Travel Archives - Page 2 of 8

My Third Month’s Earnings on Mediavine Journey [November 2024]

December 2, 2024February 19, 2025Blogging, Travel, Travel Tips, Tricks, & Resources BigBody Leave a Comment

Damn, Big Body! Back at it again with the white vans and another Mediavine Journey income report.

First, if you’re curious about my first two months on Mediavine’s newest ad management solution/product (Mediavine Journey), make sure to read Part 1 and Part 2.

Part 1 breaks down all of the important terms that are used to understand ad network earnings along with some key features of the Mediavine Journey dashboard. Make sure to reference that post if anything doesn’t make sense below.

Once again, to keep things concise – here is exactly how much my travel blog made for the month of November on Mediavine Journey.

Hint: I’m still eating canned beans and most of my socks have holes in them.

Beehiiv vs. WordPress.org For Blogging: an Honest Review [2025]

December 2, 2024February 19, 2025Blogging, Travel, Travel Tips, Tricks, & Resources BigBody Leave a Comment

In June 2024, after roughly five years of blogging on a traditional WordPress website – the one you’re reading right now – I decided to hedge my bets and branch out by launching a Beehiiv newsletter. This wasn’t because I was particularly passionate about newsletter creation, rather, I applied to Mediavine’s ad management network ‘Journey’ several months prior and still hadn’t heard back.

Frankly, I was a bit burnt out and frustrated with ‘traditional blogging’ and wanted to decouple from it. Google had also rolled out a handful of algorithm updates over the years that saw bloggers completely wiped off the face of search result pages and I knew it was time to stop putting all my eggs in one basket. A major professional shift in my life also meant that I could take content creation more seriously, in a more ‘full-time’ role. So, it seemed like a win-win to launch a new venture and continue with the old.

Since then, I’ve hit the ground running, blogging heavily on WordPress and publishing a weekly newsletter with Beehiiv. And it sure has been a blast. There have been countless learning curves for both but that has ultimately led to a somewhat sound understanding of each platform and how they fit into my content creation process and output.

I’ll be honest. I wrote roughly 1/3rd of this article in a way that was just too excessively complex – too complex for myself. I spent several hours just sitting and trying to make sense of what I wrote and if it was actually cohesive or not. Hint: it wasn’t.

While this may not be the most in-depth review of both WordPress and Beehiiv, it reflects my understanding of both and analyzes the features, strengths and weaknesses, and other bits that have been particularly relevant in my blogging (and newsletter) publishing tenure.

Consider this a launching point for novices unsure of what platform to use when beginning their upcoming blogging journey.

Pale Ale Travel Note: This post is comparing Beehiiv to WordPress.org NOT WordPress.com. The core difference between the two boils down to who is hosting your website. WordPress.com handles all hosting, while WordPress.org requires you to self-host/host your own website (ex. This is typically done through Bluehost, GoDaddy, and other third-party hosting platforms).

The Best Way to Get From Hong Kong Airport to the City Center

November 20, 2024February 19, 2025Asia, Destinations, Hong Kong, Travel BigBody Leave a Comment

Look, I know it was a long flight to Hong Kong. You didn’t sleep well. They only had 3 random episodes of Curb Your Enthusiasm teed up on the TV. You sat next to that one dude with a long mole hair protruding from his face and would awkwardly lean on your shoulder whenever he fell asleep. And you had some questionable jellied meat and petrified eggs that may or may not put a damper on your first day in the city.

How do I know this? I’ve been there before. Got the T-shirt. Thrown out my underpants. Embarrassingly called the hotel front desk to ask if they could send up a plunger. Hid my face as I awkwardly grasped said plunger from the hands of hotel staff. Experienced the unabating headache. Started the trip out already feeling like it wasn’t on my terms.

There are a lot of variables when it comes to traveling, some of them well within your grasp, others far outside.

While you can’t control whether or not the plane hits a stretch of turbulence on your way to Hong Kong, turbulence so devastating that it has you typing out “love you” messages to everyone you can think of, including your high school sweetheart Maria, who is married and happy now and still thinks you’re a loser because you lived at home with your mother for an extended period while you were figuring things out – fortunately, you can control how you get into the city center.

No dilly-dallying. No pitstops along the way. No B.S..

Here is the best way to get from Hong Kong Airport to the city center so that you can start your trip off in ‘Asia’s World City’ on sound footing.

Is It Worth Visiting Hong Kong Disneyland as an Adult?

November 19, 2024February 19, 2025Asia, Destinations, Hong Kong, Travel BigBody Leave a Comment

Frankly, this Big Body never revisiting Disneyland after his chunky 12-year-old self stuffed his portly frame into a Mickey Mouse t-shirt, his finest New Balance shoes (yes, I was a New Balance guy even at 12), and athletic shorts, armed with his autograph book, and made the trip with his father and brother one sweltering summer.

Side Note: It was actually a trip to Disney World in Orlando, Florida, which I Googled and learned there’s a difference between the two – Disney World being far larger and a complex of numerous parks, resorts, and on-site transportation systems. But I digress.

However, in the last four years in Hong Kong, I’ve been to Hong Kong Disneyland twice.

Count it. Twice.

As a single man in his early to mid-thirties (depending on how you look at it), I always assumed that my prime Disney days were behind me. That I was washed up and past my peak, that I’d look extremely out of place. I also imagined suspicious glances from parents and park employees, ready to call up the boys in blue to throw me in Disneyland jail, or worse, escort me out and toss me in actual jail.

But thanks to two of my top dawgz in Hong Kong, one male dawg and one lady dawgette, that mental barrier was broken down for Big Body – leading to what I’d consider two of the most memorable days of my past four years in Hong Kong.

Here is why you should completely shed any sense apprehension about visiting Hong Kong Disneyland as an adult, suspend disbelief for a day, and dust off and toss on a pair of those Mickey or Minnie ears you keep in that one box under your bed and wistfully glance at when trying to rustle up old receipts for tax season.

But first, let’s dig into some of the practical deets about getting to the most magical place on Lantau, what day(s) to book tickets, and several other administrative formalities that all adults should mentally prepare for (especially if you’re making the pilgrimage with children).

5 Things I Wish I Knew Before Moving to Hong Kong

November 18, 2024February 19, 2025Asia, Destinations, Hong Kong, Travel, Travel Tips, Tricks, & Resources BigBody Leave a Comment

“I wish that I knew what I know now…” Hong Kong is my home. My best friends are here. My company is here. My family is here (my ‘Fahza’). It’s where I feel most at peace, most productive, and most secure. But it has taken quite a long time to even feel marginally like I have my sh!t together here. And I use that phrase loosely.

Moving back at the height of quarantine and lockdowns in 2020 (after 6 years away) wasn’t all peaches and cream for Allen Iverson and me. Coming back as a newly minted 30-year-old came with its own challenges, delusions, and realizations.

Here are 5 things I wish I knew before moving back to Hong Kong in my 30s with some favorite pictures of mine from these last 4 years sprinkled throughout. Granted, it was extremely formative coming to these realizations and having these reflections the hard way and I wouldn’t trade anything for it.

I think there’s something to be said about sometimes needing to touch the stove just to know for yourself that the burner is actually on, so I don’t wish I had known ‘them’ before moving to Hong Kong. I’m glad I touched the burner and my palm ended up like Harry’s from Home Alone after Kevin McCallister heated the doorknob to an estimated 700 degrees Fahrenheit – but I’m also thankful I didn’t take a blowtorch to my already disastrous hairline.

Now, these are my confessions (reflections) – cue Usher’s soothing, sensual voice to take you into things.

Why Nan Lian Garden & Chi Lin Nunnery Need to Be on Your Hong Kong Bucket List

November 12, 2024February 19, 2025Asia, Destinations, Hong Kong, Travel BigBody Leave a Comment

If you read my recent post about eating at the popular Singaporean-originated Shanghainese chain ‘Paradise Dynasty’ in Kai Tak the other week with my Old Man, then you already know that it was one of my favorite Hong Kong days ever.

And that’s because it wasn’t just any typical lunch. It was one with purpose.

That’s right. It was time to go be a tourist in my own city and revisit an area that honestly, I hadn’t stepped foot in since several years prior when I was still playing baseball and probably 15 kgs lighter – enter the iconic Chi Lin Nunnery and Nan Lian Garden in Diamond Hill.

Here’s why the Nan Lian Garden and Chi Lin Nunnery need to be on your Hong Kong bucket list…as of YESTERDAY!

The Best Airport Lounge I’ve Ever Had the Pleasure of…Lounging At

November 9, 2024February 19, 2025Asia, Europe, Travel, Travel Tips, Travel Tips, Tricks, & Resources BigBody Leave a Comment

This Big Body lives a relatively unglamorous lifestyle. As I currently pen this article, I’m wearing a faded t-shirt that I ordered on Amazon for $8, athletic shorts with several BBQ sauce stains, and a pair of tan boat shoes that have holes at the bottom, letting water seep through any time it rains.

It’s a life devoid of fancy watches and chains, Hi-So club memberships and debutante balls, and Beluga caviar and bottles of Dom. I also don’t even have curtains for my apartment, and I’ve been living there for over a year now. But it’s my life and I quite enjoy it.

But now and then, I get a thirst for how those on the other side live. I think it’s to make up for the fact that I never had a quinceañera. And because of my frugality at most points of the year, I’m able to occasionally splurge. Most recently, I kicked off my three-month stint in Europe with a flight from Hong Kong to Amsterdam via Turkish Airlines, with a six-hour-plus layover at the Istanbul Airport. Oh, and I did the same thing again for my return flight back to Hong Kong.

Normally, I’d spend this time sitting at my gate, staring at the board, slugging a handful of Coke Zeroes, going to the bathroom every 15 minutes because of the aforementioned Coke Zero slugging, contemplating paying for WiFi, talking myself out of paying for WiFi, and wishing I brought I book. Rinse and repeat.

But that wasn’t the case this time as I posted up in the Turkish Airlines International Business Lounge for the bulk of my layover, consuming more baba ganoush and nutty rectangles of baklava than any man should in a single sitting, mixing in several power naps to rest this weary traveling soul of mine, and tossing back countless double espressos in an attempt to counter the jetlag (which I’m pretty sure was ill-advised).

Note: If you are a tenant of the building across from me and have to see me looking like a naked Bigfoot every night, arms swinging in that distinct cryptozoological walk as I walk to the fridge for a late-night swig of water, then please feel free to shame me in the comments.

This post is not meant to be braggadocious or self-aggrandizing, it’s simply written to provide a little nugget of information that could (possibly) make your next layover in Istanbul a memorable and less painful one. Funnily enough, this trip was booked several months prior, in a state of pure ignorance (and bliss) of what was about to come – a financial reckoning due to losing my biggest client the month before departure to the Old Continent.

Here are 5 reasons why the Turkish Airlines International Business Lounge is hands down the best airport lounge I’ve ever had the pleasure of…lounging at.

Is There Uber in Vietnam? This Other Ride-Hailing App Puts Uber to Shame

November 6, 2024February 19, 2025Asia, Destinations, Travel, Travel Tips, Tricks, & Resources, Vietnam BigBody Leave a Comment

Vietnam isn’t what I would consider to be a destination for first-time travelers. It can be chaotic, loud, raw, unpredictable, and in your face. But that’s also why it’s addictive and one of my absolute favorite places. Once you prepare yourself to mentally and physically feel vulnerable, step outside of your comfort zone, and keep an open mind, there’s undoubtedly an enchanting character, environment, and depth that can be found in every pocket of the country, making it surprisingly more sustainable and comfortable than you might have first imagined.

Having spent over one year living in Ho Chi Minh City (aka Saigon), Vietnam, with regular month-long stints mixed into my yearly travels in subsequent years, I was one of the biggest ride-hailing app proponents in the country. It’s part and parcel of everyday life in Vietnam, for both locals and foreigners and you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who hasn’t used the country’s most popular ride-hailing and delivery service at least once.

However, if you think I’m talking about Uber, you’d be completely wrong. Uber is not available in Vietnam. Instead, almost 50% of the Vietnamese population uses the Southeast Asia-based ride-hailing service ‘Grab’ to get from Point A to Point B. I assure you, it puts Uber to shame with how comprehensive, affordable, and convenient it is.

Since Uber’s exit from the Southeast Asian market in 2018, Grab has overwhelmingly snagged the top spot as the region’s top ride-hailing app and service. It is a ‘one-stop-shop’ for everything you could want – from convenient and affordable transport to food delivery services, insurance and financial services, and even the ability to send packages and documents. I refer to it as a ‘super app’. In fact, most of Southeast Asia uses this app, so if you’re planning on making a trip, this is a must-download on your phone.

Here is everything you need to know about using ride-hailing services in Vietnam, alternative transportation methods available, and key scams and safety considerations to keep in mind when navigating this incredible country.

Pale Ale Travel Note: Don’t forget to check out my entire archive of Vietnam content here.

Free Travel Inspiration & Guides Sent Right to Your Inbox

November 4, 2024February 19, 2025Travel, Travel Tips, Travel Tips, Tricks, & Resources BigBody Leave a Comment

We are coming up on nearly 4 months of my (free) Pale Ale Travel newsletter going live. Side note: I’m not sure why I said ‘We’ when it’s just me…Big Body. And, I’m proud of it. I know when I first published this announcement about the newsletter, there wasn’t much to show for it.

So, I thought I would give you all some better insight into what it looks like and what you can expect 3-4 times per month (right to your inbox) – completely free.

My Second Month of Earnings on Mediavine Journey [October 2024]

November 4, 2024February 19, 2025Blogging, Travel, Travel Tips, Tricks, & Resources BigBody Leave a Comment

I’ll aim to keep this one brief. My second month of earnings on Mediavine Journey just came in and increased by 40%…but still leaves quite a bit to be desired.

You can find my first (and previous) month’s write-up about getting started on Mediavine Journey and its earnings in this past article: ‘How Much My Travel Blog Made Its First Month on Mediavine Journey’. In that article, I explain some common terms that are important for understanding earnings and a little bit about the Mediavine Journey analytics dashboard.

In the interest of not repeating myself, I recommend checking that post out if anything below doesn’t make sense and/or you’re unsure what they mean.

Without further ado, here’s exactly how much my travel blog made my second month on Mediavine Journey.

When is the Best Time to Visit Hong Kong? Recommendations From a Man on the Ground

October 25, 2024February 19, 2025Destinations, Hong Kong, Travel, Travel Tips, Tricks, & Resources BigBody Leave a Comment

As someone who has lived in Hong Kong for nearly 7 years now (and is still here), I can emphatically state that there are certain times of the year that I recommend traveling to Hong Kong and steering clear of the city altogether.

However, things aren’t always as straightforward as ‘X month’ or ‘X season good’, and ‘X month’ or ‘X season bad’. There’s nuance to it and if you ask me, every point of the year in Hong Kong has its advantages and disadvantages.

It all boils down to what you prefer. It also boils down to timing, feasibility, and affordability. Unfortunately, the holy triumvirate of harmonious circumstances is rarely on the table.

That said, I recommend visiting Hong Kong in either fall or winter, as the comfortable weather undoubtedly allows you to tick off the most items on a Hong Kong bucket list – specifically outdoor activities and exploring. However, if you’re on a budget and don’t mind unpredictable weather, spring is the time to go!

Below are the pros and cons of visiting Hong Kong during each season, including when I would plan my trip to Asia’s World City (if possible). I’ll also break down what you can generally expect in Hong Kong each season of the year, including weather, events, budget-wise.

Winter	Spring	Summer	Fall
Best for outdoor enthusiasts with extra $$$ who want want to take advantage of its incredible hikes, theme parks, and Chinese New Year festival!	Best for milder weather, blooming nature, fewer crowds, and festivals galore (like Rugby Sevens and the Qingming Festival) at a semi-affordable price.	Best for beach bums who want laid-back beach vibes, those seeking summer shopping sales, and festival lovers who want to experience Hong Kong at a heavily discounted price.	Best for cultural and musical festivals up the wazoo, cooler, drier weather, manageable crowds, and experiencing nearly everything Hong Kong has to offer.

My Hong Kong Packing List: 10 Items I Wouldn’t Touch Down in Asia’s World City Without

October 23, 2024February 19, 2025Asia, Destinations, Hong Kong, Travel, Travel Tips, Tricks, & Resources BigBody Leave a Comment

You’re currently reading an article written by the king of traveling somewhere and realizing halfway through the flight that they forgot nearly every essential item to ensure the trip goes off without a hitch. How can someone spend so much time just trying to remember to bring their $25 Amazon seat cushion (aka my ‘butt pillow’) yet forget the undergarments that they wear every single day?

That’s me. Hi. I’m Big Body. Spelled with the same ‘B’ that you use to spell ‘Bozo’.

Having lived in Hong Kong for nearly seven years (I’m currently here), I’ve been around the block or two. Been there, done that. “Gotten” several T-shirts. Traveling to and from the city, packing and unpacking, making hectic and spur-of-the-moment runs back and forth between Japan Home Centre and wherever I’m staying. Rinse and repeat several times.

So, I know a thing or two about what you absolutely need to pack for your trip to Hong Kong and what you can feasibly pick up at one of the many electronic stores, beauty chains, or one-stop destination retail chains.

Luckily, nearly every item and amenity you (probably) need for your trip is easily accessible in “Asia’s World City.” However, just to be safe, there are several things I’d make sure to definitely include in my Hong Kong packing list.

Here they are…