soundproofing

Dana Blouin

and no sir no windows. Oh, God, I was an interior room. Yeah. And I had to pay for it out of my stipend. Okay, and the woman in charge of housing for the university is a straight up racist hated white people. Really? Yeah. barely spoke English. Okay. Hated white people. This isn't isn't an air show program though. Is this supposed to be okay? I get into that on another episode. But yeah, so shitty room for the first year. I ended up moving into another studio off campus just because yeah, you know, I need about three of these just you or was like 2500 baht a month.

Mike Somerville

Air. air conditioning.

Dana Blouin

Yeah. Really? Yeah. 2500 compared some Tawny though. Yeah. Okay. Bright. Yeah. Like, like, there was an elephant in my backyard. Yeah, right. Right, right. There's like literally some guy owned an elephant. Like he legally

Mike Somerville

the way you broke up was roosters.

Dana Blouin

There were roosters. Like I was I was on the fifth floor. I couldn't really hear them. Okay, but like there was a rice paddy right behind the apartment building. Okay. And there was literally a dude who owned a elephant illegally back there and you would see him washing it in the fucking rice paddies. Awesome. And then like sometimes you see him at like 711 like selling like you could 20 baht you could feed the elephant. Maybe you like it. stood like maybe six and a half feet.

Mike Somerville

Okay so many,

Dana Blouin

many years baby like an SUV. Yeah, like in another year probably fucking killed like the city. But here's the it actually so that building was right next to an international hospital called St Carlos Okay, which was apparently completely staffed by Filipino doctors and nurses.

Unknown Speaker

Okay, so my building like a US hospital you mean

Dana Blouin

Yeah, so basically this hospital well why? why these Filipino nurses and doctors because they speak English Yeah. And they're they've got a colony servation Yeah, absolutely customer service through the roof. Yeah. So it was basically a cosmetic surgery hospital for foreigners perfect. So my building packed with Filipino nurses and Doctor Yeah, all the nurses like the short little

Unknown Speaker

check 40 kilos shit and

Dana Blouin

they're living for door room. Yeah, and they're basically they they were all like friends. So there's a Yeah,

Mike Somerville

yes. They all know each other too.

Dana Blouin

So there's like, well, I've no because like they they all like work together. Like, I don't know if they knew each other before they came. Yeah. Okay. Obviously because of the the situation with their work. What they do is they all rented like, it's probably like six rooms between all and then they would all share it to and to so they work 12 hour shift, right. So bunk it right. Yes. The two of them would sleep in the bed. Yeah, so there's only one bed right? But it's like a big like, Queen king sized bed. Yeah. So two of them would sleep in the bed. And then the other two would work. They all work six days a week. Yeah, they got one day Sundays they are on Yeah. And what do they do on their days off? They just drink and eat pork? They all go to the mall together? Yeah. And they sit outside Yeah, they come back and they totally come back to the rooms yes the the go up on the roof sit on the floor. They sat in front of the building on the floor. Yeah, sing karaoke. Yep. Drink beer Sure. In fucking perfect and eat pork or whatever the fuck. They would also meet white guys.

Unknown Speaker

Yes. Well, so we would all sit in the same but

Dana Blouin

a lot of them. A lot of them would a very very willing to spend the night in my room shotgun. I think if they just wanted to like, walk you have a little bit more space or something? Some

Mike Somerville

air conditioning? Maybe a hot shower.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, yeah. So none of them. They all rented the fan room. Yes. Right. And the fan rooms are you know, you can you can cool it down. But it's so fucking hot room. You'd

Mike Somerville

have a window you're bumping?

Dana Blouin

Well, they'll have this big window.

Dana Blouin

So the the bathroom in that room was out on the patio. Yeah. Okay to go out on the patio and use the bathroom. Empty slippers all over. Yeah. So a lot of times these girls would like just say, hey, are we doing tonight? Yeah, like, you go like they were English. Yeah. They spoke perfect. Yeah. Some of them. Some of them spoke better than me. But so they would come back and they would like if they I think they would work like six to six. Yeah. So someone who's come in at six. And they go oh, what do you have to say you want to hang out? Watch a movie?

Mike Somerville

Yeah, sure. Well

Mike Somerville

movie, a whole movie. You mean on your phone?

Unknown Speaker

No, actually, I've got the whole

Dana Blouin

laptop

Dana Blouin

together. So we pop sit on the bed pop the laptop open. One thing leads so

Mike Somerville

your experience basically being a total sex pad

Dana Blouin

is as you're describing here it tied with Filipina chicks. Filipino nurses, Filipino nurses, but like, they're like, Hey, I get it. They see me coming in. Sure. You working on schoolwork? No, come on. Come on. Yeah, it wasn't Mike's I mean in the Philippines. That was my I had to chase Gracie. I mean, not literally. I had to like, you know, quarter kind of thing. Yeah. And same with Jim. Like when I met Jim. Like I had to, like we went out like I had to like, you know, like, put on the smooth. Obviously not so smooth. What do you say like that, but it was still better than dating in the United States? Yeah, for sure. Absolutely. Oh my god. What I was so pleased with that. All right. So you're over here. So you're doing this?

Dana Blouin

So I'm banging like five Filipinos Of course you're

Unknown Speaker

keeping yourself fit? Yeah, watching clearly a shitload of movies doing

Mike Somerville

Yeah, with the girls back and a half half a movie?

Dana Blouin

A half movie, right? Yeah, like I

Unknown Speaker

tell you what, why don't five minutes in. You want to get some popcorn? Or? Actually?

Dana Blouin

Once I've

Dana Blouin

fucked up story I shouldn't say is that

Unknown Speaker

Jeb listens. This

Unknown Speaker

is perfect.

Dana Blouin

No, this is all before I met Jeff gore's Yeah, but I was um, I watched a movie one night with a girl I had downloaded whatever the fucking movie was is like brand new at the time. Yeah. It's like 2013 2014 I download this movie. And she comes over and we watch the first half of Sure. Right? Like, it's pretty smooth. Yeah, first half of the movie. The next day, the girl who is on the opposite shift in her room with her is like Hey, I heard you have this movie. Can I come?

Dana Blouin

Oh my god.

Unknown Speaker

Oh, yeah, people they're gonna talk. I mean, come on. Not only are they girls, but they're Filipino. Yeah, so yeah,

Dana Blouin

I thought I was like, obviously she knows.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, sure. You want to

Unknown Speaker

watch it? Sure, cuz I haven't watched The second half of the day, what?

Unknown Speaker

Why? Seven come over about 745 I'll be into the movie. And then

Dana Blouin

we could just watch it to the credit still haven't watched the second hour that

Dana Blouin

way. I'm not literally cheating on you comparison to your friend, I'm doing something completely different. So therefore, you know, it's a different dating scheme, then like they would all invite me to come over to the rooms and like sing karaoke wasn't that that I found very interesting is that, yes, all that stuff would happen. But they and again, we're talking about the Philippines. We're not saying none of this is, but it's this Filipino culture thing, like many of them would invite me. Yeah. Like, and I would be the only guy there. Yeah. And at first I thought, Okay, well, I mean, they're, they don't all want to date me. Yeah. But they all just like wanted to hang out. Would you get a lot of questions like, well in America, do they? Do they? Yeah. Yeah. So I get in, but like, there were times where was like a little awkward because I'd be in the room. It's like, I slept with seven of the eight girls. Yeah,

Unknown Speaker

that's like, the past

Dana Blouin

two weeks. Right? Yeah. And they're all cool. They all know, obvious. Right? Like, I don't think anyone's keeping secrets. There's no fighting over me. Yeah. I mean, if I let you know, when I was on available, I'm sure they replaced me with someone else immediately.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah. I mean, why not? There

Dana Blouin

was definitely no waiting. There was

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, no, I'm sure there were plenty of other people standing in line.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, waiting for that situation.

Dana Blouin

Okay, so obviously, you're doing your PhD and you got through a couple years of it. I didn't four or five. And you were just like, this isn't for me. Yeah. Okay. But so again, to the whole like transitioning part. So you went from pretty much like, Okay, I get, I went there a couple times. And then I moved there for a purpose other than to continue my tourism. So I was, no matter where I ended up, I probably would have ended up. You know, maybe not Singapore. But no matter where I ended up, I probably would have ended up a resident of that. Yeah. Okay, that location or somewhere else. Immediately following that? Not the United States. That was a plant. Yeah. Okay. So because for my transition, I would submit it's probably a little bit more common, like for the guys that are listening, watching that sort of thing, in the sense that like, I touristed I touristic, I tried to tourists more and then I came over here full time as a tourist.

Dana Blouin

How many years have you tourists for here? 20?

Mike Somerville

No, six. Yeah. So I came over here first in 2013.

Dana Blouin

So you're doing Latin America before Asia?

Dana Blouin

No, just Mexico. Just Mexico? It just fucking South America. Just south California south. Yeah, exactly. I'll dude, let me tell you something. Oh, my God of all the silly land deals the United States ever did. We should have just gobbled up the whole bar. Right? We never we just should have kept going south. Say look at Mexico. You can have all that nonsense off the Texas but we're taking this whole bar thing. Oh my god, it would have been so much better. They would have changed it into a giant spa. So the whole bar the other day on your live stream? You're talking about the border in San Diego. Yeah. At the beach. Yes. And you're like, Oh, it's a wall and jets out into the ocean? Yes. So I went and fucking look. It's like literally people like sunbathing on both sides of the wall. But it's not that lonely. You could swim out past that. Okay, so again, it depends on the pictures are taken. Right? Lower tide, obviously, it looks like it's longer. Yeah, that's right. But it goes down to and then there's sensors all the way into the into the dirt. Right? So yeah, but if I swim out, well, then that I mean, it's not going to go out 10 miles. The point is, is that it's going to be it's supposed to be out there far enough such that if you're going to swim up there, we're going to be able to notice you by the time you get to the end to go around. Because I mean, let's face it, you could paddle a boat out. Yeah. You know, one mile. And then just,

Dana Blouin

you know, it looks at all It goes out like maybe 100 feet.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, probably. But I mean, it's underground, though, too. It's not just the visible part at the top. Yeah, but as long as I can as long as you underwater, I can get over it. Yes, you can. But they're gonna know it. I mean, did you see that? What you did? Okay, so there's cameras everywhere. Yeah. But even if I go over the sensors and they know that something crossed over. I can if I want to, like say take a paddleboard out like a surfboard paddle? board. Yeah. Right. Get out passive crossover with a wallet. Okay. That's as far as you get there. Literally. Our Marines stand there. They're real. Yeah, dude, as a white dude in Coronado and I'm cruising along the beach, which is basically south of like the hotel del, which is like, there are two orange cones just on the beach. And if you're never been there before, you're like, Okay, and there's no rope. There's nothing that you go across those cones. And that is where the seals train. Okay. And then there are our Marines up in what kind of looks like a more sophisticated lifeguard tower. Yeah. So these Marines are like hanging out there and they're, you know, they're just they're sitting there and they got there. You walk two feet into that thing. These guys literally run out. They're like Sir, sir, sir, you got to turn around gotcha. I mean armed fatigues, that sort of thing. And this is not that far away from where like the average tourists go and if you live there, you know this. Yeah. But I have seen like full families go in there and guys run out. I mean, it is it is. So that's just Like to keep the US people where the US people should go. Yeah. On the beach there first of all, they have horses. Right. Okay. And then And then again, there's just cameras everywhere. The Marines have

Dana Blouin

horses on the beach. Yeah. Wow.

Dana Blouin

Okay, so San Diego is a very interesting spot because again to begin with, it's a military town originally Yeah. Now, of course, it's biotech and you know, technology basically Qualcomm and everything else. So there's that. But then there's like the protection and then add on like we were talking about earlier. 911 that right? So you've got harbor patrol, you've got a Oh my god, what's the name of it was the newer sort of defense. Nice. So yes, so there's Border Patrol. Is it Department of Homeland Security, you've got the Navy, you've got the Coast Guard. I mean, they're all there. Okay, so obviously, slightly more fortified than the visible border. I crossed it. It's ridiculous to the point where like, in San Diego when you know, when Trump was running, right, he's like, I'm gonna build a wall between everyone San Diego is like, dude, have you? You have no idea. There's, first of all, there's two walls. Yeah. And then it's it. But the point is, is that that was Yes, that was Mexico. But as you mentioned, I mean, there's people on one side, there's people on the the Mexican side on the other side, looking at the wall going, Oh, my God paradise on there. They're just like, okay, whatever. There's a wall there. You know, and there's tunnels and there's, you know, yeah, then this beach on both sides. Yeah, it's pretty nice. So you six years you were Yeah, so traveling between Yeah. So again, I came over here and I was the that was probably the standard classic guy that's like never experienced anything like, you know, for the sake of argument pot, the non soy cowboy. I mean, it's just like, I mean, that does not exist anywhere in the United States. You know,

Dana Blouin

Vegas is like a kiddie playground compared to

Dana Blouin

like cowboy. People say like, I was going to Vegas for conferences. They're like, Oh, what are you gonna do in Sin City? I'm like, you have no fucking idea. Yeah, like if you think Amsterdam is often off the rails bro. There is nothing in the world like fucking sysex No,

Unknown Speaker

in pothead not even close. So I

Unknown Speaker

come over here, obviously kid in a candy store. Oh my god. I last, basically less than 90 days back in the United States. I'm like, I'm coming back here for songkhram Yeah, so I experienced songkhram like sankranti songkhram is I'm single and I'm like,

Dana Blouin

so you did Soundgarden patio or Bangkok? Both.

Unknown Speaker

I came because you know what happened

Dana Blouin

that came in? I came

Unknown Speaker

sequentially right. So in other words,

Dana Blouin

seven days?

Dana Blouin

Yes. But it's basically like the first three or four days before it really happens in potty what's happening up here in Bangkok? Yeah. So I did it in Bangkok. I get up at the Nana exit. I walked down. I stayed right right behind the JW. Yeah, on the other side of Nana, right. So I experienced it there for like two or three days and then I get in the cab then I go down to potty and experience it for a week. change my life. So I did it. So I guess you might have never been to some random potty. I did Sal Khan. I did. A song called on Carlson road. Not close on our house on road where I told me so much in his Thai wife. bless her heart. I mean, I can hear eyes rolling right now. When she thinks about. Like guess what Mike is called house on road. She's like one of like, coasts on Rhode Island. The island road What the fuck is wrong with I never did. I did. I did. I did cosign road. Cows on road. I did that on cow son. I did that like a couple of years ago with Gracie. We were meeting another youtuber over there because he was staying there and was cheap. And it was a scumbag. He's gone. He was totally a sandbag.

Dana Blouin

Did he have dreadlocks? A white dude? No, because

Dana Blouin

white dude, he was like in his 60s and it was like, okay, so you told me the story about this is Bangkok strange. You're gonna come over here and you're gonna meet ex-pats? Yeah. And some of them are gonna be like, okay, yeah, I came over here to get my degree or I came over here to start a business or I'm like doing I want to, you know, some people like I want to work remotely. Yeah, who live here. And then you're gonna get that the guys that are told to come back. Yeah. Okay. And this guy was a total scumbag. But on YouTube, he was so judgmental of everybody else. I never go to hookers. So we sit down. Gracie is with me. Yeah. And he starts talking about how all this gay sex is happening and how it's so offends him as a Christian and all these lady boys everywhere. I like it a pretty loud voice. I'm like, dude, you've been here before right? Yeah, you know these lady boys can kick your ass

Dana Blouin

some nonroad

Unknown Speaker

could die. And so I was just like, okay, whatever. So anyway, so we left that was my only that was my like house on road experience. point is is that I came over here and like I'm gonna say and I actually got a video on this that's coming out on my channel, but I got the potty out of my system. Yeah. Okay.

Dana Blouin

So I did and then you also get the potty

Unknown Speaker

in your system. Yeah. And that but there's for that is a shot penicillin.

Unknown Speaker

Absolutely. So

Unknown Speaker

I left that unscathed. And, and then was like, Okay, well, this thing, this place is actually pretty cool. And then so my point is, is that I did the full on tourist thing. And then I said, Okay, well now I want to like move over here and like actually move my life over here. I don't necessarily want to get another degree. But I do want to do some business over here as well as be a tourist. But you I mean, how like for example, when you were over here doing your PhD How long did it take you before you went on your first like vacation? as a tourist?

Unknown Speaker

Me PhD as Full Tilt Boogie. Yeah, I mean, it's

Dana Blouin

Yeah, it was a deepening like so obviously you go to conferences and stuff. Yeah. There's a conference in Phuket conference in Penang conference in Penang. And then I was also working as an MMA referee. So I was traveling all over Asia

Unknown Speaker

to go to school and working

Dana Blouin

yeah as MMA referee and so I you know, China, Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, you know, raft all over, but I mean, I've been to conferences there too. I've been to conferences all over the world to you don't do a whole lot of vacationing academic conference. I mean, yeah, I also never really took it super seriously. I present my paper.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, and I'm not hanging around for listening issue.

Dana Blouin

This is the thing like unless it was someone who had a paper in my in my research area, that I'm like, oh, maybe I can reference their paper or we can work together and research wasn't happening but I mean, in PhD level like your research topics are so nice. Yeah, the likelihood of you running into someone on on a similar topic in in ICT I'm sure in biology or medicine it's much broader and there's a lot social sciences there's a lot more people doing research in those fields. But in ICT I'm like I was doing power constrained sensor node addressing optimization.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, right. Yeah, right exactly.

Dana Blouin

Either. Other people in ICT don't know what that is. And I don't know what their topics are. Yeah. Yeah, unlike that I run into someone I think the only other paper I ever saw presented at a conference someone did a mobile addressing dynamic mobile addressing for van that vehicle. NET vehicle network. Okay. And very cool. IoT kind of related Yeah, very picture ended up being completely unrelated to my work yeah, so but the point is, you'd be there you present and then you go to the beach for like two or three days. Oh, yeah. Okay, it'd be nice Yeah, come back for the buffet everyone Chanda.

Unknown Speaker

Get your lanyard.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, therefore you get the land title to that. Absolutely.

Unknown Speaker

Did the breakfast

Dana Blouin

plan thousand dollars to attend the fucking conference and have your paper published? Yeah. So I'm definitely bugging out the buffet. Yeah, no, hit the gym hit the beach. It's an academic conference. You can bring your backpack in a normal thing. Anything? Yeah, put a shitload of food absolutely had back to the Filipinas academic conferences are like, you know, isn't that always that like destination? Okay. Yeah, for sure. Chris. You know, where's like, a lot of industry conferences or Vegas. Vegas. Orlando. Orlando. Yeah. And then Barcelona. Basically it was a big one in Europe. And then there's a couple in the Caribbean. But yeah, but for academic conferences like turkey or Keiko? Or Phuket or even pottier they have a conference center there, but I mean, that's kind of tough visits. I loved ones. I've been to a I've been to a academic conference in Patsy. Okay. And there was a lot of extracurriculars going on. There. And, you know, you see professors who like you know, they're married. Oh, yeah, they bow tie out I'm walking Street. They got slapped out their leather briefcase right at the bar. Can we have a discussion? They're like, Oh my god, I'm so shocked about all this. What's What's going on here? like two hours later the doing lines of coke ladyboy Absolutely.

Unknown Speaker

makes complete sense. Tony

Dana Blouin

huge is holding their head over the toilet.

Dana Blouin

We definitely Alright, buddy. You got it. Don't lose your shit. Just whatever you do. Just don't start shooting anything into your veins. Unless I'm here present with you. And I have some drinking water to assist you. If you guys have not listened to the entirety of the Tony huge episode is a trip. That's a great one. We're getting multiple hundred views on YouTube. Yeah. And then you said like over 300 downloads at first. Well, that one's almost said, that one's almost 1000 awesome. That's so

Unknown Speaker

great. Yeah,

Dana Blouin

I just want he's a very interesting character. Sure, too. I mean, he was just, and people said it in the comments. He's so open. And honest. Right. I think someone even said if more people had conversations like this, the world would be a better place. Oh, yeah. No, absolutely. I mean, you know, look, you could judge him for like what he does, just because it's potentially different than what

Dana Blouin

and we will because we're human. I think

Dana Blouin

when I judge then I'm judging myself. But yeah, so that's a great one. So we talked about that. Okay, so you're, you're doing this thing, and you're like two years in, and you know, and I'm over here and I'm like, a couple of months in and everything and now I start friggin living here. Now, to be fair when I was when I was touristing. Here, I did many things that I think a lot of tourists do not do. So like literally my first trip I set up a bank account. I didn't know why I was doing it. But I just said okay, yeah, I should just go I'm here in central festival. If you guys don't know, the way it works in malls is there will be an entire floor of banks. Yeah. And there's all literally every single bank and every cell phone company, every cell phone company and then all of the restaurants will be on one floor. You know, if I empower you on this plastic surgery centers on one floor by an auto cars by by your, your boob implants. Yeah, same same floor. Why not? I mean, you know, the women go one way. I mean, you know, I'm not chauvinistic at all. But there is very easy ways of doing. So let's talk about opening up a bank account, because so I have an interesting story that if you're an American, there are restrictions for foreign banks that do that have economic relations with the US that they have to file certain paperwork for every American account holder. And so for that reason, I was denied the first bank account that I went to open on. So my university set to take me to the branch of tmb. ON CAM, yeah. Which is where they did they brought all the students. So two girls from butanna dude from like Vietnam, or do from Cambodia and me, I'll go together, and they'll Yeah, count count. Whoa, whoa, American. No, slow your roll. It's a lot of we're not we're not doing that for you. Yeah. And so I was like, Well, I didn't understand the financial thing. Yeah. You know, and, obviously, if you, once they explain to me, they're like, oh, there's all this additional paperwork. But this is the time military banks, exhausted not to do that. Yeah. makes total sense, right. And if I was the military bank of a country, I wouldn't do that either. And so they took me to Bangkok bank course, which said, Oh, you would like you're an American, you'd like to have a bank. Now, please fill out these papers. We got a branch in New York City data. Yeah. So actually, if you're an American, you should have a Bangkok bank account, simply for the fact that it's very cheap and easy to transfer cash. Because you have a US routing number. Yeah, so the AC h process, believe it or not, and to do that you need a you need a dual currency account, right? So you tie and it doesn't really exist any longer. They don't really have that system anymore. You can't like a CH money into Bangkok bank, like you would a CH money from us bank to bank. No. But if you're getting America No, if you are getting a like direct deposit from a US company, you can direct deposit directly into a Bangkok bank account. I do eat with the ACA routing number us.

Unknown Speaker

Okay, I

Unknown Speaker

thought you had to do swift code. Well,

Dana Blouin

if you have Bangkok bank, you can use a routing number.

Dana Blouin

Well, that's good. I mean, I had that for a while. And I had the dual currency account and for like, two, three years, and then I moved to China. And I'm like, you know what, dude, I've never used this us money just converted. I'll close the other account. So no other bank has a nor the Thai bank has a branch in the US, correct? Yes,

Unknown Speaker

just bank. So

Dana Blouin

if you're going to be if you're an American, or you're going to be getting paid from an American company, okay. Bangkok bank account, use the US routing number and your Thai account number and you're good to go. And then you basically have this American currency, essentially, in your Thai bank account here, they'll convert it for you to set it up. Okay, it's a slight fee, but it's still cheaper than Swift. Yeah, for sure. Transfer wise is probably the way to go. Transfer wise is amazing. I moved like, you know, 20,000 bucks over here, Rex, I was doing that investment in the company. And, and I did it in $9,000. chunks. So each chunk was less than 10,000. Not flagging. Exactly. And then when it was 9000, because the other if you don't know, like, what on your income tax, you basically need to report and again, this is a very soft thing, anything over $10,000 in aggregate, like if you have five accounts with $2,000 in each one, you got to do it. So I wanted to make sure I always had less than $10,000 in any given day over in Thailand, basically in one account, and then I would transfer it so I did that. And so to transfer $9,000 It cost me $150 in fees. Yeah. People might be like, oh my god. Yeah, that's crazy. Yes. Well, the exchange rate they gave me was ridiculous. It was like literally 10% better than Bank of America. Nice. Which of course the fees are free. But the exchange rate is reduced was like 28 versus 31. Wow.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah. Big Delta, right.

Dana Blouin

So anyway, so I did that. So I agree with that. But Capricorn also provided me with great customer service. I have a CB a lot of people hate on SCB. I've never had an issue with my SCB account.

Unknown Speaker

What sort of stories have you heard? I mean, from

Dana Blouin

xpaths. Yeah, like, from excess. A lot of people like oh, like the customer service is bad. Or you call and you don't get an English speaker on the international line. I've never had that happen to me to save cascode Press to bring Yeah. And like Usually, it's usually a girl, right? Because just the way it unfolds. Sometimes we press English it's a it's a Philippine call center. Oh, is that why? Yeah. Hello, sir. I'm like, Oh, I know what that sound is. So yeah, usually like I've never had that happen where it wasn't a where it wasn't someone who spoke more than sufficient English.

Dana Blouin

Yeah. And

Dana Blouin

I've never had and like I've had stupid issues with SCB. Like if I didn't take my my debit card out of the machine onto my shirt. Right and if I can eat my card, yeah. And it was a non SCB ATM right now I was like, I'm an asshole. I lost my card and she's like, also you opened your account in this branch. I'll send the notice now please go pick up your new card. Bring your passport. Yeah. Right. I'm like, thank you. That's what 300 baht a year. Yeah, no, I paid nothing do Okay, so that's weird. So I pay like 300 baht a year. I've noticed for my ATM Visa card thing.

Dana Blouin

I think it depends on like your your minimum balance. Probably

Dana Blouin

I have like the lowest version of the savings account. Like I can't write checks or anything. I don't have checks either. But I have like a whatever, whatever the I signed up for is free. Yeah, but I feel like I have to like the minimum balance to maintain here. $2,560. Exactly. If I were to dip below 2005 a month and be like, Hey, 24 baht a month. That's probably what Yeah, in fact, I think that's probably what I did. I just said, well just give me that. How much money do I have to put in? Oh, we can give you an account where there's no minimum balance is what I heard. Yeah, I didn't hear Oh, and PS Yeah. 10 bucks a year for the ATM, which is whatever, it's 10 bucks. But yeah, the thing is, I like to pay fees for something. If I could just keep money. Yeah, not that you really make interest is like 1%. Yeah,

Unknown Speaker

no, it's ridiculous. But whatever.

Dana Blouin

But so you should definitely open a bank account in part of your transition, at least if you're if you plan to be paid from America, Bangkok bank. But you're saying that the routing is no longer active. I was told that you can no longer do that. And you can no longer use the well, the physical branch apparently is there. But it's not like they have offices inside. No. So I but again, I do

Dana Blouin

have that they have staff in New York.

Unknown Speaker

Yes. But it's not like they have you know, like tellers. Nothing. There's no,

Dana Blouin

it's not a retail bank.

Dana Blouin

Exactly. It's not a retail bank. So, but again, that's what I had heard, but I hadn't tried it myself. I have absolutely acth before when I got it, so I've done it as recently as you know, a year yeah. So I mean, they may have canceled it in the last year. I don't know. The bottom line. Is that like you say transfer wise. Yeah. I mean, next next finish. I do that on my phone less than 48 hours later. Yeah, I set it up. I had to pay a I had to pay a custom. I had to pay a shop in England for a an order I placed for my scissors. Yeah. And they couldn't do PayPal. And because of their their wholesale some wholesale buyer. Yeah. And they only take PayPal for retail orders. Fine. They're on two separate billing. Fair enough. So okay. And then they the way that they take bank transfer, it's only in Sterling. Right? Only in pounds. Okay. So, company

Unknown Speaker

through transferwise inverted it.

Dana Blouin

Yeah. And so to do that it was cheaper. And the conversion rate was better than doing it directly through my bank.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, crazy. Right. And so

Dana Blouin

I was like, okay, so I saved like 100 US dollars.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, that's ridiculous. Right for a while. Yeah, that

Dana Blouin

was Holy shit. Yeah. So yeah.

Dana Blouin

Richard Branson, huge initial investor in that company. Really? Yeah. It was a big fan. Great, great company. But definitely something if you transition here to No, I think the other thing that we should really talk about is housing. Yeah, that's for sure. I mean, it's again, a lot of people come here and they Airbnb for a month or two, which is fine. Initially expensive it is. But you know, get your feet wet as they say. I think the other thing is knowing take time, take that you should like Airbnb for a month or two, and explore different neighborhoods. Yeah, cuz every neighborhood offers something different. And there are hundreds of neighborhoods in Bangkok.

Unknown Speaker

Bangkok is gigantic.

Dana Blouin

But basically, if you're a foreigner living here, you want to live on the sukumvit line. I would completely agree with that. To me, the Ceylon line is really nice, but it might as well be America given how often I go there. Right. And I would say that you probably want to live less than about a 10 minute walk from if you're new here. Yeah, you're a veteran. Yeah, you're living like 1.4 kilometers away. Yeah, I walk it I like the walk. But there's also this little

Dana Blouin

you walk from your place to my place right?

Unknown Speaker

No, I think I'm gonna actually on the way home I'm gonna cruise down the side street okay, because the back but yeah, no, I literally I walk up to point a wiki. Okay, and then I cruise over to bang cha obviously the One Stop and then I walked down. But yeah,

Dana Blouin

I thought you were walking like remember we talked about that side row? Yeah,

Unknown Speaker

I think you can cut through that. And there's like a little bridge.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, cuts over the canal. So I walked out with my friend Troy the other night.

Unknown Speaker

Oh, he didn't tell me I said did you make it all the way over to?

Dana Blouin

It was like a pack of dogs sleeping on the bridge? Yeah, dark. Okay. It's like midnight when we went okay. Yeah, like I don't want to win his dog totally over fucking dirty as come out.

Unknown Speaker

Right right. Right cuz.

Dana Blouin

So here's the like in Bangkok. Like in Pattani street dogs will fucking chase you. If you're on a scooter. Yeah, in Bangkok. Not the case. There are street dogs soy dogs, every fucking where they don't even bark.

Unknown Speaker

No, you look at them. They're like,

Dana Blouin

yeah, most of the time. They're like, I'm just trying to lay in front of the door of 711 Yeah, I get some cool air. Yeah, leave me the fuck alone in 711. We'll let the dogs walk inside like it's gonna lay down.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, I mean, they'll shoo him out. But

Dana Blouin

yeah, eventually. Yeah. But for the most part like I've seen when I was in passing Tommy there was a 711 in the Slurpee machine would always The fucking dog would come in here with a Slurpee off the floor and they're fine like well I don't have to fucking play right tackle he's not making 300 baht a day and I don't have to do this diabetes whatever. So I agree right you should live close to the BTS when you first get here but spend get an Airbnb for a month or two yeah in visit the different neighborhoods if you like music you like going out like Tom was probably a pretty good area for a lot of clubs a lot of bars a lot of live performance going on

Unknown Speaker

in your age exactly what you like

Dana Blouin

if you're just like a straight up dirty ass sex Pat move to also or Nana and just go smash prostitutes every night. Yeah, until you're broke. Right? Because those are the two areas you can do that pretty easily. Right? So I cowboy or Nana The other thing too is if you live near the BTS, you put one of those dating app things on your phone. Yeah. And he they won't ask you where you live. They'll say what? BTS stop? Are you near? Yeah. And then they'll just come to you?

Dana Blouin

Yeah, very much so to speak. So I've heard

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, so asking for a friend.

Dana Blouin

Yeah. And then but a car, of course, is also your budgetary concern. So I would say from Siam Square going out to the north part of the city to Victory Monument and then coming this way to also in you know, I was actually out of town law ekkamai those are like the really, yeah, the more expensive areas. So like I've lived in also before I don't place but it just one I needed more space and to the vibe and also wasn't really what I wanted to live not as tie. It's not as high. And also it's like I live there because it's close to a client, of course, right. And I could walk to their office, but you know, I wouldn't choose to live in also, if I if I could pick anywhere to live in the city. The chunk of stops that I live in now is probably my first choice. The other thing I would say is that as far as like the you know, obviously there's more x pad areas. Yeah, right. I mean, if you walk down, basically from sukumvit if you walk down all the way to the top of St. lumpini. Yeah. I mean, that reeks of expats. Well, that's the highest density launch it. Yeah. Shalom. Yeah, it Shalom, specifically, if you walked down that road, I mean, there's one like us CIT loehmann. So chelonian punches with a US Embassy. Yes, but also a lot of Europeans live there. Tons

Unknown Speaker

of French Yeah,

Dana Blouin

very expensive area to live in, but some really amazing places to live. Yeah. And if you're living in a high rent area in the United States, for example, like if you're coming over from San Diego, or like Boston, right, and you're sick, and you come over here, you're like, yeah, you guys said this was expensive. It's only $2,000 a month. Yeah, that's a shitload of money over here. Yeah. So or lately, like I've been in that $2,000 range Really? Yeah. Whereas at the penthouse, and also Right, right, it's like 2000 a month little bit less 60,000 baht

Unknown Speaker

um, those guys who have lived here while we're like cut this lot of money

Dana Blouin

yeah, but I was paying for location Yeah, right exactly. Sure size of us big Yeah, about half the size of where I live now show three times the cost Yeah, go go. Yeah, but location dude. Yeah, I mean, you could spit to the frickin bt and I was between the BTS and MRT. Yeah, so I could go anywhere

Unknown Speaker

literally anywhere anyway. Absolutely.

Dana Blouin

And so good thing you know, and I was also walking distance to Paul. There you go. The best pizza place in town to police in the world. So I hear in the world you've you've taken me there. We have to try some other place. No, there's no other places to try. Don't want to I don't necessarily want to always go there actually. No other pizza places in Bangkok because Paul is so good. The rest. There's no foreigners to go into these places. That is gourmet pizza. How much did we spend eating there for lunch? Easily? 2000? No, no is Paula Yeah. Me. Miss you have like two orders. Well, I got what the portions are the soup two. That's Yeah. So there's probably like 1800 Yeah, it was almost Yeah, I know. We spent over 2000 that Mexican. Yeah, that was good Mexican food

Dana Blouin

now. Not not for you. For me. It's okay. Mexican. Yeah. I mean,

Unknown Speaker

I was like, I will.

Dana Blouin

It's not it wasn't horrible. California would not say that was good. Yeah. No,

Unknown Speaker

it was good. It was wasn't great.

Dana Blouin

I would say that's probably the that's probably the best place for Mexican in Bangkok. The whole city.

Unknown Speaker

That's

Dana Blouin

the best place. For the most part. Yeah. Really? Yeah.

Unknown Speaker

That bums me out. Yeah. All right.

Dana Blouin

Well, cuz, so Tex Mex is like really this man. Yeah,

Dana Blouin

that's bullshit. sextiles ashore. That's not text. That's it's called Tex Mex. Because it's fucking tax. Yeah. You know, you don't want texican food you want fucking Mexico? isn't like like sunrise. I feel much more of a Tex Mex place. Okay. And so we went to Cali Mac. Yeah, right. Which isn't tax Max, but it's not like really fresco Mexico. somewhere. The funny thing about Cali max when he told me that's what it's called. That's actually the name of a chain of a real bunch of shitty grocery stores in Mexico. Yeah. So I'm thinking, like, Dude, seriously, you're taking me to Circle K basically, is what I'm like, Okay, I guess something's afoot at the circle. So that was on soy 11. Yeah, no problem, Bill. But you know there's a there that that was okay please we know we Paul is not cheap but it shouldn't be because it's so fucking good

Unknown Speaker

it is it is really really good yes I agree with you

Dana Blouin

know how good you had what the Boscolo with the sausage. Oh, I don't remember shit like that I had good pizza. No forget when I got there I'm like, what kind of pizza Should I order?

Dana Blouin

That's like this and this you're like I'm done.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, cuz I mean at the end of the day I'm gonna just walk in said give me a pepperoni pizza.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, that is what are you? Did you get the pepper the DA Viola?

Dana Blouin

Yeah, but it's like Davi I'm like what? No no pepperoni. I'm not sophisticated dude. I used to like good food, other pizza places you go there and like, you'll see Ty's putting ketchup on pizza. Yeah, so I was at pala. The real one of the reasons I know I love Paul and why they're the baddie. We're like don't someone asked for ketchup? And the waitress say show me good. Don't have Yeah, right. Right. And they're like, like there's no french fries on their menu there's nothing that would require ketchup

Unknown Speaker

Got it? Okay, fair enough. Right and so

Unknown Speaker

me so that's part

Unknown Speaker

so Okay, so you come over here and you're doing but I will I will tell you I completely agree with the whole you know, one month or two months and Airbnb because it's next next finish BAM and you find a place to go the other nice thing is a lot of Airbnb is over here. Traditionally Thai owners Yeah, and locals usually speak pretty decent English for the most part. They will give you a lot of great recommendations. Okay, for sure. And what you need what I believe is a smart thing to do. Do not stay in your Airbnb and watch TV. No Get out every single day

Dana Blouin

who would do that? Who would come to Bangkok and friends of

Dana Blouin

mine. He was on his second day and he's like staying over off of the BTS in like crownpoint Crowne Plaza something like this. I mean, it's expensive, effectively, you know, like 3000 baht a night kind of thing. And, and he's like, Yeah, he's like, I'm on my second day here and I just can't get my internet to work. I'm like, dude, walk down to a 711 ask any girl under 30 years old to do your cell phone for you say I need sim she will literally take care of Yeah, the person behind the cash register will program your phone yes with it. Just don't worry. Just hand them the money, hand them your passport and hand him you know and so guys make things more complicated. Life is pretty easy here but definitely talk about area that you live in. If you move to Bangkok. Find an area that you jive with that you love I've actually lived in areas that are not on the BTS Okay, so I lived in patani wet which is probably like if the train legitimately went there then on that new fucked up extension that goes to match it to then you get to

Unknown Speaker

see what's up with merchants green as bizarre Why don't they

Unknown Speaker

just make it fucking

Dana Blouin

but China is the nicest neighborhood it's like such a it's got treeline street really sidewalks you can walk on Oh,

Unknown Speaker

we got to put some Well, we'll put that link to Google Maps in the show.

Dana Blouin

Yes, I want to figure out what this place is fucking beautiful. So I lived in a condo complexes a tops in the first building. I guess I could do all my groceries. Yeah, that was a great coffee shop called v cafe. Okay, but the owner was a collector of like toys and knickknacks. So the whole shop was just filled with cool vintage toys and nobody like he had like a 700 Popeye statue. That same thing. Like he wasn't a scumbag. I mean Popeye statues in Cambodia that just kind of says to me Oh, he's not from Cambodia. Fair enough. So yeah, he was a he's a good dude. He had Darth Vader mask. Okay. Yeah, he just kicked it up a notch for that. That clarified it for me right there Gundam like 30 gundams on the wall. All you need is the one Darth Vader you're good. Yeah, you're my buddy. So in good coffee. He would Okay, he knew I like cold brew so he goes out he buys like a like $100 cold brew tower nice that's making ice drip coffee customer service right

Unknown Speaker

huge next level Nice work.

Dana Blouin

Like I come in like he's giving me free snacks. Oh, yeah.

Unknown Speaker

Well, yeah, of course. Because your mind cold bro. Yeah. Which is basically been wanting to cost him a nickel to make

Dana Blouin

like a day.

Dana Blouin

It doesn't. Yeah, that's true. Yeah, there is the delta. So hot coffee actually is even cheaper. Yeah. They've got to put the ice in and like, you know, time expensive. No, it's cheap. It's like local prices.

Unknown Speaker

Okay. Rent I apologize. Oh, yeah.

Dana Blouin

No, no, super cheap to rent there. Okay, a little bit less than what I pay here.

Unknown Speaker

How far away was the closest BTS slash MRT. So

Dana Blouin

that's the problem, right? So you could go to bonza or you could go to chit chat to cha. Okay. And it's like a 20 minute ride by scooter. 20 minutes on a scooter. Takes me 20 minutes to walk here. Yeah, and one could argue that they would be like, why are you walking? Like I try. Jeb is like, Why the fuck are you walking? Are you taking the sunset? It's so to go to boxes quicker. It's like less than 10 minutes, okay, okay. bouncers, like this is before the extension to that went there. Yeah. And so you could go to so I would have to go to what was the old end of the line? Um, Mr. T. I don't know. Yeah, I can't remember the name of the station off the top of my head. But um, you could go there or you could go to the bouncer and about 10 minutes to get to chat to chat. If you want to get right on the BTS. You have to go to a bank. was the old end of the station the bouncer is the end so the top one was the the extension yeah BANG BANG wha is Mr. BTS BTS yellow line right so bouncer is the end was the end of the station but then they open top Poon which is a little close yeah right um but yeah you have to get in a vehicle to get there in 10 1520 minutes get on a scooter yes good. Okay and then go to chapter charts like 20 minutes because I got to turn around on what poverty Yeah, and cut or cut through the the railway which was scary as some people might be like, Oh my god, you guys are telling me about my dream neighborhood because it's not near that goddamn BTS or the MIT you know and so that people are some people are gonna like this. So this what I loved about that neighborhood is basically everything. I wanted the tops to do my grocery shopping. There was a night market rate behind my condo building. Okay, so I could go out the backyard of my condo, right into it right into the night lock it. And so like they all knew me like, yeah, obviously everyone remembers the big foreigner. Yeah, not a lot of foreigners living there.

Unknown Speaker

Okay, I see. I like that.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, it was great. There's like maybe three of us. Yes. And I think I told you about the drunk Irish guy, the rig worker who would like be passed out drunk on a stool someone that's still Yeah. Like, I'd see I'm drinking with locals. Like he doesn't speak Thai. Oh, they must like oh yeah, Ching? Sure drinking Blackhawk. Oh fuck Where

Unknown Speaker

is that by the way Where is your big black

Dana Blouin

it's a little black

Unknown Speaker

usually just like sloppy fucking table showing

Dana Blouin

Mia it's around.

Dana Blouin

So I'm gonna ship is nevermind I'm not even gonna do anyway. So yeah, there's a night marker way behind and there was a government Sports Center which is like they had like a soccer field a running track a weight room really pool and Olympic sized pool. And they would teach like a gym and I took a ballroom dancing classes that are kind of like equivalent. Maybe like a YMCA like a big one. Yeah, like an outdoor soccer field. Oh, there's a basketball indoor basketball court with a little stadium. Yeah. Yeah, they call it like government like their government run sports centers. So

Unknown Speaker

you need an ID

Dana Blouin

you gotta you gotta pay the membership. Just 4000 baht a year and 40 baht a year Jesus Christ. It cost him more money to administer that 40 baht

Dana Blouin

to make.

Dana Blouin

God that's friggin amazing. We thought a is Design Center in 1000 baht a year was free 1200 1200 1200 I gotta go renew mind this week. But yeah, it's um so it's 40 baht a year to basically use the running track awesome. Use the soccer field when there's not a game going on. Like there's a pool but you have to pay an extra 15 baht every time you go swim. Olympic sized

Dana Blouin

pool shado is 50 sets Yeah,

Dana Blouin

there's free parking for cars and motorcycles. That's pretty nice. This is an okay so there's two weight rooms is the okay like kind of free weights area looks like a very typical Thai gym like outdoors Yeah, okay, so it's covered by nets. Yeah, right right but outdoor essentially weights you know universal machine all that standard crappy stuff right? Good if you just want to lift heavy shit but then there's another they have heavy shit okay, so that's the heavy shit. Okay. But they have an other room with like really high end like other equipment treadmills treadmills arm, the arm got

Unknown Speaker

your pulse is everything and like

Dana Blouin

other machines for like hip mobility and like ab exercises, okay. And that's mostly like the older people go in

Unknown Speaker

the air conditioned,

Dana Blouin

super air conditioned. And actually, it's nice because a lot has opened the window shut the aircon off, like, at night reason and put the hands on

Unknown Speaker

towels water. But that's

Dana Blouin

most of the time you would see like older residents going in there. And like using it very lightweight, just to like get mobility. And yeah, but they had treadmills in their exercise bike, said a rower. Um, Jim and I took a ballroom dancing class for like, a few months there. Because Jimmy used to be a competitive dance sport per the competitive dancer races in university. Yeah, like solo or would that was apart. Okay. So like a ballroom or she did Latin jazz, all that dancing. And so not not the activity for me? Sure. I guess I would want a bit large, right. And so it was always kind of funny, like me and Jen, like we would you'd switch partners and dance with other people at your level. Obviously, Jim's level was Yeah. And the teacher would always have like a fun time with me like trying to explain like the foot movements. Yeah, but I would leave there because you wear heels on your shoes when you dance even as well. So it's like a like an inch and a half heel so you're like six four? Yeah, with the sales on but I would leave that and they're really soft like felt soles? Mm hmm. I would leave they're like feeling I just had the worst leg workout ever. Yeah, right. Alex will be shot right?

Unknown Speaker

Cavin Yeah.

Dana Blouin

And so we did that for like six months. I couldn't keep up with Yeah, like I was getting killed, but it was very cool. And then you could do they had free Zumba classes every night.

Unknown Speaker

Gracie doesn't but hmm

Dana Blouin

yeah so they they have in Thailand you'll see this at parks a lot they'll have like a trainer come out yes and do like a mass soon book club right? And it's always free. Yeah. And so lumpini in his in Thailand. Another thing that you'll notice when you first move here is there's all these little sort of physical fitness areas along the road or like next to a park. Yeah. And you'll see old people in the morning go out and they'll they've got like, you know, it's all like bodyweight equipment. But you know, they're going out there. They're moving. They're they're doing stuff and that's what they're there for. I love saying that by the way. Yeah, I mean, cuz Dude, it's 100 degrees outside. And I know you've been to lumpini a lot seen people exercising Olympian. What's the one that's near? Emporium? What's that? What's that park called? Oh, so there's two with very similar names is a bench mat or a bench or Medi benja Creme de

Unknown Speaker

is the one down a soak.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, Queen Sirikit, Queen. Is that open again?

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, they're all open. Because that Well, I mean, they're doing construction.

Dana Blouin

dredging it? Yeah,

Unknown Speaker

that's like we're right down the street from where used to live at the penthouse

Dana Blouin

is right across. Yeah, right. That's great. I found one of my old YouTube videos when I went to the first government tech conference was at Queen Sirikit, okay, like four years ago, five years talking about Queen Sirikit Convention Center who's ever committed. Yeah, right, which is also a queen circuit. MIT, right, obviously. And I did a shot a time lapse in front of the convention center in my building, I would end up living in the penthouse of Yeah, it was in the middle of the time lapse. Very nice.

Unknown Speaker

Well, I put that in the show notes.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, show notes. Below that video. Check that out. But that was actually the first government that's when the government was doing their big push. And, but it was only for Thai startups was like one of the owners that the prime minister was there. Nice work. Yeah, that's good. And all right, very interesting. So we're Bangkok strange, so that a lot of what we're talking about really is just like acclimating to sort of the local culture. Yeah, right. checking it out a strange shit to the strange Now let's talk about the strange shit because you're gonna like walk down the street and see someone doing something bizarre. Well, let's talk about coffee real quick. Okay, fair enough Thai coffee and we'll do a whole

Unknown Speaker

circle here here to us coffee

Dana Blouin

so Thai local coffee. Avoid Starbucks well no matter what country you're in Starbucks here is more expensive. Buy their stock if you want that's fine make some money but don't buy their product. So well don't don't say that till I sell my stock. So espresso culture dominates coffee here right and so nine out of 10 times that you're in a coffee place just a regular black coffee is an Americano yeah basically so the espresso with water and I never with water with water and ice. So be ready for that understand that there's very even Starbucks like if you order a brewed coffee which is on the menu they have to make it Yeah, because not enough people order it yeah they don't have like the whole drip the giant What is it with the silver is the one the company that makes coffee made or yeah Mr. Coffee so the Yeah, it's a be ready for that. But then also like it's very common to see like a little coffee stands around Oh, like that with the carnation sign. Yeah, but the umbrella is usually three and Ah, no, no, you're talking about the sock. That's coffee bar on you. Right right right but if you just sort of like a quick takeaway, though. Yeah. Like I'm like instant coffee. However so you met my sewing teach today crew Yang? Yeah. Her sister owns a place called coffee stand near here. It's an on okay awesome. Yeah, on the way it's actually between on in here probably. Okay, so coffee stand Yeah, it's like it's like literally in the parking lot of like a condo. Okay, but she actually makes like legit like pour over coffee or like, is a really good coffee. That's why when she was joking like oh, like is good as like her sisters. Oh, yeah. Given a hard time expensive. No, it's like local price. 20 baht no like 40 baht. Okay, like a decent coffee. That's 711 prices. Yeah,

Unknown Speaker

40 bucks.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, so like you can get the coffee baronne is like cafe baronne is like 20 baht. 30 baht. Yes. And unless you get it like Thai style with like condensed milk and like the diabetes car Yeah. Like this milk, condensed milk more condensed milk on top and a little bit of sugar. Yes. And that's like 50 bucks and it still tastes like really strong clinking coffee. Yeah, cuz it pours out of this like black. Yeah, but I mean it is black, but it pours out through a sock is just excellent. And it's robust to beans. Yes, I did not. Once I had robusta beans. I was all about that because it's Arabica in the love the Arabica I know you do

Dana Blouin

I Arabica is the way to go. What is

Dana Blouin

this little Tizen aside, do you have like this little get together contest global thing going on with your coffee? what's what's happening? Oh, yeah, so that's uh, let's James Hoffman, famous youtuber former barista world champion. In England. He owns a company called square mile and they're doing The world's largest coffee tasting. Yeah, it's an October you can come if you want to come by,

Unknown Speaker

but it's like everyone in the world at like 10:39pm

Dana Blouin

Bangkok time.

Unknown Speaker

9pm Bangkok time, which is whatever other Yeah.

Dana Blouin

And everyone at that time tastes the same coffee and then you talk about it on the forum. Okay, got it and discuss like the tasting notes and they even send you the water to make the coffee. I see that is like, I mean that you are obviously like, I don't know, I guess you're not a barista because that's someone who makes it but you're like, obviously a coffee connoisseur for lack of a better word. I'm a fan. You're fake. Well, you're a big fan, because I like buying it and consuming it. That's about as far as I go.

Dana Blouin

That's why, yeah, but you know,

Dana Blouin

all of it. I'm like, Hey, lady, pour that black shit over some ice. Let's go. So I had a meeting yesterday coffee with a talk with someone over coffee and you're over an ekkamai, weren't you? Yeah. And you get over their UCC. Okay. And so that's one of the few shops in Bangkok that does immersion brews. Okay, which is how I like coffee. Yep. And so they do French press and siphon. Okay. And siphon is you. So a French press, obviously, your thermal mass is dropping in temperature while you're doing the immersion with siphon. It's not because you're constantly heating to heat the water up with the pressure. Okay. And so it's a constant pressure.

Dana Blouin

immersion, which is interesting. And

Unknown Speaker

this is where like, is it? How far down Am I

Dana Blouin

know it's raining? I can my gateway. Okay. It's like you walk through the mall, but it's, everything's a mall. Yeah, you walk into ekkamai gateway, and it's right there. And you're right. Walk in

Unknown Speaker

from TV. Okay, so like, level two.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, it's turn right boom. UCC UCC, it's I got the the tie honey bourbon. Coffee, which is quite nice. It's a it's got a it's a honey process. And it has notes of has earthy notes. A little bit of bourbon, some sweetness. Nice. Very interesting coffee. I wasn't really have bourbon in it. Just so yeah. Trust me, I would have asked. But one of the things I think is really interesting, is it you know, I mean, this is the kind of disc we could be having this discussion if we were doing this podcast in Boston. Yeah. And I want to highlight that because if you come over to this country, well, first of all, you've got to don't move here. Don't move to Boston don't First of all, don't move to Boston, but secondarily, do not move to Thailand after before coming to Thailand. Yeah, come to Thailand and check it out. And I would argue that that's great advice, no matter what the other country is that you're going to unless you are super versed in international travel. Here's the other thing. Let me let me throw this out there because Thailand does offer a lot of everything. And so this is essentially everywhere you go in Thailand is gonna be tropical, but there is something for everyone here the great so I love big city life, like I couldn't live anywhere other than Bangkok. So and I often say Bangkok is the greatest city in the world. You know KL is Paula poor Malaysia. Definitely my second home, but I love it. And I've lived in you know, big cities in the US small cities, medium cities. Nothing beats Bangkok, New York has nothing on bank. So here's what's crazy. I am not a big city guy went off. I fucking love Bangkok. Yeah, absolutely. I would. Again, you and I have debated this very slightly in the sense that you said there's no debate. Because you say it is the best city in the entire world. And I've always thought okay, I mean, for me it is yeah, agreed. But I would I would guess that there's got to be other metrics that people believe it's not the best city in the world. Let

Dana Blouin

me ask you this clean cheap,

Dana Blouin

no readily available public transportation. Okay, do we have it again? For me? I agree. World Class food. Yeah, cheap and expensive. Cheap and expense. Yuki there is no food you cannot get in Thailand like in Bangkok? streetfood when you first move here you will get stuck. Just no.

Unknown Speaker

I never have

Dana Blouin

I get sick every month. What still? Yeah, the hell's

Unknown Speaker

wrong with you when you

Dana Blouin

ate it is random shit.

Dana Blouin

Because here's the thing. I've made this statement and we want to talk about the best like no debate about the best food in the entire world is made on the sidewalk and back in time. That's Yeah, I might have a weak constitution but I will not stop eating street food because no way. One it's less than $1

Unknown Speaker

Yes, yeah.

Dana Blouin

Interaction last time I get sick. It's probably from restaurants.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, so you know I heard that no,

Dana Blouin

what I think it is too is that you know I'm extremely lactose intolerant. Yeah, so you've got your sensitive if I get anything with lactose in here you're all done. I'm done. Yeah. And so like I go somewhere and they put a little bit of milk powder in there Brad? Yeah, game on Fox. Okay. Yeah, but here's the thing you're not getting sick because it's bad food no getting sick because you are allergic thing you get street food is cooked right it's it's and it's fresh sanitized and they don't have any refrigeration their little thing they've got that and enough vegetables for that day and you see the vegetables they're using. They're fresh. They're green. They're claiming that Chris Wright and I the air the air cured me is a different story. Yeah, I mean, look, yeah. Look, we dry aged beef in America. Why can't we dry ha In the street side buses driving by arguably the you know filtration system on the exhaust isn't necessarily up to California standards definitely not I get that but the point is is that

Dana Blouin

you don't have those plumes

Dana Blouin

when I was when we were kids right and and the the trucks would drive by and they'd like downshift yeah shoot black smoke you do that California people Hey, hey call the police Yeah, they start like clubbing you with a frickin seal? Because that's often say here's the thing right the sheep food you if you ask me 10 times what I want to eat nine times out of 10 will be street food all day long. All day long. And this thing Thai food obviously spicy I love spicy food. Yep, it's good for you. You can

Unknown Speaker

get it without spice you see

Dana Blouin

it's still spicy yes a true my pet Yeah, so the first words you'll learn are probably about food right how to orders pet or my pet spicy not spicy. Rice Russia cow yeah guy you know egg Thai and here's the other thing fucking I don't even eat eggs but the way Thais cook eggs it's got to be goddamn perfect you're talking about like when they put it in the oil yes like they basically make it sunny side up it's sunny side up but the bottom is like a golden brown crispy Yeah, that's gonna be the perfect day I would submit moving to this country you're gonna make statements like I just made and you just made which is I'm not normally a insert something I dislike here. But in Thailand, I fucking love big cities. I love eggs. I don't like dessert, but all the candy how much more fucking long? No mango sticky people if you go to so many United States What do you want? What do you want for dessert? I don't know something with rice. Yeah, what the fuck? What do you poor? What else your problem? Yes. God damn dessert in the whole world is a mango sticky rice sticky rice that's been drained. Yes. badly. Yeah. And it's actually that sticky rice is cooked in this coconut milk, right coconut milk with salt and sugar gameover gamble. I will eat that. Then. You put the ripest, juiciest, most delicious mango basically a chunk of sunshine Yeah, on top of this sticky rice. Then you sprinkle just a little bit of these. These Han fried mung beans on top of that, and then you give it an additional drenching in that same coconut cream. Gentlemen with salt and sugar. Yeah, and you eat that one spoon at a time you just neared heaven. Then you paid $2 maybe max maybe

Dana Blouin

that's if you're like a high end restaurant.

Unknown Speaker

That's it. Yeah, exactly. If you're like Scion Paris, I'm buying

Dana Blouin

it on the street for 40 bucks all day.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, all day long. Here's the thing is they'll is they'll is they'll they'll feel or they'll touch the mangoes they're in front of right. And I've never gotten one that's bruised. You know, I've never gotten one that's got even like, you know, like a brownish thing in it. You know, and they're not picking these out of a factory. They just pick these off the street. Yeah. 20 hours ago. Yeah. And they came to a central location. And all these people got up at three in the morning if you go around in the morning, you'll see the trucks driving around with the fruit Oh yeah. And all the all the places are like that vegetables. The vegetables. Yes. And everyone who has a shop they all take this Take this. You get what you get. And it's always fresh. It came from the farm mat day it's not like America where they picked it 14 days ago. threw it in the back of a refrigerated truck drove it across the fucking content and ripens ripens arrived yeah none of that

Unknown Speaker

and it tastes do

Dana Blouin

tomatoes over here amazing

Dana Blouin

tomatoes on a Burger King burger here taste fantastic out of this world out of this world now and everything like you know so obviously they're like spinach isn't the same here kale isn't the same here. But you know they have a lot of leafy greens if that's what you're into apples are pretty good here apples are good but the fruit game here apples are probably the worst fruit from Thailand. In my dragon fruits discard it's where it should waste that's one of my favorite fruit It doesn't taste like anything it tastes amazing it's fucking white with the dots in it it looks neat on the outside then you open up you're like what thanks grace it's got a subtle sweetness to it it's got a nice subtle

Unknown Speaker

does that's it understood I mean it's not there

Dana Blouin

if you have any things you ever had the Red

Unknown Speaker

Dragon from No I've only had the white ones to be fair so I will

Dana Blouin

throw that out there not much difference in the flavor but the red ones first time ever eat the red dragon fruit like maybe for them right okay like it was I love dragon clear though. Yeah and so fucking we will go somewhere and you can order dragon fruit from this little and to be fair, all this fruit that he's talking about you can order from a like container. Yeah, it's being pushed down the street a fish tank filled with ice filled with the freshest friggin food.

Dana Blouin

They cut it for you right there. Put a stick Yeah,

Unknown Speaker

bag they did. Hey, here you go. So 20 baht. So

Dana Blouin

I like for these dragons, not realizing and so the next day I'm on the toilet. And I look down on the fucking bowl just full of red.

Unknown Speaker

And you're like, Oh my God, my colon.

Dana Blouin

Like my colon fucking rubs us I'm dying, right? I'm fucking On the phone I was up countries on messaging with Jim. Yeah, this is a weird date. Like what like six months, dear Jim, hi. Yeah.

Dana Blouin

I'm like, I'm gonna shit.

Dana Blouin

I'm like, I think I'm dying. I'm like bleeding out of my ass. I'm gonna die in the hospital. Do you have red dragon from yesterday? Oh, just nailed it. Right that like, yeah, she's like, yeah, that's what happens. It's just like blood red of the entire bowl. Like

Unknown Speaker

giant.

Dana Blouin

Fucking like I'm done of the diet up fucking country. Fucking Thailand. So we've been here a while. I consider myself not in this. I mean, it's true. I have not lived here continuously as long as you have, but I've been here long enough. I feel like I can be part of the Bangkok community and have been quite easily. Obviously we're very pro Thailand. Yeah, there's some imperfection here or whatever.

Dana Blouin

No, nothing's perfect. Totally.

Dana Blouin

But I would highly we don't have Trump. No, we don't like here's the thing. We don't have any nonsense like that. Yeah. Because even if we were to obsess about the news about the government or the leadership, what are we gonna do vote? We're gonna write our congressmen over and bang Nah, I don't know understand the the foreigner there are a lot of foreigners who starts to take the political stance really personally, that's what I wanted to touch on is if you come over here, I highly encourage you if you start getting like irritable, or you start finding all the negative things about Thailand? Well, the short answer is get the fuck out. Yeah. Second is don't talk to us. Yeah, cuz you can get smacked in the face and you're going to be sitting ready. Whether you eat friggin dragon fruit or not. Like there are a lot of people all the time. Like, there was a guy who I know we called him bareback Walsh, because he had a tendency to have unprotected sex with prostitutes. But judgment,

Unknown Speaker

no judgment. Tony would support that.

Dana Blouin

Absolutely. Why didn't you have a kid with her? Come on exam summit. So he was freaking out when when the whole lockdown thing was about to happen. He thinks that Thailand is gonna he's like they're gonna go into you know, huge depression era economic downturn, they're going to be killing foreigners in Jesus like what do you live in? la de been here. He's been here like two years. Come on, you know it backwards. Do though he came here and he basically went on a two year bender. They said having sex back having sex with he had a bar girl girlfriend, who was living with them,

Unknown Speaker

and you would go out and have sex with other people.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, if he left he came. He came with his wife his kid and he left them for for an ugly bar girl. See that? I don't get here's the other thing too. You come over here and you are not dating like at least a seven? and eight. Find a good male friend. Yeah, get your shit together

Dana Blouin

big time because it is

Dana Blouin

not difficult to date. Not and you do not need to date anywhere below what you have to do in the US. No. And the other thing is like one of the dating pool is skewed because there's more women here. Anyway. So if you're a guy and if you're white woman, you come here. I've talked to I've got friends who are a women expats dating is difficult for some of them, not for others. I get what you want. You want, right? But yeah, at the same time, and also like if you if you definitely have to have more language proficiency as a woman, like dating. Yeah, you can get away with a lot of just sort of basics here. And the other thing too, is that a lot of times at least in my experience, you start dating a Thai woman she's actually going to help you with the basics. Yeah, she doesn't necessarily want you to be able to understand everything she and her girlfriends say. But here's the problem. So like Jim speaks perfect English. Yeah, right. So like, I never learned how I would just because she's like, I'm just gonna fucking talk to you in English. Yeah, I go over to the Philippines. People like Oh, do you know Tagalog? And I'm like, dude, Everywhere I go, they take one look at this. Yeah. And they're like, he speaks English. Yeah. So do we, because we learned it in five years old. Yeah, cuz we're Filipino and we're gonna start working in as nurses real soon and start banging the shit out a Danish is that's the lifetime goal.

Dana Blouin

Now Filipinos, a teachers in the US?

Dana Blouin

Well, you know, they're probably banging some little little Dana's running over the United States. There's probably a bunch of Dana's running all over the place from that hospital. There's a bunch of Luckily, no, there's a there's a bunch of Filipinos going over to teach in like the Midwest in the US where they can't afford they can't they can't attract American teachers to live in like remote ganzo that makes Filipinos like $30,000 a year yeah, in the wintertime and America Fuck Yeah. Wait, hold on, like 90% of what I make I can send back to my family my entire family. Oh Fw I mean, but they're also like wait so I get to live in America. I think they get four year visas like to to on that good job. like four years I get to teach in America get experience get to live somewhere where it's fun to get the summers off. Yeah. And get to go to like, Why only where it's like, it's like nowhere I would see in the Philippines. Right. Yeah, for sure. Yeah, yes. America has a lot. Yeah. And then Like and there's like seven other Filipinos teach at the same school. We're all gonna be sleeping together anyway, living together. Sleeping, sleep madana

Dana Blouin

they'll be staying one or two at a time.

Unknown Speaker

I mean, you know, let's face it, they're so small. Yeah,

Dana Blouin

yeah. It's

Dana Blouin

like how many dragon fruits do you have? And you sit down for clearly minimum minimum. So I had fit two in my bed previously, but I could definitely fit more.

Unknown Speaker

You know, not there's nothing wrong with that.

Dana Blouin

But I was saying that in Thailand, though. There is something for everyone. Like you're not a city guy. You love the beach? Yeah. So you've gone to Phuket. You've gone to Copenhagen. You've gone to some movies. Yeah, all these places.

Unknown Speaker

Tosi Chong real close by the closest island to Bangkok

Dana Blouin

so there are a lot of there are a lot of beach communities Koi in you know places that you can live very comfortably on the beach at a fraction what it costs to live in San Diego and imagine and some much nicer beaches in San Diego imagine Yeah. Now if you don't like the city, you don't like the beach. There's always the mountains in the wilderness of the North. Yeah, Chiang Mai is a popular destination for digital nomads we'll call them basically scumbags. Yeah, who don't work right and want to live somewhere for like five bucks a month. Yeah, the only way they make money is basically making videos convincing other people that they're gonna make money there are people who do I have friends who live in Chiang Mai who run legitimate businesses like online business online like legitimate online businesses and also like I have friends who are professional fighters who live in Shanghai oh that's yeah people who work online and other respects they just love living there Yeah, so I feel bad when i when i umbrella everyone under that chopper no you don't I really don't feel that love umbrella. I mean every single human male that has ever gone to Cambodia yeah clearly fucking scumbag scumbag except for you the one time when you were there accidentally

Dana Blouin

got arrested Yeah,

Dana Blouin

so you get arrested and you're in jail and Cambodia but everyone else does come back let's be clear yeah tone of this podcast. I'm gonna give myself a pass on that. Obviously everyone else no one else can they all suck at this mic goes there for like a quick chip I might give him Yeah, I doubt it. We'll be doing a live stream you'll be like So Mike. What are you getting jerked off by a tiny nine year old or something?

Dana Blouin

I might do that like yes

Unknown Speaker

I'm in Cambodia. That's only that's the only thing that happens is on the menu. Yeah, so like the economy's grown 8% a year for the last 10 years like every

Dana Blouin

I got that and fried rice. Yeah.

Unknown Speaker

And a great pizza with smoking marijuana and

Dana Blouin

the happy pizza.

Dana Blouin

So I am staying away from that pizza. I will never eat pizza in Cambodia too afraid I know. edibles when they fucked me up lately like I used to. I used to really enjoy edibles and were Laxmi now's like my blood pressure drops too much I find I get dry mouth it's not an enjoyable experience good and well yeah, but see, here's the deal you have that experience and you're like well I guess I just won't do this anymore. Yeah no with me it is an editor 150% abstinence yeah or 180 degree I mean 110% 80 miles an hour and the absolute worst so I stay away I've never had an edible and I'm not about to happen it Yeah. Is it my experience? Actually, I'd like to edible my friend gave me two chocolates there's a five milligrams eat

Unknown Speaker

Oh Is this the new year's eve experience?

Dana Blouin

That was bear okay with Eric no Eric gave me the two chocolate okay all right guys. Like there's a five milligrams each I tried them I'm like somebody usually 10 milligrams is like pretty like decent for you yeah for me okay. And I was at a both I'm like all right no big deal. I was awesome. I thought I was dying I literally thought I was having a heart attack my My watch is like paying my heart rates at like 160 from marijuana. Yeah, so apparently so what happens is your heart rate does generally go up a little bit because your blood pressure will drop

Unknown Speaker

okay fair enough. So trying to compensate relaxes

Dana Blouin

you your blood pressure drops and maybe you see like a five beats per minute 10 beats per minute so like yeah, my blood pressure must have tanked actually my blood I was hooked up to my blood pressure cough I have my fucking who my heart rate monitor on a fucking freaking die

Unknown Speaker

this is not this is not a joy of all behaviors what I'm seeing No,

Dana Blouin

it's not it's not a job. I would usually do like a drop of like oil. Okay, like if leave I just want to like relax. Or like, have like a 10 milligram cookie like no big deal like back in the day, but not now.

Dana Blouin

Not now and lock that

Dana Blouin

in? My mouth was dry. Yes,

Unknown Speaker

yes. It's not enjoyable.

Dana Blouin

enjoyable, I fell asleep and then I woke up thinking I was having a heart attack again. Like not not a good time. You know, I think one of the things really I mean, obviously I would eat that pizza though. Good. The next time we go traveling in Cambodia, I'll bring a fucking blood pressure cuff and I'll be like, okay, dude, you got the software downloaded on your iPhone because you gotta have the remote. We got to work this out. Yeah, you eat this pizza. I'll be sitting over here with a Diet Coke. Well, awesome. So now I think what I think is like the oils that you get today. The extracted oils are just like such high concentration. And like when they like, Oh, it's five milligrams they don't know. Oh, yeah.

Unknown Speaker

Especially over here. regulate is a Thai

Dana Blouin

chick from that worked at a university in a chemistry lab. Yeah, I'm sure she knows what she's doing. Yeah, five milligrams. So here's something that I would say if you're coming over here and you're gonna even if this is your first day as a tourist or you're going to live here long term, don't do drugs in Thailand. Don't I mean look at dude, if you've lived here a long time and you got buddies fine, but I would highly encourage you to find anything else to to alter your mood if that's what you want to do. Do not do illegal narcotics. It definitely don't get caught doing Jesus Christ. So the other thing, so yeah, definitely don't get caught doing illegal narcotics. Not a good look. No. And because they'll be psyched. They'll be like, Oh, he's a foreigner. Yeah, I'm gonna put this motherfucker on Bangkok post now. You're gonna end up paying a lot of money and probably won't go to jail yet. It depends on here called Ico the gram of coke.

Unknown Speaker

That was when your cash is

Dana Blouin

cash he had caught with a dime of marijuana. Not only did he get caught with a kilo of coke, you're probably shit. It asked for a prison like prayer before dawn saw a full on prayer before the novel pen angel in the pen. If you need to watch a movie to convince you to not do drugs in Thailand, watch that one. Yeah, unless you have this big desire to be raped by aids victims. Yeah, that is just bad news bear. That was a crazy like realistically, like the grittiness of that team. Like, obviously, in my mind, like the one prison scene before I watch that movie. That was always in my mind was American History X. Right. I don't know that one. With Edward Norton. No,

Unknown Speaker

I know. Edward Norton. Yeah, I don't know that movie.

Dana Blouin

Okay, off the watch Avery Brooks was also in that it's on Netflix. Great movie. Great done. Um, but fantastic movie about like racism and like, white supremacy in America. Okay. And like the underlying tones of racism and like how it festers the multi generationally. But there's a rape scene in that movie, but it's kind of stylized. Oh, it's Hollywood. Its Hollywood. Got it. A prayer before dawn is no. Like, it's like you hear the thigh slapping on the ad, dude. Like, it's like, the dude is like, freaking out. Yeah. I mean, talk about a great actor. Yeah. Because you're looking at his face. Yeah. And you're like, Okay, the only way you make that face is if this is happening to you. You're literally watching the dude get raped two feet away from you. Yeah, I mean it. I mean, I would say for the extras, they probably just went into a prison and said, Hey, anyone here that like, you know, basically kills people and rapes people for a living. Come with me. I'll give you 100 bucks. Yeah, just do what you normally do on a Thursday. Yeah, right now in front of all these cameras

Dana Blouin

is this white dude,

Dana Blouin

just like Grail? And then he says, Oh, yeah, and by the way, hold this knife to his throat. He's like, Oh, I'm gonna bang this guy. It's gonna be great. Great. It's actually not a great movie, but it's a realistic you just watch that one scene and you leave that movie with like, Okay, this is what a movie is supposed to do to me. Yeah, especially there you know make me hair on the back of my neck kind of experience you know that's a special effects. We're not there. We're not special effects necessary that movie know about you like this? Lady boy sexy. Yeah, he's like having He's like, here's another thing to not get into a fucking relationship with a girl that you got into the relationship by paying her. Yeah. So don't make that your relationship.

Dana Blouin

There's a lot of guy's

Unknown Speaker

he falls in love with the lady boy. Yeah. Did you give him the fucking cigarettes too?

Dana Blouin

Yeah. Well, she was giving him cigarettes. Yeah, and then when she started fucking other dudes.

Unknown Speaker

jealousy. Oh my god, you're 100 I can't believe you're actually making money

Dana Blouin

by having sex with other men. You're all you're all prisoners. So here's the other thing. Right. But yeah, you hit a good point. Even if you come here as a sexpot, right, which is, look, it's illegal here. It's technically not legal, but I read it. Like a lot of things that are illegal. It's in the open. So you do it, you do it, whatever. But do not fall in love. Get in relationships with people who you're paying to have relations with. Yeah, exactly. Because I've seen it happen multiple times. bareback. Walsh is one of them fell in love with a girl he met her on her her first night. He actually said that to me. We've got to go through a list of things you will hear that are false. He actually said to me, it was her first night. That's why she was the most expensive. And I said, Oh my God. I said, Well, what have you ever started a job as the highest paid employee at the company? When do you start? So most experience is the most beautiful usually, but they Yeah, they have to coincide. Yeah, you know, there are people that no that's not true because the girl I met was that was her first night. No No, no. Wow, no one is paying for someone's first night as a second. There's gonna be some standard lies, guys. It's gonna be this is my first night here. Yeah. I've never done this ever done this before. Yeah. My family is in dire straits.

Dana Blouin

My buffalo is my buffalo.

Dana Blouin

Well, no, the buffalo is sick. You're gonna get that in the relationship as as as the relationship is progressing, when she figures out how much money you have, potentially here buffalo is sick. If you have a lot more money, her family is in the hospital. Yeah, there's humans involved. Buffalo is one thing that means you can give her like 250 bucks. Yeah, if her dad all of a sudden has pancreatic cancer for the ninth time, then there's a high likelihood she's like, he's gonna give me 10 grand, this is gonna be huge right now. Now, here's the deal. There are scammers. There are liars in every friggin country. And that sort of thing. The difference over here is that I believe you come over here and any experience you've ever had in the red light district and kind of thing anywhere else in the world. It is different here. And at the end of the day, it's simply better. Yeah, you are going to be convinced by these women who do this for a living, they actually care for you keep in mind that this is their job. They're getting paid to make you think that you had a good time or that they really care for you right now. And so you're gonna be confused because it's like, well, wait a minute, let's say for this. I've never done the United States, but let's say for the sake of argument by hook or in United States, and now you're broke. And yeah, well, okay. Yeah. Let's say it's in Vegas, right? I guess. I don't know. 1002. That looks like $2,000. Yeah, for sake of argument. You come over here. And I would guess your

Dana Blouin

thousand baht.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, it's 2000 baht and the experience you had last night like no doubt, okay? She can be a complete bitch. There's not gonna be these girls. You meet them. You walk across the street. She grabs your hand like she's your girlfriend. So you want to get street food? Yeah, you want to buy some pizza? You know, you want to go somewhere and in? Yeah, so there will be this sort of engagement that you're like, wait a minute. This is like the girlfriend experience kind of thing. So it's really good to have look if you want to reach out to Dana and I if you're coming over here for the first time but

Dana Blouin

Bangkok streams@gmail.com

Dana Blouin

find a wing man have some good and and you can look at I came over here. Obviously, I had my good my head on my shoulders. Okay, so I didn't need a wing man. But I met so many guys that were just like, gaga over this experience they had never, it's like when you meet a guy and guys who you wouldn't normally think would fall down. Yeah. That I've met guys who are like killers of business. Yeah. And like, all of a sudden, they don't realize that they're in a business relationship or business engagement. And they're like, Oh, this is you know, something and it's not they can spot a liar across the boardroom table. Yeah. And be like, there's no way Fuck you. They can be like, all hard and everything. We're gonna do this 10% No, 12% whatever. And then they Yeah, they meet their next entrepreneurial experience. Yeah. via the vagina. Yes. And it's like, Oh, my God. Now all of a sudden, yes, I'm sideways. And so yeah, definitely. And I think it's, it's, it's hard to explain to I think people who have never like been through that it's literally impossible to explain what you could potentially come up into with Bangkok, which is what really it you know, it is what makes it strange. And I think they're so I have another friend who comes here. And he uses a website called, like, Thai friendly or something. Yeah.

Unknown Speaker

It's, I think it's the number one most popular.

Dana Blouin

So he goes on there. And like, every girl he needs is a freelancer. Yeah. And they're coming over is in love with 2000 baht, and they're out there. He's done your business, right? He's got girls who he meets, like on Tinder or wherever that he's dating. And then he's got girls that he meets on this at our business. Okay, got it. He's able to separate the two. Okay. And, you know, you know, while he's while he's here, right now, like he has girls, he's like he's going out to dinner with he's taking them out. He's, you know, going to places with dense states. Yeah. And then he's got girls who come over and they fucking, he's out. Exactly. And, you know, and he's also he's very upfront about with the grocery days. He's like, um, you know, just, I want a date. Like, see what happens. You know, if it's cool, it's cool, but I'm seeing other people. Yeah. And which is a odd conversation with a Thai girl. Yeah, normal Thai girl.

Dana Blouin

But yeah, I think honestly, is always the best.

Dana Blouin

No, no, that's it. Yeah. But they're not gonna be like, Oh, yeah, I'm dating for other men. No, no, no, no, some of them might be that I gotta tell you. So dating in Thailand. Like if you're a guy transitioning over here, dating in Thailand can be tricky because there's always an air of, you know, hot is the girl who you met in that line of work, right? If she you know, pens where you met and like, if you meet a girl on Tinder from what I understand now, Tinder is like 90% freelancers, I would guess. I mean, I haven't literally I haven't used any of that stuff in like four years. It looks more than that. Now, obviously, I've been with Jim Yeah, a long time. So sick about six years. So okay, so before, before that, right? I used Tinder but like on campus and everyone was on campus Yeah, I would just swipe through it like literally within like a minute. I would get like all match. No, totally like, Hey, what are you proximity? Yeah, exactly what building you know, come over here like, Okay, come over right now. Not tomorrow morning is fine. No, I can come over like right now. Like I can get in the next building. Okay. Yeah. So, you know, it was fish in a barrel. Yeah, basically, but in Bangkok, right? It's not hard to meet great women. No, you could just be walking like, like, literally, I could have met this great looking person. On the way over here. Yeah, she smiled at me. We started laughing because there were like, pigeons in front of me. And they were like, all taking off and everything. And she literally just wanted to engage and start talking. Yeah, I looked down at her hand, you know, shocker right now. And it's just like, you know, she didn't want to take her clothes off. Yeah, but like I could. That doesn't happen to us. No, girl looks the other way. Oh, my God, I don't know you. I'm gonna talk. And she's Yeah. Okay. talk to this guy. Yeah, people just it's like that. Like some guys like to go out clubbing or whatever. You meet normal girls out of clubs, easily

Unknown Speaker

clubs. they line up.

Dana Blouin

Yeah. And you know, bars wherever you want to go. In there enough communities within Bangkok. You're always gonna be meeting people. Yeah, for sure. And like I said, because of the skewed nature of men and women in Thailand, there's always a surplus of women. And let's be clear, right? Obviously, there is this stigma that basically, you know, many people here in the United States when they would say the word I'm going to Thailand, right? If you're an older guy, not older, if you're like over 30 or 40, and you're single, or you're divorced or whatever, you're going over there to bang chicks. Yeah, that's what people are gonna think. And they're also going to have that Oh, yeah, we'll all Thailand, all Thai girls are prostitutes. A lot of them are gonna think that but that's such I mean, the smallest percentage you're gonna meet women with master's degrees. More people have PhDs in Thailand, I think or like per capita than anywhere else in the world. But you're gonna meet like highly educated, beautiful, articulate women. If feminine if you want that. Yeah, right. And but here's your thing, too. I mean, if you're like, I hate Buddhism, this is crazy. I want to go there. I

Dana Blouin

don't come to Thailand.

Unknown Speaker

But he true but in Bangkok, there's Christian churches. Unfortunately, that

Dana Blouin

is true.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, trust me. I'm not allowed to get into why Buddhism is fucking awesome and

Unknown Speaker

ridiculous.

Dana Blouin

I'm the dude who tries to fistfight with those Mormon douchebags.

Unknown Speaker

Get out of my way. I'm going to my flight for Christ's sake.

Dana Blouin

I'll fuck. I'll fucking fight you right now. Mormon? I do not need your pamphlet. Any Mormons in Bangkok. You want a fist fight? I'll tell you where I live. Are you want fisting? He's your guy. Either way. Either way. Just sign up for some data Bangkok streams at gmail dot o we also got to mention the merge Yeah. shopped at Bangkok strange. Yeah, check it out. Absolutely. Our should be coming in on sometimes. sometime this year.

Unknown Speaker

For into September, right. That's the thing before

Dana Blouin

the end of September, we got PayPal

Dana Blouin

now. paypal.me forward slash Bangkok strange. Give us as much money as you friggin want. You know, I mean, obviously, these laptops we went we'll go through about one of these a week. Yeah, because they're disposable. Things like 3500 bucks or something like 3500 to rent it for the weekend for a day. So yeah, we're actually we're talking about setting up a Patreon as well. So if you guys actually have feedback, things that you would like, like a premium tier, let us know. Because we would love to incorporate that into a Patreon. Yeah, and, you know, we're looking at like, you know, a couple different tiers. We want to make it accessible. But we understand that for a lot of people, it's about like more information about Thailand about more information about relocation or access, or whatever it may be. So but for some people, they want the one on one x. Yes. And obviously that involves some attention units. Yeah. And so from us to do it, right. Because we're not going to be like, Oh, yeah, just read this PDF. No,

Dana Blouin

no, no to talk. There'll be no PDFs. Yeah,

Dana Blouin

I mean, and so cuz like, that's what we always say. I'll promise that there will be no PD Thank you very much. No PDF, zero PDF sucking PowerPoint, no power. salutely no powerful euro

Dana Blouin

no PDF, no PowerPoint from us. Ever.

Dana Blouin

Ever. That is so refreshing. See, you just get made it Yeah, this is Fuck, there's no need for PDFs. so damn good. Here's the other thing too. I will tell you that in the time that I've been over here, that the other guys, the Americans and their American guys, for the most part. It's weird. It seems as though the friendships happen faster over here. And I don't know why I would guess it's because it's like, Well, yeah, but we're both working on like the same thing. Yeah, I mean, I guess if I was like banging chicks, and you were like sitting there with your wife, I would be like, Okay, well, we got nothing in common, like white. Right. So maybe there's that. So David and I and then David and bear, right. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. So like David and I met on a set just became fast friends. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. And he's like, I mean, he's Americanized Thai, if you will, but he's obviously more worldly than just a Thai guy. The like, within like, literally the calendar year that we met. Yeah, we spent Christmas and New Year's together.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, see, I don't I mean, it

Unknown Speaker

I just think it happens faster. I don't know why.

Dana Blouin

And then bear he met bear last year.

Dana Blouin

Oh, and they're like, embarrassed bear was over my house with him for Christmas and New Year. Right. So you know, it's, and then I know bear through him and I'll bear and I are tight. Right so you know it is what it is. And I think if you if you're coming over here The nice thing is I mean, you could say yeah, look, yeah, I'm reinventing myself, you know, but again, if you go anywhere with some integrity, yeah, it's like you're probably gonna beat people that are also honest. Yeah. You know, so there's that but there's just you're so first of all, there's so much there. Like he's saying there's everything in Bangkok. Yeah, but there's also so much in Thailand. At least. Like I talked about Chiang Mai. Right. Chiang Rai is a great city non pie. All up north. Yeah,

Unknown Speaker

very tight.

Dana Blouin

I haven't even talked about easson like a lot of people doggy songs is the hookers come from that's gonna be the that but it's also like a rural kind of like agricultural park or area or area Yeah, but like Uber and racha Tawny I've been up to a bunch is it's an okay little city it's a little dusty because it's like dry drought area Sure. It's it's an OK city. There's good food I had good pizza up and run around with Chinese food is spicy and Nissan so if you don't like spicy food maybe not the place for you. I actually tried to order something not spicy my dad in the woman's like me don't have we don't we Yeah, yeah, but can I add Can I get this sometime without chili my prick like me because all she has to do just so you know is not like you could literally make frickin sob top just friggin the everything else but she's bashing away at the big like no yeah, we can't You can't have garlic Yeah,

Unknown Speaker

that's the only way not to make

Dana Blouin

like what I'm thinking is like maybe like the mortar and pestle she's using just so saturated with chili Yeah, can't do yeah, I mean it's like having a season Yeah, no the cast like this motherfucker like no, I'm not not written this out. I'm just eggs. Yes, I'm not rinsing it out. Like I might pour some fish oil in here to clean it. Yeah, but I'm not using soapy fish fish sauce. Thank you. Yeah, I spent all all day building up this

Unknown Speaker

chill diner Yeah,

Dana Blouin

like I'm not recommend for you. Right so but the food in esign is amazing

Unknown Speaker

the best probably they

Dana Blouin

from like even in Bangkok. He some food is super popular. Yeah, but they're into like fermented deep, like develop flavors and just spice like crazy. Now Southern food is good too. Also spicy but a lot fresher. Yeah, it's a little more I would say it's a little blander. Yeah. Would you say that? Like I mean, it can be spicy. Yeah, but overall, like the taste of it is not as full

Dana Blouin

not enough MSG. That's it? See,

Dana Blouin

that's the thing. You got it. And that's you just so you know. That will be put in many things. Everything. Yeah, pretty much like my guy that makes coconut milk shakes. Yeah. MSG. Little, little bit. A little bit. Yeah, MSG makes everything better. As well as cancer. Make no shot approval is not proven at the end of the day. I mean, you know, don't don't snort it. Yeah. Well, I mean, no, maybe yes. Six of one really. So but here's the thing like the food on a level but essentially if you want to live in Esau, I've been sokongan which is a product is that Coggins the biggest city in Isa. Okay, can can and can't Okay, yeah, I have heard so probably. He can take the overnight train there, Jim and I want it for a rocket festival. Well, it's totally they're blowing shit up packing tubes of bamboo with gum.

Unknown Speaker

Ah, sign me annually.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, there's a live commentator. Wow, we did a whole vlog about I'll put the vlog in the show.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, that's great. Awesome. But

Dana Blouin

um, can we took the train from Holland poem is like, overnight you wake up 5am Yeah, collagen. I do want to do that. And that's the other thing we hired a driver she came picked us up brought us everywhere. He wants to go for 30 bucks. Maybe it's like 1000 baht for like yeah, like the whole day and we stayed at like I think our family owns like the little bungalows we stayed in. Oh, these driver Yeah, like these little bungalow, right right. That were like 200 baht a night right? I know. Right? It's it's literally like the bed is a concrete slab. Yeah. Just poured into the place right it's got a mattress. Yeah, it's got air con that's super cold. Yes, it's got a huge window. Yeah, and a bathroom you set so you're set? Yeah, and because you're in there to sleep for like the eight hours that you're not hanging out in these knobs? Oh yeah, you don't hang out there you don't watch TV didn't have hot water. Yeah, cuz it's got the electric hot water heater. Yeah, actually, one time I stayed it. We're at a resort a mountainside resort in May con song when we went up to the hilltribe bill Okay. Oh, that's the other thing I think with the Patreon like some money from the Patreon will go to the will pick a cause but I'm thinking we'll do the hilltribe solar I want to look solar and for these people electricity is the first thing I think that changes lives. The next internet.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, well, waters first.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, but I think they probably have their fresh water at one point. We're trying to help them build it. But they got it done.

Unknown Speaker

And they probably have wells too.

Dana Blouin

So no, because it's so high up on the Mount. Oh, fair. So yeah, there was a spring and they were trying to dam the spring to run it down to the school. Yeah. And they were eventually able to do that. Okay, fair enough. Talk about a cold bath in the morning. Yeah, it's spring. Oh, yeah, no, no, I just outsource that.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, crazy.

Dana Blouin

build some get some kindling. Build a fire. by water. Yeah, we'll work out the math on the Patreon thing. But I think a big part of it is going to be supporting the idea. I love that on the up in the mountains, love everything about and we'll take trips up there. Maybe we'll bring people up there like certain like levels of the Patreon. Yeah. If they want to get involved, we can do that. When you come over here and you transition. If you've been over here for like more than, let's say a month? Yep. I would argue that you are going to be it's going to be visible to you that there are going to be opportunities for you to help. Yeah, in ways that you could really much just I mean, you could like write checks in the United States. Yeah, over here. Yeah, you can write Yeah, but you can like go into villages. And just help out by like speaking English. So I think I told you, when I went to this hilltribe school the first time it was just organized the whole thing through her company by Jim. And her fan sent hundreds of sweaters and hats. So GIMP basically opened up a whole patent library. It was like, if you want to make these hats for these kids, the patent library is open whenever you want. Whatever, like her design, yeah, you can make it so I happen to agree. Yeah, knit it in. You can buy the yarn from her like she was offering crazy discounts. She's like, just like promise that you'll send a hat back for these kids. And like there are people sending like 10 had like some just like going crazy. Yeah, it was great. And the kids obviously it gets cold up there. It gets down to one degree see, so almost freezing would wake up to be frost. Yes. That must be weird for up there. Yeah, but wait, it happens. I mean, it was for like, what like three days a year? Because your elevation how high? You gotta be out imagine like a couple thousand feet. Okay, and so in, but when it's hot, that's all right,

Unknown Speaker

brutally Ollie but a lot of wind.

Dana Blouin

Not a lot of wind. You're top of the mountain, but you're in some of the valley. So it's it's a tough spot to be in when it's hot. It's hot when it's cold. It's cold. In this? Yeah, I thought that showed you some of the pictures.

Unknown Speaker

No, I'll show you how to get some of those. Yeah,

Dana Blouin

that's on the phone, which we're using to replay Yeah. So but yeah, they're, you know, living in like wood shacks. And there's one kid would tell a senior like really bad case to tell us. It's a blood disorder, I believe but like it causes deformations like his chest was bowed out. His face was messed up. And like, only they were about to graduate their first kid from high school in like 10 years a big deal.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, cheese is good for them.

Dana Blouin

Yes, it's this education. But I was the first foreigner some of them had seen, which is crazy touching. Yeah. So like, it wasn't uncommon for me to like feel something and turn around like three kids be paying me right. Cuz I have a lot of body here. Right? Not a common thing for a tie. Oh my God, let alone a hilltribe most Thai women never shave their legs there. hold off. And maybe they have like one or two. Yeah. But yeah, so the kids like imagine like a guy my size means

Unknown Speaker

literally a bear. Yeah.

Dana Blouin

Who is this giant? Yeah, who just got here? Because

Unknown Speaker

if you show up and you're like clean shaven Three days later,

Dana Blouin

yeah. Yeah, right. Well, I never been clean shaven.

Unknown Speaker

He's always had a beard.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, well, I shaved it. So odd. Sorry, I shaved it right before I met Jeb, like maybe two weeks before? Yeah, I was doing a time lapse. tracking the growth? And I was like, maybe two or three weeks into gross I had a beard. Yeah. But like not long, fluffy. Yeah. So like, I think she thought that's how my facial hair normally was. And Little did she know I was just starting with a one year process of not trimming it or shaving at all. So sweetie PS Yeah, this is gonna get a little rougher Yeah, closer. There's a lot of time I actually shaved it it was like the mustache was out of control. It wasn't you wax it like yeah, I think right? Yeah, when it gets that long. It's it gets into your mouth and see right now the your mustache thing going on? That's basically the standard Thai mustache length. Yeah, right. But like the rest of it. That is the ties that that doesn't exist on them. No matter as far as there's some ties that have beards like a there's a famous Thai rapper fucking hero. He has a dope beard. Okay, really good beard. I've known a few over the years. We have good beards. To professional Thai wrestlers. Peanut and Gato move they wrestle in the top dojo promotion now. Both have great beard rarely both have really good beard game but not common. Not common common, you know? Not common at all. Alright, so we I think we touched on I want to make sure we touch on as much as we possibly can as far as like your transition over Yeah, obviously.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah, banking and all that stuff.

Dana Blouin

Get a legit visa. Yeah. But you can do it with the visa or not now

Unknown Speaker

not now have it man. Fuck that. Who

Dana Blouin

knows what will happen in a post? COVID Yeah, right. You could do it before he may be able to do in the future, but it's not safe. It's, they don't want you here if you're, I shouldn't say they don't know that they don't want you here but there are rules the system isn't there for you to explain, you're gonna have a better life a less stressful life. If you're worried about a job teaching English is probably like your easiest go to to just like, get out and do something and also a great way to meet people. I taught English when I was a student, like I've done it before. It's a very hard job. But yeah, a lot of work. It is rewarding. Sure, if you get good students, yeah, the students make make a break back a great start to learn the language a bit be able to order food, give directions, if there's a few things you need to be able to do in order to, to really, you know, enjoy life hair and speaking at least a little bit of Thai. Like I've been here, eight years, seven, eight years. So it's a bit of a shame that my ties not better. That's my own fault. But

Unknown Speaker

yeah, getting into Taiwan.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, put a little bit more time into and I'm working every day to improve muy Thai but you know, definitely put the time into improve the language zoom improve the quality of experiences that you can have I agree in Thailand. So the visa elite visa is not something that we talked about one of the guys who comes onto your channel. Yes. About he's doing the process. Now. He's got it. Yeah. And so it's a lump sum amount of money for I think it's 510 or 20 years. Correct. And I think 20 years is 30,000 us a million baht. Uh, it depends. Okay, so there is the visa that goes along with it. And most people think of it like there's this elite visa. Well, it's like the elite company, okay. And they provide a visa Yes. But there's all these other features that you can get. So for like 500,000 baht, you basically get a five year visa, and pretty much that's it. Okay, if you want like a 10 year visa, and you pay like a million baht, then you get like free if you've certainly if you're just in Bangkok or Phuket, you get free limo rides, you get massive discounts on spas, I mean, golf courses and all this stuff. So that So again, it's supposed to be you know, the infamous elite package. Okay, the the the status, you know, because it is pretty hierarchial, you know? Exactly. And so you can get that. But I mean, at the end of the day, the easiest thing to do is to just basically play by the rules. Yeah. Don't try and get away with anything. Because you You may think, Oh, that's great. I'm screwing the man, you know, kind of thing. But I think about the elite visa, was it so when you Is it one lump sum? And that's it? Yes. It's a five year visa? No going to immigration? The so yes. And that. So that's one of them. Okay, that is like the lowest version?

Dana Blouin

Like you get the visa if I do the 20 year

Dana Blouin

20 year, no, you get a five year visa, then he gets renewed three more times. Okay. Yeah. And they have a whole company that basically deals with it, they provide you with customer service, they will do your 90 day reporting for you, right. And then about a month at, you know, four years in like 10 months, then they'll you know, start make sure you got everything. And but if you pay ahead for the 20 year, then you really don't need to worry about it. They are going to make sure that you haven't committed a felony, you know, basically in the neck. But pretty much I mean, it's designed it's it's an they call it elite because it's designed for people that effectively have means and want to stay here long term. Like the minimum amount is five years, you know, and multiple entry. Right? Obviously, you also can get packages where they like pick you up at the golf court, or sorry, the golf cart right at the right at the plane. Yeah, you know, I've seen enough to Heaven forbid you have to walk to the airport. Yeah. But again, you know, if like, my parents were coming over here, yeah. And I'd be like, Well, yeah, absolutely. I don't my mom Suvarna booms massive. Yeah, she's not gonna walk over. I want some guy to like, get her luggage for right. So I would probably do that sort of thing. So there's that but again, that is that is like the far right hand side of the supply demand curve, belt kind of thing. The majority of people so what a tie, dude, you know how many years he did five year 500,000 by Yeah. So I was like, was at $16,000.

Dana Blouin

Yeah. So he's good to come here for five years.

Dana Blouin

Yeah. So obviously it's COVID. Right. So the earliest that they could physically affix the sticker inside of his passport is September 25. Okay, he's flying to Cambodia on September 29. To go to the Thai embassy. Yeah, no, exactly. Wait to us here where he stay right off of Sihanoukville in those islands. Oh my god, dude, that's sand. The only place I've ever seen sand like that is in Boracay It is like powder. Yeah, it's epic. And $220 a month for a bungalow right on the beach. Epic. Yeah. Nice living the dream because he cannot get into silent Yeah, right now. Who knows Saturday?

Dana Blouin

25th How long is he gonna stay in time? So

Dana Blouin

he's gonna be okay Cambodia? Well, right now he's scheduled to do it for 30 days and if he has to stay, I mean, like, if all of a sudden they're like, oh, by the way, this Tuesday, we're gonna allow elite visas. He's just gonna, I'm done. I'm here. This is awesome. So I walk away from the bungalow and yeah, he says he's moved to Bangkok or Phuket. What's his so he actually has a girlfriend that is I believe she's upcountry. I don't believe she's knee deep and Nissan or anything like that. I don't remember the name of the ties anywhere. upcountry is anywhere outside of bank pretty much yeah, so it doesn't matter if it's like, high down south when Russia's hunting in the northeast Shanghai. I forgot that or pakhtoon Tawny which is the next city outside Bangkok. All upcoming yeah,

Unknown Speaker

I forgot that I've country also includes south.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, I do all the time, too. Yeah. But anyway, not called Bangkok. Yeah, basically. Right. And in fact, what's funny is that we basically live on the edge of the Bangkok province. So well pass by na right?

Dana Blouin

A little bit further. But yeah, okay.

Unknown Speaker

Yeah. So. So anyway, so there's that. But again, before COVID, the majority of guys would come over here, bam, you get a stamp. Yeah. And you can stay here for 30 days, within the first 30 days, you can go to immigration, for 1900 baht, you can get an additional 30 days fine. I would encourage folks that are going to come over here and especially make the transition. If you've already been traveling over here, go to your home countries, Thai embassy or consulate and get it especially if you're over 50. Right. And get it Oh, a visa, you know, for retirement. But again, I mean, there's plenty of stuff that we've talked about today, that makes 100% sense. If there's no COVID Yes, right now, the things that you can do, because there is COVID that's the kind of stuff that we want to be able to provide, because it's definitely different on a one on one basis. We want to be able to provide that, you know, either through Patreon, or PayPal, or that sort of thing. So, you know, I think I think that we've touched on enough stuff. Yeah, to give people like kind of a foundational

Dana Blouin

Oh, one thing we do, yeah, healthcare.

Dana Blouin

So yeah, so again, it's COVID. Right? So if you come over here, recode you're gonna have to have $100,000 in US insurance, right? Which is a shitload of Thai insurance. Yes. 3,000,003 point 2 million baht effectively. That's enormous. You could live in the hospital for 365 basically, yeah, half that yeah. I mean, like, Oh, yeah, I get a nurse do by the way. She's not just gonna have to be Filipina. Yeah. And he doesn't have Dana stamp that are asked from too soon. To see. Yeah, so there are a few of them. But normally, the easiest thing to do honestly, is to basically just Google traveler's insurance, you know, so they'll cover you usually for your first year usually up to a year when you come over here. Yeah, but insurance here is not crazy expensive, about 1000 to 1500 dollars a year as I age, stuff like that. But also health care here is very affordable and excellent

Unknown Speaker

quality. Excellent. It's

Unknown Speaker

very affordable in the Philippines but sucks ass Yeah,

Dana Blouin

so this is the crazy thing about healthcare here right we have everything from the highest end like

Unknown Speaker

Pullman grad Bowman

Dana Blouin

grad is like a resort hospital right? My friend just had surgery there. Starbuck like he sent me a photo from his room. Yeah, he had his own bed. Yes like a queen size. Yeah, like

Dana Blouin

not not like a little queen size hospital hospice. It's

Unknown Speaker

gonna arms on it all the electronics all over it Yeah,

Dana Blouin

he had a couch

Unknown Speaker

did of course he can't use the guy did

Dana Blouin

this pre op they gave him a free off a free night to stay cuz it's so slow because I used to the Tourism

Unknown Speaker

Tourism Cycling is

Dana Blouin

so good like a free night before your recovery and then the night after he didn't need to recover. Yeah, of course. So so the night before is like to get ready. And he went I think he went in for like tests at like, 6am Hmm, but so couch, a little desk area. A kitchen table to eat his food at was like a beautiful like a nice chair sat right, right, a big screen TV. Right and like, and he's like, this is the cheapest room and I'm sure they have sweets. Oh, that bathroom with a tub and a shower. I guess that does kind of make sense. I mean, if you're doing you know, aftercare, you're gonna want to potentially submerge your whole body. It was one of those ones that you can open and walk into and oh my god and just so you know, guys, bathtubs rare. Yeah, most places you stay it's gonna have a shower. I live so my last place and also we had a bathtub. Hmm, one of the bathrooms very

Unknown Speaker

Western.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, but I also my master suite upstairs. We had a big walk in shower. It was pretty dull. Yeah,

Unknown Speaker

I like the big walk in

Dana Blouin

10 people my shower

Unknown Speaker

here my walk in shower. My frickin one bedroom condo is bigger than my shower and bathroom in my one bedroom house that I had in Coronado. So

Dana Blouin

I've got two wet bathrooms here.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, this is the one over here with the same thing on the other side. Okay, got it. So it's a wet bathroom is very stately if you live in an older building in Thailand, or an older condo or an older house. Yeah. The wet bathroom is kind of common where basically it's wall to wall tile. Yeah, and everything. It just gets wet when you shower. Yeah, so there's a hook if you've ever been in like the bathroom of a RV. Yeah, you know the toilets gonna get wet. Everything's gonna they're gonna have a special like container where you put the toilet paper. Yeah, so that because that doesn't get but you know, again, I don't I prefer to not use I like to have a divider between the shower. I do too. But obviously, I needed the space. So this is what came. Yeah. Actually, the other place we looked at didn't have that it had the room with the toilet was separate from the shower.

Unknown Speaker

Oh, nice work, which,

Dana Blouin

which was the first building we had agreed to rent and then the woman just like fucking flaked out on us. Okay,

Unknown Speaker

so you've had bad luck with real estate people. Yeah, real

Dana Blouin

estate agents. There are also see, I think, find a good real estate agent that you trust in Bangkok. Because it depends. I would submit like every place I just walk up and down the street. So you can do that if you want put the time in. But if you want to actually like someone to put the time into finding you a new place and like, it's worth it to find a good agent. I actually have a guy that I trust quite a bit. He has great connections and he is not a real estate agent himself. But he's Thai educated in the United States. You know, him is him. He and his wife have a three story townhouse over on ekkamai. Nice. Yeah, yeah. They're not starving. And anyway, so he's any smart and he's very easy to talk to. and the like, I can't say it enough. His English is excellent. Yeah. If you come over here, and there's any sort of lost in communication when you're getting ready to rent a place that can really be that can bite you in? Yes, that's a tough one. Yeah. And I told you we just read up on this place for three more years. And leases are pretty legal lease lease, see? Yeah. Pro Lisi? Yeah. Like you can break a lease and you're not going to like have to come up with all the cash. No, it's pretty standard. And actually, you know, I think if you like if you have a good relationship, like with the person you're renting from, yeah, it goes a long way like the condo we rent them for tiny while we lived there for years. And we just always had like a really good like rapport I think we call the landlord like two or three times and yeah, right. The curtains broke one time and I'm like, can you replace these like Yeah, of course. And like I I broke the glass door on the in the shower. By accident. Jesus was a glass everywhere. Yeah, cuz that's not like safety glass, like a frickin car. How did you like I can't step any I mean, it happened. Well, what must have happened is I left the door like half open okay. And it was the summertime so I left the slider for the balcony open to get airflow. Yeah, we had a corner unit so I left both windows open and the wind The wind blew inner door for the bathroom swung open Wow. And smashed the the knob smashed into the glass of the door and I came as the bathroom open. I was like, Oh, the doors open the bathroom. That's when we shot it. Yeah. And I got to take a second glass everywhere. And so we can go not because it's a step down. Oh, yeah. Look anyway, go. All the bathrooms are recessed, like below the floor level because a lot of them even like if they're not a wet bath. They're designed always

Unknown Speaker

a drain in the floor. Yeah.

Dana Blouin

And so I was like, Oh, shit. And Jim's like, Oh, yeah, that's so be me. Yeah. So I was like, Yeah.

Unknown Speaker

Why were you so pissed at me. So

Dana Blouin

we we ended up what? We cleaned it up and like we repaired it, you know, no big deal. And that's our show. I don't even think I repeat, we didn't repair it till we moved out. Because it's like, half the glass was still there. Okay, it's such a big shower. There's a walk in. You just left it. Yeah. So like the front half where the showerhead was? Yeah, was fine. Okay, so like the bathroom never got wet. Okay, right. Sure. Yeah. So there's just the door so

Unknown Speaker

he just cleaned everything up and then just like threw away the frame. So

Unknown Speaker

just didn't mean bothered. Yeah,

Dana Blouin

I was like, should I shot it was one big frame. So that piece broke out of the frame. Okay. Got it was the hinge was first it was a sliding piece. And so I'm like, ah, like, yeah, I'm like, I'll go to the hardware sold pro and see if I can replace get me some glasses. Then I took a shower. And I'm like, it's actually doesn't really make a difference.

Unknown Speaker

And I'll never have to worry about the goddamn thing flying opening. Yeah,

Dana Blouin

yeah. So I was like, No, no big deal. Jim was like, Yes, fine. Yeah. It's one less thing to clean. So I was like, Yeah, yeah, it's true. And then right before we moved out, we got it repaired. Yes. It's not ours. And the guy came to look at it is like, we had the place cleaned before we you know, we returned it. And he's like, we moved all the furniture back to where it originally was, as we rearrange every Asher. And he's like, so clean. Right? Yeah. It's like, What I don't understand is like,

Unknown Speaker

that's the way we do it.

Dana Blouin

Like that's how we do it. Like that's in gym is like she wouldn't do it. Any other way? Yeah,

Unknown Speaker

that's true. It's not just the US I shouldn't say

Dana Blouin

so. You know, he was like, oh, there's a lot of times people just kind of trash it. And he's like, I'll transfer your deposit back to you right now. Yeah. Yeah. And that's the other thing too. You're gonna notice that like, money transfer over here. People gonna be like, Oh, yeah, just get and it's like, no, they're being legitimate. Yeah, like, they're not just like trying to get you do all of this should on your phone. They always have an app for your bank. Yeah. And I mean, I use my phone to buy everything at 711. Yeah, I never use cash. So yeah, we're really moving cash. Is there even street food vendors? You can just scan the guy I'll have like a QR code. Right. But Mike my coconut shake guy. Yeah. He's got like, you know, basically, everything's handwritten. Yeah, yeah. And that's, you can do that with any bank. Anybody? Yeah, it's

Dana Blouin

owned by k bank.

Unknown Speaker

Ah, wonder why there was the k plus.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, but you can just scan it and boom, pay.

Unknown Speaker

See, that's my that's your thing, too. Is it? There's like, there's a finite number of banks here. What are they like? Maybe 10?

Dana Blouin

Yeah, right. Yeah, maybe not even.

Dana Blouin

And what's crazy is sometimes you'll be like in a subway or something like that. And you'll see ATMs right. Every bank has a different color. Yes. And sometimes you will see like 10 different or at least five different ATMs. green yellow, orange, blue. Purple. Purple. See? Yeah, I see that yeah. So yeah, if you just go to the cut, but you can use any at most accountant use any ATM without a fee to a certain number, like 10 times a month or something? Well, it so here's the thing. I opened my bank account a Capricorn in potash if I use that ATM card anywhere but pottier they charged me like 10 or 15 for sure, no, no, I asked him about this because because I open up my Bangkok

Unknown Speaker

bank account in

Unknown Speaker

tn which of course

Dana Blouin

Pattaya now, you can take you can take the boy on a path there, right. Yeah. And so I mean, like there's there's there's a ton of YouTube videos out there on like stuff to do. And and on the cost of living, I would highly encourage you to not pay attention to the cost of living videos that talk about how incredibly cheap it is to live here. Like if if you see a video that says you can live in Bangkok for less than $1,000 a month that's a lie. And live like a king. That's an absolute bullshit lie. Yeah, you're right. So here's like it is it's a still a major city. Yeah, right. You're gonna pay major city prices.

Unknown Speaker

A cat? It's the most expensive city in the frickin country.

Dana Blouin

Yeah, for sure. I mean, there's probably some like islands where it's just like Copenhagen, I mean, outside of like the costume at Koh Samui. But maybe not like the cost to live there. Like you said, right now you can rent 20,000 baht for like, freedom for like nothing. But like your your daily cost to get food, your your cost for gas. Yeah, cost for whatever is going to be a little bit more than Bangkok. But in Bangkok, you're paying water like rent a spa. And you're like if you want to go out to like a restaurant like Mike said, like we go out it could be Mexican food. 2000 baht because it's

Unknown Speaker

Mexican food. But if we went to like living next door,

Dana Blouin

we could type hollow if we just have like a couple pieces of pizza being less than less than 600. Yeah, but like, yeah, if we went for Thai food, it's 30 bucks. If we walked down the street and get some of the best fucking fried chicken I've ever had in my life in front of the 711 there's a fried chicken in Thailand, right? It's on another level. But that's it. That's for another time.

Unknown Speaker

Episode Episode. Yeah,

Dana Blouin

we're pushing. We're just over two. Oh, are we really so let's wrap it flies by Absolutely. And we go. Tuesday live streams. I think we're gonna start to try to do a Thursday. Yes.

Unknown Speaker

Thursday in the evenings. Yes.

Dana Blouin

And then again, like when we figured out the Patreon stuff, we'll we'll post it up there and, and get some more information out but definitely don't forget I mean, Bangkok strange@gmail.com it goes to Dana but obviously if it's something that's more me related, then I mean, pretty much we both share a brain. Yeah, so we can like figure it out if the other guy isn't around walking. How what the fucking hell you can't park this thing here. kittyhawk that. So anyway, here's the deal. We would love to answer your questions. One on one. I think that goes without saying. Right now, we don't have a ton of subs. If you guys are on YouTube, or you've watched my channel, you've seen Dana bloons channel or you've seen what's the dapper Ville for villains? Please subscribe. That would be really helpful. We need to get 201st Yeah, we got to be able to do that to get some branding done. And then after that, obviously, it'll be 1000 to get some you know, monetization

Dana Blouin

milestones. 100 is our milestone. We're almost

Dana Blouin

halfway there. We're almost halfway there. I know we can hit this by the neck if you guys listen, you're not if you haven't subscribed to the YouTube channel. Help us out. Absolutely.

Unknown Speaker

Absolutely. That would be great.

Dana Blouin

Until next time, stay strange Chase.