#and organise my cooking schedule and dishes in advance

[tenrose]

My therapist give me "homeworks" and it seems so complicated and emotionally draining on a paper but he told me that my own avoiding mechanisms are in fact worse and more complicated I just don't realize...

[motsimages]

My boyfriend is generally the one in charge of cooking and cleaning. I may do some things in the house or tell him to do some things but that's it. I work from home and he is unemployed so he does most of it.

Sometimes there is this argument about whether he should do things when he thinks of them or suits him better or when I feel like it's better (for me). It is a discussion that couples often have because one of them (usually the woman) tends to think things should be done this way in this moment and the other (usually the man) doesn't agree.

When I spend time with my parents, my mom tends to advance needs and desires of everyone around. Not only does she have the full house workload and organisation, she also guesses and prepares for the possibilities. The downside of this is "what happens when her plan doesn't match reality?". It's also not only something that my mom does but something expected from mother's/housewives.

There is a difference between planning ahead (I know I will need clean dishes tomorrow, so it's best to do them now) and whatever this level of 3D chess planning is (they might want to eat cheese so I should bring three types of cheese just in case). I wonder if they conflate somehow inadvertently. Particularly when a couple argues when the one in charge of everything wants the other one to do things.

When is it "it's more convenient for me in my schedule to do the dishes early in the morning so you should too?" and when is it "I know in advance the things that you might need tomorrow and prepare for them, why can't you do the same for me?"

[ajaxdishsoap]

D-G, i, J for the ask games forrrrr….. reiji and ranmaru >;) and if ur feeling it, ichi and dice too 👁👁

Good Day i hope u know i love u and ur ask /lh it's. it's under the read more because i got slightly carried away KJDHFKSJDH

whispers in the dark

D - domestic - what's your house like? how are the chores divided? how clean is it?: we all have fairly different taste when it comes to decorating so it's kinda eclectic with a few elements that are consistent (brass doorknobs/light switch plates/cabinet and drawer handles is the main thing on my brain) but that's what makes it feel like home<3. we don't really have a set division for chores it depends on who can handle what on any given day, but we do rotate who cooks on a set schedule. as for cleanliness level,,,, ran-ran and i are both kinda clean freaks and reiji doesn't really have a preference so it stays really clean with the occasional contained pile of clutter from me need visual reminders things exist but even those are fairly organised and are more things in odd places than actual clutter

E - early - are you early or late to events? why?: early, mostly because of me being worried about ending up late due to my time blindness. if it's just them they're always perfectly on time or just a few minutes early to everything

F - fun - what's an ideal night or date for y'all? what do you do for fun?: ideal date is arcades and fast food skjdhfksjdh fun without a lot of expectations which is good for all of us. something else fun we do a fair bit is jam sessions

G - garish - do any of y'all have just... godawful fashion sense?: OKAY I'M SORRY BUT I HAVE TO TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY TO POKE FUN AT A COUPLE OF REIJI'S R CARDS i Love him So Much but. what is this. what is it.

What Are You Wearing, Beloved.

I - idealistic - any dreams for the future?: mostly just. advancing our careers, we're all very driven in that respect and that's what we all three tend to focus on

J - joyful - what makes you and your partners laugh? any inside jokes?: OKAY WITH REIJI AND I A BETTER QUESTION IS WHAT DOESN'T MAKE US LAUGH- we're also both Massive clowns that play off each other really well which gets ran-ran at least shaking his head in amused exasperation<3

-

call it what you want

D - domestic - what's your house like? how are chores divided? how clean is it?: the house is loud (affectionate), between jiro, saburo, and dice, if it's quiet something is Wrong and ichi and i are immediately going to check on the little bros and our boyfriend LMAOOOO. chores actually Do have a set division with all of us trying to spare ichi from the doing the brunt of the work since he's busy enough as it is, jiro generally handles dishes/garbage/wiping down the counters, saburo checks everything behind jiro and helps me a lot with keeping everything organised (he gets more slack though since he actually tries to keep his grades up-), i handle laundry/cooking/general tidying, and dice helps out wherever he ends up being needed depending on if the boys are helping ichi with work. generally the house is pretty clean, with 3/5 people preferring to have everything organised and the other two not particularly caring either way, jiro and i both have the organised piles of stuff in odd places, which kinda bugs saburo but he deals with it since it isn't scattered everywhere and i'm gonna stop here before i get too carried away

E - early - are you early or late to events? why?: perfectly on time because i'm always early and dice is always late so we end up counteracting each other SDKJHSDKJFHS it works out to where ichi tells me when we have to be somewhere and tells me when we need to leave to get there on time, and then i figure out when i'd want to leave to get there abt 15 minutes early and then dice isn't told when we need to leave to be there on time he's only told the early leave time-

F - fun - what's an ideal date or night for y'all? what do you do for fun?: GAME NIGHT we tend toward card games mostly because of dice and i but we have a few favourite games that we kinda rotate through and we try not to play the same game twice in a row

G - garish - do any of y'all have just... godawful fashion sense?: another opportunity for me to affectionately make fun of a boyfriend's card. dice. what the hell was with the tie in your recent event card that looked like it was cut from a graphic t-shirt. i just wanna know. every day i thank god that dice can't afford a wardrobe overhaul /lh + j

I - idealistic - any dreams for the future?: akjshsdkjh Bigger House for one, ichi and i both want to travel after his brothers can live on their own, and we all three want to better ourselves for each other<3

J - joyful - what makes you and your partners laugh? any inside jokes?: a better question is what doesn't make us laugh. although specific things about each of us that makes the other two laugh, I Have A Few Thoughts, 1. ichi and i both find it hilarious when dice tells us abt gentaro's tricks that he fell for, he always gets pouty when we laugh and it's very endearing dkjhsdkh 2. when ichi makes a comment on jiro and saburo being able to get along when they're actively fighting dice and i just Look at each other and start snickering 3. my entire existence /lh, i'm very easy to laugh at so i can't pick a specific Thing tbh

[thedarklordmegatron]

for the ship meme: Gladnis and Reglcar!

I’ve had a few requests for Regclar so if it’s okay with you I’ll pop that in with the ask that came in before this one! But I hope you like the Gladnis!

send me a ship and i’ll tell you

who hogs the duvet

Ignis is the King of duvet thieves! Gladio’s always run a little on the hot side ever since he was a child, his dad would often walk into his bedroom and find him sprawled on the bed, his blankets on the floor. So it doesn’t bother him too much when Ignis turns himself into a burrito in his sleep, if anything he finds it adorable.

who texts/rings to check how their day is going

Gladio is the one most likely to text Ignis. Considering his boyfriend often loses himself in his work, he usually sends a text around 1pm - asking how his day has gone, which usually reminds him to eat as well.

who’s the most creative when it comes to gifts

They’re both pretty creative when it comes to gifts! They try to think ‘out of the box’ when buying something for one another, it doesn’t always happen but they give it their best. Ignis’ most ‘creative’ gift was a dance belt, he’d had enough of seeing people eyeballing Gladio’s crotch when he wore his favourite trousers - a pair of far too tight leather trousers. Gladio had worn the pants for all of two hours before going commando for the rest of the day, needless to say they live in the bottom of the drawer, never to see the light of day again.

who gets up first in the morning

Ignis is always the first one up (unless he’s ill). He doesn’t have to be up quite as early as he chooses to be, but he loves the calm of the early morning. He’ll bundle himself up in Gladio’s favourite dressing gown, pour himself a cup of coffee and stand on the small balcony attached to their apartment to watch the sunrise.

who suggests new things in bed

Their bedroom activities are agreed upon in advance. They enjoy ‘making love’ to one another, taking it slow and genuinely enjoying one another’s bodies, but every now and then they do enjoy trying something a little different every now and then. When they do decide to try something different, they’ll both come up with ideas and ‘report’ back - it’s very businesslike.

who cries at movies

Gladio has a tendency to bawl at emotional films. The best friends finally get together? He’s crying. The dog’s reunited with it’s owner? So many tears. A kid forgives his parent’s murderer? He has to leave the room.

who gives unprompted massages

Ignis is weak for Gladio’s massages. If he comes home looking a little worse for wear or more exhausted than normal, Gladio will gently ‘encourage’ him into the shower. As soon as he comes out he’s guided to their bed and turned into a boneless pile of skin. Likewise, on quiet evenings where they’re just watching the television, Gladio will grab hold of Ignis’ feet and happily massage them until his boyfriend passes out.

who fusses over the other when they’re sick

They are both as bad as each other when their partner is sick! Both men will try to play off their illnesses as a minor inconvenience, even if it’s anything but. Eventually they’ll be dragged to bed and the healthy party will act as their ‘nurse’ - it’s as annoying as it is endearing.

who gets jealous easiest

Ignis gets incredibly jealous. He knows how good looking Gladio is and he still can’t quite believe that he’s managed to catch the eye of Insomnia’s most eligible bachelor, after Noctis at least. So when someone gets a little too close to him, Ignis will hover on the sidelines and glare at the offending party until Gladio waves them away, or until they meet his eyes. Noctis had called him out on it more than once but he was hardly prepared to just let them get away with hitting on his boyfriend.

who has the most embarrassing taste in music

According to Noctis, Gladio has the worst playlists imaginable. A combination of country, kids pop and death metal - it’s so terrifyingly awful that Ignis has banned his music from the apartment when he’s home. Gladio absolutely does not know the lyrics to every song from the kids musical ‘Moogles, Moogles, oh my!’ (He absolutely does and has been to see it live three times with Iris)

who collects something unusual

Ignis has a collection of limited edition Ebony cans. From the rare ‘Cactuar’ edition to the slightly more common ��Star of Lucis’ edition - something that’s only on sale for Noctis’ birthday and was named after his car. Gladiolus helped him create a small display case for them that they keep in their bedroom. Despite keeping it semi-hidden, Iggy is damn proud of his collection.

who takes the longest to get ready

Neither takes particularly long, even when they’re dressing themselves for a formal event. The longest either has ever taken was about 40 minutes, and that was when Gladio first had to wear his Shield robes for his swearing in.

who is the most tidy and organised

Both are pretty tidy and organised but Ignis is significantly more organised than Gladio. If given the chance, he’ll plan out his entire week down to the minute, and had in the past even made a ‘sex schedule’ to make sure they had time to themselves during a busy week.

who gets most excited about the holidays

While Ignis loves his time off, Gladio’s the one to go completely overboard. Valentines day? Ignis will come home to an apartment filled with roses and balloons, along with a naked boyfriend. Shiva’s Day? They have the biggest tree that could fit in the apartment, tasteful decorations everywhere and the most beautifully wrapped presents.

who is the big spoon/little spoon

Gladio’s the big spoon and Iggy the little!

who gets most competitive when playing games and/or sports

They’re both absolutely bloody awful. They treat games as a life or death situation, giving no quarters, losing a game of Mario Kart is the end of the world.

who starts the most arguments

Gladio does. He’s quick to anger but just as quick to apologise or forgive. There’s nothing he hates more than arguing with a loved one, and his father had always raised him never to go to sleep without apologising for an argument - you never know if you’re going to wake up after all.

who suggests that they buy a pet

There’s not even a suggestion. Gladio just comes home one day with a three-legged kitten and announces that they now have a son. Sir Fluffernut, also known as the spawn of Ifrit, is quick to claim one of Ignis’ old jackets as his bed. He also has a habit of biting ankles, doesn’t matter whose ankles they are, if he sees them he will nom them.

what couple traditions they have

Every Monday night, so long as there are no emergencies, they sit down to watch ‘Insomnia’s best chef’. They criticise the dishes, and on a lucky night Ignis will whip up something quick to prove he’s better than any of them. Gladio still wishes he’d apply for the damn show, damn the security issues.

what tv shows they watch together

Insomnia’s Best Chef, it’s their number one favourite, followed by: ‘I Married A ….!” (The I married an Iron Giant episode was hilarious), Pimp My Pad and Doggos First Dance Class. They watch nothing but trash, so much trash.

what other couple they hang out with

They don’t really have any other couples to ‘hang out’ with in the beginning. However, shortly after Ignis’ 21st birthday, Gladio takes him out ‘on the town’ where they bump into a group of Glaives. Suddenly after one drunken night, they have multiple drinking buddies and fellow couples for double dates; chief among them Glaives Khara and Ulric.

how they spend time together as a couple

Neither are fond of doing something ‘big’, they’re much happier spending their time together doing something simple such as cooking or sharing a bath. On the odd occasion that they do have the time to do something else, they enjoy walking through Insomnia’s numerous parks and coming across coffee shops they’d yet to discover, or ones that had only recently opened.

who made the first move

Gladio made the first move. He’d been subtly flirting with Ignis for months to no avail. It was the morning after Gladio’s nineteenth birthday, when he practically flopped out of his bedroom with the mother of all hangovers, and found Ignis standing at the stove frying up some bacon. Perhaps it was the lingering effects of the alcohol or just the fact that his brain hadn’t woken up, but either way Gladio had stumbled over, wrapped his arms around Ignis’ waist and kissed his cheek.

who brings flowers home

Ignis knows of Gladio’s love of flowers, hardly surprising when it wa the Amicitia tradition to name their children after various varieties, and it just so happens that there is a quaint little florists on the same road as Noctis’ apartment. So once a week, usually a Friday night, after leaving Noctis, Ignis will swing by and collect a bouquet of Gladioli - each more colourful than the previous. Gladio has long since forgone the act of thanking him, but Ignis knows he appreciates the flowers simply by the way his eyes light up when he sees them.

who is the best cook

Ignis! Gladio once set a pot of water on fire, no one knows how and Ignis is not prepared to take the chance that he’ll burn their apartment down.

[calangel]

Christmas Lunch Recipies

I have hosted a good few Christmas lunches and I know that they can be both costly and stressful. Over the years I have gathered a few tips that help me to manage Christmas And Boxing Day Food that I am sharing with you:

Make sure you confirm your guests and write a list of everyone who is coming to your Christmas lunch.

Estimate how much each person will need of each element of the meal. I always try to over estimate as I think its better to have leftovers than empty tummies! Once you have done this go through your list and work out how many of each element of the meal you will need to get to serve everyone what you have planned.

Decide on the main meat dish and order it as early as possible. It's traditional to have a turkey but I have had a rib roast of beef for the last couple of years which has been lovely. I always do a honey glazed ham on Christmas eve so I make sure to put an order in with my butcher well in advance to avoid any disappointments.

When you have your shopping list complete, highlight anything that is around the same price on the list. Give every guest the role of bringing one of these similarly priced ingredients to the lunch. This will cut the overall cost tremendously.

Go through the list once more and highlight all non-perishables. Make sure to add them to your next shopping list and get them way before Christmas as this will save you carrying heavy shopping bags around and help you manage the cost of Christmas by splitting up the shopping bills.

Before you invite your guests, have a think about what you want the day to be like. Consult your family about this as it is their day too. My family like to relax in the morning over a long breakfast so I often ask guests to arrive after 12 so we can have the morning to ourselves.

Think about when you want to serve food and create a schedule working backwards from this time making sure to write down the time that you want to finish cooking every part of the meal and start cooking every part of the meal.

Try to delegate at least one task to each person attending your lunch. If you have small children, ask them to set the table and organise the table decorations or wrap streaky bacon around mini sausages, older children can help with peeling vegetables and guests can all have one task each which you can all congratulate each other on over the feast when it is served.

If this all sounds like too much then book a table at a restaurant and let someone else do it for you! No stress, no fuss, get a taxi there and back so that everyone can enjoy a drink and no one has to worry about dishes.

Whatever you decide for your meal this Christmas day, invite your guests by using a fantastic Christmas e card. An original and fun way to send messages and greetings!

[alanrangerphotography]

Photography Lessons for any beginner to practice

Photography Lessons for any beginner to practice

Professional Photographer available for commissions and photography tuition

alan rangerinfo@alanranger.com

https://www.alanranger.comAlan Ranger Photographyhttps://static1.squarespace.com/static/5013f4b2c4aaa4752ac69b17/t/5abe963a2b6a285e96883598/1548001538869/(44) 781-7017994info@alanranger.com

In recognition of beginners, and remembering my own start into digital cameras and photography,  I wanted to share some of my own insights from fifteen years.

I have been conflicted in my thoughts about this post for over a week, so have been mulling things over, trying to work out why it’s been a tug of war between what I know now compared to what I found helpful in my own photographic journey.  Therefore should I be sharing ten or whatever number of insights that reflect where I draw my inspiration and approach from now or what number of things helped me arrive at where I am now?

On reflection I think they are two different things, intrinsically connected but separated by the level and experience of the recipient.  So I have decided to write two separate posts; one for the beginner and for the intermediate photographer.

The post for the intermediate photographer will follow soon and will seem contradictory to the five insights I have outlined here.  They are only contradictory because photography, as an art form at least, is a transformational process and could be compared to the the analogy of “you need to walk before you can run” to explain this evolutionary process.  Only by building on existing knowledge and experience is it possible, in my opinion, to practice the latter.

The second post will attempt to deal with being the servant to dissatisfaction, that we are wired to feel as human beings,  and how your approach (mindfulness) to photography can make you the master of satisfaction and allow the creativity to blossom.

I don’t want to falsely promise that doing these things will make you a professional photographer or mean that you are “successful”,  if you measure success in likes, awards, sales or some other form of accolades, but measure it in personal advancement and honest self assessment of the achievements and progress you have made in learning the fundamentals.  

I recently blogged about How to Learn Photography and why I believe that your attitude to photography counts for more than your innate capability.  This post is focused very much on improving your capability and the next post your attitude towards your photography.  Combined your overall performance (performance = satisfaction) should improve.

Please note, this is not intended to be a ten or five step guide to learning about shutter speeds, aperture and ISO, or telling you that all you need to do is attend a photography course, or photography workshop.  This post is about how you might tap into a range of resources and exercises to maximise your efforts, to produce outputs that you feel are better over time. These are things that I did over fifteen years to try and improve my capability, and how I created images and enjoyed photography more.

Set yourself some targets:

Targets sounds very corporate but they don’t have to be!  The idea of setting goals in life is, simply, to give you a target to aim for.  You may full short or exceed the target but nonetheless it, at least, provides a benchmark and motivation for you to measure against and strive to meet.

In photography terms, it maybe means one single thing or a number of things;

To become less confused, and more proficient about basic camera settings and how, why and when to use those settings to capture the photo you want.

To improve your understanding of photographic composition, so that you frame shots that show a greater intention and skill of connecting to your subject.

To travel and record images of the places and experiences you have with a better result than just a snap or disappointing photo that doesn’t justify what you saw and felt.

To receive recognition in camera club or other competitions for single images.

To achieve a recognised standard through a professional or amateur body with a photography accreditation or qualification.

To create a body of work, portfolio or develop a style of photography that expresses the way you interpret your subjects and use photography to tell a story.

The list goes on, and there are no right or wrong answers to this question and ambition.  What is important, in my view, is that you have some goals. The goals may change throughout the year(s) and adapt, but having a clear vision of want you want to achieve in any given time period, will help you focus, be motivated and measure your progress.

Research, Review and Revisit

Researching a locations terrain and access, reviewing your images, and from others, for a location, and  revisiting a location multiple times, are sure ways to improve your chance of getting better shots and a variety of shots in different light and conditions.

As an outdoor photography workshop host, this is default practise and every workshop location is thoroughly researched beforehand.  Of course, this is one of the main advantages of going on an organised workshop to a location. You spend less time working out the logistics and burning energy on finding the right areas and more time enjoying and learning photography.

Make photography a habit

If you signed up for a gym membership, but didn’t go, you wouldn’t expect to get fitter.  In fact, the only pounds you would lose would be from your bank account rather than waistline.  Photography is no different, you have to put in the effort on a frequent basis to exercise the muscle.

Set aside time, even if just an hour, on a weekly basis to do photography.  Doing photography doesn’t have to involve going out with the camera. It can be taking photos indoors, editing photos, reading articles or a book, “reading” (to read a photo we decode the photograph, unpacking the photographer's interpretation rather than accepting the photograph as it …) and learn from it.  

Anything that helps build your understanding and increases your capability will help to pay dividends further down the line.  If you have a friend who also enjoys photography, why not schedule something on a regular basis together?

Learn how to post process with skill and sensitivity.

This is important.  When I started using a digital camera, I naively thought that the end of the photographic process was the click of the shutter and then look at the resulting photo on the memory card on the computer.  Sure, I was comfortable with cropping the image if I felt it improved the overall composition and maybe even straightening the odd wonky horizon.

But, I didn’t have the understanding or knowledge to do anything further.  The thought of using photoshop or similar software was an alien concept to me and one I didn’t feel was an authentic form of photography.  It didn’t take long before I realised that every photograph was a lie.

Forgetting the fact that shooting in JPG format meant the image was being processed anyway, by the cameras JPG preset settings, the mere fact we turn a three dimensional world into a shrunken two dimensional view and only show a portion of a scene in a rectangular frame clearly is clearly not reality.

Pablo Picasso was alleged to have said, when painting a portrait of a man's wife and the husband became increasingly agitated, Picasso enquired why he was so concerned.  The husband replied that the painting looked nothing his wife. Picasso replied, “So, tell me, what does your wife look like?” The man took a picture out of his wallet and said “that’s how she looks!”  Picasso carefully studied the picture and said, “oh really! Small, isn’t she?”

A photograph is constructed by the photographer, aided by additional enhancement in the digital dark room, and reconstructed by the viewer with subjective judgement.

Just like cooking a meal, you start with raw ingredients and then combine, flavour add additional herbs and spices and cook it the way it suits your palate.  Whether that also agrees with another person's palate should not restrict or constrain the way you want to serve it.

Be aware of over-sharpening, bringing out too much detail in areas of the photograph that don’t require detail and trying to achieve the maximum impact through clumsy and an insensitive appreciation of the scene.    I witness a lot of photos that scream of too much saturation, too much definition and so on that become a distraction of what the photographer witnessed and experienced. It is akin to pouring half a jar of vindaloo curry powder into one dish when a teaspoon full was more than enough for anyone’s palate.

Invest wisely in your craft

If you read photography magazines, go to a camera club or just look at Youtube and social media photography posts you will find that the majority of conversation and explanation is focused around the gear.  Of course the camera, lens and accessories will make a difference to the way you photograph or more importantly how much easier or difficult it is to take pictures. But, that doesn’t necessarily mean that the gear is the master and therefore you become the slave. Or, to put it another way, the gear produces the photograph rather than the photographer.

People will naturally be drawn to better lenses, camera bodies and the accessories that are marketed and almost religiously preached as being the answer to the problem that many beginners ask the reason why and how…  However, from my own personal experience and that of tutoring literally thousands of beginners the gear is not the shortfall the reason they are not making photographs that satisfy.

It may be an “obvious” and an easy conclusion to make that the reason a particular photographer is deemed good is due to the fact that they have x,y,z gear.  Trust me, I have met many photographers with all the gear and no idea, and plenty of beginners with lots of ideas and no gear. Ideas, means an understanding, appreciation and creative perspective and they can find a way of creating something from nothing, with whatever they have at their disposal. Yes, the result may have room for improvement with a better lens, better resolution or the use of a filter or two,  but what separates them from the former is knowledge and the ability to adapt with what they have at their disposal.

That knowledge is acquired through the hard hours put into learning their camera craft and being able to see beyond the media generated views of what is reality or beautiful to see the extraordinary in the everyday objects, scenes and events in our lives.

Education and knowledge has a bigger positive outcome on your photography than a new lens, tripod, upgraded camera body or the latest accessories and gizmos.

Invest in learning the craft more than you do on the equipment to execute it.

When you search for photography courses and workshops you will find a plethora of options to choose from.  Many people book based on price, location and date. This is of course inevitable, we all live busy lives and have to make compromises, decisions based on multiple criteria.  However, how many people use the criteria of education and development before location, budget and dates? I hazard to guess but suspect it’s at least 80%

Good photographers don’t necessarily make good teachers.  Vice versa, good teachers don’t make necessarily make good photographers.  Good is obviously subjective, but you should, at very least, put the emphasis on good teachers before good photographers when choosing a course or workshop if you actually want to learn and improve rather than just imitate.

Shoot what you connect to and experiment

I have emphasised this point on countless occasions over the last ten years - without a personal connection to the subject, scene, situation it’s impossible to create an image, captured in single moment, that expresses what one truly feels about what they are experiencing.

This intention is critical for the photographer to know and arguably important for the viewer to interpret.

When I embarked on learning photography, I didn’t have a clear idea about what I wanted to photograph.  My only objective was that I wanted to become better at whatever I photographed. I therefore experimented with many genres, travel, landscapes, wildlife, portraits, architecture and events.  Over time it became apparent that I was naturally drawn to one genre over the over. Maybe it’s because I am most relaxed and used the outdoors and landscape environments both locally and further afield to re-balance myself after a hectic, stressful and exhausting week in the corporate world I worked in.  

The outdoors and particularly the countryside has always been a major part of recreation for me so it’s of no real surprise that my photography pursuits ended up taking place there.  While I do think it’s important for any photographer, especially beginners, to experiment with other genres and subjects - this helps build a visual awareness, understanding and increases the repertoire of knowledge, I certainly found that my “best” (measured in personal satisfaction) came from my outdoor/landscape images.

Focus your efforts on the genre you enjoy most and have easy access to but don’t be afraid to experiment and dabble in other genres too.

Your best image doesn’t define your vision or ability

There is a real danger that we self-doubt our images and rely on some for of external feedback for confirmation, reassurance or measurement of our best work.  The photography community itself has an abundance of ways, when it comes to these checks and balances with competitions, accreditations, awards or simply the size of your Instagram or Facebook following and likes.  Being popular doesn’t necessarily mean you are good - Van Gogh only sold one of his own paintings in his whole lifetime - on this basis he really wasn’t very good at what he did!

I have met many people who are part of that slightly-outdated community of camera clubs and societies, who have openly told me that they just want to get placed or highly commended for an image they submit to that internal competition. As if this form of recognition is the ultimate goal and confirmation they need to feel a sense of achievement about what they have created.

There is nothing wrong in having targets, see my first tip, but you have to be careful about how you allow these to influence you and impact your motivation and direction.  The most I have been paid for an image is $15,000 the least I have been paid for is $0.50 - so what does that tell us? Value is subjective and based on the buyers (viewers) perspective.  Was the image costing $15,000 any better than the image costing $.50? Not in my view and certainly not in that differential. Did I consider myself an advanced photographer, or any better or worse photographer after the sale of one image versus another, no I certainly didn’t.  

It’s all very subjective when it comes to value and satisfaction. Everyone of us will have our own take on it. The key thing for any photographer be they an advanced photographer or beginner is to take photos of what you like, present them how you like them and accept that some people will appreciate them and some won’t.  Neither is right or wrong if you abandon the parameters and criteria of judgement. If you chose to enter a competition or go for an accreditation, remember you are working to their criteria and rules not yours so don’t complain when the two things don’t align.

Subject, Narrative and Light

Whatever subjects you choose to photograph there are some cornerstones of good composition that works and compositions that don’t.  The first and arguably most important aspect of any photo is a clear and obvious subject. The point of interest, focal point, subject matter and its environment.  Many beginners struggle to reduce the content in their images into a single subject matter because they find it difficult to reduce the elements they see down to one single thing.   That thing is the critical element of interest and becomes the focus of attention in the image with everything else around it becoming a supporting element rather than dominant element.

I have often used the analogy of going to the theatre and rather than the lighting being on the main characters, and the dialogue between characters being a conversation or the background effects and music accompanying each stage of the story being told, you are bombarded in a nano second of it all played out together an in instant.   

The result, of course, would be a chaotic non-arrangement of noise and visual disruption. This is how many photographs are taken - maybe not quite to the same level of confusion that i described but certainly not a conscious awareness on the part of the photographer to reduce as many distractions as possible

The narrative is the photographers interpretation and way of communicating their emotion about the subject they are photographing.  This can be a logical conclusion or shrouded in mystery and ambiguity. The choices are down to the photographer but should at least be an important part of the considerations when composing.

The light is of course essential.  Not many images work well without contrast and areas of shadows and highlights.  This doesn’t mean that you can only shoot in certain light, far from it, I have made some of my most satisfying images in what would be considered poor light.   The test of advanced photography practise is to adapt to the light you have available and use it to help set the tone and emotional poetry you visualise.

Your turn

I will stop there; not because I couldn’t come up with another two or seven lessons, I could but would prefer to hear the thoughts of those who are going through a journey who are beginners or were, and are happy to share their own insights for beginners.  Please add your ideas and discuss in the comments box below.

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5 Unforeseen Ways event Can Make Your Life Better.

What It resembles Dating party.

In aiming to intend a shock celebration for a co-worker we had to create just the ideal plan to get him to go to. The crucial intent of any kind of decoration is to create the ideal atmosphere so that visitors enjoy the event without the hint of clumsiness. You ought to additionally check if all the kids your youngster invited for the event are fond of clowns. For that reason, having some fantastic half time activities intended ahead of time will certainly make your Super Dish celebration very pleasurable. To start a lengthy evening, you can have a luxurious dinner at one of the very best New york city City dining establishments. However before that, keep in mind the age of the children welcomed to the celebration, you don't want your child's event being the night that scarred the kids permanently! So if you are looking for some innovative concepts for your sea event, here are a number of event ideas that we used for my kid's 4th birthday celebration party. It prevails for a commercial field to only allow paintball tools they lease to be made use of at their area; this would certainly deter the birthday boy having the ability to utilize his brand new paintball weapon at his own party. There are a lot of elements that has to be taken into account while picking Christmas celebration locations. This phenomenon is an especially usual throughout the hot summer months as homeowner are blowing up air conditioning unit for hours at a time. Super Bowl event fun have great deals of giveaways - Instantaneously print complimentary printable Super Bowl invites: -/ likewise cost-free printable buffet table food name cards and party games. There are lots of music suggestions offered depending upon just what type of celebration you are having. Party prefers have rather a history dating back to exactly what is presumed is about sixteenth century Europe, although distributing supports could not be traced back specifically. Honor a special party support to the event guest that puts on the best efficiency. The event host could also intend to incorporate details regarding Speakeasys and also prohibition right into the paty. Selecting a resort that is cost effective, has the appropriate sort of atmosphere as well as configuration and also uses whatever that you have to make the Christmas party a huge hit is probably the ideal location for your Christmas event this year. When choosing birthday party materials such as banners, wall art, celebration hats, scene setters, outfits, pennants, focal points, indicators and tableware for a youngster's birthday celebration celebration, it is constantly safe to plan a style around the youngster's favored TELEVISION, movie, comics, or pop culture character.

Ten Secrets About party That No one Will Tell You.

After a party for friends at her London residence in 2013, Skirt Club has actually grown to 7,000 members as well as 30 events each year. Select a reasonable amount and afterwards damage this celebration planning budget down into sections. Child party prefers and rewards are a must and also thinking of the theme of the event may make it easier to choose party favors. Then by all implies hire a caterer or also order some lug out fare, if cooking throughout the event is not your mug of tea. These basic games are ideal for virtually any sort of party and will certainly keep the guests involved in the activity. These elements of a successful event from the heart established the background-- the tone, foundation, and backdrop-- for your celebration. Do not put the food on offering recipes and also convince your guest you are having a Thai supper party by doing this. If you intend to your celebration decoration suggestions to be a hit amongst your guests it is very important to begin preparing for the event well beforehand before the date of the event. Just remember, the most integral part of the party is hanging out with those you like. These components make up the invites, decors, activities, food, party favors as well as the cake. The smart celebration host should make certain to have lots of tasks planned for the youngsters at the party. Hours after Donald Trump Jr unloaded on James Comey in a Fox Information meeting on Saturday, Head of state Trump sent out a Sunday morning Twitter attack in Comey's direction. It takes a particular person to fall for it. Everyone below appears to do everything- acing an examination, mosting likely to a teaching fellowship, working with a nonprofit task, after that spending the entire evening at an event or hearing songs midtown, just to wake up early the next early morning to run in the park or use a sports group. Invitations: I composed VIP Party hands down organisation cardstock as well as handed them out personally. Ask those thinking about taking part in a Panty tube Limo Party for their component of the cashes in advance, so you can schedule the Limousine early as well as understand the amount of are going.

10 Things You Ought to Do In event.

Distributing party city coupons online 2017 (click through the following document) prefers in crucial events like marital relationship events, child showers and also Xmas celebrations has actually come to be a practice. For instance, event favors for a girl's event most likely will differ from those for a kid's party.

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Screenwriting Training.

A lot of property managers who whine regarding bad lessees in their rental buildings are their personal worst enemy. Through connecting penalty to medicine weight, required minimums commonly contort guilt; think about that an employed palm offloading contraband off the back of a vehicle may deal with more medications in comparison to the corporate trust leader who arranged the cargo. It strives to establish a new compulsory necessary perks plan that will come to be the minimal quality criterion for employer plannings, along with the movement of time. Each California and Connecticut need instruction for workers with regulatory authorization only, while Maine's regulation requires unwanted sexual advances instruction for all workers, despite their rankings. When you effectively total each item of compulsory" or even vital to function" instruction your iTrent training report will certainly be actually updated. Short-term in the feeling that you are committed to your instruction schedule no matter to exactly what holiday is around the bend and lasting to the point of continuouslying raise despite accident and/or a number of collections of failings run into. Your charm must ordinarily meet the HMCTS within one schedule month from the time that the obligatory reconsideration notification was actually sent out to you. Given that the Internal Revenue Service supplies choices that are actually beneficial to the citizen, they have set up an incredibly stringent collection of requirements and rules that dictate the on call documents of tax obligation relief for a taxpayer. It also showcases effortless combination with 3rd event applications, this is actually internet search engine helpful, it possesses ultimate safety performance, that gives office support through instruction and also education and learning, as well as this enables monitoring from content due to the end user (i.e. Should you have any kind of questions relating to where as well as how you can work with yellow pages london (mymotivation-th.info), you are able to contact us with our own page. you). Compulsory training is actually a demand accordinged to the obligation for nursing and also medical care team to do work in a risk-free way. You should typically request for an obligatory reconsideration within 1 calendar month of the date from the decision letter. The policies for required distributions alter if the retirement account concerned is inherited. This is the same method that is actually used for all forms of Internal Revenue Service income tax personal debt resolution - including Offer in Compromise, Payment Arrangement, and Currently Certainly not Collectible status - as well as is also used to end Internal Revenue Service compilations. As the overview of obligatory reporting criteria within a jurisdiction oftens boost press reporters' and also the neighborhood's awareness from little one abuse and forget, it could cause a substantial rise in the variety of records being helped make to kid security teams. Training is supplied through seasoned fighting styles educators that have gained a name in combating art. Each California as well as Connecticut define that business hiring FIFTY or more employees administer the instruction. If one dreams to be actually productive in his job undertaking, exactly how to function professional is compulsory to recognize. Considering that they can eliminate tax obligation, dishes and enjoyment costs are actually one from my preferred kinds of rebates. This is actually required to comply with the scores for the perk from the customers' understanding concerning the activity. This's where the task gets caught and when carried out correctly, that could grab additional tax savings. Registered doctors, nurses, midwiferies, an individual signed up as a teacher or even a very early youth instructor under the Education as well as Training and Reform Act 2006 or even teachers approved consent to show under that Action; principals from government or even non-government universities within the definition from the Education and learning and also Training Reform Action 2006; and also law enforcement agents. The Mandatory Residential Meal Plans are actually tax-exempt, saving you nearly 15% on taxes on a lot of food item acquired in 21 various places on both grounds. In Singapore a business is obligated to register for the functions of Product and also companies tax obligation (GST) function when the annual turnover towers or expected to become above 1 thousand SGD. It is recommended to search for the institute that delivers the greatest CNA training program, as this is additionally helps in acquiring an excellent task. When looking for Internal Revenue Service tax relief is actually that you should stay individual and also should participate in by the IRS's guidelines, two of the very most essential points to don't forget. This literal interpretation of teaming up with water become prominent over the years and also this has advanced to consider all forms of horticulture without the dirt. Significantly, the QIC revision is actually an on-the-record" testimonial, unlike an in-person hearing review. As a matter of fact, in these places the use of Authorized Personnel Just" signs can be discovered to convey the very same information. There are several market variants when this concerns such signs as well as signs - the health & protection signs in a building site are going to be actually different off those that are in place in a dock. Managers who pay attention to the advancement from files may do generally much more than any sort of instruction program or intervention can. Students living in Solin Hall or ADDITIONAL are not on the Obligatory Dish Program and they possess access to cooking area centers in their houses. For every single organisation that handles the purchase of goods or even any kind of things or even sale from food things, this is required to secured BARREL sign up authorized due to the condition federal government which differ all over the conditions. You may acquire CNA instruction to be a nursing aide just before bachelor degree in nursing. The current technique requires spent preparers to comply with the expertise screening demands zero behind the initial called for revitalization time for tax return preparer enrollment. Newspaper filed gains are actually manually participated in the authorities's body, meaning that an input mistake could activate a tax notice. Family Code 3181 deals with the residential violence training demands for moderators. The courthouse is allowed to provide such a ruling if that presumes that this is actually simply as well as practical to accomplish thus. This is still having said that in the courthouse's discernment certainly not to provide a freezing order if to perform therefore would certainly certainly not be in the rate of interests from justice. Creating this attribute necessary is going to guarantee a constant customer experience throughout all next-generation DVD material.

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Healthy Dinner Recipes For Yummy Vegetable Pasta Through Amy Bass In Food preparation At Isnare.

Sluggish stoves or crockery flowerpots make that quick and easy to assemble a well-balanced supper along with a quick volume of prep time. Its own products basket brings hot grains, fruit product arrays, canned beans and also porks, bagel potato chips, spices, seasonings, hot dressings, wine white vinegar, Mexican-style sauces, predicaments, peppers, mixed greens dressings, dry soups, puffed corn as well as rice snack foods and much more.

Mr. Sabin silently but faultlessly outfitted in the standard night supper attire, Mr. ill-dressed, unkempt, frowsy as well as filthy. When that happens to the Thanksgiving holiday turkey dinner is actually key to a calm supper as well as satisfying celebration along with household as well as good friends, this verifies that some preparing in advance. For supper I could often stop by a restaurant for my 500 fats and still eat one thing healthy and balanced. Exec cook Carlo Miguel has put together a magnificent menu that pulls organisation types at lunch as well as prosperous bon vivants at supper. You can easily schedule your dhow supper boat trip earlier to ensure the schedule from the most effective cruise line.

Hot pig bratwurst provided either along with sauce catsup or even a tomato paste along with sauce powder. Ronald Reagan is actually one of the most latest president to miss the supper thrown by White Home press corps. I delighted in the complete scorching chocolate along with hot cakes, omelets, grains, panned fry rice with going well with meals and also a great deal more. You are actually also fretted about foods, plates as well as cooking tools that need to be actually dealt with after the dinner. Pork, burgers, hot dogs, corn on the cob, pizza, turkey as well as probably apple cake are actually some of the foods I remember maturing in America. See to it the bird is elevated so the warm air may spread under and also around this. The most effective type of wire rack is actually the V-shaped shelf particularly developed for toasting turkey. Do not healthy2017life.info put cold water in to the bowl when that's scorching, similarly do not put quite warm water in when the dish is actually chilly. Soups, both cold and hot are actually additionally incredibly popular as well as are typically noodle based and also provided in rock bowls. In the French talking region from Switzerland, the well-liked meals include Raclette, Papet vaudois and also the ever before popular Fondue. Ceasing back to let my oral cavity water over your full-flavored lunch time as well as supper crepes, an image performs aim a thousand delectable phrases! Due to the fact that they are actually sentimental from Dolly and prefer she stands up for, individuals go to the Dolly Supper Reveals--. Indian supper dishes are the preferred for individuals in South Asia because of the similar cooking food type.

Thai event supper suggestions for the festive fare is actually certainly not complete without rice and also Thailand's renowned flavors - sauce, cayenne pepper, chili, cilantro, and saffron particle. There is one more group of individuals who consider such places for satisfaction and also covering their issues with one another on the table. Whereas, eating dinner after our experts have picked up the night just adds on the pounds. There are actually a number of means to commemorate Thanksgiving holiday Time, however a corking good Thanksgiving holiday supper is vital in this time! A mahogany lighted corner curio cabinet is actually a space-saving option to a china cabinetry, the ideal measurements to present a supper setup for four and a couple of reward items of china. As well as do not fret about supper opportunity- unless you actually want to, weekends are actually certainly not the amount of time to invest hours babysitting your stove. Your prizes can easily likewise be actually a holiday for the players or even a supper at a dining establishment as golf competition presents.

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5 Menu Ideas For A Momentous as well as exciting 65th Birthday Event.

Lots of eggs therein, much better use them up. I'm typically certainly not an eggy person, yet this dish caught my eye. Yet another option is to opt for what the dinner will definitely be, as well as composing the shopping list of exactly what you need to acquire the meals. Mofongo - Popular Afro-Puerto Rican meal created along with panned fry unripe plantain as well as other origin veggies squished with garlic, panned fry pig (chicharrón), olive oil, and also broth. Peeling a fruit and array peanut butter throughout that to give it the look of a frankfurter. Our mouth watering New Year's Eve smorgasbord supper is a tempting feast of fine treats a testimony from our personal gourmet chef's culinary skills. Exotic Pollo bistros point out fajitas as their most popular menu product, baseding on TickerMine's newest survey. And also in addition to launching a brand new steakhouse lunch time strategy, our experts've also enhanced our dinner offerings while acquiring cost, and also our company meaningfully sped up brand new device development. For many restaurants, Monday and also Tuesday evenings are generally the slowest for organisation, so you could acquire blessed if you're able to schedule dinner early in the full week. Since she has gotten rid of therefore a lot and possesses such a delightful sense, I would prefer to possess dinner with Latoya Jackson. There is just something about a self-made roll for dinner that makes the food that far more delightful. For instance, any type of member of our Cook Desk obtains a cost-free dinner for his/her special day, a celebration that has been actually a long tradition at Benihana. I obtained a plan of these hot dogs at some of our nearby supermarket this past weekend break for $1.37. I found yourself prepping this product on the grill a married couple days later as aspect of a Remembrance Time barbeque dinner. As a matter of fact, there is actually a wide variety from pre-event choices to match and pertain to beauty4now.info any type of theme decided on by clients for their dinner and also dance tournaments in Singapore. The development. of the TV dinner has been laid claim to a minimum of three different sources, Gerry Thomas, the Swanson Brothers, and also Maxson Food Systems, Inc On Friday and Saturdays, starting at 9:30 pm, a selection from best jazz musicians off around the globe, as well as a mix of funk, soul and Classical teams, receive bar and also dinner visitors both within as well as outside. When you are actually prepping the table for your alright supper, this has a functionality to resist higher temperatures and also could maintain your prepared foods hot in opportunities. Ensure that you additionally show all of them the significance from suitable everyday nourishment and also the most ideal time to do this is actually certainly not at the dinner table where they might think pressured, yet at an area where they feel unwinded. An approach that has actually operated properly for me is to consider dinner for the week in advance as well as making sure I possess every point I need in your house. This has a non-stick quality that gives way to the much easier and more convenient cleaning after utilizing this. Thus, every member of the family could really appreciate a home-made dinner. This internet site is actually dedicated to all those in such a position and to with any luck providing some X-mas dinner suggestions which can at the very least aid to create Christmas time alone extra acceptable. Want to reserve a dinner table amply before, as you'll find the chances for seating at eating business will reduce closer to dinner hr.

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Thailand Travel Guide, Thailand lat7.624368 long99.079224

Transportation

Everything is so easy in Thailand. Tourism is a major income source for the country so that it may be easier to book a bus in Thailand than in Paris! We tried pretty much all means of transportation while in the country and here is what we found.

Busses are convenient and rather cheap but can take quite a while (we’re still in South East Asia so don’t expect too much). Also, about 96.85 % of the drivers are completely insane (no offence). Thailand is one of the countries with the most deaths per 1000 inhabitants in the world and there is a reason. You’ll find loads of different companies offering bus journeys and sometimes joint bus and ferry tickets to get to the islands. Do your research before booking a bus and you’ll be fine.

If you want to travel to the islands in the south, Lomprayah is a safe bet. Not only are their ferries much more comfortable (and free of sand flees) but their busses are safe and comfy as well.

Trains are a good option as well though they often take much longer than busses. They are pretty much delayed all the time but it is a fun experience to sit with the locals and drive through the country. Prices vary quite a bit depending on the type of train and compartment (AC, 3rd Class, Sleeper, etc.).

For instance, Bangkok - Ayutthaja costs about 20 THB while we paid 180 THB for Bangkok - Phetchaburi.

Flights are relatively cheap within the country (if you’re visiting outside of the high season). Companies such as ThaiLionAir, AirAsia and even ThaiAirways have pretty cheap flights serving major tourist destinations. One-way tickets to Chiang Mai, Surat Thani (gateway to Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao) or Krabi go for as little as 20€! Unfortunately, many airlines don’t include baggage but it’s still worth looking into (especially if you can avoid a 15h train ride at the same cost.

At first glance, certain destinations can seem to be expensive to fly to but look out for other airports nearby, they may be cheaper! For instance, flying to Koh Samui from Bangkok costs around 200€ but flying to Surat Thani and taking the ferry will only cost around 30 to 40€.

Ferries are a real backpacker’s nightmare. You experience that paradisiacal islands in the south of Thailand you have no choice but to take a ferry and they are expensive. Like really, really expensive. We recommend not booking them in advance unless you are on a really tight schedule. Just book them on the spot, it will probably be cheaper.

As in most other countries in Southeast Asia, you don’t have to worry about booking transportation in advance. Booking on the spot for the next day or even later that same afternoon is completely fine unless you find yourself travelling during peak season. Obviously, this doesn’t count for flights. It might be useful to book those a little in advance.

Accommodation

Thailand certainly is the most touristic country in Asia. In terms of accommodation that means that you’ve got plenty to choose from. Depending on where you’re going you can find dorms between 3 and 20€ and private rooms from around 7€ to open end. The north is generally less expensive than the south and the islands are the most expensive you’ll find. Dorms are good value for money if you’re travelling alone but as a couple, it was often cheaper to get a private room.

Thailand is one of those countries where booking ahead can be quite useful as you might strike a good deal on agoda.com or booking.com. Once on Koh Tao we booked a room through a website for half the walk-in price! Most guesthouses and hostels have free tea and coffee and if you’re lucky you’ll find one that includes breakfast as well though it isn’t as common as we’d like.

Especially the south of the country is quite expensive and not as backpacker-friendly as everyone thinks in terms of budget (think about 14€ we paid for a crappy bungalow on Koh Lipe 20 minutes walk from the beach vs. 8€ we paid for a private room on Koh Rong in Cambodia 30m off the beach). As in many other countries in Asia, simple fan rooms are cheaper than those with AC but unless you are travelling throughout April or May (the hottest months in Thailand with temperatures of over 40°C), a fan is completely sufficient.

We were lucky enough to stay clear of any bad experiences. Our hosts were all adorable and the places we stayed at were all great. The advantage of mass tourism is that you can find hundreds of reviews and recommendations online - USE IT! Some of our favourite places were :

Mayom Hostel (Phetchaburi)

Ozone Beach Huts (Koh Lanta)

ZzHouse (Chiang Mai)

Food

Aaaaah, the food. Thai food is amazing. In variety, it probably beats even Indian food and the flavours range from coconut-sweet to shrimp-salted. Obviously, you’ve heard about the famous Pad Thai and the curries but that’s not all there is. Papaya salads, spicy mango salads or seafood salads are a must try, the savoury soups shouldn’t be missed and don’t get me started on the dessert (oh, mango sticky rice!).

As always, you’ll find the best food in the streets. Food stalls or tiny walk-in restaurants are just the best places to get authentic (meaning spicy) Thai food.

Snacks or meals at street stalls or little street restaurants usually start at 20 THB and go up to 70 THB depending on quantity and ingredients (remember, seafood is expensive). At sit-in restaurants you can expect to pay between 100 and 180 THB for a rice and curry, 60 to 120 THB for a Pad Thai or other noodle dishes and an incredibly exaggerated 80 to 100 THB for a mango sticky rice.

To fully enjoy the variety of Thai cuisine you should take a cooking class! Even kitchen grumps (like Ann) can have fun tasting all the different dishes and exploring the local market where you’ll get all the ingredients from.

The local beers are Chang, Leo and Singha which are all classic lagers. We were surprised to find that alcohol is actually quite expensive in Thailand compared to its neighbours (bye bye, 50ct beers on Pub Street! ;) ) but it’s still affordable and cheaper than in many places back home (meaning Paris cause Berlin’s awesome).

All in all, eating was one of our favourite activities in Thailand and now, maybe, you understand why. If we had to make a ranking about who’s got the best food, the Thais are definitely among the top 3. And we’ve had a lot of food. In quite a few different countries.

Cost of living

The cost of living in Thailand really depends on your location. The north is cheaper than the south, major touristic cities are more expensive than lesser known places. In Phetchaburi we easily lived of 20€ a day as we could get meals for under 50 THB at the local food court while on some of the islands we paid almost 30 THB just for a bottle of water!

There are always ways to keep the cost of living down so have coffee at your hostel or at 7-11 because they’re not only cheap but actually really good (especially the Thai Milk Tea!), get sandwiches from there (best cheap breakfast you’ll find) and if you can, just sleep there as well. Just kidding.

Food prices vary a lot but veggie dishes are always the cheapest. Fried rice / noddles with vegetables or a veggie Pad Thai will almost always be the cheapest choice. Chicken is also very affordable and sometimes at the same price but beef and especially sea food is often much more expensive.

A big beer will usually lighten your wallet by 80 to 120 THB if it’s not happy hours (then it’s more like 60 to 80 THB). Cocktails can be found for 80 to 200 THB depending on the establishment, size, etc. . Thank god, 7-11 (saved my life) has beer and wine at cheaper rates so for those who travel on a budget, this might just be the solution.

People

At times it seems as if there were more tourists and expats in Thailand than locals. While people in Myanmar or in Indonesia (outside of Bali and the Gilis) will look at you in awe and will somehow try to communicate while proudly talking about their country, a great majority of Thais will mainly talk to you in order to sell you something.

Mass tourism has taken over so many parts of the country that it can be difficult to have an “authentic” experience. The one time we managed to get off the beaten track we noticed a huge change in the way locals treated us. In Phetchaburi people came to say hello and to ask where we were from whereas in Chiang Mai they just wanted us to get a massage at their spa.

No matter where you go, people are extremely polite and helpful but they have grown accustomed to foreigners in most places and have simultaneously lost the interest of just talking to strangers in order to share insights on their life and culture. Obviously, this isn’t the case for all people and you will always find locals to chat to but compared to countries such as Vietnam or Indonesia, people in Thailand are less excited upon the sight of a foreigner (which is understandable as they must see millions of tourists every year).

Budget

As mentioned earlier, the cost of living and therefore the daily budget varies a lot between the north and the islands (let’s be honest, why else would you got to the south?). In over 7 weeks in Thailand we managed to stick to our budget of 40€ per day for two people but at times it was incredibly difficult and we had to pass on a lot of activities (and drinks).

In the north and places such as Phetchaburi, 40€ per day for two is totally doable and a realistic budget for budget travellers like us. On the islands or in peak season a realistic budget would be closer to 50 - 70€ depending on what you want to do and if you’re willing to do it independently. Day trips and organised tours will generally let your budget go through the roof so it is worth making an effort to do it by yourself.

On a side note, this “life budget” does not include the money we spent on diving (which is a lot). It just includes what we spent on accommodation, food, transports and visits.

Thanks to our budgeting app ExpenseTrack we always have an eye on our daily budget and it was quite easy to limit ourselves when needed. With so much street food available and 7-11s on every corner it is really easy to get by on a tight budget. Only a few euros left for the day? Just grab some street food and save some Baht!

What we thought about Thailand

We spent quite a lot of time in Thailand but still only managed to see a small part of the country. There are so many beautiful things to see and while, at times, the crowds can be annoying, it is definitely worth it. Between the temples, the beaches, the caves and the food, there is an excuse for everybody to visit Thailand.

But we’re not going to dwell on how beautiful the country is, otherwise it wouldn’t be such a popular holiday destination.

We were surprised that alcohol and accommodation can be so expensive and looking back considering that it is hyped for being so cheap.

Also, we do regret not having explored more destinations that are still off the tourist radar.

Anyway, we definitely enjoyed Thailand and made a ton of unforgettable memories!