Backpacking in Southeast Asia
An Interview with Paula Viidu
By Rainer Von Helin on Sep 1, 2014
Paula Viidu graduated from the Copenhagen School of Design and Technology with a bachelor's degree in e-concept development earlier this year. The ink on her diploma was barely dry when she decided to pack her bags and head off to Southeast Asia to see the world. She started traveling solo in February stopping in Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, The Philippines and Singapore. At the moment she's in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and despite bad Internet connections and time differences, we've managed to interview her regarding her journeys and the pleasures found on her way.
Hēdonē: Hi Paula, where are you right now?
Paula: Hey! Right now I'm in Kuala Lumpur, volunteering at a new guesthouse. I'm getting food and accommodation in return for 5 hours of work, which includes organizing social activities, parties and also cleaning the toilets - it's good fun! I'm also waiting for my Australian visa.
How long have you been in Southeast Asia?
I've been in Southeast Asia for over 6 months now.
When do you think you might be coming back to Europe?
Plans tend to change but most likely next spring, there's nothing like a summer at home!
What have been the highlights of your travels?
Buying a motorbike in Saigon and giving myself a lesson on how to ride it in Saigon traffic, followed by 2 months of riding it through Vietnam to Hanoi in the most mental traffic with the best people. No license, no rules, only organized chaos through magical sceneries and encounters with the friendly, karaoke and beer loving locals - who mainly just helped me fix my motorbike as it broke down daily.
I've experienced the feeling of ultimate freedom, riding my motorbike to the beach whenever I felt like it, getting lost in the middle of rice fields, cave complexes, rural jungles and major cities. It's the best way to experience a country.
I also spent time on a paradise island called Koh Rong in Cambodia. I was supposed to go for 3 days and ended up staying for 1,5 months, working and living a proper paradise islander lifestyle with electricity and water for only a few hours a day, hardly using Internet or wearing clothes. No roads, only a jungle and the most beautiful and empty beaches you've ever seen. The only inhabitants there were a few local villagers and like-minded backpackers.
Drinking, Banana-Oreo milkshakes, jumping off the piers and going wild at beach parties until the sun came up. We were a group of four, running the funnest bar around. Everything was free, and we had everything we needed to have a good time. Including the most beautiful place with the best atmosphere - I can't believe I actually managed to leave (laugh)! Also, shrooming out in the jungle in Laos...enough said!
Does the reality of backpacking live up to Danny Boyle's film, The Beach?
I guess I answered that in the last question by describing life on Koh Rong, except I didn't turn totally bonkers, hopefully just enough (laugh). It was absolute paradise, so yes!
What have you found in Southeast Asia, that you never found in Europe?
I've found people, nature and freedom.
What places should be on every backpackers list?
Thailand for food, beaches and partying. Cambodia for people, history, exploring and chilling out to the max. Vietnam for madness, adventure, culture and coffee. Laos for being off the grid, calm, fun and relaxed. Philippines for something different, people and nature. Singapore for a developed, vibrant, efficient city fun.
All photos courtesy of Paula Viidu
Instagram @paulaviidu
What do all backpackers have common?
They're all wearing the same undies they wore a week ago. The flip-flops they have on probably weren't theirs to begin with and they won't bite your head off when you start talking to them. There's a high chance they're wearing "elephant pants" bought from Thailand or a shirt saying "same same but different", they'll all also have a wound from a scooter accident and they're all happy.
You started travelling alone but it didn't take you long to find friends. What advice would you give others heading off backpacking alone?
Congratulations! It's the best decision you've ever made. Meeting people is going to easier than you've ever imagined, finding a moment alone will be more difficult.
Have you found love?
Yes.
What advice would you give others who are thinking of backpacking through Asia?
Don't make any plans, don't bring much, wear sunscreen, eat mangos - bargain their price.
What should backpackers do to keep their cost of traveling at a minimum?
Eat street food, stay at local guesthouses instead of party hostels, go adventure on your own with a little group instead of buying tours, try not to get ripped off too much, make friends, use sights like Couchsurfing,Workaway, etc.
What's next on your travel itinerary?
Next stop: Melbourne.
Is backpacking dangerous?
It might be if you're flying down Highway 1 in Vietnam on a joke of a motorbike, other than that, not really.
Do you have any regrets about traveling?
If anything, buying a two-way ticket instead of a single one. I would have saved me a few bucks since I didn't take the flight back.
Who are the most annoying kind of backpackers?
People who are on a constant booze cruise, those not experiencing the places that they visit and the ones who snore in a dorm.
What is your ultimate pleasure?
An almond Magnum ice-cream.
What's been the hardest moment for you these past few months?
Most of my experiences in Southeast Asia have been incredibly good but you might also at some point find yourself with a fever, infected wounds that refuse to heal in the heat, your shoes can get stolen, you can get diarrhea in all the colors of the rainbow, somebody is always trying to rip you off and being stuck on a 24 hour bus ride on the worse bus in the world, on the curviest mountain roads in the world somewhere in Laos is no joke! I've also woken up in the middle of the night scratching like a maniac thanks to bed bugs, and you're like...great! But then the next day you find a secret natural infinity pool in a waterfall and you feel pretty good again.
How easy or hard it is to earn money in Southeast Asia?
The most common and easiest way to earn actual money in Southeast Asia is to teach English. Everything else is just evening out your expenses. Both are quite easy to do if you set your mind to it. You can always find work in bars on the islands, or diving if that's what you do, there's also plenty of volunteering opportunities etc.
What do you love most about being so far away from home?
I love being away from the civilization and the everyday pressure of pursuing a career, making money, paying rent, attending this and that instead of enjoying the moment and life that is happening now. Also, while being away you learn to appreciate home in ways you could never have imagined.
Name some people you've met who you'll never forget?
Colin from Alaska also known as Disco Mustache - he has the most ridiculous mustache and dance moves you've ever seen, Askil the crazy Norwegian with a useful knowledge of pharmaceutical drugs, super chilled Leo from Portugal, Kevin from Colorado, jumping off every possible cliff and everybody else who was in our Motorcycle Mice from Mars biker crew. I'll also never forget my Koh Rong family and everybody on that island at the time.
Paula Viidu in The Philippines