After 12 Years in Thailand, I'm Moving Back to Poland

After 12 years in Thailand, I'm moving back to Poland. For most of those 12 years, I was certain this would never happen.

When I left in 2014, I had no intention of coming back. I wasn't running away. I found a life elsewhere and kept finding reasons to stay. Whenever someone asked when I was moving back to Poland, my answer stayed the same.

Turns out, I was wrong. Thailand gave me plenty of proof.

Chonburi: The Warmest Introduction To Thailand

My first job was at a primary school in Chonburi. A sleepy town where very little happened.

I arrived from Poland and met Thai children, Thai food, Thai culture and Thai working life all at once. Working with those kids gave me the warmest introduction to Thailand I could have asked for.

Bart Magera taking a selfie with his students at a Thai primary school — My first job in Thailand: teaching at a primary school.

Bangkok, Ekamai and The Bangkok Soi Dogz

Five months later, I moved to Bangkok because I wanted more noise.

Motorbikes riding through a busy Bangkok market street — Bangkok. I wanted more noise, and I got it.

I taught at Ekamai International School, including drama. I played Ultimate Frisbee with the Bangkok Soi Dogz and won bronze at a tournament in Ho Chi Minh City.

Bart Magera and a teammate holding a Discraft Ultra-Star disc at an Ultimate Frisbee tournament — Ultimate Frisbee days in Bangkok.

That period still ranks among the best times of my life.

Bart Magera holding an Epiphone Les Paul guitar in a Bangkok rehearsal room with a Mesa amplifier — Bangkok, guitar in hand.

A Broken Arm on Koh Chang and My First Affiliate Website

Then I was in a motorbike accident in Bangkok and broke my arm.

I spent five months recovering on Koh Chang. With one working arm and too much time, I built my first affiliate website. I still had savings from my time at Ekamai, but those five months burned through a lot of them.

View from a scooter's handlebars down a long concrete pier towards a jungle-covered island — Koh Chang, the island where I recovered and built my first website.

When I moved from Koh Chang back to Bangkok, the website started taking off. It began generating real affiliate revenue. Something I had built while recovering with a broken arm was turning into an actual business.

Bart Magera on a rocky mountain summit holding a frisbee, with islands and coastline below — Five months, one working arm, and too much time.

Diggity Links, Visa Runs and Chiang Mai

That success helped lead me to Diggity Links, my first proper job in SEO. It gave me the foundation for everything I do now.

There were also the visa runs to Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. I still remember the twelve-hour trips to Laos, each way, just for a stamp. Those rides were brutal.

January 2018: The Lowest Financial Point of My Life

After a short period in Chiang Mai, I returned to Bangkok in January 2018.

Bart Magera sitting at a mountain viewpoint overlooking forested hills in northern Thailand — Northern Thailand, before heading back to Bangkok.

By then, my time at Diggity Links had ended. Around the same period, the affiliate site tanked. Two sources of income that had helped establish my SEO career disappeared almost together.

I reached the lowest financial point of my life. Money was tight. I partied more than I should have. I had no idea whether the SEO career I had started would survive.

Bart Magera standing by the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok at night — Bangkok, back again in 2018.

But Bangkok still gave me reasons to stay. I studied Thai at Walen School. I worked hard, completed the course and passed the Thai Ministry of Education exam easily.

Covid: Sky Gym, Bangkok Boys and The Unofficial Start of Mojo Links

Then Covid arrived. While everyone was locked inside four walls, I started building things inside mine.

I taught private English lessons. I built Sky Gym, a real home gym on the balcony of Lebua State Tower, the building from The Hangover Part II. I even made a banner for it. Friends came over to lift weights. Clients trained forty floors above Bangkok.

Bart Magera training at a power rack in front of a red Sky Gym Bang Rak sign — Sky Gym, forty floors above Bangkok.

I made music too.

Jon Nutt and I created Thai music under the name Bangkok Boys. We recorded songs and shot music videos that are still on YouTube.

A singer and Bart Magera on guitar performing on stage at the Live Lounge in Bangkok — On stage at the Live Lounge.

I made music and shot videos with Sharik Goriawala.

A colourful, glitch-effect still from a music video with a drummer and a singer in sunglasses — A still from one of the music videos.

I also recorded with Nick Lee from Singapore.

A vocalist singing into a microphone while Bart Magera plays guitar under pink stage lights — Making music in Bangkok.

That was when Mojo Links started unofficially. There was no company registration yet. I was doing the work, building relationships and figuring out what the business could become.

Covid was a strange and difficult time, but those years weren't empty. I met amazing people. We trained. We worked. We made music while much of the world stood still.

Phuket: The Best Decision I've Ever Made

Eventually, Bangkok wore me down. So I moved to Phuket. That became the best decision I've ever made.

Bart Magera sitting on a Honda PCX scooter at a coastal viewpoint in Phuket — Phuket, and the Honda I have just sold.

I rebuilt everything from Rawai. I landed major clients. I closed six-figure deals from a desk on a tropical island. My work generated seven figures for clients I have never met in person. I wrote about how that works in practice in my notes on running a remote SEO operation.

I kept making music. I released an instrumental album on Spotify, including one song with Nick Lee on vocals.

AI, Paradox Marketing and Registering Mojo Links

Then AI took a chunk of the business and forced another change. I adapted and spent a year working for Paradox Marketing.

In December 2024, I registered Mojo Links in Wyoming. The business that had started unofficially during Covid finally became a registered company.

Another lean stretch followed. Work slowed down and nothing looked certain for a while.

Now Mojo Links is growing. I'm SEO Director at Profit Engine. I trade prop firm accounts. Three income streams are running, and my work is the strongest it has ever been.

People from 41 Countries

Across those 12 years, I met, worked with and learned from people from 41 countries. Some became friends. Some became clients and partners. Almost all of them taught me something about how differently the world can work.

I will carry deep gratitude for this experience for the rest of my life.

I wouldn't change any of it. The motorbike accident, the financial lows, the visa runs, Covid, the business setbacks and the years when I had no idea what would happen next all taught me lessons that will stay with me forever.

SEO Vibes Summit and The Poland I Didn't Recognise

I had every reason to stay. Then I flew to Poland to speak at SEO Vibes Summit.

It was my first speaking engagement. A twenty-minute slot turned into a ninety-minute live workshop, with people still asking questions at the end. The talk went better than I expected.

But the days around it changed everything.

I remembered how good Polish food is. I noticed the warmth of the people. The streets felt clean and safe. Things worked. The country looked organised, confident and alive.

Poland had changed enormously while I was away. I left one country in 2014. Twelve years later, I walked around a different and better one.

And I thought, oh no.

Homesickness Arrived When Everything Was Working

I flew back to Phuket, the best place I have ever lived. It didn't fix it.

Aerial view of Nai Harn beach and the forested hills of southern Phuket — The best place I have ever lived.

I started missing Poland. Not some distant memory of it. The actual place.

Homesickness didn't arrive when I was broke, injured or rebuilding my career. It arrived when everything was finally working.

I gave it a few months to pass. It didn't.

October 10: Back in Lublin

So I'm going home.

I fly out of Thailand on October 9. On October 10, I'll be back in Lublin.

My guitars are on a cargo ship sailing to Gdańsk as we speak. I sold the home gym. I sold the Honda. Most of the furniture is gone.

One stop remains before I leave this side of the world. On October 1, I'm flying out to speak at Cebu Summit in the Philippines about the future of agencies. Then Poland.

Mojo Links keeps running. My work with Profit Engine continues. Every client stays. Same email. Five hours closer to Europe.

I still hold my Thai visa. I can come back whenever I want. That's exactly why I can go.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where Is Bart Magera Moving?

I am moving from Phuket, Thailand, back to Lublin, Poland. I fly out of Thailand on October 9 and land in Lublin on October 10, after 12 years living in Thailand.

Is Mojo Links Still Running?

Yes. Mojo Links keeps running, my work as SEO Director at Profit Engine continues, and every client stays. Same email, same work, five hours closer to Europe.

How Long Did Bart Magera Live in Thailand?

I lived in Thailand for 12 years, from 2014 to 2026: Chonburi, Bangkok, Koh Chang, Chiang Mai and finally Rawai in Phuket, where I rebuilt my business.

Will Bart Magera Come Back To Thailand?

I still hold my Thai visa, so I can come back whenever I want. That freedom is exactly why I can go.

I left Poland to see the world. Thailand opened it to me. Twelve years later, I'm bringing that world home.