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The top 8 books about being incarcerated in a third world prison for drugs.

9/8/2014

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I admit it’s a strange niche, but I promise you it’s also one that’s downright infectious with its readers. Then again, these are strange bunch – a hodgepodge of literate expatriates, backpackers, surfers, world travelers, and adventurers. This genre equally attracts a shadow class of readers – those who hop borders to make a buck (often by unscrupulous means, themselves,) to evade the law back home, dodge the IRS, or just live “off the grid” for when the Illuminati/zombie apocalypse goes down. 

These books are about people who tried their hand at smuggling drugs, got set up as unwitting mules, or just used them recreationally, but managed to gewere pinched in the worst possible places, where human rights are a joke and survival is a daily fight. For the most part, we’re not talking about fiction. These stories are about real people who got busted for drug-related crimes far from home and did some of the hardest time imaginable. Most of them are the first to confess their guilt yet a few of them are innocent or at least defensible – though justice was never once served. In some cases, a death sentence would have been far more humane. Also worth noting, this is also not about religious or political captives or prisoners of war. These books are about private citizens who danced with the devil, got caught, and barely managed to crawl back out of hell to tell their stories.

No matter how they come about these titles, a reader rarely just picks up one. Brits, Looneys (Canadians,) Kiwis, Swedes, Frogs (sorry) – they come from every country. Cambodia, Thailand, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, South Africa, Peru; they pick up these books at hostels, battered copies at little used book stores along the backpacker circuit, or grab counterfeit copies off the street for a dollar or two. They devour them in a couple of days, while smoking fags and drinking pints in cafes or on the beach. Then, they tell their equally eclectic friends and move on to the next book in the genre. 

Maybe it's pure Schadenfreude, or perhaps we globe trotters we've all made mistakes or associated with people that could have landed us in the same situations with a bad roll of the dice. Acute fear is a strange thing - unnervingly repulsive and yet we can't bring ourselves to look away. And so is the darkness of human imagination, for I dare you to read these and not think, "What would I do if that happened to me? Would I survive?"  

Here are the top 8 books about travelers incarcerated in foreign prisons for drug offenses. I listed them by their popularity (number of reviews) on Amazon.com, and a quick bio so you know what they're all about. 



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Shantaram
By Gregory David Roberts.
Note: This book garnered almost mythical intrigue among travelers, who mostly thought it was nonfiction. It turns out it's a novel, though possibly based on a true story or inspired by true events. Whatever the case, it's a wild read! 

"It took me a long time and most of the world to learn what I know about love and fate and the choices we make, but the heart of it came to me in an instant, while I was chained to a wall and being tortured." 
So begins this epic, mesmerizing first novel set in the underworld of contemporary Bombay. Shantaram is narrated by Lin, an escaped convict with a false passport who flees maximum security prison in Australia for the teeming streets of a city where he can disappear.


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South of Normal
By Norm Schriever.
Frustrated and unfulfilled with his comfortable existence in the States, successful businessman Norm Schriever knows there is something more he is supposed to do with his life. So, he quits his job, sells and donates all of his possessions, and moves down to Tamarindo, Costa Rica, with nothing but a laptop and a surfboard, vowing to chase his long-forgotten dream of being a writer. But before he even arrives, his one and only gringo friend in Costa Rica is set up by a corrupt local attorney and thrown in a horrid local prison. Starting on his first day in town, Norm has to spend way too much "quality time" visiting his friend in that prison, where he's locked in with the other inmates. Norm soon finds that paradise has its dark side, and the perfect life in a little seaside town isn't always as easy as it seems. Whether it's adapting to the local customs and the language barrier, dodging lawless drug traffickers and corrupt cops, or helping to keep his friend alive in prison, Norm always keeps his sense of humor and forges ahead, intent on finding the paradise he has been looking for. 


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Marching Powder
By Thomas McFadden and Rusty Young.
Rusty Young was backpacking in South America when he heard about Thomas McFadden, a convicted English drug trafficker who ran tours inside Bolivia's notorious San Pedro prison. Intrigued, the young Australian journalist went to La Paz and joined one of Thomas's illegal tours. They formed an instant friendship and then became partners in an attempt to record Thomas's experiences in the jail. The result is Marching Powder.

This book establishes that San Pedro is not your average prison. Inmates are expected to buy their cells from real estate agents. Others run shops and restaurants. Women and children live with imprisoned family members. It is a place where corrupt politicians and drug lords live in luxury apartments, while the poorest prisoners are subjected to squalor and deprivation. Violence is a constant threat, and sections of San Pedro that echo with the sound of children by day house some of Bolivia's busiest cocaine laboratories by night. In San Pedro, cocaine--"Bolivian marching powder"--makes life bearable.



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Mr. Nice
By Howard Marks

During the mid 1980s Howard Marks had 43 aliases, 89 phone lines, and owned 25 companies throughout the world. Whether bars, recording studios, or offshore banks, all were money laundering vehicles serving the core activity: dope dealing. Marks began to deal small amounts of hashish while doing a postgraduate philosophy course at Oxford, but soon he was moving much larger quantities. At the height of his career he was smuggling consignments of up to 50 tons from Pakistan and Thailand to America and Canada and had contact with organizations as diverse as MI6, the CIA, the IRA, and the Mafia. This is his extraordinary story.




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Midnight Express
By  Billy Hayes and William Hoffer.  
Midnight Express tells the gut-wrenching true story of a young man’s incarceration and escape from a Turkish prison. A classic story of survival and human endurance, told with humor, honesty, and heart, it became the Academy Award-winning blockbuster film of the same name.

In 1970 Billy Hayes was an English major who left college in search of adventures to write about, like his hero Jack London. He had a rude awakening when he was arrested at the airport in Istanbul trying to board a plane while carrying four pounds of hashish, and given a life sentence. After five brutal years, relentless efforts by his family to gain his release, and endless escape plotting, Hayes finally took matters into his own hands. On a dark night, in a wailing storm he began a desperate and daring escape to freedom…



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The Damage Done
By Warren Fellows.

In 1978 Warren Fellows, Paul Hayward and William Sinclair were convicted of heroin trafficking between Thailand and Australia. They were sentenced to life imprisonment in Bangkok's notorious Bang Kwang men's prison, the Bangkok Hilton. For Warren Fellows, it was the beginning of twelve years of hell.

The Damage Done takes you behind the bars of a Bangkok prison. A place where sewer rats and cockroaches are the only nutritious food, where autocratic prison guards giggle as they deliver pulverising blows and where the worst punishment by far is the khun deo - solitary confinement, Thai style.




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Escape    
By David McMillan. 

Among the 600 foreigners jailed in the 'Bangkok Hilton', one man resolves to do what no other has done: Escape. This is the true story of drug smuggler David McMillan’s perilous break-out from Thailand’s most notorious prison. After more than a year in prison and two weeks before a near-certain death sentence, McMillan escapes, never to be seen in Thailand again.




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The Cocaine Diaries
By Jeff Farrell and Paul Keany.

'It won't happen to me. That's what I thought when I got on the plane to Venezuela. But it did - I got caught.'

Caught smuggling half a million euros' worth of cocaine, Paul Keany was sexually assaulted by Venezuelan anti-drugs officers before being sentenced to eight years in the notorious Los Teques prison outside Caracas. There he was plunged into a nightmarish world of coke-fuelled killings, gun battles, stabbings, extortion and forced hunger strikes until finally, just over two years into his sentence, he gained early parole and embarked on a daring escape from South America...




Click here for a free download of the first chapters of South of Normal!
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An email from an African immigrant.

7/13/2014

1 Comment

 
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I received an email from an African man last week, a gentlemen from the country of Nambia who had a few questions about moving abroad. I write a lot articles and blogs on travel and living in other countries, so he read one and reached out to me. 

I wanted to share our exchange with you. Why?

In the United States, 'immigrant' is a bad word. At least some times it is, for some people. But particularly right now in the United States, the only frame of reference most of us have with the idea of immigration is people from Mexico and Central America illegally sneaking into our borders. Or we might have a feint notion of Irish, Italian, Polish, etc. immigrants coming through Ellis Island in faded photographs.  

But the world is filled with migrants - to and from every single country, throughout every inch of the world, the ebb and flow of our existence within geography is as old as human kind, itself. In fact, borders are unnatural. We are all on the same globe, yet we draw an invisible line and call the space within "ours," almost arbitrarily - in proportion to our power, opened or shut per our convenience. The permitters of nations are like rubber bands, constricting and expanding through history as wars, refugees, famines, disputes, industry, colonization, language changes, social and cultural norms, and  even weather patterns change.  

I don't play at politics, so I'm not trying to tell you that the borders of the United States should be open to everyone, all the time. Of course that would be a disaster, and every country requires policies who can enter and who can not. I don't have the answer what that policy should be, exactly. The only thing I know is that there is a far bigger picture of immigration than the average person understands in the U.S., so I'm trying to paint the corners. Hopefully through this blog, you will be introduced to another kind of immigrant, a real person with a life journey outside you previous realm of understanding, to humanize the issue beyond headlines and political rhetoric.  

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As I've travled all over the world, I've noticed a few things:

1. Every country experiences the same circumstances: people from more economically-disadvantaged countries trying to enter for jobs, safety, or a better life. And the population of every country is trying to enter another country for economic advantage. Everyone's nature is to try to move up. The United States is one of the few countries where that does not occur - our citizens don't have anywhere to go but down.

2. The vast majority of immigrants are good people who just want to work hard, take care of their families, and live happy lives. I estimate that percentage to be exactly the same as the rest of the non-immigrant population who are good people who work hard, take care of their families, and live happy lives.  

3. How can we criticize an immigrant when his country was colonized by the same people who are now denying him entry to theirs?  

4. I have been an illegal immigrant - living and conducting business in countries for periods longer than my tourist visa allows, so I have no right to judge anyone. It's not easy. There 

5. In fact, I know that if I was born into poor circumstances and had trouble putting food on the table or keeping my family safe, I'd take advantage of every opportunity to move somewhere else for a better life.

Would you?

Here is the email I received from this gentlemen from Africa, and my reply:

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Hi Norm,

Im T.J. (name changed) a 30-year old black man from Namibia, Africa who is
interested in working overseas either in Canada, Germany, United Kingdom, or United Arab Emirates.

I'd like to know from you as you possess priceless information in travel as to which countries are worth the effort. I'm  looking for a country offering the following;

1) minimal racial discrimination- I was born and raised in the Apartheid era. (Namibia was colonised by the very same racist South African government after Germany lost the 2nd world war)

2) Well-paying unskilled or semi-skilled jobs. I want to earn and save as much foreign currency as possible to help shoulder some family responsibilities (check out the Namibian dollar exchange rate in comparison to £/€/$,im sure it can help paint a picture)

3) Opportunities to help forge business endeavours with foreigners while living aboard, as there are many opportunities here in Namibia which foreigners can benifit from including my own people (trying to utilize any opportunity available should i go overseas).

4) Which towns/cities one should consider living in within these countries.

I hope im making enough sense concerning the posed questions,if not please do let me know as not all info on the net is reliable regarding these countries and i need raw info and you are the main man
concerning this:)

To conclude i highly appreciate any response given regarding this matter and any extra info will be treasured thank you for your time in reading my letter Norm.

Regards,
T.J.

***

Hello T.J.;

So nice of you to reach out and say hello.  Thanks for asking that great question, and I hope I can help.  I have a little experience with those places or what I've heard, and out of those, I think Canada might be my first choice.  Of course it is cold, but from what I see there are plenty of work opportunities, they have a liberal immigration and work policy, and the economy is terrific.  Also, I understand Canada is a country with large immigrant and foreigner/non-white pockets of population, and there is far less racism that in my home country, the U.S.  Vancouver is the best city there but crazy expensive.  Toronto has the most international flavor and that may be a good place to start.  I know a lot of people who work in mining or drilling way up north and make great money - they'll work a month on and two weeks off or some schedule like that.  So it's not glamorous at all, but they make great money without advanced qualifications and it gives them some time freedom.

Germany's economy is tough right now and there is a big  anti-immigrant sentiment.  England is great and possibly my second choice, though it's very expensive and more competitive in London.  I really don't know that much about UAE.

I certainly hope that helps ! I applaud your efforts to build a better life for you and your family, and wish you the best of luck. Please keep me posted and keep in touch!

Your brother and friend,

Norm Schriever

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Thinking of moving to Costa Rica?  7 Books you should read.

7/10/2014

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Costa Rica is one of the most amazing countries on earth, with natural beauty, beaches, and a warm culture that's unparalleled. Every year, almost 2.5 million tourists visit the nation that has no army, and thousands of expats and retirees from the United States and Canada move there annually. If you're thinking about moving to Costa Rica - or just going for a vacation - you definitely will want to read these books. They're not guide books, but real life narratives by people who actually moved there and experienced Costa Rica first hand. The books are listed by popularity and you can click on the titles to link to Amazon.com

Feel free to email me if you have any questions about moving to Costa Rica. Pura vida and happy reading!  

-Norm Schriever   :-)

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Happier Than A Billionaire.

In this humorous and witty account, Nadine Pisani shares what it is like to follow her dream of quitting her job and starting a new life under the sunny skies of Costa Rica. Along the way, she finds reliable utilities are not that reliable, quirky neighbors are unavoidable, and tackling red tape takes the strength of a linebacker. But with all its challenges, you'll learn why Costa Rica is ranked as one of the happiest places on earth--and you too may want to taste the Pura Vida lifestyle.

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South of Normal.

A gonzo blast of laughs and adventure about a year spent in the tropical paradise of Tamarindo, Costa Rica. Frustrated and unfulfilled with the rat race in the States, businessman Norm Schriever quits his job, sells and donates all of his possessions, and moves down to Tamarindo, Costa Rica, with nothing but a laptop and a surfboard. But Norm soon finds that paradise has its dark side. Whether it’s adapting to the local customs and the language barrier, dodging lawless drug traffickers and corrupt cops, or spending “quality time” in a Third World prison, Norm always keeps his sense of humor and forges ahead, intent on finding the paradise he has been looking for. 

To download a free sample, click here.


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In Search of Captain Zero.

In 1996, Allan Weisbecker sold his home and his possessions, loaded his dog and surfboards into his truck, and set off in search of his long-time surfing companion, Patrick, who had vanished into the depths of Central America. In this rollicking memoir of his quest from Mexico to Costa Rica to unravel the circumstances of Patrick's disappearance, Weisbecker intimately describes the people he befriended, the bandits he evaded, the waves he caught and lost en route to finding his friend. 


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Two Weeks in Costa Rica.

Have you ever been attacked by monkeys, hiked in one of the most biologically diverse places on earth, or had your wallet stolen, then given back? Matthew Houde and Jennifer Turnbull share these adventures and more in the book, Two Weeks in Costa Rica.


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Unraveling the Mysteries of Moving to Costa Rica.

Ever wonder what it would be like to leave the U.S. and move to the tropics? This book deftly blends the personal story of the author (who, along with her husband and parents, moved from Maine to Costa Rica) with incredibly helpful practical advice. A wonderfully readable resource for anyone considering moving to Costa Rica. First in the Mainers in Costa Rica series.


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Paradise Imperfect.

Margot and Anthony were ordinary parents. With two jobs and three kids, there was soccer and carpool and too much to do, and a little chronic stress about money. Then one night, following a day that was a regular amount of hectic, Margot had an idea: “I think we should move to Costa Rica.” Seven weeks later, there they were, jobless on top of a mountain, hours from the nearest paved road. This witty, insightful memoir of a family's struggle to right itself in a leafy new world is about parenting and privilege, loneliness and connection. It’s about what happens when a stressed-out technology professional escapes with her loved ones to an idyllic mountaintop...and finds that even when everything changes, some things remain the same.

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Hope, Happiness and Pura Vida.

Heart Attack = One Week Vacation = A Story of Adventure = Life Lessons = Is Your Life in Need of a Makeover? Go along on an adventure as Debbie Knight shares a seven year journey that she and her husband, Chuck, followed in pursuit of the “pure" life in Costa Rica. You will learn about the magic of Pura Vida in one of the happiest places on earth and learn sometimes why it can also be a rather frustrating experience. You will question if your life is on the right track or if it too is in need of a makeover.


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What's your best advice for young adults looking to travel and where are the best places to go?

2/5/2014

2 Comments

 
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I received an email from a reader the other day with these questions:  

"What would be the best advice for young adults trying to travel or move out the country?  And which countries are best to move to?"

Super questions!  My best advice for young adults trying to move out of the country would be to travel while you’re young.  Do it now when you don’t mind long bus rides and bad beds and you don’t have a lot keeping you back in the states  (or your home country.)  Life has a way of anchoring you as you go on, and pretty soon you might have a good job, an apartment lease, car payments, a house, or a relationships or marriage that keeps you grounded.  So do it now!  

I would also suggest that you form a plan how you are going to fund the trip a good ways out – maybe 6 months? - and work your butt off until that date arrives.  You’ll have to sacrifice a lot; eating out, nights partying with friends, the newest clothes or concert tickets, but all of that money will be essential if you’re going to travel. In that time you have to prepare, read everything you can about your destination countries, learn about the cultures, watch documentaries, and read some travel articles and books that will give you a taste of real life on the road, too. 

Last thing: be careful.  The rest of the world is not a fantasy land and most people have problems that we can’t even imagine in the US.  So getting too drunk, walking around alone, messing with drugs, getting in with the wrong crowd, etc. could lead you into situations you can’t get out of.  Slow play the partying and keep your eyes open and you’ll be fine.  

The other question, "Where should you go?"

That all depends on what you’re looking for, but I’m going to take a wild guess and say you want someplace warm, with a beach, that’s not too expensive, where there are other backpackers?  That opens up one set of possibilities, but others want to volunteer, or to experience authentic culture more than partying and lying on the beach.  It also makes a huge difference if you’re just going backpacking around or trying to live there for a year and work.

When I chose a country to live in (not just vacation!) I have a rough guide of criteria, based on priorities.  Make your own list and then do some research what might be a good fit.    

Tier 1
• Cheap – lodging around $300-$500 a month, total budget around $1,500 a month.
• Nice beach – a beautiful white sand beach goes a long way in balancing out all other factors!
• Friendly people – Then again, I don’t care how beautiful a country is, if the people aren’t warm and friendly, I’ll keep it moving.  I’m not down with snobbery or arrogance.
• Safe politically – don’t be freaked out by one news story in a country (if we judged the US by that same standard we’d never want to visit!) but also don’t mess with places where a coup or political violence is occurring.  Same thing goes for countries with terrorism, religious radicals, or drug cartel problems.
• Good WIFI (no kidding – I write/work as I live abroad so I’m screwed without a serviceable internet connection)
• City, town, or village?  There are pros and cons to each as you balance amenities, convenience, laid back vibe, nature, etc.

Tier 2
• Healthy, cheap food – I want to say “Yummmmm,” for $3 a meal, not for $7 a meal and up.  
• Culture – things to do like visiting temples, ruins, archeological sites, natural wonders, etc.
• Night life – of course you want a little bit of fun, but are you looking for mellow beach bars or clubbing all night long?
• Safety walking the streets
• Ability to get work –teaching English, teaching yoga, or working at a hostel or bar are some of the best possibilities for local employment
• Some tourism, but not overrun – the problem you’ll encounter is that the places you want to go, everyone else in the world wants to go there, too.  The trick is to find a place that is ahead of the curve, not way behind it when it will be too crowded/too expensive/soulless.  
• Diversity of population – I like a place that has a healthy blend of backpackers, expatriates, vactioners, and plenty of locals who still live there – not just work there.  That’s harder to find than you’d think!


Tier 3
• Speak some English – you should attempt to learn the local lingo but it really helps when they speak a few words of English.
• Proximity – The southern tip of Patagonia in Argentina is amazing, but don’t think you’re just a hop, skip, and jump away from main cities.  It’s fun to be in a city/country where you can get around easily, hopping buses and even small flights around the country or region easily.  
• Good gym – since I’m living in these countries I want to go to the gym every day and especially love boxing or muay thai, etc., but maybe you just want to surf or do yoga, etc.
• Family friendly – I like locations that don’t just have a bunch of 20 year old kids but a cross section of real life, including families and people who are old (my age.)

Based on those criteria, some great spots I’d suggest:  Costa Rica, Panama, Nicaragua, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Cuba (I’m dying to go there!), India, Sri Lanka, Israel, Jordan, Ghana, Senegal, Vietnam (good one,) Cambodia, Thailand (a little too touristy for my liking,) Laos, Mynmar, the Philippines, and Bali in Indonesia.  That’s a short list.  You can do the Caribbean and Europe when you’re older, plus they’re a little too expensive. 

I hope that helps, and happy travels!

-Norm  :-)

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Is Costa Rica in your future? Required reading for expats, vacationers, and backpackers.

9/11/2013

1 Comment

 
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Costa Rica is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world, with 60 million foreign visitors each year.  It's reputation as an eco paradise and beach lover's dream are well deserved, in the land with no army where the national saying is "pura vida," or pure life.  However, just like any place, there are challenging facets to life in Costa Rica, economic and cultural realities that are essential to navigate for anyone spending more than a week there.  

Since writing South of Normal, my nonfiction account of the wild, crazy, and immensely beautiful year I live in Tamarindo, Costa Rica, I get emails, Tweets, and Facebook messages from people all over the world.  The one thing in common is that they are thinking of moving down to Costa Rica, or at least going there for a nice sunny vacation, and would love some inside information.  So I've put together a compilation of the articles and blogs I've written about heading down to Costa Rica.  Most of these are from the Huffington Post Travel or my own blog, and in their entirety I think will really help folks in their transition to life in paradise.  Feel free to drop me a line if you have other questions or want to share your adventure! 

Email hi@NormSchriever.com   
Twitter @NormSchriever 

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Thinking of Moving to Costa Rica? 5 Questions and Answers You NEED to Know!

10 Secrets to Booking Cheap Airfare to Costa Rica.

Your Life in a Backpack; What to Pack For 6 Months Traveling Abroad.

Crazy Facts About Costa Rica.

10 Things to Consider Before You Move to a Foreign Country.

10 Tips to Stay Safe While Traveling Abroad.

The Border You've Never Heard About.

Fun and Facts About Costa Rica.

It's a Small World. 

25 Ways You Know You're in an Awesome Third World Country, Once Again.

45 Jobs You Can do From The Beach.

Virtual Jobs You Can do From The Beach, Part 2.

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Work From The Beach; an Interview With Elance.com CMO Rich Pearson.

Blue, Green, Breathe.  A bonus chapter from South of Normal.

TamaRumors.

I Was Born in The U.S., Yet I Did Nothing to Deserve That.

Finally, give a read to the Amazon.com best selling book, South of Normal, which has been called essential reading for any Costa Rican expat or vacationer!

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25 Ways You Know You’re in a Third World Country, Once Again.

8/19/2013

1 Comment

 
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I just landed in Ho Chi Minh city, Vietnam 48 hours ago, and the barrage to my senses is like a reunion with a beloved old friend; the chaotic blur of sights, the symphony of car horns, the masses of humanity.  But no matter whether I’ve been in Cairo Egypt, Tamarindo, Costa Rica, or Manila in the Philipines, there are some commonalities I’ve noticed in all developing countries (sorry, Third World sounded better in the title.)  For those of you who have traveled abroad – or grew up in another country – these might sound fondly familiar. 

1.      Most of the luggage on the airport conveyor belt is boxes duct taped together and addressed with a Sharpie.

2.     Everyone wears flip flops, even the construction workers, except the police, who wear proper shoes, though they’re the only ones not running around.  

3.      Women have burn scars on the back of their calves from hot motorbike exhaust pipes.

4.     You’re supposed to throw toilet paper in the waste basket, not flush it.

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5.    There’s a showerhead right in the tiny bathroom and a drain on the floor, so you could sit on the toilet, brush your teeth in the sink, and take a shower all at the same time if you were so inclined.

6.     The top sports on TV are soccer, beach volleyball, cricket, badminton, and Formula One racing.

7.     The newscasters have English accents and only about 10% of the stories they report concern the United States.

8.     You see a family of 5 on the same moped, including infants and toddlers, and the father is the only one wearing a helmet.

9.     Every afternoon it rains harder than you’ve ever seen every for exactly 2 minutes.

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10. Crossing the street is the most dangerous thing you’ll do all day.

11. Travelers are the only ones wearing sunglasses.

12. Poor people are skinny and rich people fat, the opposite of what how it is in the US.

13. Everywhere you look there are plastic lawn chairs.

14. People carry furniture, fishing pots, assorted construction materials, and three of their friends on their bicycles.

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15. You have to count out 20,000 of the local currency just to buy a Coke.

16. Kids work in the streets all day and all night right next to their parents.  If they get tired, they curl up and sleep on cardboard boxes right on the sidewalk.

17. Every bar has a gay host with a comb-over, two hot chicks pulling in customers from the street, three salty dog expats drinking beer and sweating all day long, and a little fat kid wearing a skin-tight tank top and a gold chain who has attitude for days.

18. The same street worker will gladly sell you gum, cigarettes, a lighter, bracelets, sunglasses, marijuana, change money, or sign you up for a boat tour.

19. If little kids need to pee (chee chee), their mothers just drop their pants in the middle of the sidewalk and let them go. 

20. Girls hold hands when walking on the street with their girl friends or mom or dad.  When they’re older and they walk with their boyfriend, they always are on the inside, away from the street, so they won’t be mistaken for a prostitute.

21. You check your shoes and bed sheets for scorpions.

22. There is laundry hanging from every available horizontal surface.

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23. An amazing meal costs you only $3 on the street.

24. You lose 10 lbs in the first two weeks when that street meal does amazing things to your stomach, confining you to the bathroom for 23 hours a day.  After that you can eat cheeseburgers and drink beer all day and still lose weight.

25. People pass the time smiling, laughing, and talking to each other.  They are happy, and though their lives are hard, they somehow manage to restore your faith in humanity.

Safe travels and be good to each other,

-Norm :-)

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U.S. mother arrested and jailed for smuggling pot in Mexico, claims she was framed.

5/28/2013

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Last week, an Arizona mother of seven was detained in N, Mexico and thrown in jail, facing charges of smuggling marijuana.  Yanira Maldonado, 41, and her husband were taking a bus back from a funeral when stopped by military police outside of Hermosillo.  Everyone from the bus was herded into a small room and after a two-hour wait, the military came and told Gary Maldonado, her husband and also a US Citizen, that twelve pounds of marijuana had been found under his seat, but then they stated that the drugs were actually found under Yanira’s seat.  She was arrested and is being held in a jail in the border town of Nogeles.  

The family’s Mexican attorney arranged a $5,000 bribe for police and prison officials, but it was rejected, and Maldonado appeared before a judge today for the first time.  No verdict was issued as expected and she remains in custody, but witnesses continue to testify and the prosecutions case seems weak.  However, if the judge does not set her free she could be held for months until the trial.  

Gary and Yanira were in Mexico for an aunt’s funeral and riding a luxury bus liner that brought them from Phoenix because it seemed safer.  They claim they were the last ones on the bus and brought no luggage aboard, but placed their bags in the buses’ side compartment.  Gary wisely collected witness accounts on the scene after the military police arrested his wife.  The family claims they are being framed. 

Gary, now safely in the US, the Maldonado family, and even the office of state Senator Jeff Flake are closely monitoring the situation.
***

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I recently published an account of a year I lived in Costa Rica, where a friend and US citizen was arrested for allegedly growing marijuana.  He was thrown into a rough prison alongside murders, big-time drug dealers, and cocaine traffickers, the only US citizen in a prison of 1,600 rough Central American prisoners.  I had to visit him almost every weekend, bringing home food, money, books, clothing, and communications from his family, his attorney, and the embassy.  Eventually accepted a plea bargain instead of trusting justice in a corrupt, inept court system.  He was sentenced to 5.4 years and still remains in prison, more than 2 years later.  If you want to read a first-hand account of what life in a Central American prison is like, and the complexities to the police and judicial systems there, I suggest reading South of Normal.  

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'South of Normal' hits Amazon.com best seller list.

5/3/2013

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April 21, 2013.

This week the book South of Normal by Norm Schriever earned a place on the Amazon.com Best Seller list.  

This designation is achieved when an author's work hits the top ten in its specific category on Amazon or
 Kindle for Amazon.  South of Normal did just that, amazingly reaching #5 behind in the same travel/adventure category as John Krakauer's iconic Into Thin Air, entrenched at #1.  


South of Normal is described as a "Gonzo blast of laughter and adventure about a year spent living in the tropical paradise of Tamarindo, Costa Rica.  So far, it's gained all 5-star reviews on Amazon but is also embroiled in some controversy.  Readers can find the book on Amazon.com or see more details at NormWrites.com or connect with the author on Twitter @NormSchriever.
 Tamarindo, Costa Rica, surf, ski, snowboard, diving, pura vida, Central America, Nicaragua, San Juan del Sur, Amazon best seller, travel, adventure, backpack, hiking, sharks, Endless Summer, Robert August, memoir, fitness journey, globetrotting, perfect beach, paradise, spring break, expat, live abroad, work abroad, summer reading, around the world, great read, humor, laugh out loud, South of Normal, Pushups in the Prayer Room

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Work From The Beach - an Interview with Rich Pearson, CMO of Elance.com

4/29/2013

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In a continuing effort to help you live the dream - traveling the world and working from the beach, this is part 3 of an article on virtual careers. 

You can see part 1 here, 45 Virtual Jobs You Can Do From The Beach. 

And part 2 here.

Last week I had the chance to interview Rich Pearson, the Chief Marketing Officer of Elance.com, the world’s biggest online work community.  I asked Rich how Elance functions, what kind of virtual jobs are available, and whether it is indeed possible for a semi-talented writer to work from the beach in the tropics. 

Before becoming the CMO at Elance four years ago, Rich worked at Yahoo, Bing Technology, and other tech start-ups.  He’s an alumni of Cal-Berkeley and the Walter A. Haas School of Business, and alongside his wife and kids, enjoys traveling to places like England, Thailand, and Nigeria, to vacation, work, or experience the expat lifestyle.    

What is Elance?

Elance.com is the world’s largest online work platform.  But instead of being another online job posting board, like Craigslist or CareerBuilder, Rich describes Elance as “Online dating for business and freelancers.” 

Based out of Mountain View, California and Olslo, Norway, Elance was launched in its present form in 2007.  Since then they have paid out over $750 million dollars to freelancers (or e-lancers).  Approximately 500,000 businesses actively use Elance, posting 3,500 new jobs every day for 2.5 million freelancers.  Rich anticipates that Elance will pay out about 300 million dollars to freelancers in 2013 alone.   

How does it work?

When a business or individual needs work done, but doesn’t want a full-time employee (or another warm body sitting in the office) they can post a job on Elance to attract freelance workers.  These workers apply for the job through the site, displaying their skills and past work experience through their Elance profile, which acts as an online resume.  If they are awarded the job they interact with the employer directly, do the work, and get paid, all through Elance.  The employer and the freelancer can be located in the same town or on opposite ends of the world – it doesn’t matter.   

It’s interesting to note that all of this takes place through the Elance platform.  Most employment sites just match people up and take a finder’s fee, leaving everyone on their own and hoping for the best.  But Elance only gets paid when the job is done and the employer pays the freelancer, so they have a huge vested interest in making sure it’s all done right.  The fee for their service is 8.75% of the total cost of that job, which is added on to the bid so it’s not out of the freelancer’s paycheck.

What kinds of freelance jobs are available on Elance?

Rich defines a virtual career as “Anything you can do in front of a computer,” which definitely fits our dream of working from our laptops on a beach in the tropics.  He breaks down what the virtual jobs on Elance consist of:

40% are tech jobs, mostly mobile application development, web design, and coding.  40% are considered creative jobs, like blog or article writing, graphic design, search engine optimization, and social media marketing.  The remaining 20% is a great mix of jobs for virtual assistants, architects, accountants, and even attorneys.  Those last three fields are growing the fastest, Rich reports.   

When I ask Rich if virtual careers are gaining popularity, he says they are “An unstoppable force.”  Indeed, the marriage of virtual careers and freelancing is both pulling and being pushed by technological and social forces, forever changing the way we work.  Elance is only one aspect of that change, but it’s a big one, with triple-digit growth every year.  I can think of no more telling flashing neon endorsement of this phenomenon than the fact that Elance employs about 80 full time workers but 150 freelancers on a regular basis.   

How are freelancers paid?

Most work is project-based but some employers do pay hourly.  The paychecks range from quick $10 jobs to projects costing thousands of dollars.  Elance uses an internal escrow system to handle all payments, the only site of their kind in the world that has that capability.  The freelancer’s fee is set and then broken into installments to be paid out at predetermined milestones as the work is completed, so everyone stays on track.


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Is it safe?

Elance has carefully refined their system to make sure that everyone plays nice.  If there’s ever a complaint, they have a team who will investigate the matter, based on the project communication that was all documented on their site.  There is even a third-party arbitration system to work out a solution if it ever comes to that, but less than 1/4 of 1% of work projects end up in dispute, and they are quick to remove employers or freelancers who don’t follow rules, act inappropriately, or don’t fit into Elance’s professional culture.  

Both freelancers and employers receive ratings as they complete projects, calculated by a score.  So the more jobs you do, and the more jobs you do well, the more you’ll stand out to future employers.  Elance is all about transparency and online reputation, so merit will rise to the top and give the best freelancers, and employers, the edge.

So who are these freelancers?  

Rich explains that they have people working through Elance all over the world, but about 55% of workers are from the United States.  Of the total number of freelancers, about 25% work full time through Elance, 35-50% use the site to supplement their existing income or are between jobs, and the remainder are mostly students or recent grads, who can take a retail job at Starbucks but would rather keep working on projects that will give them valuable experience in their field.  No matter who it is, they all love the flexibility of being able to work where they want and when they want.  

Why is this a big deal?

Elance isn’t just another place to look for a job, but a profound change in the way we do business, and therefore how we live our lives.  It’s a successful experiment in macroeconomic forces, opening up markets in a pure global sense.  Anyone can work from anywhere, and that also means that any employer can hire from anywhere.  What results is a confluence of healthy competition and increased quality - companies hire the best workers at the lowest price no matter where they are, and freelancers vie for the best and highest paying jobs their skill sets allow.  

Rich talks about “escaping your local economy,” through Elance and virtual careers, which is exactly what we’re aiming to do by still working while wandering the globe.  A young man out of college in Spain might be facing a 60% unemployment rate or only menial, low paying jobs, but through Elance he will be able to apply for freelance work with companies all over the globe.  

This “labor arbitrage” works both ways – why wouldn’t you hire a designer in India to build your website if the price and quality were great, instead of being confined by the services in your home town?  And businesses can hire talent “out of the cloud” without being confined by the quantity or quality of locality, the cost of full-time employees, and paying for another desk in a physical office space.

Rich gives a great example: "In San Francisco when they need a graphic designer, it takes $250 an hour and a three-week wait just to talk to someone.  But now they can easily post their job on Elance and take bids and screen applicants from all over the world.  The result is an economic equilibrium where everyone benefits."  


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What’s the best way to get a job on Elance?

Making a profile and applying for jobs on Elance is free up to 40 proposals per month.  Just like crafting a resume for any other job search, you create an online profile through their site with a professional description and account of your skills.  But you can also pull in content from LinkedIn and other sites, and upload actual projects you’ve completed.  Of course you can interact with employers down the road, but your profile and work portfolio is what needs to stand out for you to get noticed.  Remember, these employers are interested in hiring the result, not just the person. 

When you see a specific job posting you like, you write an original online cover letter to them, citing specific examples of your work, and even set up a Skype interview if they are interested.   

Elance offers a free skills test, which employers pay credence to, as looking to see if you have a good Elance rating and positive testimonials from past jobs.  Elance even helps by ranking the most in-demand skills, job growth data, and other vital information.  They report PHP programming, WordPress programming, article writing, graphic design, and HTML programming as the most requested skills by employers (as of 2011).  By the way, if you need a GREAT place to learn new tech skills from your laptop for cheap, check out Lynda.com.  

Of course it’s not perfect – it takes a commitment of time to set up your profile, and persistence to search, apply for, and earn jobs, especially in the beginning when you have no proven Elance track record.  The trend of telecommuting even suffered a backlash recently, as Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer expressed her desire to have her workforce in-office (though she was talking specifically about Yahoo and not the workplace in general). 

However for the vast majority of skilled, diligent freelancers it will be a great fit. Rich recommends that you build an amazing profile, provide examples of your work, take the skills test, and have a plan when you are searching through the thousands of jobs, instead of “praying and spraying.”  

One last question for Rich Pearson, CMO of Elance:

So, Rich, IS it possible for a semi-talented writer like myself to sit on the beach in Costa Rica, or Nicaragua, or in Southeast Asia and actually make a living?

“Absolutely!  There’s a new way of working, and with cloud technology, at the most esoteric level, it’s just like ‘talent in the cloud.’  Of course it’s still about people, and employers want to hire talented people, but the talent that is coming online right now is unprecedented, as is the willingness of companies to look for new ways to get things done.”

Good!  Then there's hope for me!  

-Norm Schriever  :-)

Email me if you have any questions, need help, or would like to check out my articles and books about living the dream, all over the globe.

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Interview with Norm Schriever on the Rudy Maxa's World travel show about "10 Tips to Stay Safe While Traveling Abroad."

4/24/2013

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Rudy Maxa, one of America’s premier consumer travel experts, is host and executive producer of “Rudy Maxa’s World,” the Emmy-award winning, 20-episode public television travel series featuring destinations as diverse as Korea and Argentina.

His weekly radio show is simulcast to 160 stations in the U.S. and abroad, including the Armed Forces Radio Network.
http://www.rudymaxasworld.com/

Click here to read the full article, '10 Tips to Stay Safe While Traveling Abroad,' in the Huffington Post Travel.

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Norm Schriever is an author, humorist, expat, cultural mad scientist, and enemy of the comfort zone.  He likes getting lost on the map and then telling stories about the cool people he meets there.  

Check out his latest book, South of Normal, and drop him an email at hi@NormSchriever.com

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    Norm Schriever

    Norm Schriever is a best-selling author, expat, cultural mad scientist, and enemy of the comfort zone. He travels the globe, telling the stories of the people he finds, and hopes to make the world a little bit better place with his words.   

    Norm is a professional blogger, digital marketer for smart brands around the world,  and writes for the Huffington Post, Hotels.com, and others.

    Check out South of Normal his Amazon.com best-selling book about life as an expat in Tamarindo, Costa Rica.

    Cambodia's School of Hope explores education and empowerment in impoverished Cambodia, with 100% of sales going to that school.

    The Book Marketing Bible provides 99 essential strategies for authors and marketers.

    Pushups in the Prayer Room, is a wild, irreverent memoir about a year backpacking around the world.  

    Follow Norm on Twitter @NormSchriever or email any time to say hi!

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