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Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
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Countries that are a bit 'off the beaten track' in English due to remoteness, lack of infrastructure/tourist infrastructure, lack of people who can speak English, being more traditional and less 'developed' would include:
Much of India
Bhutan
Bangladesh
Myanmar
Laos (that's changing though)
Western China including Tibet
Mongolia
Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
24,544 posts, read 56,060,466 times
Reputation: 11862
Quote:
Originally Posted by foadi
how boring and green would someone have to be to have a difficult time getting around in these other countries? i mean how much easier can you get?
Most tourists in Bangkok do not venture out of the really touristy parts, while in Singapore it's easy to get to any part of the island. Language can still be troublesome in Bangkok outside the tourist haunts.etc, I speak from experience here. So i don't know how you can say Bangkok is more tourist friendly or has better tourist infrastructure than Singapore.
thailand is prolly the true asia for beginners. easily best traveller infrastructure in asia, even better than singapore. singapore has good travel infrastructure, don't get me wrong, but it doesn't punch above it's weight, it's right where it should be considering its development level.
as far as SE asia goes, all countries are extremely easy to travel in, wouldn't rank any particularly difficult.
Thailand has the best traveler infrastructure in Asia? By what what measure? Comparing Thailands "traveler: infrastructure to Singapores or Japans is ludicrous at best. Its like comparing a go-kart track to an F1 race.
Not all of Thailand is so easy to get around in, especially if you leave the tourist destinations behind. The typically traveler going to any tourist destination will find its not difficult at all to get around or experience much culture shock, or have trouble communicating if they speak English. If you get out of the tourist traps though and look at the real country they will experience some of each, especially somewhere like Thailand. Even in Japan it becomes difficult to figure out the train system, and finding someone who speaks English isn't always so easy. In Singapore though, with all the signs in English, practically all people younger than 40 speak English, a world class transit system, high government regulation of food stalls/restaurants and low crime rate its easy to see why the OP refers to Singapore as "Asia for beginners" and not Thailand.
I mean I can't remember seeing a food stall in Singapore serving up fried crickets and roaches. Even seeing much less eating some of the local flavors common in Thailand is not "Asia for beginners" for sure.
Its like saying Mexico is America for beginners, sure if you stay in the hotel strip in Cancun.
Singapore society is still very asian and conservative by Western standard. Law enforcement is very strict compared with other asian countries.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mrconfusion87
The statement by some calling Singapore "Asia for Beginners" (in reference to its manifesting more western influence thanks to the British colonial era like knowledge of the English language, as well as its efficient government services, minimal corruption problems, well-built infrastructure, first-world economy, high living standards, and ease of getting around) for people visiting/living in Asia for the first time kind of makes sense to me considering the above factors. But anyway, if Singapore is indeed beginners Asia, what would you consider the other Asian nations in terms of difficulty and the like? Please let me know what you guys think on this matter. Thanks.
Juniors:
Uzbekistan, Siberia, Mongolia, Rural China, Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan, India, Burma, Laos, Cambodia, Non-Tourist Indonesia, Timor-Leste
Seniors:
Syria, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Iraq, Iran, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, North Korea
Pretty good list, but I would say malaysia is the easiest category, wealthier and more developed than thailand, widespread English and tourist infrastructure. South Korea would be more the second category. Tourist Cambodia like Angkor is no easier than much of Sri Lanka. Aside from English being a bit more prevalent in Lanka it's not always easy to get around on your own.
The language barrier can be an issue in Vietnam as well. I found even trying to buy railway tickets at saigon railway station a big hassle. In contrast my hotel was more helpful and easy to deal with.
Singapore society is still very asian and conservative by Western standard. Law enforcement is very strict compared with other asian countries.
Conservative how? Ime many singaporeans live a basically western lifestyle.
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By what what measure? Comparing Thailands "traveler: infrastructure to Singapores or Japans is ludicrous at best. Its like comparing a go-kart track to an F1 race. 
