Generally, a tourist destination in Thailand starts off attracting the lower end of clients. This is backpackers and independent travelers. The facilities and amenities are basic. Often power is supplied by a generator. If there is internet it is very slow, and there are few choices about where to eat and stay. At this stage of development tourists stay in simple wooden bungalows with fans and mosquito nets.

As a place becomes more popular the accommodation starts to improve along with the infrastructure. Concrete bungalows with air-con and hot water become available. The influx of more money to an area often improves the roads and mains electricity becomes more common.

At the same time tourists with more money appear. They have heard about the exciting new destination and unspoiled nature and they want to see what all the fuss is about. These people have more money to spend on their holiday. As a result more bars and restaurants spring up offering better and more expensive wining and dining options.

Once a tourist destination in Thailand becomes a ‘hit’ developers with an eye for a bargain often appear on the scene. They build luxury resorts with swimming pools, charge high prices for food and drink and use a network of overseas travel agents to pull in the customers.

What was once a travelers’ secret becomes common knowledge. Not just Europeans start holidaying in the place but also Russians, Chinese and Japanese. The place assumes a gloss of desirability and people start to buy land in the area for private residences.

The island of Koh Phangan hit this point in 2007. Land prices started going up every year as people realized that the island was far more beautiful and unspoiled than the neighboring island of Koh Samui. Especially the Thong Nai Pan area in the north-east attracted a lot of attention from those looking to invest in land.

In 2008 the land price bubble burst but all is not bad news for the area. Several private villas have been built in Koh Phangan. In the hills around Thong Nai Pan there are a few luxury villas for rent. The price to stay in a hotel in Thong Nai Pan has soared to over $1,000 a night. It is at this point private villa rental in Thong Nai Pan becomes not only a viable business but a good budget option for tourists.

Places such as Sunrise Villa in Thong Nai Pan Noi can be rented for as little as $200 a night. For that renters get 3 bedrooms, not one. They also get a fully equipped kitchen, TV, hot water, air-con and all the amenities offered by the hotels but at a fraction of the cost.

For those put off by the high prices now being charged to stay in Koh Phangan it is worth checking out villa hire. The island has reached that stage in its development where there is enough demand for better value accommodation to make building luxury villas viable despite the current world house price downturn.

Examples of musicians who have succumbed to their nicotine addiction before their time include the likes of the guitarist John Cipollina who died at the young age of 45 from emphysema, Eric Carr the Kiss drummer who died at 41 years old, or the incredible Nat “King” Cole who was just 45.

These days we all know the damage smoking is capable of doing to our bodies but that doesn’t stop a large number of people in the public eye from taking up the habit, even if they now do it behind closed doors. This change has got a lot to do with the fact that smoking is now frowned upon by society and many people who have become addicted to nicotine are embarrassed about the fact that they find it impossible to stop.

Thankfully there is now a device on the market which allows the nicotine addict to get their fix without many of the poisons that are known to cause such conditions as lung cancer and heart disease. It’s called an electronic cigarette and you don’t have to be on a rock guitarist’s salary to be able to afford one for yourself.

The electronic cigarette is a tobacco replacement which delivers nicotine to the user in a cleaner manner. It’s battery powered and works by vaporizing a nicotine-laced liquid when the user inhales on the cigarette-shaped device.

There are a growing number of celebrities and normal people who have woken up to the possibility of switching over to the e cig from traditional tobacco products. People such as Leonardo Di Caprio, Katherine Heigl, and Johnny Depp have been seen using one and their influence is having an effect on the general population of smokers who see them as way to continue getting a fix without doing so much damage to their health.

These smokeless cigarettes are easily available on the Internet and web sites such as ecigaretteshop.com offer information on which are the best to buy. Brands such as Green Smoke, V2, and Safe Cig offer starter kits for as little as $60 so you don’t have to break the bank to get started. It’s a small price to pay to ensure you don’t end up six feet under 30 years before your time like many of the famous smokers who didn’t have the option to use this new high tech device before it was too late.

Since I’m a musician with a bit of higher education, I try to keep the partying to a responsible level. I’m not saying I am straight edge – by no means! I do like to knock back some beers before, during, and after a gig. However, I don’t do it as much as I used to when I was younger. I’m not the guy using my vaporizer every night behind the club. I have found that it tends to make my playing a bit sloppy. I need to bust out some solos throughout the show, and they need to be locked down tight.

The band is going pretty well lately. We have a very solid rhythm section. The drummer is really excellent, the guy can seriously shred with the likes of Neil Peart. I remember back when I was in high school, every drummer idolized Neil Peart. To be honest, I can’t name many other drummers, except maybe John Bonham from Led Zeppelin. I was just thinking of Led Zeppelin the other day when I was watching that movie Dazed and Confused. That movie was steeped in 70s culture. I don’t think people really knew how to use a vaporizer back then. Not sure if they were invented yet.

The main actor in that movie was named Jason London. I always get him confused with his brother Jeremy London. To be honest I really haven’t followed their respective careers much. I remember the kid in that movie was Wiley Wiggins. Not sure what’s going on with Wiley lately. That movie actually came out 18 years ago now. I was just looking at the IMDB page and I recognize a lot of the actors. Apparently Milla Jovovich was in it as well. Didn’t expect that.

Anyway, it’s back to practicing now. Gotta learn the mixolydian scale.

I’ve been busking with my guitar on and off for about 10 years now. I mainly do it for fun and for the opportunities it provides to get out there and meet people – you’d be surprised how many people take the trouble to talk with you in between songs.

Despite money not being the main objective for me, I decided to try a little experiment to see whether I could increase my earnings with a simple technique.

The Theory

You see, I had heard from a friend who was also into busking that if you have a dog with you it somehow increases the amount of money that people are willing to drop into your guitar case. I’d heard studies had shown that people believed strangers they met were more trustworthy if they had a dog in tow, so it seemed a relatively small leap to me that they’d also be willing to part with more cash when I was busking with a dog.

Maybe people think that the dog is an extra mouth to feed so they give more generously, or perhaps it just serves as an extra point of interest that draws in folk because I stand out from the crowd that bit more. Who knows? Whatever the reasons might be, I took it upon myself to run my little experiment to see whether there was any truth in it.

The Experiment

Usually I leave my dog, Dylan, at home with my wife. But on the day of the experiment I took him along with me with his smartest collar and lead; I’d even spent a good half hour on dog grooming duties before leaving the house. Boy, did he look smart – actually he looked smarter than me because I’d found over the years that it doesn’t pay to be too smartly dressed when busking.

I set up in my usual spot on the High Street and began strumming and crooning, working through my tried and tested repertoire. In the interests of making my completely unscientific experiment as valid as possible, I made a point of staying in my normal location, playing my usual busking guitar and working my way through the exact same set of songs that I’d used the previous weekend.

The previous weekend, I pulled in $124.87. Would the addition of Dylan, my trusty four-legged friend boost my earnings?

The Results

After 4 hours of busking, I stopped playing and packed up my things. I could wait to get home with my guitar case full of money to count up my earnings and discover whether Dylan had brought me luck.

Once back at home, I tipped my earnings out onto the kitchen table and began counting. I thought that I’d earned more just from keeping an eye on how much people were giving as I played, but I would soon have the answer for sure.

The results blew me away! For the same amount of busking, with an identical guitar, in the same part of town, only with my pet dog sitting alongside me, I’d earned $157.63. That’s $32.76 more, or to put it another way, Dylan’s presence increased my earnings by over 26%.

That’s a pretty remarkable result by anyone’s standards.

Needless to say, Dylan has accompanied me on my all of my subsequent busking trips…

Haad Rin is the economic focus of the small island of Koh Phangan in the Gulf of Thailand. Until the 1970s it was an obscure island in the south of Thailand that survived mostly on fishing and coconut plantations. That changed when the first backpackers started making the boat trip over from Koh Samui. The first place these backpackers went was Haad Rin. It was the obvious choice because it was close to Koh Samui and it is an area blessed with both sunrise and sunset beaches. In 1987 the first Full Moon Party (FMP) was held. Within just a few years it became the biggest monthly beach party in Asia. It bought wealth and fame to the island.

Geography of Haad Rin

Haad Rin is on a narrow peninsula in the south east of Koh Phangan. Haad Rin is effectively prevented from expanding by the sea on both sides and a steep hill that separates it from the neighboring village of Ban Tai. This has meant that Haad Rin has not become a sprawling urban center by the beach such as is the case with Chaweng in Koh Samui. The advantage of this is that you can walk everywhere in Haad Rin.

Beaches of Haad Rin

There are 3 main beaches on the peninsula: Haad Rin Nok (sunrise beach), Haad Rin Nai (sunset beach) and Sarikantang (just south of Haad Rin Nai). There are very few beach resorts on the main beach of Haad Rin Nok. The notable exception is Palita Lodge that used to be a cheap backpacker place but now has some of the most expensive rooms on the island. The beach front of Haad Rin Nok is devoted to bars that roll out sound systems on the night of the full moon.

Most of the bungalows and hotel rooms in Haad Rin are in the town and on the opposite beach of Haad Rin Nai. This beach also has a ferry port with regular boats to Maenam in Koh Samui. The beach while it has white sand is not good for swimming. The advantage of Haad Rin Nai is that it has a sunset over the ocean and it is a quieter spot for those wishing to escape the noise of the bars.

The most peaceful beach is Haad Sarikantang. It takes about 20 minutes to walk to the party from Haad Sarikantang. It is a long narrow beach good for swimming and sunbathing. There are just a couple of mid-range resorts at Sarikantang and is perhaps the best place to stay during the FMP if you have the money.

Haad Rin accommodations

Resorts and hotels in Haad Rin do not offer great luxury. Many have pools and air-con rooms with TV but nothing over 2 or 3 stars could be attributed to these accommodations. Haad Rin resorts charge peak season prices during the Full Moon Party and also insist on a minimum stay of between 3 and 6 nights. Much better value accommodation can be found elsewhere on the island.

However, birds of a feather flock together: party people want to be at the heart of the action and so staying in Haad Rin will continue to be popular despite the bad value it represents.

Photo by wie-wolf

Most of us are probably more interested in making music than historical research, so it’s hardly surprising that many of us couldn’t tell you when the guitar was invented or what a “vihuela” might be.

The history of the guitar begins in the 15th century in Spain with an instrument that had many more strings and several extra holes compared to modern day guitars.

But before we get into such details, I think it’s important to understand the key characteristics of the guitar. After all, if we are to understand something of the guitar’s history and origins, we need to have a common understanding of what a guitar actually is.

What is a Guitar?

A guitar is a stringed instrument that is played by plucking the strings with the fingers of one hand (or strumming many strings in the case of playing chords), and pressing down the strings against the fretboard with the other hand so as to change the notes produced.

Guitarists may sit or stand when playing. If seated, the classical position is to rest the body of the guitar upon the left leg (for a left handed player), plucking or strumming the strings with the right hand and pressing on the fretboard with the left hand. That said, many modern guitarists tend to adopt the more casual position of resting the guitar on the right leg. It’s fine either way, although some folks get rather uptight about the rest of us not doing things the “correct” way.

What is a Vihuela?

Stringed instruments have been around for hundreds of years and one of the early predecessors of the modern guitar was the “vihuela”. Vihuelas had 12 strings, several holes in the front of the body and frets to show the player where to place their fingers.

The strings were arranged in courses, in much the same way as modern 12-string guitars are made. The normal arrangement was for 6 courses, which means 6 sets of double strings.

Who Invented the First Guitar?

In the 1850s, a chap by the name of Antonio de Torres Jurado began to make instruments that we’d recognise today as guitars. They were made from thin, light wood and had large bodies. There were 6 single strings stretched across a fretboard and a big hole in the middle of the guitar body.

The new design meant that it was easier for the player to play different notes and the tones produced were richer, louder and more pleasing to the ear.

The Transition to the Modern Guitar

Today, most guitar bodies are still made from wood, but some are partly made from plastic or metal.

The Torres shape is still very popular, although there are different shapes of guitar used for different types of music. A good example of this is the arch-top guitars that are commonly used for playing jazz. These guitars have a curved wooden top and f-shaped holes like a violin’s. They use metal strings, which are wound tighter and produce a loud, sharp sound.

These days there are many other shapes of guitar available, including unusual shapes such as the Flying V and novelty shapes that are possible because the electric guitars favoured by many guitarists these days get their timbres more from the electronics than from the physical qualities of the guitar body.

So, from its humble beginnings in the 1400s, the guitar has taken the musical world by storm. We can all thank Senor Torres for his great work in developing a musical instrument that not only produces great music, but is also a pleasure to play.

If you don’t own one, get out there and buy a guitar today. It’s such a wonderful instrument to play because it’s so versatile and can easily be transported and played anywhere (within reason). For advice on how to buy a guitar, simply search around online, ask a knowledgeable friend, or pick the brains of the guys in your local guitar store.

Take your time and pick the one that’s right for you. There’s so much choice that it can be a little overwhelming, but with the right advice, you’ll get the perfect one for you.

Koh Samui reminds me of that song by Joni Mitchell ‘Big Yellow Taxi’: ‘They paved paradise and put up a parking lot’. Since the island started receiving visitors in the early 1970s they have covered the coast with roads, resorts, bars and all manner of shoddy concrete buildings. The original visitors were happy with golden beaches and wooden bungalows, those who go to the island now seem to need an airport, big hospitals, hundreds of hotels and urban centers full of morally dubious bars. Such is the story of tourism as a commercial venture. It was with no small amount of surprise then that I went to visit a friend staying on Taling Ngam beach.

I was holidaying in Than Sadet in Koh Phangan at the time and so reluctantly I made the journey over to Maenam by boat and then caught a songthaew to Taling Ngam.

I had never been to the southeast of Koh Samui before. After Lamai the development got a lot thinner; by the time I got to Taling Ngam there were hardly any buildings to be seen other than the impressive Conrad Koh Samui hugging the rocks at the end of the bay.

Taling Ngam has a long stretch of white sand with an extensive tree cover that stretches back from the beach for quite a distance. Among the trees and along the beach are a few resorts, shops and a small fishing village. As a result, Taling Ngam feels very different to the main centers of Chaweng or Lamai. It is a place with space, nature and just a few people: full of the considerable beauty of nature.

I found my friends at Am Samui Resort. They had reserved for me a bungalow near the beach. Although the bungalow had more home comforts than the one I had just stayed in at Than Sadet it was not over-the-top. What was nice was the free wifi around the resort. The food at the restaurant was also good. I spent a very pleasant couple of days on Taling Ngam beach. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to know what Koh Samui was like before the concrete arrived in massive amounts. It is one small part of paradise that hasn’t been turned into a parking lot!

But first, I will teach you some Spanish so you can have an easier way to talk with the locals:)

If you want to ask  how can you find cheap flights to Peru´s capital Lima to a travel agent, in Spanish you say:

“Como puedo conseguir pasajes en oferta y economicos a Lima?, nescesito vuelos Baratos a Peru por favor, muchas gracias”

Well, that is the start, after you get a great airfare to fly into Peru using the different  “search engines flights”  in the Internet(by the way I recommend Kayak.com and Vuelosbaratos.es as they are my favorites), it´s time to talk about Peru´s premier surf destination, Chicama.

Chicama is a small fishing village about 40 kilometres from the Trujillo city in Northern Peru. It is a world famous surf spot as it is know to be the longest left hander in the earth.

For this wave to work, it needs very strong swells, so if you are planning to go there just to surf, a great Idea is to wait for the Swells in Huanchaco beach. It is a very nice town near Trujillo city and you have more consistent waves as it beach is more exposed, hence need smaller swells.

Anyway, the best season for surfing in Chicama is from March to September.

Here is a video for you to check how amazing this wave is!

Hope you can make it there as it is an amazing surf spot and get to know the amazing Peru people, ancient culture and taste Peru´s main meal the ceviche!

Many of us that have read about the prevention of Alzheimer’s know full well that the disease can be kept at bay by keeping the mind stimulated. Likewise, by keeping a cat stimulated and helping them lead a healthy lifestyle, we can help our cats avoid this form of dementia. Dr Frank Gunn-Moore of The University of St Andrews says that mental stimulation, a healthy lifestyle and some companionship are sure to lower cats’ and humans’ chances of developing dementia. A lot of cat climbing furniture and cat toys sure to aid with stimulation of the mind. Likewise, some activities should allow your cat to remain stimulated.

Outdoors

A domesticated cat will be able to experience mental stimulation through different means, and one way of helping your cat is by sometimes taking him outdoors, not only for a different view, but for fresh air and sensing nature all around him. This is especially ideal if your cat is almost never outdoors. One great idea is to buy your cat a leash, to ensure that he does not wander off or run and never come back when you take him outside.

Videos

Another way of keeping cats stimulated is by having them watch some videos that work the way Baby Einstein videos stimulate babies. These videos can be that of birds, colors, as well as other things that fascinate cats.

Cat Toys

In buying mentally stimulating cat toys for your cat, choose toys that will allow your cat to figure out how things are working. For example, there are toys that will need some buttons pressed in the correct sequence before they dispense something, perhaps a sort of reward – like catnip. With these types of toys, your cat is sure to get some mental exercise, as he tries to figure out how things work in order for him to get the prize. There are also some toys for cats that are advertised as “thinking” toys. These toys should also be perfect for keeping your cat’s mental faculties healthy and balanced.

I may have aspirations in the music industry, but I do have a college degree as well. My undergrad is in music theory and performance. It was quite a good program and liked my time in college. As I try to make it as a guitarist, I am also considering going to graduate school as a backup plan. As a result I’ve become interested in the ‘business’ part of the music business. I’ve always been pretty good at math – I think that is true for many musicians. So one thing I am considering is going to get an MBA. This means Master’s in Business Administration.

One important step in getting an MBA is to take an exam called the GMAT. Basically every decent business school requires that you take this test. The best score you can get is an 800, but most good schools want you to get at least a 700. So if I decide to pursue my interest in business, I will make sure to study plenty of GMAT sample questions so I can score well.

Now let me talk about this amazing guitar I’ve been playing lately. It’s a Gibson Les Paul. This guitar was always popular among musicians, but it wasn’t very well known among the mainstream public. However, once Slash from Guns N Roses began to use use this guitar, the popularity really took off! I’d say that a decent nuber of rock fans could place a Les Paul now.