Sunday Sum - 4th Feb 2024

Hey , welcome back to

The Sunday Summary

, a collection of insights and my behind the scenes from the past week.

🇱🇦 Travel Update:Chiang Rai to LaosI'm currently in the beautiful small (town if you could call it that) of Nong Khiaw in Laos.  There's not a great deal here other than some picturesque mountains that offer some brilliant and somewhat strenuous hiking.  My movements over the past week were as follows.Sunday - Bus from Chiang Rai to the Laos border.  Safely exiting Thailand and entering Laos we were just a bit late for the slow boat so spend a night here. I paid £2.50 for a dorm shared with one other person and was probably one of the best nights of sleep I've had so far.Monday - Take the slow boat, its a 2 day trip down the Mekong river to Luang Prabang with a stop overnight in Pakbeng, a tiny village along the MekongTuesday - Pakbeng to Luang PrabangWedesnday - Luang PrabangThursday - Luang Prabang to Nong KhiawFriday - Nong KhiawSaturday - Nong Khiaw, morning hike to Pha Kai viewpointSunday - Nong Khiaw to Vang Vieng 

🌴 Moments of thought and reflection:Explore vs. ExploitI first learnt about this from the book "Algorithms to Live By: The Computer Science of Human Decisions" and my trip away has been a perfect chance to action this.Effectively, how do you know when it's best to be open to new discoveries, and when to top and take advantage of the knowledge you already have.  I.e. do you take the chance on a restaurant you have never been to?  Or do you go to the familiar favourite?The answer is simple. When you are in a new unfamiliar area, that’s the best time to explore. If you have a lot of time to explore then continue with explore.   When you know you are going to be leaving an area then that is the best opportunity to exploit your existing knowledge. Chow down on your favourite dishes as it’s far too risky to try new options.I did this in Chiang Mai with an incredible coffee shop as well as my favourite dish, Khao Soi.  Knowing I would be leaving Thailand to head to Laos, I was sure the exploit the Khao Soi.

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What I'm reading:Project Hail Mary: The Sunday Times bestseller from the author The Martian - Andy Weir

My second fiction book of the year, and I'm absolutely devouring this one!

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On heavy rotation:Pizza Hotline - Level Select (Full Album)

Inspired by those dreamy synths of Playstation 1 games. This really got me through my hike this morning!

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Please feel free to reach out to me with your; comments, concerns or just general conversation.  

I'd love to know what you're up to or what you might be working on!

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Have a great week everyone!

Tom

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