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![Gateway to India]()
Gateway to India We’re back in Mumbai awaiting our flight out of India. Driving in from the train station it was hard to recognize the town as the big dirty smelly place that shocked us when we flew in two months ago. -
![Dave and Lolo at the Taj]()
India Notes for Budget Travelers
Dave and Lolo at the Taj India is a budget traveler’s dream. It’s certainly one of the cheapest countries on our itinerary. Our daily budget for two is probably less than you spent the last time you went out to dinner. -
![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra. -
![Wedding Season]()
Wedding Crashers
Wedding Season It doesn’t take a Vince Vaughn scheme to crash a wedding in India, especially during wedding season. We actually had one gentleman befriend us on the streets of Udaipur to “practice his English” and subsequently invite us to his wedding party the following evening. -
![One Pen]()
Coming From? - Common India 'Engrish'
One Pen There are a few phrases that any visitor to India will become familiar with rapidly. Here’s a quick run-down of common “Engrish” you’ll come across: Coming From? – The most benign, they just want to know what country you’re from. -
![Join Us, Won't You?]()
The Cult of Lonely Planet & Lodging in India
Join Us, Won't You? Our time in India is starting to wind down, so we would just like to pass on a few words about lodging here. We’re using the latest edition of “Lonely Planet – India” as our main guidebook and it’s great of course, very well documented, written, and well thought out. -
![Octopussy, Every Night]()
Notes From Octopussy's Lair
Octopussy, Every Night Udaipur is a great place to go if your extremely rich, or a fan of James Bond films. Actually, if your a fan of one James Bond film in particular: Octopussy. A large part of the film was shot here and even though it was released some 25 years ago, every restaurant in town still shows Octopussy every night at 7PM sharp. -
![Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort]()
Monkeyin' Around
Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort I guess it shouldn’t be that surprising, but there are monkeys everywhere in India. We’ve spotted a few in the wild, but most have been hanging around rooftops and historic forts. When Dave or I would spot monkeys on our safari in Corbett Reserve, all the locals just shrugged as if to say, “just a monkey”. -
![Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur]()
Pink City - Jaipur
Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur Rajasthan, in northwestern India, is kind of what I had always pictured India being like – desert, lot’s of castles and old forts, monkeys all over and people in Turbans. And so far it is not disappointing me. -
![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts. -
A Disclaimer
With all of our frank musings about India, we realize that we might seem ethnocentric or judgemental to some. That is not our intention. And yes, we do like it here most of the time. As you travel through any developing country – or any country that is just different from your own – you’re faced with all kinds of different experiences. -
![The Beatles Slept Here]()
Hippy Dippy Do - Rishikesh
The Beatles Slept Here Rishikesh is a smallish town set on the Ganges at the foothills of the Himalayas. In part due to it’s “auspicious” location it’s a pilgrimage site for Hindus. But of late there are a lot of other people here besides Hindus. -
![The Ganges River at Rishikesh]()
'Oh Dirty River'
The Ganges River at Rishikesh As I stood at the edge of the Ganges in Rishikesh, I couldn’t help but hum the final lyrics to Sleater Kinney’s “Light Rail Coyote.” Oh Dirty River, Come Let Me In Except, I have no desire to dip into the Ganges. -
![The Obligatory Shot]()
A Tail of One City: Agra
The Obligatory Shot “It was the best of times and the worst of times.” Mr. Dickens could have been been talking about one city in India, rather than two cities in Europe. Agra, a few hours outside of Delhi is a study in contrast. -
![Fatehpur Sikri Gate]()
Mughal Mania
Fatehpur Sikri Gate During our time here in northern India, I have developed a particular fondness for the Mughals. Mughal is the Persian word for Mongol. The Mughals claim decendency from Genghis Khan and their empire ruled much of India and its surrounds during the 16th to 18th centuries. -
![Hair is a Universal Language]()
Bazaar Haircut
Hair is a Universal Language So I needed a haircut some kind of bad. I haven’t had my ears lowered since before Christmas. I’d been holding out for some time, but the 110 degree heat in Delhi, combined with to opportunity to get a haircut on the street was too good to pass up. -
![India Gate]()
Several Million Do Make A Difference
India Gate After a long, chilly train ride, we arrived in Delhi last Thursday. Delhi is India’s second largest city after Mumbai. And though I can not find consistent population numbers, it is a fact that several million fewer people live here than in Mumbai. -
![Travel in 2nd Class]()
Life on the Rajdhani Express
Travel in 2nd Class A forty two hour train ride isn’t really something to be looked forward to. But after the better part of a month spent traveling further and further South, LeeAnne and I decided it was time to knock off a few of the “Must Do’s” in India – The Taj Mahal etc – so we had to find a way from Trivandrum (near the southern tip of India) to Delhi (in the North of the country). -
![The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram]()
Three Nights in Thiruvananthapuram
The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram: the small town with a really long name! Formerly known as Trivandrum, the town elders decided to change the city name for brevity’s sake to Thiruvananthapuram in 1991. We’re in town for a few days waiting on a train to Delhi. -
![Kerala Backwaters]()
Cruising The Kerala Backwaters
Kerala Backwaters A highlight for many travelers in Kerala is taking a leisurely cruise through the 900km network of waterways known as the backwaters. The waterways vary from narrow shady canals fringed with homes and rice paddies to large lakes filled with fishing boats. -
![TP is Good!]()
Gastrointestinal Update: No. 1
TP is Good! To appease our readers I will report that there have been no major gastrointestinal incidents in India as of yet. We are very careful about water, but have been enjoying a variety of local foods, juices (no water and no ice used) and veg (no lettuce) with little to no adverse result. -
![Sabu Elias & DeerVilla Home Stay]()
A Homely Stay
Sabu Elias & DeerVilla Home Stay Since arriving in India a little over three weeks ago, we’ve run the gamut on lodging options. We’ve stayed in overpriced, run down hotels, a rodent infested beach shack (Yes, we weren’t the only ones sharing that great view! -
![Bananas...]()
This Forks for You
Bananas... I’m currently working on a theory about the relative prices of eating out here in India. After a couple of weeks here we’ve been in big cities and small cities. Touristy places and less touristy places and we’ve been trying to come up with an explanation of the wide range of cost on what is basically the same food. -
![School Days]()
God's Own Country
School Days No, we didn’t come up with this, the State of Kerala did. Signs and brochures are quick to coin Kerala as God’s country. I imagine much of this is due to its beautiful scenery, which in all honesty we haven’t had the chance to see much of as of yet. -
![Kochi Coastline]()
Hot Time in Kochi
Kochi Coastline First off let me say we did not do Kochi justice. Kochi (formerly Cochin) needs to be seen in December or January – before it gets too hot. In late March it’s just too hot and too humid. -
![Big Day Out in Goa]()
Scootin' Around
Big Day Out in Goa Just to make sure we didn’t get totally bored of reading and relaxing on the beach all week, we decided to take a little day trip and see some sites beyond Palolem. We rented a scooter, bought a few liters of petrol and headed north. -
![Passport Please]()
Papers Please
Passport Please One of the more frustrating things here in India has been the India love affair with red tape. Fair warning to all those who come to visit: memorize your passport number. You will need to produce it at many (unexpected)turns. -
![A Room With A View]()
Go, Go Goa
A Room With A View Following our escape from Mumbai, we decided to head south, where according to various parties it’s “less crazy.” We chose to come directly to Palolem Beach in southern Goa for a little chill time. -
![Passports at the ready]()
Passage to Mumbai
Passports at the ready So we’re getting on a plane bound for India this afternoon, and we’re full of excitement and anticipation. We’re also sadly saying good-bye to things like clean tap water, salads and the ubiquitous first world flush toilet.
India (29)
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Damn that Dollar!
England is great and London is possibly one of the greatest cities in the world. There are cool things to do, funky clothes to buy, good shows to see, and yummy food to eat (ethinic food of course). Too bad it costs so damn much to do any of it when you’re coming with US dollars. -
Banking in Zim-Zam
If you’re planning a trip to Zimbabwe – okay, not that many people plan to go to Zim, lets start over – if you’re planning a trip to Victoria Falls and flying in, guess what, you’re going to Zimbabwe. The land of 7000 percent inflation, and the land where the government officially denies that there’s an issue with inflation. -
![Thats A Big Wall]()
Olympic Fever - Beijing
Thats A Big Wall The truth about Beijing, if you’ve been in China a while, is you only need a few days to see the sights, then get out …unless you want to go shopping. Then you could be there a month. -
Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely. -
![Mongolian Kid and Friend]()
Mongolia Notes for Budget Travelers
Mongolian Kid and Friend Mongolia is a bit different than the other countries we have visited thus far. There is only one real city, UB, and there is very little infrastructure to support public transport around the country. As we mentioned in Off We Ger if you want to get out into the countryside, which is really THE reason to come to Mongolia, then you need to a) join a tour; b) hire a jeep; or c) be completely raving madand take the local long distance buses. -
China Notes for Budget Travelers
Our original budget for China was based on the costs of the big cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. Our goal was to stay at or below $70 a day for both of us. We were able to get by on about that in Hong Kong, but were able to easily stay below $50 a day for most of China. -
![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route. -
![Mao Meets Capitalism]()
Comrades and Capitalist Roaders
Mao Meets Capitalism If a picture is worth a thousand words, this one must be worth a thousand dollars. This is China today. New cars being sold at the foot of Chairman Mao while “Life in the Fast Lane” blasts from stereos. -
![Dave and Lolo at the Taj]()
India Notes for Budget Travelers
Dave and Lolo at the Taj India is a budget traveler’s dream. It’s certainly one of the cheapest countries on our itinerary. Our daily budget for two is probably less than you spent the last time you went out to dinner. -
![Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort]()
Monkeyin' Around
Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort I guess it shouldn’t be that surprising, but there are monkeys everywhere in India. We’ve spotted a few in the wild, but most have been hanging around rooftops and historic forts. When Dave or I would spot monkeys on our safari in Corbett Reserve, all the locals just shrugged as if to say, “just a monkey”. -
![India Gate]()
Several Million Do Make A Difference
India Gate After a long, chilly train ride, we arrived in Delhi last Thursday. Delhi is India’s second largest city after Mumbai. And though I can not find consistent population numbers, it is a fact that several million fewer people live here than in Mumbai. -
![A Room With A View]()
Go, Go Goa
A Room With A View Following our escape from Mumbai, we decided to head south, where according to various parties it’s “less crazy.” We chose to come directly to Palolem Beach in southern Goa for a little chill time. -
![Bolliwood Stardom]()
Hooray for Bolliwood
Bolliwood Stardom Jokingly one of our goals on this trip was to get cast in a Bolliwood movie: Mission Accomplished! It was surprisingly easy. There are some 700 movies made in Mumbai a year so the numbers are working for you if you want to be cast as an extra. -
![Sad Little Went Tent]()
Australia Notes For Budget Travelers
Sad Little Went Tent It should come as no surprise that Australia is not the cheapest of countries on our itinerary. That said, the country is well equipped for backpackers on a budget. Like New Zealand, if you watch your $ in the cities and self-cater (camp and cook yourself), you can stretch your dollars pretty far. -
![Fanboat Lolo!]()
The Top End - Darwin
Fanboat Lolo! We’re in our last stop in Australia before we head off to India. Darwin is the capitol of the Northern Territory, but it’s only a city of about 50,000 people and it has a very different feel from most of the other Australian cities that we’ve visited. -
![Queen Victoria Market]()
Marvelous Melbourne
Queen Victoria Market After a few days on the road from Sydney we arrived in Melbourne – the second largest city in Australia and the capital of the state of Victoria. Aside from a stroll though the Botanical Gardens and along the Yarra River, we spent most of our brief visit to the city at the Queen Victoria Market and at the Melbourne Zoo. -
![Oh, What a Feeling!]()
Diary of a Car Camper - Australia
Oh, What a Feeling! We’re leaving Sydney and car camping again. If you’ll recall we were hooked up in New Zealand with a very cheap rental. In Australia, not so lucky. Still lucky, we have it for $29.00 a day AUD, and it’s a much sweeter ride. -
![Welcome to the Year of the Pig!]()
New Year (Chinese New Year) in Sydney
Welcome to the Year of the Pig! So we’re here in Sydney and we’re learning that Sydney kind of marches to the beat of a different drummer. Part of the reason we came to Sydney when we did was timing. -
![Spending Tips from the Experts!]()
New Zealand Notes for Budget Travelers
Spending Tips from the Experts! Some of you are probably wondering how the heck we are making our money stretch around the world. The answer is on a budget! As we planned and planned and then planned some more prior the trip, we did our best to estimate our costs from everything to tickets and visas and travel insurance to daily costs and special, one-time expenses like tours. -
![Not ours, but I wish it was...]()
Diary of a Car Camper - New Zealand
Not ours, but I wish it was... We’re starting kind of a second leg of our stay here in New Zealand, the bikes are gone and we’re renting a car for the rest of the trip. Of course it’s going to give our legs a break and let us have a lot more range in terms of where we can go and what we can see in a day. -
![Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends]()
Hobbits & Elves
Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends We arrived in the capital city of Wellington on Monday evening after 11 hours on a bus traversing the North Island from Auckland. -
![Flavored Milk is Big Down Here]()
Reflections on Sweet Potato, Pumpkin and Hokey Pokey
Flavored Milk is Big Down Here The three things that stand out about food here in New Zealand are their love of (In order) Ice Cream, Pumpkins and Sweet Potatoes (known locally as Kumara). Let’s cover the last first, when I first saw it listed on the menu I just assumed that Kumara was a strange type of sausage. -
![Incident at LAX]()
Return Ticket Please!
Incident at LAX Finally, after months of planning, preparations and daydreaming, we were off. Lee Anne’s sister in law and niece Megan saw us off in Dallas, and we were on our way to our first stop – New Zealand. -
Tickets - One World Explorer
We’ve researched a lot of different options on Round the World tickets. It’s a great way to control your costs on getting there and back, because after you pay a flat fee you can use as many or as few flights as you want too. -
Vaccinations - Don't Leave Home Without Them
First stop on the road to Round the World Travel is the Doctors office. It may not be the most romantic or adventuresome idea, but I’m pretty sure that before the best adventurers and explorers headed out they got their shots. How much could Indiana Jones have gotten done if he were bed-ridden with Hep B while chasing the Ark of the Covenant?
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![Sarah, Leah & Sue]()
Hei konā rā New Zealand
Sarah, Leah & Sue Tomorrow we say goodbye to New Zealand and the lovely Kiwis (people, fruit and birds) and head for Oz. New Zealand has been good to us. It’s a beautiful country to tour, and I imagine one of the easiest places in the world to travel. -
![Spending Tips from the Experts!]()
New Zealand Notes for Budget Travelers
Spending Tips from the Experts! Some of you are probably wondering how the heck we are making our money stretch around the world. The answer is on a budget! As we planned and planned and then planned some more prior the trip, we did our best to estimate our costs from everything to tickets and visas and travel insurance to daily costs and special, one-time expenses like tours. -
![Rainbow Falls]()
North Country
Rainbow Falls When Kiwis go on vacation they go to Northland. It’s the peninsula north of Auckland, and you’re sandwiched in between the South Pacific and the Tasman sea, so there are loads of beach options. It’s where most of the Maori population is located these days too. -
![Anyone Smell Eggs?]()
That Smell: Rotorua
Anyone Smell Eggs? Rotorua stinks, literally (some may say figuratively too, but that’s another entry all together) it’s the center of a lot of geothermal activity here on the North Island. There are geysers and steam and the smell of rotten eggs all over up here. -
![Sure Footed LeeAnne]()
The Ice Storm: Glacier Country
Sure Footed LeeAnne Traveling up the West Coast of the South Island we did hikes to the Ice faces of two of the biggest glaciers in New Zealand Fox Glacier and Franz Joseph Glacier. I’d never seen glaciers except on TV before and the experience was well worth the trip out. -
![Good Lord of the Rings!]()
Serious LOTR Country - Milford Sound
Good Lord of the Rings! Fjordland – the southwestern corner of the South Island – feels very different from the rest of the country. For one thing it’s almost all a huge temperate rain forest. So you’ll have a forest of conifers littered with huge ferns, and these crazy mountains that don’t belong in the Lord of the Rings – they’re the source material for it. -
![Crazy Blue Lake Tekapo]()
Lake Tekapo
Crazy Blue Lake Tekapo The first stop in our career as car campers is Lake Tekapo – a wonderfully blue-blue (almost phony looking) lake in the Southern Alps. We’re also at a pretty high altitude, and the lake is rather remote so residents of the lake area claim to have the clearest sky’s in New Zealand. -
![Not ours, but I wish it was...]()
Diary of a Car Camper - New Zealand
Not ours, but I wish it was... We’re starting kind of a second leg of our stay here in New Zealand, the bikes are gone and we’re renting a car for the rest of the trip. Of course it’s going to give our legs a break and let us have a lot more range in terms of where we can go and what we can see in a day. -
![Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne]()
Cycling New Zealand - That is a Wrap
Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne We are back in Christchurch finally, after spending the past few weeks biking the South Island. From here we rent a car and head to the west coast over the mountains and then back up to the North Island. -
![Tribal Graffiti]()
Dunedin - San Francisco of the South?
Tribal Graffiti New Zealand is a very hilly place. Dunedin is the MOST hilly place we have been yet in the country. In fact it’s the home of the steepest street in the world – Baldwin Street. And the motorway in to town – the main artery for cars trucks etc. -
![Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching]()
Big Birds, Sleepy Sealions and Super Cute Penguins
Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching Yesterday we threw the budget out and splurged for our first tour in New Zealand. Actually, it was quite a bargain and worth every penny! Stretching out from the Dunedin coast is the Otago Peninsula. -
![Along the Presidential Highway]()
Somewhere Between Clinton and Gore
Along the Presidential Highway So we are back on the road cycling. This time we are lighter (we dropped a bunch of stuff off with acquaintances in Christchurch), smarter (we’ve traveled south by bus and are riding north to keep the wind at our backs), and more motivated (if you read our post on Invercargill you’ll understand, we need to get out of here! -
![Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity]()
Invercargill Nights
Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity The Legend of Burt Munro Have you seen the movie “The Worlds Fastest Indian”? It’s the true story of an elderly Kiwi who breaks the world speed record for motorcycles at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah at the ripe old age of 69. -
![Is it Christchurch, or Epcot?]()
Christchurch... or Disneyland?
Is it Christchurch, or Epcot? I once had a conversation with an Australian woman about the nature of Kiwi’s, “They’re more British than the British she said.” Now, asking an Australian to define the nature of a Kiwi (or vice versa) is never recommended, and you shouldn’t expect an unbiased answer, but in the case of Christchurch …she may have been on to something. -
![A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office]()
Pedal, Pedal, Pedal
A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office So our plan for a while has been to bike while in New Zealand. After considerable research and contemplation, we decided to rent bikes and bike on the South Island only. -
![LeeAnne adds her marks to the door]()
One Night in the Jailhouse
LeeAnne adds her marks to the door An unexpected end to our second day of riding was that LeeAnne and I spent the night in the jailhouse. The Chevoit (Pronounced Chevy-Ut) Motel is built on the grounds of the old Cheviot jailhouse – which still stands. -
![Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends]()
Hobbits & Elves
Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends We arrived in the capital city of Wellington on Monday evening after 11 hours on a bus traversing the North Island from Auckland. -
![Flavored Milk is Big Down Here]()
Reflections on Sweet Potato, Pumpkin and Hokey Pokey
Flavored Milk is Big Down Here The three things that stand out about food here in New Zealand are their love of (In order) Ice Cream, Pumpkins and Sweet Potatoes (known locally as Kumara). Let’s cover the last first, when I first saw it listed on the menu I just assumed that Kumara was a strange type of sausage. -
![Lively Auckland]()
The City of Sails
Lively Auckland We arrived in Auckland early Friday morning and spent three days there exploring the city. Since we only spent a few days in one city, it’s probably not fair to make any kind of sweeping generalizations about Kiwis or New Zealand for that matter. -
Kia Aro from New Zealand!
After fifteen hours of flights and four or so hours of lay-overs we’ve arrived at our first destination: New Zealand. You may say to yourself: “Too Easy! An Around the world trip that starts half-way around the world, they’re cheating.” Well, yes maybe we are cheating. -
![Incident at LAX]()
Return Ticket Please!
Incident at LAX Finally, after months of planning, preparations and daydreaming, we were off. Lee Anne’s sister in law and niece Megan saw us off in Dallas, and we were on our way to our first stop – New Zealand. -
![Are we traveling light yet?]()
Packing, Packing, Packing
Are we traveling light yet? Wow! We have a lot of stuff for two people traveling light around the world. It’s embarrassing telling people your traveling around the world on a shoestring and then asking their help to pull your two large duffel bags, two fully packed back-packs and two or three carry-on’s out of the car for you. -
Plan D
Okay, this one is our bad. After getting screwed by the Irish travel agency back at Thanksgiving we decided on another course of action. “Originating” our OWE flight in the UK. It was going to be great, we would fly there for a few hundred, maybe catch a soccer game, stop in Dallas to see LeeAnnes family on the way to New Zealand and be on with our trip. -
Bicycle Hire in New Zealand
For a couple of months we have been considering trying to work in some Bicycle touring as part of our travel. It didn’t take too long to identfy New Zealand as the place we wanted to do it in. It’s suppose to be one of the best places in the world for touring and camping.
new zealand (24)
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![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Things We Love(d) About China
Tiger Leaping Gorge There’s no denying it. We’ve enjoyed China. We didn’t fall in love with the big cities of the east coast, but the western and southwestern provinces are spectacular – filled with stunning scenery and diverse people. -
![Goodbye China]()
Zai Jian China!
Goodbye China China is not a developing nation, it’s developed. And we all might understand soon just how developed they are. I’ve never met a people who are more determined to make an impression on the world than these folks. -
![Thats A Big Wall]()
Olympic Fever - Beijing
Thats A Big Wall The truth about Beijing, if you’ve been in China a while, is you only need a few days to see the sights, then get out …unless you want to go shopping. Then you could be there a month. -
China Notes for Budget Travelers
Our original budget for China was based on the costs of the big cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. Our goal was to stay at or below $70 a day for both of us. We were able to get by on about that in Hong Kong, but were able to easily stay below $50 a day for most of China. -
![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar. -
Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong. -
![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route. -
![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet. -
![The back streets of Zhongdian]()
Shangri-La - Not So Much
The back streets of Zhongdian Just north of Tiger Leaping Gorge at the edge of the Tibetan plateau sits the town of Zhongdian – recently renamed Shangri-La by the Chinese. It’s Tibetan name is Gyeltang, but no one uses it. -
The Great Firewall of China Strikes Again!
Before we had arrived in mainland China we were aware that censorship was alive and well here. The televised news is little more than propaganda and access to other forms on information is limited. Many web-sites, several that we use regularly are blocked. -
![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Tiger Leaping Gorge
Tiger Leaping Gorge We just did a mini-trek at Tiger Leaping Gorge, it’s in the western part of Yunnan and it’s famous for being one of the steepest and most dramatic Gorges in the world. I have to say, it’s probably the highlight of China for us right now. -
![Mao Meets Capitalism]()
Comrades and Capitalist Roaders
Mao Meets Capitalism If a picture is worth a thousand words, this one must be worth a thousand dollars. This is China today. New cars being sold at the foot of Chairman Mao while “Life in the Fast Lane” blasts from stereos. -
![Lijiang]()
Earthquakes, Orchestras and Pictograms
Lijiang One of the top 10 tourist sites in China is the World Heritage Site of Lijiang, a small town in the mountains of the Yunnan Province. It was ankle to elbow full of tourists, but that didn’t stop us from enjoying the people and culture that abound. -
![View from Lhasa Express]()
That Can Do Spirit!
View from Lhasa Express When we were in the early stages of planning our trip, I was only lukewarm to coming to China. But then I began to read more, not just about the tourist sites, but also about the history of China and its people. -
![Shane Battier is Big in China]()
The NBA - It's Chan-Tastic!
Shane Battier is Big in China Move over Ping-Pong, make room for Basketball. The NBA is surprisingly huge here. After Soccer it’s probably the biggest spectator sport in the country. The NBA play-offs are broadcast twice a day here, live at 8AM in the morning and then again at night, followed by a highlights show with Chinese talking heads summarizing the game. -
![It's so nice to see you...]()
Well, Hello Dali!
It's so nice to see you... Dali is a beautiful city with mountains on one side and a picturesque lake on the other. It’s an old walled city and unlike many of it’s ilk it has not yet been totally changed by tourism. -
![Sam Walton ...Made in China]()
Notes From a Chinese Walmart
Sam Walton ...Made in China I’m sure Sam Walton is spinning in his grave. The man who billed his store as “All-American, and American Made” now has a huge business in China, with All-Chinese made products. We’re in Kunming, the capitol of Yunnan Province in the South-west of China, and our room is right around the corner from Yunnan’s first Walmart …how could we resist? -
![Can I Have You Over For Dinner]()
Fresh, Really Fresh
Can I Have You Over For Dinner One thing you can’t say about Chinese food is that it isn’t fresh, no frozen peas need apply. As a way of demonstrating let me relate something that happened to LeeAnne and I just the other day on the way back to our room: -
![Beverage, Pastry, Why Not Both]()
Early Reflections on China
Beverage, Pastry, Why Not Both So we’ve been in China for almost two weeks now and I have to say, sometimes I need to remind myself we’re in the Third World. After two months in India, being here is …refreshing. -
![Li River Scenery]()
Li River Daze
Li River Scenery One of the “must do” activities in China is a cruise down the Li River from Guilin to the smaller city of Yangshou. Like all good budget travelers we opted to join the Chinese tour. You get the same beautiful scenery sans the English commentary, but for half the price of the Foreigner’s tour. -
![Long Live China]()
Amen!
Long Live China Well it appears we’ve succeeded at obtaining a legitimate 30 day visa for me in China. While in Guilin, we visited the local Public Security Bureau to inquire about an extension. Word among travelers is that they are quite pleasant to deal with and offer a relatively quick turn around. -
![Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin]()
Land of Limestone Towers & Caves - Guilin
Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin Guilin, it’s just one of the many cities in China with over a million inhabitants that you have probably never heard of. It’s also the first real stop for us in China (we spent a night in
China (22)
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![Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV]()
The World Cup (of Cricket)
Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV One of the things we were excited about was being in India during the World Cup of Cricket. We arrived in Mumbai just a few days before the first match and were anticipating a huge outpouring of support for the national team from India’s billion plus people. -
![Sad Little Went Tent]()
Australia Notes For Budget Travelers
Sad Little Went Tent It should come as no surprise that Australia is not the cheapest of countries on our itinerary. That said, the country is well equipped for backpackers on a budget. Like New Zealand, if you watch your $ in the cities and self-cater (camp and cook yourself), you can stretch your dollars pretty far. -
![Fanboat Lolo!]()
The Top End - Darwin
Fanboat Lolo! We’re in our last stop in Australia before we head off to India. Darwin is the capitol of the Northern Territory, but it’s only a city of about 50,000 people and it has a very different feel from most of the other Australian cities that we’ve visited. -
![TimTams, the shadow currency of Australia]()
TimTams & The Lot
TimTams, the shadow currency of Australia Aussies are very close cousins to Americans in many ways, in fact had it not been for the American Revolution many of them (the convict labor) would have ended up in Georgia, not half-way around the world. -
![Book-Em]()
Little Adelaide
Book-Em It seems Adelaide has something of a self-image problem. It’s not hard to understand why – with competition like Sydney & Melbourne it’s easy to think of oneself as a little provincial. I can assure you this is not the case. -
![Something about the label appeals]()
Vibrant Straw with Flecks of Brilliant Green
Something about the label appeals When you hear something like “vibrant straw with flecks of brilliant green”, what do you think? I am guessing it wasn’t, mmmm… pour me one of those. As you probably well know, Australia is home to many a wine that we enjoy in the U. -
![The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road]()
Notes From the Great Ocean Road
The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road We’re on the Great Ocean Road at the moment. It runs from the suburbs of Melbourne to the edge of South Australia and was built after WWI as kind of a works project to employ returning veterans in the 1920’s, before that the only way to access the small towns along the road was by ship or ferry. -
![Queen Victoria Market]()
Marvelous Melbourne
Queen Victoria Market After a few days on the road from Sydney we arrived in Melbourne – the second largest city in Australia and the capital of the state of Victoria. Aside from a stroll though the Botanical Gardens and along the Yarra River, we spent most of our brief visit to the city at the Queen Victoria Market and at the Melbourne Zoo. -
![Oh, What a Feeling!]()
Diary of a Car Camper - Australia
Oh, What a Feeling! We’re leaving Sydney and car camping again. If you’ll recall we were hooked up in New Zealand with a very cheap rental. In Australia, not so lucky. Still lucky, we have it for $29.00 a day AUD, and it’s a much sweeter ride. -
![Tropfest Crowd]()
Cinema Under the Stars
Tropfest Crowd A really fun part of life down here is that ever major city has an outdoor movie venue and most weeknight during the year you can go to the city park, pack a picnic and see a film under the stars. -
![Headed Out]()
Bonne Voyage!
Headed Out Remember how you felt before you started your last Round the World trip? No? Let me remind you: It’s really no sweat, you’re only leaving home for several months, going to God knows what kind of places where you won’t understand the locals, be familiar with their customs or know which way to look when you cross the street …and that’s just Australia. -
Hello World - A Word About Why We Are on this Trip
Maybe we need to explain a little about why we are doing this: LeeAnne and I have always had a bit of the wander lust. She’s a Returned Peace Corp Volunteer and I’m know in my office as “The Guy That Leaves, But Then Comes Back”, or “TGTLBTCB” for short.
australia (12)
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Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely. -
![Spending Tips from the Experts!]()
New Zealand Notes for Budget Travelers
Spending Tips from the Experts! Some of you are probably wondering how the heck we are making our money stretch around the world. The answer is on a budget! As we planned and planned and then planned some more prior the trip, we did our best to estimate our costs from everything to tickets and visas and travel insurance to daily costs and special, one-time expenses like tours. -
![Rainbow Falls]()
North Country
Rainbow Falls When Kiwis go on vacation they go to Northland. It’s the peninsula north of Auckland, and you’re sandwiched in between the South Pacific and the Tasman sea, so there are loads of beach options. It’s where most of the Maori population is located these days too. -
![9:30 Club Guy]()
Spotted - 9:30 Club Guy in Auckland
9:30 Club Guy So LeeAnne and I are back in Auckland briefly before we head north to visit Sarah. We’re here primarily to finally pick up our tickets and run a few other errands around town. So after we’ve finished our business we’re walking down by the harbor right around sunset and we approach a big guy on the sidewalk. -
Near Miss - Cousin Sammy
At the same time LeeAnne and I are doing our around the world travel my cousin Sam Forrest is doing something very similar. Last I had heard he was in South America so I never really even thought about the possibility that our paths might cross, but small world that it is, it seems he jumped over the Pacific by way of the Galapagos and Easter Island and was in Auckland when we were in Wellington – opposite sides of the North Island. -
![Not ours, but I wish it was...]()
Diary of a Car Camper - New Zealand
Not ours, but I wish it was... We’re starting kind of a second leg of our stay here in New Zealand, the bikes are gone and we’re renting a car for the rest of the trip. Of course it’s going to give our legs a break and let us have a lot more range in terms of where we can go and what we can see in a day. -
![A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office]()
Pedal, Pedal, Pedal
A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office So our plan for a while has been to bike while in New Zealand. After considerable research and contemplation, we decided to rent bikes and bike on the South Island only. -
![Lively Auckland]()
The City of Sails
Lively Auckland We arrived in Auckland early Friday morning and spent three days there exploring the city. Since we only spent a few days in one city, it’s probably not fair to make any kind of sweeping generalizations about Kiwis or New Zealand for that matter. -
![Incident at LAX]()
Return Ticket Please!
Incident at LAX Finally, after months of planning, preparations and daydreaming, we were off. Lee Anne’s sister in law and niece Megan saw us off in Dallas, and we were on our way to our first stop – New Zealand. -
Bicycle Hire in New Zealand
For a couple of months we have been considering trying to work in some Bicycle touring as part of our travel. It didn’t take too long to identfy New Zealand as the place we wanted to do it in. It’s suppose to be one of the best places in the world for touring and camping.
Auckland (10)
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![Gateway to India]()
Back to Mumbai - Indian Wrap Up
Gateway to India We’re back in Mumbai awaiting our flight out of India. Driving in from the train station it was hard to recognize the town as the big dirty smelly place that shocked us when we flew in two months ago. -
![Dave and Lolo at the Taj]()
India Notes for Budget Travelers
Dave and Lolo at the Taj India is a budget traveler’s dream. It’s certainly one of the cheapest countries on our itinerary. Our daily budget for two is probably less than you spent the last time you went out to dinner. -
![Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV]()
The World Cup (of Cricket)
Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV One of the things we were excited about was being in India during the World Cup of Cricket. We arrived in Mumbai just a few days before the first match and were anticipating a huge outpouring of support for the national team from India’s billion plus people. -
![India Gate]()
Several Million Do Make A Difference
India Gate After a long, chilly train ride, we arrived in Delhi last Thursday. Delhi is India’s second largest city after Mumbai. And though I can not find consistent population numbers, it is a fact that several million fewer people live here than in Mumbai. -
![Sabu Elias & DeerVilla Home Stay]()
A Homely Stay
Sabu Elias & DeerVilla Home Stay Since arriving in India a little over three weeks ago, we’ve run the gamut on lodging options. We’ve stayed in overpriced, run down hotels, a rodent infested beach shack (Yes, we weren’t the only ones sharing that great view! -
![Passport Please]()
Papers Please
Passport Please One of the more frustrating things here in India has been the India love affair with red tape. Fair warning to all those who come to visit: memorize your passport number. You will need to produce it at many (unexpected)turns. -
![A Room With A View]()
Go, Go Goa
A Room With A View Following our escape from Mumbai, we decided to head south, where according to various parties it’s “less crazy.” We chose to come directly to Palolem Beach in southern Goa for a little chill time. -
![Tuk Tuk'ing Along]()
Escape from Mumbai
Tuk Tuk'ing Along When is a 12 hour train-ride in tropical heat with no air conditioning worth it? When it gets you out of Mumbai. Our journey began before dawn at Mumbai’s Central Station and would not end until just after night fell on us and our Auto-Ricksaw driver on a beach in Goa. -
![Bolliwood Stardom]()
Hooray for Bolliwood
Bolliwood Stardom Jokingly one of our goals on this trip was to get cast in a Bolliwood movie: Mission Accomplished! It was surprisingly easy. There are some 700 movies made in Mumbai a year so the numbers are working for you if you want to be cast as an extra. -
![Book-Em]()
It's Raining Books
Book-Em As you might imagine, reading is a popular past time for Dave and I these days. It’s also something we were both looking forward to on the trip. Prior to our departure, as we packed up the house we made little piles of books we’d take and not so little piles of books we’d have our friend Mary send to us down the road.
mumbai (10)
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Where Are They Now?
“So what ever happened to that crazy couple that were going around the world? Where are they now?” The quick answer is, geographically we are back in the U.S. at home in Washington, D.C. where we are looking forward to returning to normal life and everything (good and bad) that that entails – Jobs, Mortgage, Health Insurance, Pets – bring it on. -
![I Say Take it Back]()
Back in Bull Island
I Say Take it Back We’re back! A few days after landing in DC we’ve returned to my ancestral homeland of Poquoson, Virginia. Here we are visiting the parents, catching up with current events and trying to remember how Sales Tax works. -
They're Coming to America - Today!
And we’re back! After the better part of nine months on the road overseas we’re finally going to be Stateside again. Now here is where a lot of people will get caught up on the fact that we’re “Home” again. While we are indeed back in the States, and we won’t be having our passports stamped again on this trip – it’s not exactly over. -
Fear and Loathing on Flight 749 to Johannesburg
Things not to do on a flight to South Africa include: read a South African newspaper. LeeAnne did just that and it was fairly unnerving. South Africa in general and Johannesburg in particular have issues with crime. And while most of it is based in the poorer African Townships, it still makes the news. -
![Sad Little Went Tent]()
Australia Notes For Budget Travelers
Sad Little Went Tent It should come as no surprise that Australia is not the cheapest of countries on our itinerary. That said, the country is well equipped for backpackers on a budget. Like New Zealand, if you watch your $ in the cities and self-cater (camp and cook yourself), you can stretch your dollars pretty far. -
![Why, Why, Why?]()
Outback Radio, Oh-oh!
Why, Why, Why? One of the downsides of the outback is the dearth of radio stations available. We had grown use to pretty good radio here – much better than the states – Triple J is a standout. You loose all those once you leave the cities. -
![Something about the label appeals]()
Vibrant Straw with Flecks of Brilliant Green
Something about the label appeals When you hear something like “vibrant straw with flecks of brilliant green”, what do you think? I am guessing it wasn’t, mmmm… pour me one of those. As you probably well know, Australia is home to many a wine that we enjoy in the U. -
![Tribal Graffiti]()
Dunedin - San Francisco of the South?
Tribal Graffiti New Zealand is a very hilly place. Dunedin is the MOST hilly place we have been yet in the country. In fact it’s the home of the steepest street in the world – Baldwin Street. And the motorway in to town – the main artery for cars trucks etc. -
![Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends]()
Hobbits & Elves
Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends We arrived in the capital city of Wellington on Monday evening after 11 hours on a bus traversing the North Island from Auckland. -
Plan D
Okay, this one is our bad. After getting screwed by the Irish travel agency back at Thanksgiving we decided on another course of action. “Originating” our OWE flight in the UK. It was going to be great, we would fly there for a few hundred, maybe catch a soccer game, stop in Dallas to see LeeAnnes family on the way to New Zealand and be on with our trip.
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![Kliptown, Soweto]()
Poverty & Apartheid
Kliptown, Soweto Despite the bad wrap and the inconvenience of being a tourist in Johannesburg, a trip there is well worth it to be able to visit Soweto and spend time in the Apartheid Museum. I would recommend, however, that you do not visit both in the same day like we did. -
![Giraffes!]()
The Viewing Game - Krueger National Park
Giraffes! After a little taste of wildlife viewing in Zimbabwe and Botswana, we were pretty psyched to head to Krueger National Park in northeastern South Africa for a four day safari. We were even more excited to be sharing the experience with friends from the States. -
![The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall]()
The Walls of Johannesburg
The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don’t go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass. -
QANTASed Again!
It really never ends. It’s actually become quite comical. The wrath of QANTAS Beijing is still upon us. One of the changes we made was adding return flights to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe from Johannesburg. Again, after much confusion, we believed that these flights were confirmed. -
Banking in Zim-Zam
If you’re planning a trip to Zimbabwe – okay, not that many people plan to go to Zim, lets start over – if you’re planning a trip to Victoria Falls and flying in, guess what, you’re going to Zimbabwe. The land of 7000 percent inflation, and the land where the government officially denies that there’s an issue with inflation. -
![Victoria Falls]()
Victoria Falls - The Smoke That Thunders
Victoria Falls We are so glad to be leaving Johannesburg that the thought of going anywhere else is appealing. Even a departure to Zimbabwe – yes, that Zimbabwe, land of 7000% inflation, of dictatorial rule (Our first dictator, yes! -
Fear and Loathing on Flight 749 to Johannesburg
Things not to do on a flight to South Africa include: read a South African newspaper. LeeAnne did just that and it was fairly unnerving. South Africa in general and Johannesburg in particular have issues with crime. And while most of it is based in the poorer African Townships, it still makes the news. -
![Take Us With You!]()
Doh! We've been Shanghai'd!
Take Us With You! Just when we thought everything was resolved with our flights, it turns out that it wasn’t. You’d think that even the less than stellar women at the Qantas office in Beijing who issued us new paper tickets or the very stellar AA women in the U. -
![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry.
johannesburg (9)
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![Mongolia its Grrreat]()
Sain Yavaarai Mongolia!
Mongolia its Grrreat For those planning a trip to Mongolia – don’t bother leaving UB if you are a Vegan or Lactose Intolerant. You will starve! These people love their meat and dairy products. It makes sense, most people here are nomads and don’t want to stick around in one place long enough to grow a crop. -
![Mongolian Kid and Friend]()
Mongolia Notes for Budget Travelers
Mongolian Kid and Friend Mongolia is a bit different than the other countries we have visited thus far. There is only one real city, UB, and there is very little infrastructure to support public transport around the country. As we mentioned in Off We Ger if you want to get out into the countryside, which is really THE reason to come to Mongolia, then you need to a) join a tour; b) hire a jeep; or c) be completely raving madand take the local long distance buses. -
![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is. -
![Hell Bus 2007]()
Modes of Travel in Mongolia
Hell Bus 2007 The tricky think about Mongolia is that you have to get out of UB and into the countryside to really get a feeling for the country, but it’s hard as hell to get out of UB. -
![Trekking in Central Mongolia]()
Tales from the Mongolian Countryside
Trekking in Central Mongolia Since my time in Peace Corps, my motto has kind of been “hope for the best, but expect the worst.” With this frame of mind, you’re generally prepared for everything to go wrong and pleasantly surprised when it doesn’t. -
![Ger Ya Later!]()
Off We Ger
Ger Ya Later! Part of the allure of Mongolia is getting the heck out of UB and heading to the countryside. The only complication with that is that you can’t just hop on a bus and wing it like we have in other countries. -
![Can you say SOVIET?]()
Call Me UB - Ulaanbaator
Can you say SOVIET? Ulaanbaator is a sleepy medium-size town that happens to be the capitol and only real city of any size in Mongolia. The Soviets essentially built this city and it’s painfully obvious in the architecture, monuments and city planning that the Mongolians had little say. -
![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar. -
Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong.
Mongolia (9)
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![Mongolia its Grrreat]()
Sain Yavaarai Mongolia!
Mongolia its Grrreat For those planning a trip to Mongolia – don’t bother leaving UB if you are a Vegan or Lactose Intolerant. You will starve! These people love their meat and dairy products. It makes sense, most people here are nomads and don’t want to stick around in one place long enough to grow a crop. -
![Mongolian Kid and Friend]()
Mongolia Notes for Budget Travelers
Mongolian Kid and Friend Mongolia is a bit different than the other countries we have visited thus far. There is only one real city, UB, and there is very little infrastructure to support public transport around the country. As we mentioned in Off We Ger if you want to get out into the countryside, which is really THE reason to come to Mongolia, then you need to a) join a tour; b) hire a jeep; or c) be completely raving madand take the local long distance buses. -
![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is. -
![Hell Bus 2007]()
Modes of Travel in Mongolia
Hell Bus 2007 The tricky think about Mongolia is that you have to get out of UB and into the countryside to really get a feeling for the country, but it’s hard as hell to get out of UB. -
![Trekking in Central Mongolia]()
Tales from the Mongolian Countryside
Trekking in Central Mongolia Since my time in Peace Corps, my motto has kind of been “hope for the best, but expect the worst.” With this frame of mind, you’re generally prepared for everything to go wrong and pleasantly surprised when it doesn’t. -
![Ger Ya Later!]()
Off We Ger
Ger Ya Later! Part of the allure of Mongolia is getting the heck out of UB and heading to the countryside. The only complication with that is that you can’t just hop on a bus and wing it like we have in other countries. -
![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar. -
![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route.
Asia (8)
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QANTASed Again!
It really never ends. It’s actually become quite comical. The wrath of QANTAS Beijing is still upon us. One of the changes we made was adding return flights to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe from Johannesburg. Again, after much confusion, we believed that these flights were confirmed. -
![Take Us With You!]()
Doh! We've been Shanghai'd!
Take Us With You! Just when we thought everything was resolved with our flights, it turns out that it wasn’t. You’d think that even the less than stellar women at the Qantas office in Beijing who issued us new paper tickets or the very stellar AA women in the U. -
![Thats A Big Wall]()
Olympic Fever - Beijing
Thats A Big Wall The truth about Beijing, if you’ve been in China a while, is you only need a few days to see the sights, then get out …unless you want to go shopping. Then you could be there a month. -
Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely. -
![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar. -
Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong. -
![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry. -
![Monks Chillin]()
Litang - Little Tibet
Monks Chillin So for various reasons (time and cost being the biggest two, hassle being another), we have chosen not to go to Tibet. Let me explain a little: there are now three ways to get to Tibet from China proper
beijing (8)
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![Punakaiki Pancake Rocks]()
The Wild West Coast
Punakaiki Pancake Rocks After touring the Lakes District and Fiordland, we headed over Haast Pass to the west coast, described as wild and quite wet by most brochures and guidebooks. The drive over Haast was on one of our first clear, sunny days. -
![Sure Footed LeeAnne]()
The Ice Storm: Glacier Country
Sure Footed LeeAnne Traveling up the West Coast of the South Island we did hikes to the Ice faces of two of the biggest glaciers in New Zealand Fox Glacier and Franz Joseph Glacier. I’d never seen glaciers except on TV before and the experience was well worth the trip out. -
![Good Lord of the Rings!]()
Serious LOTR Country - Milford Sound
Good Lord of the Rings! Fjordland – the southwestern corner of the South Island – feels very different from the rest of the country. For one thing it’s almost all a huge temperate rain forest. So you’ll have a forest of conifers littered with huge ferns, and these crazy mountains that don’t belong in the Lord of the Rings – they’re the source material for it. -
![Not ours, but I wish it was...]()
Diary of a Car Camper - New Zealand
Not ours, but I wish it was... We’re starting kind of a second leg of our stay here in New Zealand, the bikes are gone and we’re renting a car for the rest of the trip. Of course it’s going to give our legs a break and let us have a lot more range in terms of where we can go and what we can see in a day. -
![Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne]()
Cycling New Zealand - That is a Wrap
Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne We are back in Christchurch finally, after spending the past few weeks biking the South Island. From here we rent a car and head to the west coast over the mountains and then back up to the North Island. -
![Tribal Graffiti]()
Dunedin - San Francisco of the South?
Tribal Graffiti New Zealand is a very hilly place. Dunedin is the MOST hilly place we have been yet in the country. In fact it’s the home of the steepest street in the world – Baldwin Street. And the motorway in to town – the main artery for cars trucks etc. -
![Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity]()
Invercargill Nights
Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity The Legend of Burt Munro Have you seen the movie “The Worlds Fastest Indian”? It’s the true story of an elderly Kiwi who breaks the world speed record for motorcycles at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah at the ripe old age of 69. -
![A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office]()
Pedal, Pedal, Pedal
A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office So our plan for a while has been to bike while in New Zealand. After considerable research and contemplation, we decided to rent bikes and bike on the South Island only.
South Island (8)
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![Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park]()
Elephantitis: Corbett National Park
Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park Leaving Delhi, we set off for Corbett National Park about 250 km north in the state of Uttarchanal. Our mission: elephant safari! And maybe spot some other wildlife as well. We were partially successful. -
![The Obligatory Shot]()
A Tail of One City: Agra
The Obligatory Shot “It was the best of times and the worst of times.” Mr. Dickens could have been been talking about one city in India, rather than two cities in Europe. Agra, a few hours outside of Delhi is a study in contrast. -
![Fatehpur Sikri Gate]()
Mughal Mania
Fatehpur Sikri Gate During our time here in northern India, I have developed a particular fondness for the Mughals. Mughal is the Persian word for Mongol. The Mughals claim decendency from Genghis Khan and their empire ruled much of India and its surrounds during the 16th to 18th centuries. -
![Hair is a Universal Language]()
Bazaar Haircut
Hair is a Universal Language So I needed a haircut some kind of bad. I haven’t had my ears lowered since before Christmas. I’d been holding out for some time, but the 110 degree heat in Delhi, combined with to opportunity to get a haircut on the street was too good to pass up. -
![India Gate]()
Several Million Do Make A Difference
India Gate After a long, chilly train ride, we arrived in Delhi last Thursday. Delhi is India’s second largest city after Mumbai. And though I can not find consistent population numbers, it is a fact that several million fewer people live here than in Mumbai. -
![Travel in 2nd Class]()
Life on the Rajdhani Express
Travel in 2nd Class A forty two hour train ride isn’t really something to be looked forward to. But after the better part of a month spent traveling further and further South, LeeAnne and I decided it was time to knock off a few of the “Must Do’s” in India – The Taj Mahal etc – so we had to find a way from Trivandrum (near the southern tip of India) to Delhi (in the North of the country). -
![The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram]()
Three Nights in Thiruvananthapuram
The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram: the small town with a really long name! Formerly known as Trivandrum, the town elders decided to change the city name for brevity’s sake to Thiruvananthapuram in 1991. We’re in town for a few days waiting on a train to Delhi.
Delhi (7)
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![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Things We Love(d) About China
Tiger Leaping Gorge There’s no denying it. We’ve enjoyed China. We didn’t fall in love with the big cities of the east coast, but the western and southwestern provinces are spectacular – filled with stunning scenery and diverse people. -
![Goodbye China]()
Zai Jian China!
Goodbye China China is not a developing nation, it’s developed. And we all might understand soon just how developed they are. I’ve never met a people who are more determined to make an impression on the world than these folks. -
China Notes for Budget Travelers
Our original budget for China was based on the costs of the big cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. Our goal was to stay at or below $70 a day for both of us. We were able to get by on about that in Hong Kong, but were able to easily stay below $50 a day for most of China. -
Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong. -
![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route. -
![The back streets of Zhongdian]()
Shangri-La - Not So Much
The back streets of Zhongdian Just north of Tiger Leaping Gorge at the edge of the Tibetan plateau sits the town of Zhongdian – recently renamed Shangri-La by the Chinese. It’s Tibetan name is Gyeltang, but no one uses it. -
![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Tiger Leaping Gorge
Tiger Leaping Gorge We just did a mini-trek at Tiger Leaping Gorge, it’s in the western part of Yunnan and it’s famous for being one of the steepest and most dramatic Gorges in the world. I have to say, it’s probably the highlight of China for us right now.
Tiger Leaping Gorge (7)
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![Like Sands Through the Hourglass...]()
So Long Southern Africa!
Like Sands Through the Hourglass... I feel like we owe Africa another trip. Five weeks here just doesn’t do this wonder corner of the world justice. We’ve had a chance to pop around a bit in Southern Africa, but I feel like we just peeped through a keyhole and the place has a lot more to offer. -
![Windhoek - Its Off the Hook!]()
Wild Wild Windhoek
Windhoek - Its Off the Hook! Windhoek is the medium size capitol of a very small country, – Namibia only has 1.2 million residents – it’s also Namibia’s financial and transportation center. If you are coming to Namibia, at some point you will pass through Windhoek. -
![The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall]()
The Walls of Johannesburg
The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don’t go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass. -
![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us. -
![Victoria Falls]()
Victoria Falls - The Smoke That Thunders
Victoria Falls We are so glad to be leaving Johannesburg that the thought of going anywhere else is appealing. Even a departure to Zimbabwe – yes, that Zimbabwe, land of 7000% inflation, of dictatorial rule (Our first dictator, yes! -
![Be Like Water]()
Hong Kong Part Deux
Be Like Water Wow, it’s hot in Hong Kong! When we were here in May it was just steamy, now it’s downright unpleasant. Thats not the only thing that changes quickly in Hong Kong: a bakery and Vegetarian Restaurant that we loved on our first trip were closed on our second visit – only two months later.
Africa (6)
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![Fuel Shortage]()
So You Wanna Be A Millionaire
Fuel Shortage Who doesn’t want to be a millionaire? Well, if you travel to Zimbabwe your dreams can come true with less than $10. The problem is that you can’t legally change money at the “real” rate and when you do become a Zim millionaire, there’s very little left on the shelves to purchase. -
China Notes for Budget Travelers
Our original budget for China was based on the costs of the big cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. Our goal was to stay at or below $70 a day for both of us. We were able to get by on about that in Hong Kong, but were able to easily stay below $50 a day for most of China. -
![Sad Little Went Tent]()
Australia Notes For Budget Travelers
Sad Little Went Tent It should come as no surprise that Australia is not the cheapest of countries on our itinerary. That said, the country is well equipped for backpackers on a budget. Like New Zealand, if you watch your $ in the cities and self-cater (camp and cook yourself), you can stretch your dollars pretty far. -
![Spending Tips from the Experts!]()
New Zealand Notes for Budget Travelers
Spending Tips from the Experts! Some of you are probably wondering how the heck we are making our money stretch around the world. The answer is on a budget! As we planned and planned and then planned some more prior the trip, we did our best to estimate our costs from everything to tickets and visas and travel insurance to daily costs and special, one-time expenses like tours. -
![Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching]()
Big Birds, Sleepy Sealions and Super Cute Penguins
Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching Yesterday we threw the budget out and splurged for our first tour in New Zealand. Actually, it was quite a bargain and worth every penny! Stretching out from the Dunedin coast is the Otago Peninsula. -
![Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends]()
Hobbits & Elves
Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends We arrived in the capital city of Wellington on Monday evening after 11 hours on a bus traversing the North Island from Auckland.
hostel (6)
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![Gateway to India]()
Back to Mumbai - Indian Wrap Up
Gateway to India We’re back in Mumbai awaiting our flight out of India. Driving in from the train station it was hard to recognize the town as the big dirty smelly place that shocked us when we flew in two months ago. -
![The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram]()
Three Nights in Thiruvananthapuram
The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram: the small town with a really long name! Formerly known as Trivandrum, the town elders decided to change the city name for brevity’s sake to Thiruvananthapuram in 1991. We’re in town for a few days waiting on a train to Delhi. -
![Kerala Backwaters]()
Cruising The Kerala Backwaters
Kerala Backwaters A highlight for many travelers in Kerala is taking a leisurely cruise through the 900km network of waterways known as the backwaters. The waterways vary from narrow shady canals fringed with homes and rice paddies to large lakes filled with fishing boats. -
![Sabu Elias & DeerVilla Home Stay]()
A Homely Stay
Sabu Elias & DeerVilla Home Stay Since arriving in India a little over three weeks ago, we’ve run the gamut on lodging options. We’ve stayed in overpriced, run down hotels, a rodent infested beach shack (Yes, we weren’t the only ones sharing that great view! -
![School Days]()
God's Own Country
School Days No, we didn’t come up with this, the State of Kerala did. Signs and brochures are quick to coin Kerala as God’s country. I imagine much of this is due to its beautiful scenery, which in all honesty we haven’t had the chance to see much of as of yet. -
![Kochi Coastline]()
Hot Time in Kochi
Kochi Coastline First off let me say we did not do Kochi justice. Kochi (formerly Cochin) needs to be seen in December or January – before it gets too hot. In late March it’s just too hot and too humid.
Kerala (6)
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![Rainbow Falls]()
North Country
Rainbow Falls When Kiwis go on vacation they go to Northland. It’s the peninsula north of Auckland, and you’re sandwiched in between the South Pacific and the Tasman sea, so there are loads of beach options. It’s where most of the Maori population is located these days too. -
![Anyone Smell Eggs?]()
That Smell: Rotorua
Anyone Smell Eggs? Rotorua stinks, literally (some may say figuratively too, but that’s another entry all together) it’s the center of a lot of geothermal activity here on the North Island. There are geysers and steam and the smell of rotten eggs all over up here. -
![Not ours, but I wish it was...]()
Diary of a Car Camper - New Zealand
Not ours, but I wish it was... We’re starting kind of a second leg of our stay here in New Zealand, the bikes are gone and we’re renting a car for the rest of the trip. Of course it’s going to give our legs a break and let us have a lot more range in terms of where we can go and what we can see in a day. -
![Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne]()
Cycling New Zealand - That is a Wrap
Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne We are back in Christchurch finally, after spending the past few weeks biking the South Island. From here we rent a car and head to the west coast over the mountains and then back up to the North Island. -
![A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office]()
Pedal, Pedal, Pedal
A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office So our plan for a while has been to bike while in New Zealand. After considerable research and contemplation, we decided to rent bikes and bike on the South Island only. -
![Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends]()
Hobbits & Elves
Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends We arrived in the capital city of Wellington on Monday evening after 11 hours on a bus traversing the North Island from Auckland.
North Island (6)
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![Like Sands Through the Hourglass...]()
So Long Southern Africa!
Like Sands Through the Hourglass... I feel like we owe Africa another trip. Five weeks here just doesn’t do this wonder corner of the world justice. We’ve had a chance to pop around a bit in Southern Africa, but I feel like we just peeped through a keyhole and the place has a lot more to offer. -
Black and White and Southern African All Over
This is the part of the blog where I get us in trouble. We’ve only been here five weeks or so, but it’s hard to leave here without making a comment about the racial tension in this part of the world, and it comes from both directions. -
![Giraffes!]()
The Viewing Game - Krueger National Park
Giraffes! After a little taste of wildlife viewing in Zimbabwe and Botswana, we were pretty psyched to head to Krueger National Park in northeastern South Africa for a four day safari. We were even more excited to be sharing the experience with friends from the States. -
![The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall]()
The Walls of Johannesburg
The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don’t go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass. -
Fear and Loathing on Flight 749 to Johannesburg
Things not to do on a flight to South Africa include: read a South African newspaper. LeeAnne did just that and it was fairly unnerving. South Africa in general and Johannesburg in particular have issues with crime. And while most of it is based in the poorer African Townships, it still makes the news. -
![Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV]()
The World Cup (of Cricket)
Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV One of the things we were excited about was being in India during the World Cup of Cricket. We arrived in Mumbai just a few days before the first match and were anticipating a huge outpouring of support for the national team from India’s billion plus people.
South Africa (6)
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![Sad Little Went Tent]()
Australia Notes For Budget Travelers
Sad Little Went Tent It should come as no surprise that Australia is not the cheapest of countries on our itinerary. That said, the country is well equipped for backpackers on a budget. Like New Zealand, if you watch your $ in the cities and self-cater (camp and cook yourself), you can stretch your dollars pretty far. -
![Newton - One Hell of a Town]()
Newtown - One Hell of a Town
Newton - One Hell of a Town We’re back in Sydney for one night to return our rental car and jump on a plane to Darwin. Luckily this gives us a chance to visit one of our favorite neighborhoods in Sydney: Newtown. -
![Descending the Giant Steps]()
The True Blue Mountains
Descending the Giant Steps We spent the final days of our Oz road trip in the Blue Mountains just an hour and a half outside of Sydney. It was quite amazing to watch the dry, dusty land gradually turn into rolling green as we made our approach. -
![Tropfest Crowd]()
Cinema Under the Stars
Tropfest Crowd A really fun part of life down here is that ever major city has an outdoor movie venue and most weeknight during the year you can go to the city park, pack a picnic and see a film under the stars. -
![Ride em Cowboy]()
Dave - Queen of the Mechanical Bull
Ride em Cowboy Some of you may be aware that Dave has always dreamed of riding a mechanical bull. Well his dream came true just the other day! No, it wasn’t at some dirty, dusty saloon somewhere in the middle of the Outback. -
![Welcome to the Year of the Pig!]()
New Year (Chinese New Year) in Sydney
Welcome to the Year of the Pig! So we’re here in Sydney and we’re learning that Sydney kind of marches to the beat of a different drummer. Part of the reason we came to Sydney when we did was timing.
Sydney (6)
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![Bıg Ben]()
England Notes for Budget Travelers
Bıg Ben Ok. Budget is a bit of a misnomer. Let’s refer to it as a bleeding. The U.K. is an expensive place to visit when you’re on vacation and headed back to work and a paycheck next Friday. -
![Say Cheese!]()
See You Later UK!
Say Cheese! Our time in the UK was short, shorter than anywhere on the trip yet. You say – the UK has a lot to offer, the transportation system is excellent, why not stay longer? A few reasons: we’ve both been there before, we live on the US East Coast and flights to London are relatively cheap so we will probably go again, and the idea behind this trip was to go places that were a little less accessible to us for whatever reason – distant location, long flight time, crap internal transportation systems. -
![Big Ben - Parliament!]()
London Cousin
Big Ben - Parliament! After close calls with my Cousin Sam Forrest in both New Zealand and Shanghai, we are happy to say we have successfully made contact with my cousin Joe Bateman in London. Actually, he lives ın Watford, but he was nice enough to meet up with us in Central London and show us the sights. -
Damn that Dollar!
England is great and London is possibly one of the greatest cities in the world. There are cool things to do, funky clothes to buy, good shows to see, and yummy food to eat (ethinic food of course). Too bad it costs so damn much to do any of it when you’re coming with US dollars. -
![Is it Christchurch, or Epcot?]()
Christchurch... or Disneyland?
Is it Christchurch, or Epcot? I once had a conversation with an Australian woman about the nature of Kiwi’s, “They’re more British than the British she said.” Now, asking an Australian to define the nature of a Kiwi (or vice versa) is never recommended, and you shouldn’t expect an unbiased answer, but in the case of Christchurch …she may have been on to something. -
Plan D
Okay, this one is our bad. After getting screwed by the Irish travel agency back at Thanksgiving we decided on another course of action. “Originating” our OWE flight in the UK. It was going to be great, we would fly there for a few hundred, maybe catch a soccer game, stop in Dallas to see LeeAnnes family on the way to New Zealand and be on with our trip.
United Kingdom (6)
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![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Things We Love(d) About China
Tiger Leaping Gorge There’s no denying it. We’ve enjoyed China. We didn’t fall in love with the big cities of the east coast, but the western and southwestern provinces are spectacular – filled with stunning scenery and diverse people. -
![Monks Chillin]()
Litang - Little Tibet
Monks Chillin So for various reasons (time and cost being the biggest two, hassle being another), we have chosen not to go to Tibet. Let me explain a little: there are now three ways to get to Tibet from China proper -
![The back streets of Zhongdian]()
Shangri-La - Not So Much
The back streets of Zhongdian Just north of Tiger Leaping Gorge at the edge of the Tibetan plateau sits the town of Zhongdian – recently renamed Shangri-La by the Chinese. It’s Tibetan name is Gyeltang, but no one uses it. -
![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Tiger Leaping Gorge
Tiger Leaping Gorge We just did a mini-trek at Tiger Leaping Gorge, it’s in the western part of Yunnan and it’s famous for being one of the steepest and most dramatic Gorges in the world. I have to say, it’s probably the highlight of China for us right now. -
![Lijiang]()
Earthquakes, Orchestras and Pictograms
Lijiang One of the top 10 tourist sites in China is the World Heritage Site of Lijiang, a small town in the mountains of the Yunnan Province. It was ankle to elbow full of tourists, but that didn’t stop us from enjoying the people and culture that abound. -
![Sam Walton ...Made in China]()
Notes From a Chinese Walmart
Sam Walton ...Made in China I’m sure Sam Walton is spinning in his grave. The man who billed his store as “All-American, and American Made” now has a huge business in China, with All-Chinese made products. We’re in Kunming, the capitol of Yunnan Province in the South-west of China, and our room is right around the corner from Yunnan’s first Walmart …how could we resist?
Yunnan (6)
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![Giraffes!]()
The Viewing Game - Krueger National Park
Giraffes! After a little taste of wildlife viewing in Zimbabwe and Botswana, we were pretty psyched to head to Krueger National Park in northeastern South Africa for a four day safari. We were even more excited to be sharing the experience with friends from the States. -
QANTASed Again!
It really never ends. It’s actually become quite comical. The wrath of QANTAS Beijing is still upon us. One of the changes we made was adding return flights to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe from Johannesburg. Again, after much confusion, we believed that these flights were confirmed. -
![Fuel Shortage]()
So You Wanna Be A Millionaire
Fuel Shortage Who doesn’t want to be a millionaire? Well, if you travel to Zimbabwe your dreams can come true with less than $10. The problem is that you can’t legally change money at the “real” rate and when you do become a Zim millionaire, there’s very little left on the shelves to purchase. -
![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us. -
Banking in Zim-Zam
If you’re planning a trip to Zimbabwe – okay, not that many people plan to go to Zim, lets start over – if you’re planning a trip to Victoria Falls and flying in, guess what, you’re going to Zimbabwe. The land of 7000 percent inflation, and the land where the government officially denies that there’s an issue with inflation. -
![Victoria Falls]()
Victoria Falls - The Smoke That Thunders
Victoria Falls We are so glad to be leaving Johannesburg that the thought of going anywhere else is appealing. Even a departure to Zimbabwe – yes, that Zimbabwe, land of 7000% inflation, of dictatorial rule (Our first dictator, yes!
Zimbabwe (6)
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![Sarah, Leah & Sue]()
Hei konā rā New Zealand
Sarah, Leah & Sue Tomorrow we say goodbye to New Zealand and the lovely Kiwis (people, fruit and birds) and head for Oz. New Zealand has been good to us. It’s a beautiful country to tour, and I imagine one of the easiest places in the world to travel. -
![Not ours, but I wish it was...]()
Diary of a Car Camper - New Zealand
Not ours, but I wish it was... We’re starting kind of a second leg of our stay here in New Zealand, the bikes are gone and we’re renting a car for the rest of the trip. Of course it’s going to give our legs a break and let us have a lot more range in terms of where we can go and what we can see in a day. -
![Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne]()
Cycling New Zealand - That is a Wrap
Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne We are back in Christchurch finally, after spending the past few weeks biking the South Island. From here we rent a car and head to the west coast over the mountains and then back up to the North Island. -
![Is it Christchurch, or Epcot?]()
Christchurch... or Disneyland?
Is it Christchurch, or Epcot? I once had a conversation with an Australian woman about the nature of Kiwi’s, “They’re more British than the British she said.” Now, asking an Australian to define the nature of a Kiwi (or vice versa) is never recommended, and you shouldn’t expect an unbiased answer, but in the case of Christchurch …she may have been on to something. -
![A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office]()
Pedal, Pedal, Pedal
A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office So our plan for a while has been to bike while in New Zealand. After considerable research and contemplation, we decided to rent bikes and bike on the South Island only.
christchurch (5)
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The Big Mac Index
So I have to tell you, from a exchange rate perspective, 2007 has not been a great year to travel outside the United States. Well, at least not if you have American Dollars to change (thank you George W. Bush). The exchange rates of most of the currencies we changed for was usually worse when we left than when we arrived, it sucked. -
![Bıg Ben]()
England Notes for Budget Travelers
Bıg Ben Ok. Budget is a bit of a misnomer. Let’s refer to it as a bleeding. The U.K. is an expensive place to visit when you’re on vacation and headed back to work and a paycheck next Friday. -
![Fuel Shortage]()
So You Wanna Be A Millionaire
Fuel Shortage Who doesn’t want to be a millionaire? Well, if you travel to Zimbabwe your dreams can come true with less than $10. The problem is that you can’t legally change money at the “real” rate and when you do become a Zim millionaire, there’s very little left on the shelves to purchase. -
Kia Aro from New Zealand!
After fifteen hours of flights and four or so hours of lay-overs we’ve arrived at our first destination: New Zealand. You may say to yourself: “Too Easy! An Around the world trip that starts half-way around the world, they’re cheating.” Well, yes maybe we are cheating. -
The Itinerary - For Now...
Okay, the Irish screwed us. After going through everything, AND running our credit card they told us (by email) that they had quoted us for the wrong price. And it would be about 1,000 euros more! Now I don’t follow the currency market like I should, but I do know that right now the exchange rate for US Dollars to Euros is no good, and a thousand Euros is …well, more that we want to pay.
Exchange rate (5)
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![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry. -
Kia Aro from New Zealand!
After fifteen hours of flights and four or so hours of lay-overs we’ve arrived at our first destination: New Zealand. You may say to yourself: “Too Easy! An Around the world trip that starts half-way around the world, they’re cheating.” Well, yes maybe we are cheating. -
Plan D
Okay, this one is our bad. After getting screwed by the Irish travel agency back at Thanksgiving we decided on another course of action. “Originating” our OWE flight in the UK. It was going to be great, we would fly there for a few hundred, maybe catch a soccer game, stop in Dallas to see LeeAnnes family on the way to New Zealand and be on with our trip. -
The Itinerary - For Now...
Okay, the Irish screwed us. After going through everything, AND running our credit card they told us (by email) that they had quoted us for the wrong price. And it would be about 1,000 euros more! Now I don’t follow the currency market like I should, but I do know that right now the exchange rate for US Dollars to Euros is no good, and a thousand Euros is …well, more that we want to pay. -
Tickets - One World Explorer
We’ve researched a lot of different options on Round the World tickets. It’s a great way to control your costs on getting there and back, because after you pay a flat fee you can use as many or as few flights as you want too.
flights (5)
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![Victoria Falls]()
Victoria Falls - The Smoke That Thunders
Victoria Falls We are so glad to be leaving Johannesburg that the thought of going anywhere else is appealing. Even a departure to Zimbabwe – yes, that Zimbabwe, land of 7000% inflation, of dictatorial rule (Our first dictator, yes! -
![Mongolian Kid and Friend]()
Mongolia Notes for Budget Travelers
Mongolian Kid and Friend Mongolia is a bit different than the other countries we have visited thus far. There is only one real city, UB, and there is very little infrastructure to support public transport around the country. As we mentioned in Off We Ger if you want to get out into the countryside, which is really THE reason to come to Mongolia, then you need to a) join a tour; b) hire a jeep; or c) be completely raving madand take the local long distance buses. -
![Hell Bus 2007]()
Modes of Travel in Mongolia
Hell Bus 2007 The tricky think about Mongolia is that you have to get out of UB and into the countryside to really get a feeling for the country, but it’s hard as hell to get out of UB. -
![Trekking in Central Mongolia]()
Tales from the Mongolian Countryside
Trekking in Central Mongolia Since my time in Peace Corps, my motto has kind of been “hope for the best, but expect the worst.” With this frame of mind, you’re generally prepared for everything to go wrong and pleasantly surprised when it doesn’t. -
![Can you say SOVIET?]()
Call Me UB - Ulaanbaator
Can you say SOVIET? Ulaanbaator is a sleepy medium-size town that happens to be the capitol and only real city of any size in Mongolia. The Soviets essentially built this city and it’s painfully obvious in the architecture, monuments and city planning that the Mongolians had little say.
Geography (5)
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![Goodbye China]()
Zai Jian China!
Goodbye China China is not a developing nation, it’s developed. And we all might understand soon just how developed they are. I’ve never met a people who are more determined to make an impression on the world than these folks. -
![Take Us With You!]()
Doh! We've been Shanghai'd!
Take Us With You! Just when we thought everything was resolved with our flights, it turns out that it wasn’t. You’d think that even the less than stellar women at the Qantas office in Beijing who issued us new paper tickets or the very stellar AA women in the U. -
![Shanghai Nights]()
Shanghai Shoppers
Shanghai Nights We’re in Shanghai at the moment, and we’ve had another near miss with my cousin Sam Forrest, we had a close encounter with him in New Zealand, but we were on opposite sides of the North Island. -
China Notes for Budget Travelers
Our original budget for China was based on the costs of the big cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. Our goal was to stay at or below $70 a day for both of us. We were able to get by on about that in Hong Kong, but were able to easily stay below $50 a day for most of China. -
![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry.
Shanghai (5)
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The Big Mac Index
So I have to tell you, from a exchange rate perspective, 2007 has not been a great year to travel outside the United States. Well, at least not if you have American Dollars to change (thank you George W. Bush). The exchange rates of most of the currencies we changed for was usually worse when we left than when we arrived, it sucked. -
Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely. -
![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry. -
![Join Us, Won't You?]()
The Cult of Lonely Planet & Lodging in India
Join Us, Won't You? Our time in India is starting to wind down, so we would just like to pass on a few words about lodging here. We’re using the latest edition of “Lonely Planet – India” as our main guidebook and it’s great of course, very well documented, written, and well thought out. -
Kia Aro from New Zealand!
After fifteen hours of flights and four or so hours of lay-overs we’ve arrived at our first destination: New Zealand. You may say to yourself: “Too Easy! An Around the world trip that starts half-way around the world, they’re cheating.” Well, yes maybe we are cheating.
Travel (5)
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QANTASed Again!
It really never ends. It’s actually become quite comical. The wrath of QANTAS Beijing is still upon us. One of the changes we made was adding return flights to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe from Johannesburg. Again, after much confusion, we believed that these flights were confirmed. -
![Fuel Shortage]()
So You Wanna Be A Millionaire
Fuel Shortage Who doesn’t want to be a millionaire? Well, if you travel to Zimbabwe your dreams can come true with less than $10. The problem is that you can’t legally change money at the “real” rate and when you do become a Zim millionaire, there’s very little left on the shelves to purchase. -
Banking in Zim-Zam
If you’re planning a trip to Zimbabwe – okay, not that many people plan to go to Zim, lets start over – if you’re planning a trip to Victoria Falls and flying in, guess what, you’re going to Zimbabwe. The land of 7000 percent inflation, and the land where the government officially denies that there’s an issue with inflation. -
![Victoria Falls]()
Victoria Falls - The Smoke That Thunders
Victoria Falls We are so glad to be leaving Johannesburg that the thought of going anywhere else is appealing. Even a departure to Zimbabwe – yes, that Zimbabwe, land of 7000% inflation, of dictatorial rule (Our first dictator, yes! -
![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry.
victoria falls (5)
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The Fabulous Cook Family
Some of you know our friend Lorraine (aka cycling fool). Well if you do, then you are aware that she is one great lady. It should come as no surprise then that her family in Adelaide are equally awesome. We felt they were deserving of their very own entry! -
Dude, Where's Our Stuff?
It was a lovely day, the sun was shining, birds were singing, the air was hot, the water was cold. Then we went back to the car… did you notice there’s no photo attached to this entry? Our second to last day in Adelaide our car was broken into and a bunch of stuff was stolen. -
![Book-Em]()
Little Adelaide
Book-Em It seems Adelaide has something of a self-image problem. It’s not hard to understand why – with competition like Sydney & Melbourne it’s easy to think of oneself as a little provincial. I can assure you this is not the case. -
![Something about the label appeals]()
Vibrant Straw with Flecks of Brilliant Green
Something about the label appeals When you hear something like “vibrant straw with flecks of brilliant green”, what do you think? I am guessing it wasn’t, mmmm… pour me one of those. As you probably well know, Australia is home to many a wine that we enjoy in the U.
Adelaide (4)
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![Mongolian Kid and Friend]()
Mongolia Notes for Budget Travelers
Mongolian Kid and Friend Mongolia is a bit different than the other countries we have visited thus far. There is only one real city, UB, and there is very little infrastructure to support public transport around the country. As we mentioned in Off We Ger if you want to get out into the countryside, which is really THE reason to come to Mongolia, then you need to a) join a tour; b) hire a jeep; or c) be completely raving madand take the local long distance buses. -
![Hell Bus 2007]()
Modes of Travel in Mongolia
Hell Bus 2007 The tricky think about Mongolia is that you have to get out of UB and into the countryside to really get a feeling for the country, but it’s hard as hell to get out of UB. -
![Trekking in Central Mongolia]()
Tales from the Mongolian Countryside
Trekking in Central Mongolia Since my time in Peace Corps, my motto has kind of been “hope for the best, but expect the worst.” With this frame of mind, you’re generally prepared for everything to go wrong and pleasantly surprised when it doesn’t. -
![Ger Ya Later!]()
Off We Ger
Ger Ya Later! Part of the allure of Mongolia is getting the heck out of UB and heading to the countryside. The only complication with that is that you can’t just hop on a bus and wing it like we have in other countries.
Eurasian steppe (4)
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![Trekking in Central Mongolia]()
Tales from the Mongolian Countryside
Trekking in Central Mongolia Since my time in Peace Corps, my motto has kind of been “hope for the best, but expect the worst.” With this frame of mind, you’re generally prepared for everything to go wrong and pleasantly surprised when it doesn’t. -
![Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort]()
Monkeyin' Around
Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort I guess it shouldn’t be that surprising, but there are monkeys everywhere in India. We’ve spotted a few in the wild, but most have been hanging around rooftops and historic forts. When Dave or I would spot monkeys on our safari in Corbett Reserve, all the locals just shrugged as if to say, “just a monkey”. -
![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts. -
![Bananas...]()
This Forks for You
Bananas... I’m currently working on a theory about the relative prices of eating out here in India. After a couple of weeks here we’ve been in big cities and small cities. Touristy places and less touristy places and we’ve been trying to come up with an explanation of the wide range of cost on what is basically the same food.
food (4)
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![Newton - One Hell of a Town]()
Newtown - One Hell of a Town
Newton - One Hell of a Town We’re back in Sydney for one night to return our rental car and jump on a plane to Darwin. Luckily this gives us a chance to visit one of our favorite neighborhoods in Sydney: Newtown. -
![Descending the Giant Steps]()
The True Blue Mountains
Descending the Giant Steps We spent the final days of our Oz road trip in the Blue Mountains just an hour and a half outside of Sydney. It was quite amazing to watch the dry, dusty land gradually turn into rolling green as we made our approach. -
![Mad Maxs Car - Sweet!]()
Diesel & Dust - The Outback
Mad Maxs Car - Sweet! As our car camping adventure in Aus continues we headed back to Sydney via the Outback. To say there’s a lot of nothing out there is a bit of an understatement. Aside from mining towns, road houses, road trains and red dust there’s not too much. -
The Fabulous Cook Family
Some of you know our friend Lorraine (aka cycling fool). Well if you do, then you are aware that she is one great lady. It should come as no surprise then that her family in Adelaide are equally awesome. We felt they were deserving of their very own entry!
Geography of Australia (4)
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![Bıg Ben]()
England Notes for Budget Travelers
Bıg Ben Ok. Budget is a bit of a misnomer. Let’s refer to it as a bleeding. The U.K. is an expensive place to visit when you’re on vacation and headed back to work and a paycheck next Friday. -
![The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall]()
The Walls of Johannesburg
The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don’t go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass. -
![Newton - One Hell of a Town]()
Newtown - One Hell of a Town
Newton - One Hell of a Town We’re back in Sydney for one night to return our rental car and jump on a plane to Darwin. Luckily this gives us a chance to visit one of our favorite neighborhoods in Sydney: Newtown. -
![Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends]()
Hobbits & Elves
Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends We arrived in the capital city of Wellington on Monday evening after 11 hours on a bus traversing the North Island from Auckland.
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Ma'Salama Jordan!
There are a couple of angles I could take with this particular country wrap-up. One is: Jordan – the only country we’ve visited to be ruled by a former guest star on Star Trek (It’s true – King Abdullah is a huge fan of Star Trek and worked his connection to get an appearance on an episode of Star Trek: Voyager. -
![Lee Anne & The Asads]()
A Day Out with the Asads
Lee Anne & The Asads There is no denying it. The best way to explore a city is with a local. Not only do you get the insider’s perspective, but you get to see things that you may not seek out on your own. -
![Let Their Be Water!]()
Looking for the Promised Land
Let Their Be Water! 7 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 8 Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink. -
![Shane Battier is Big in China]()
The NBA - It's Chan-Tastic!
Shane Battier is Big in China Move over Ping-Pong, make room for Basketball. The NBA is surprisingly huge here. After Soccer it’s probably the biggest spectator sport in the country. The NBA play-offs are broadcast twice a day here, live at 8AM in the morning and then again at night, followed by a highlights show with Chinese talking heads summarizing the game.
Jordan (4)
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![Bıg Ben]()
England Notes for Budget Travelers
Bıg Ben Ok. Budget is a bit of a misnomer. Let’s refer to it as a bleeding. The U.K. is an expensive place to visit when you’re on vacation and headed back to work and a paycheck next Friday. -
![Welcome to Liverpool]()
This is Anfield
Welcome to Liverpool The first thing you’ll need to know is that İ’m a soccer fan, next it’s important to know that İ’m a fan of Liverpool FC in England, since we happen to be in the UK it would make sense to go to a game in Liverpool right? -
![Paddys Wigwam]()
Chillin in the Pool
Paddys Wigwam We ventured to Liverpool for very obvious reasons, but still without the promise of tickets to see the boys in red at Anfield. Luckily the tickets worked out, but I’ll let the footy fan tell his tale. -
![Be Like Water]()
Hong Kong Part Deux
Be Like Water Wow, it’s hot in Hong Kong! When we were here in May it was just steamy, now it’s downright unpleasant. Thats not the only thing that changes quickly in Hong Kong: a bakery and Vegetarian Restaurant that we loved on our first trip were closed on our second visit – only two months later.
Liverpool (4)
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![Say Cheese!]()
See You Later UK!
Say Cheese! Our time in the UK was short, shorter than anywhere on the trip yet. You say – the UK has a lot to offer, the transportation system is excellent, why not stay longer? A few reasons: we’ve both been there before, we live on the US East Coast and flights to London are relatively cheap so we will probably go again, and the idea behind this trip was to go places that were a little less accessible to us for whatever reason – distant location, long flight time, crap internal transportation systems. -
Damn that Dollar!
England is great and London is possibly one of the greatest cities in the world. There are cool things to do, funky clothes to buy, good shows to see, and yummy food to eat (ethinic food of course). Too bad it costs so damn much to do any of it when you’re coming with US dollars. -
![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry. -
Plan D
Okay, this one is our bad. After getting screwed by the Irish travel agency back at Thanksgiving we decided on another course of action. “Originating” our OWE flight in the UK. It was going to be great, we would fly there for a few hundred, maybe catch a soccer game, stop in Dallas to see LeeAnnes family on the way to New Zealand and be on with our trip.
London (4)
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![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter. -
![The back streets of Zhongdian]()
Shangri-La - Not So Much
The back streets of Zhongdian Just north of Tiger Leaping Gorge at the edge of the Tibetan plateau sits the town of Zhongdian – recently renamed Shangri-La by the Chinese. It’s Tibetan name is Gyeltang, but no one uses it. -
![Dave and Lolo at the Taj]()
India Notes for Budget Travelers
Dave and Lolo at the Taj India is a budget traveler’s dream. It’s certainly one of the cheapest countries on our itinerary. Our daily budget for two is probably less than you spent the last time you went out to dinner. -
![Join Us, Won't You?]()
The Cult of Lonely Planet & Lodging in India
Join Us, Won't You? Our time in India is starting to wind down, so we would just like to pass on a few words about lodging here. We’re using the latest edition of “Lonely Planet – India” as our main guidebook and it’s great of course, very well documented, written, and well thought out.
lonely planet (4)
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![Windhoek - Its Off the Hook!]()
Wild Wild Windhoek
Windhoek - Its Off the Hook! Windhoek is the medium size capitol of a very small country, – Namibia only has 1.2 million residents – it’s also Namibia’s financial and transportation center. If you are coming to Namibia, at some point you will pass through Windhoek. -
![Big Dunes]()
The Southern Tour of Namibia
Big Dunes First things first. No, we didn’t come to Namibia because Brad and Angelina did. No, we didn’t see them. No, we didn’t even meet anyone who mentioned them. We were, however, shown the filming location of J Lo’s movie, The Cell, which of course we haven’t seen. -
Black and White and Southern African All Over
This is the part of the blog where I get us in trouble. We’ve only been here five weeks or so, but it’s hard to leave here without making a comment about the racial tension in this part of the world, and it comes from both directions. -
![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry.
Namibia (4)
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![Smells Like a Rose Too]()
Rose City Welcomes You
Smells Like a Rose Too Having flights left on our OneWorld Ticket and friends in Oregon to visit we headed off to PDX. Portland, with it’s rivers and bridges, it’s mountains, manageable city size (and professional soccer team), has long been near the top of the relocation list for LeeAnne and I. -
Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely. -
The Itinerary - For Now...
Okay, the Irish screwed us. After going through everything, AND running our credit card they told us (by email) that they had quoted us for the wrong price. And it would be about 1,000 euros more! Now I don’t follow the currency market like I should, but I do know that right now the exchange rate for US Dollars to Euros is no good, and a thousand Euros is …well, more that we want to pay. -
Tickets - One World Explorer
We’ve researched a lot of different options on Round the World tickets. It’s a great way to control your costs on getting there and back, because after you pay a flat fee you can use as many or as few flights as you want too.
Oneworld (4)
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![Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park]()
Elephantitis: Corbett National Park
Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park Leaving Delhi, we set off for Corbett National Park about 250 km north in the state of Uttarchanal. Our mission: elephant safari! And maybe spot some other wildlife as well. We were partially successful. -
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Cruising The Kerala Backwaters
Kerala Backwaters A highlight for many travelers in Kerala is taking a leisurely cruise through the 900km network of waterways known as the backwaters. The waterways vary from narrow shady canals fringed with homes and rice paddies to large lakes filled with fishing boats. -
![Tuk Tuk'ing Along]()
Escape from Mumbai
Tuk Tuk'ing Along When is a 12 hour train-ride in tropical heat with no air conditioning worth it? When it gets you out of Mumbai. Our journey began before dawn at Mumbai’s Central Station and would not end until just after night fell on us and our Auto-Ricksaw driver on a beach in Goa. -
![Bolliwood Stardom]()
Hooray for Bolliwood
Bolliwood Stardom Jokingly one of our goals on this trip was to get cast in a Bolliwood movie: Mission Accomplished! It was surprisingly easy. There are some 700 movies made in Mumbai a year so the numbers are working for you if you want to be cast as an extra.
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet. -
![Rock Art]()
Kanding Stopover
Rock Art I have to say we really didn’t really give Kanding a chance, we were only there one night before we moved on to Chengdu. If we had more time it probably would have been worth a day or two. -
![View from Lhasa Express]()
That Can Do Spirit!
View from Lhasa Express When we were in the early stages of planning our trip, I was only lukewarm to coming to China. But then I began to read more, not just about the tourist sites, but also about the history of China and its people. -
![Beverage, Pastry, Why Not Both]()
Early Reflections on China
Beverage, Pastry, Why Not Both So we’ve been in China for almost two weeks now and I have to say, sometimes I need to remind myself we’re in the Third World. After two months in India, being here is …refreshing.
Tibet (4)
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![Fuel Shortage]()
So You Wanna Be A Millionaire
Fuel Shortage Who doesn’t want to be a millionaire? Well, if you travel to Zimbabwe your dreams can come true with less than $10. The problem is that you can’t legally change money at the “real” rate and when you do become a Zim millionaire, there’s very little left on the shelves to purchase. -
![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us. -
![Victoria Falls]()
Victoria Falls - The Smoke That Thunders
Victoria Falls We are so glad to be leaving Johannesburg that the thought of going anywhere else is appealing. Even a departure to Zimbabwe – yes, that Zimbabwe, land of 7000% inflation, of dictatorial rule (Our first dictator, yes! -
Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely.
Vic Falls (4)
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![Long Live China]()
Amen!
Long Live China Well it appears we’ve succeeded at obtaining a legitimate 30 day visa for me in China. While in Guilin, we visited the local Public Security Bureau to inquire about an extension. Word among travelers is that they are quite pleasant to deal with and offer a relatively quick turn around. -
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High Road to China
We’re in! Well, almost …we’re crossing the border in a few hours, but LeeAnne was given a Visa. Just a ten day visa, but we’re hoping to get an extension in-country. Barring that, we’ll return to Hong Kong and reapply for a 30 day visa through a travel agency. -
![Hong Kong Phooey]()
Hong Kong Phooey
Hong Kong Phooey I have to say, after spending two months in India, there are few places better to go than Hong Kong. It’s clean, super-modern and very comfortable. We’re loving our time here, we’re staying in Kowloon, which is kind of a tourist ghetto, but a Hong Kong tourist ghetto is a lot better than a Indian, or even Australian tourist ghetto. -
![Spending Tips from the Experts!]()
New Zealand Notes for Budget Travelers
Spending Tips from the Experts! Some of you are probably wondering how the heck we are making our money stretch around the world. The answer is on a budget! As we planned and planned and then planned some more prior the trip, we did our best to estimate our costs from everything to tickets and visas and travel insurance to daily costs and special, one-time expenses like tours.
Visas (4)
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![Sarah, Leah & Sue]()
Hei konā rā New Zealand
Sarah, Leah & Sue Tomorrow we say goodbye to New Zealand and the lovely Kiwis (people, fruit and birds) and head for Oz. New Zealand has been good to us. It’s a beautiful country to tour, and I imagine one of the easiest places in the world to travel. -
Near Miss - Cousin Sammy
At the same time LeeAnne and I are doing our around the world travel my cousin Sam Forrest is doing something very similar. Last I had heard he was in South America so I never really even thought about the possibility that our paths might cross, but small world that it is, it seems he jumped over the Pacific by way of the Galapagos and Easter Island and was in Auckland when we were in Wellington – opposite sides of the North Island. -
![A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office]()
Pedal, Pedal, Pedal
A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office So our plan for a while has been to bike while in New Zealand. After considerable research and contemplation, we decided to rent bikes and bike on the South Island only. -
![Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends]()
Hobbits & Elves
Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends We arrived in the capital city of Wellington on Monday evening after 11 hours on a bus traversing the North Island from Auckland.
Wellington (4)
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![Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne]()
Cycling New Zealand - That is a Wrap
Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne We are back in Christchurch finally, after spending the past few weeks biking the South Island. From here we rent a car and head to the west coast over the mountains and then back up to the North Island. -
![A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office]()
Pedal, Pedal, Pedal
A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office So our plan for a while has been to bike while in New Zealand. After considerable research and contemplation, we decided to rent bikes and bike on the South Island only. -
Bicycle Hire in New Zealand
For a couple of months we have been considering trying to work in some Bicycle touring as part of our travel. It didn’t take too long to identfy New Zealand as the place we wanted to do it in. It’s suppose to be one of the best places in the world for touring and camping.
bicycle (3)
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![Bıg Ben]()
England Notes for Budget Travelers
Bıg Ben Ok. Budget is a bit of a misnomer. Let’s refer to it as a bleeding. The U.K. is an expensive place to visit when you’re on vacation and headed back to work and a paycheck next Friday. -
![Mongolian Kid and Friend]()
Mongolia Notes for Budget Travelers
Mongolian Kid and Friend Mongolia is a bit different than the other countries we have visited thus far. There is only one real city, UB, and there is very little infrastructure to support public transport around the country. As we mentioned in Off We Ger if you want to get out into the countryside, which is really THE reason to come to Mongolia, then you need to a) join a tour; b) hire a jeep; or c) be completely raving madand take the local long distance buses. -
![Spending Tips from the Experts!]()
New Zealand Notes for Budget Travelers
Spending Tips from the Experts! Some of you are probably wondering how the heck we are making our money stretch around the world. The answer is on a budget! As we planned and planned and then planned some more prior the trip, we did our best to estimate our costs from everything to tickets and visas and travel insurance to daily costs and special, one-time expenses like tours.
budget travel (3)
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet. -
![Rock Art]()
Kanding Stopover
Rock Art I have to say we really didn’t really give Kanding a chance, we were only there one night before we moved on to Chengdu. If we had more time it probably would have been worth a day or two. -
![Monks Chillin]()
Litang - Little Tibet
Monks Chillin So for various reasons (time and cost being the biggest two, hassle being another), we have chosen not to go to Tibet. Let me explain a little: there are now three ways to get to Tibet from China proper
Chengdu (3)
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![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter. -
![Monks Chillin]()
Litang - Little Tibet
Monks Chillin So for various reasons (time and cost being the biggest two, hassle being another), we have chosen not to go to Tibet. Let me explain a little: there are now three ways to get to Tibet from China proper -
![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Tiger Leaping Gorge
Tiger Leaping Gorge We just did a mini-trek at Tiger Leaping Gorge, it’s in the western part of Yunnan and it’s famous for being one of the steepest and most dramatic Gorges in the world. I have to say, it’s probably the highlight of China for us right now.
chinese tourists (3)
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![Theres No Place Like Dome]()
So Long Turkey!
Theres No Place Like Dome This entry should really be titled: “Hoşça kalın Türkiye”, but it was too hard to resist the chance to use that title. At least we didn’t title it “Get Lost Turkey!”. Leaving Turkey, this is the last time we will have our Passports stamped out on this trip. -
![Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites]()
It's Istanbul Not Constantinople Now
Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites Istanbul is a great city. It straddles the Bosphorus placing half the city in Europe and half in Asia. It’s an interesting mix of cosmopolitan and traditional is full of rich history and impressive structures left behind by the Greek, Roman and Ottoman empires. -
![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route.
Cities along the Silk Road (3)
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![Mongolia its Grrreat]()
Sain Yavaarai Mongolia!
Mongolia its Grrreat For those planning a trip to Mongolia – don’t bother leaving UB if you are a Vegan or Lactose Intolerant. You will starve! These people love their meat and dairy products. It makes sense, most people here are nomads and don’t want to stick around in one place long enough to grow a crop. -
![Trekking in Central Mongolia]()
Tales from the Mongolian Countryside
Trekking in Central Mongolia Since my time in Peace Corps, my motto has kind of been “hope for the best, but expect the worst.” With this frame of mind, you’re generally prepared for everything to go wrong and pleasantly surprised when it doesn’t. -
![Flavored Milk is Big Down Here]()
Reflections on Sweet Potato, Pumpkin and Hokey Pokey
Flavored Milk is Big Down Here The three things that stand out about food here in New Zealand are their love of (In order) Ice Cream, Pumpkins and Sweet Potatoes (known locally as Kumara). Let’s cover the last first, when I first saw it listed on the menu I just assumed that Kumara was a strange type of sausage.
dairy products (3)
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![Spending Tips from the Experts!]()
New Zealand Notes for Budget Travelers
Spending Tips from the Experts! Some of you are probably wondering how the heck we are making our money stretch around the world. The answer is on a budget! As we planned and planned and then planned some more prior the trip, we did our best to estimate our costs from everything to tickets and visas and travel insurance to daily costs and special, one-time expenses like tours. -
![Tribal Graffiti]()
Dunedin - San Francisco of the South?
Tribal Graffiti New Zealand is a very hilly place. Dunedin is the MOST hilly place we have been yet in the country. In fact it’s the home of the steepest street in the world – Baldwin Street. And the motorway in to town – the main artery for cars trucks etc. -
![Cadbury World]()
Eat Your Heart Out Charlie
Cadbury World If you’re like me, watching Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (the original with Gene Wilder) when you were a kid was a little disturbing. Our tour of Cadbury World in Dunedin proved to be full of a little of that same creepiness as well as loads of chocolate goodness!
Dunedin (3)
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Trouble in Photo Upload Town
Call it bad luck, call it damn bad luck. But we have had a heck of a time recently finding a machine and a connection to upload photos from. For this we apologized. Even if we can’t see what we’re posting you could, but recently we’ve either been in towns with no internet cafe’s, or towns with internet cafes and crap connections, or towns with good connections and machines so locked down we can’t even run the Flickr Uploadr. -
The Great Firewall of China Strikes Again!
Before we had arrived in mainland China we were aware that censorship was alive and well here. The televised news is little more than propaganda and access to other forms on information is limited. Many web-sites, several that we use regularly are blocked. -
flickring Around the World
Hopefully soon we will have many many photos in here. We’re using flickr to host photos while we’re traveling. It’s easy to upload stuff from internet cafes and it beats trying to store everything on our own, and then either losing them. Besides we can share them with everyone else.
Flickr (3)
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![Gateway to India]()
Back to Mumbai - Indian Wrap Up
Gateway to India We’re back in Mumbai awaiting our flight out of India. Driving in from the train station it was hard to recognize the town as the big dirty smelly place that shocked us when we flew in two months ago. -
![Beware of Monkeys!]()
Kumily & The Tiger Reserve
Beware of Monkeys! After a few days cooling off (literally in Munnar) we’ve headed down south to Kumily which we’ve used as a base to visit the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Count yourself extremely lucky if you see any tigers here. -
![Kochi Coastline]()
Hot Time in Kochi
Kochi Coastline First off let me say we did not do Kochi justice. Kochi (formerly Cochin) needs to be seen in December or January – before it gets too hot. In late March it’s just too hot and too humid.
Geography of India (3)
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![Gateway to India]()
Back to Mumbai - Indian Wrap Up
Gateway to India We’re back in Mumbai awaiting our flight out of India. Driving in from the train station it was hard to recognize the town as the big dirty smelly place that shocked us when we flew in two months ago. -
![A Room With A View]()
Go, Go Goa
A Room With A View Following our escape from Mumbai, we decided to head south, where according to various parties it’s “less crazy.” We chose to come directly to Palolem Beach in southern Goa for a little chill time. -
![Tuk Tuk'ing Along]()
Escape from Mumbai
Tuk Tuk'ing Along When is a 12 hour train-ride in tropical heat with no air conditioning worth it? When it gets you out of Mumbai. Our journey began before dawn at Mumbai’s Central Station and would not end until just after night fell on us and our Auto-Ricksaw driver on a beach in Goa.
Goa (3)
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![Dragons Backbone Rive Terraces]()
The Dragon's Backbone
Dragons Backbone Rive Terraces From Yangshou, we headed back north through Guilin again and on to Longsheng – our base for visiting the Longji Rice Terraces, also known as the Dragon’s Backbone Rice Terraces. I’d read a post online from another traveler that Yangshou was really too touristy (true) and that if you really wanted to see the people and countryside, you should head to Longji and the villages within. -
![Li River Scenery]()
Li River Daze
Li River Scenery One of the “must do” activities in China is a cruise down the Li River from Guilin to the smaller city of Yangshou. Like all good budget travelers we opted to join the Chinese tour. You get the same beautiful scenery sans the English commentary, but for half the price of the Foreigner’s tour. -
![Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin]()
Land of Limestone Towers & Caves - Guilin
Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin Guilin, it’s just one of the many cities in China with over a million inhabitants that you have probably never heard of. It’s also the first real stop for us in China (we spent a night in
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Trouble in Photo Upload Town
Call it bad luck, call it damn bad luck. But we have had a heck of a time recently finding a machine and a connection to upload photos from. For this we apologized. Even if we can’t see what we’re posting you could, but recently we’ve either been in towns with no internet cafe’s, or towns with internet cafes and crap connections, or towns with good connections and machines so locked down we can’t even run the Flickr Uploadr. -
![Passport Please]()
Papers Please
Passport Please One of the more frustrating things here in India has been the India love affair with red tape. Fair warning to all those who come to visit: memorize your passport number. You will need to produce it at many (unexpected)turns. -
Gimme, Gimme, Gimme - Some More Internet Access!
One of the more mundane things we do – a lot, of thank you Mr. Blog – is find Internet access. For those of you who haven’t traveled abroad recently there are a lot of ways to get online. Some are surprising, others surprisingly stupid.
internet cafe (3)
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Plan D
Okay, this one is our bad. After getting screwed by the Irish travel agency back at Thanksgiving we decided on another course of action. “Originating” our OWE flight in the UK. It was going to be great, we would fly there for a few hundred, maybe catch a soccer game, stop in Dallas to see LeeAnnes family on the way to New Zealand and be on with our trip. -
Our Men in Dublin
Ticket Plan B – Okay, so we’re going to use a travel agent in Ireland to purchase our RTW tickets, fly there a few days before we “Originate” our One World Explorer tickets and then fly to New Zealand. Crazy, yes, but it’s going to save us a bunch on ticket costs. -
One World Explorer Pricelist by Country
Okay, so one thing we learned very quickly from the One World Explorer FAQ is that OWE tickets are priced differently in every country they are sold in. Is that crazy or what? Originally, we were planning on flying from the states for 4,900 USD plus tax.
Ireland (3)
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![Theres No Place Like Dome]()
So Long Turkey!
Theres No Place Like Dome This entry should really be titled: “Hoşça kalın Türkiye”, but it was too hard to resist the chance to use that title. At least we didn’t title it “Get Lost Turkey!”. Leaving Turkey, this is the last time we will have our Passports stamped out on this trip. -
![Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites]()
It's Istanbul Not Constantinople Now
Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites Istanbul is a great city. It straddles the Bosphorus placing half the city in Europe and half in Asia. It’s an interesting mix of cosmopolitan and traditional is full of rich history and impressive structures left behind by the Greek, Roman and Ottoman empires. -
![Meow!]()
Muhammad's Cats
Meow! A curious thing about Istanbul is the number of healthy stray cats that freely wander the city. You can easily have a seat in the park near the Blue Mosque and count 20 or more in a matter of minutes.
Istanbul (3)
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![Mongolian Kid and Friend]()
Mongolia Notes for Budget Travelers
Mongolian Kid and Friend Mongolia is a bit different than the other countries we have visited thus far. There is only one real city, UB, and there is very little infrastructure to support public transport around the country. As we mentioned in Off We Ger if you want to get out into the countryside, which is really THE reason to come to Mongolia, then you need to a) join a tour; b) hire a jeep; or c) be completely raving madand take the local long distance buses. -
![Ger Ya Later!]()
Off We Ger
Ger Ya Later! Part of the allure of Mongolia is getting the heck out of UB and heading to the countryside. The only complication with that is that you can’t just hop on a bus and wing it like we have in other countries. -
![Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park]()
Elephantitis: Corbett National Park
Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park Leaving Delhi, we set off for Corbett National Park about 250 km north in the state of Uttarchanal. Our mission: elephant safari! And maybe spot some other wildlife as well. We were partially successful.
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![The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road]()
Notes From the Great Ocean Road
The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road We’re on the Great Ocean Road at the moment. It runs from the suburbs of Melbourne to the edge of South Australia and was built after WWI as kind of a works project to employ returning veterans in the 1920’s, before that the only way to access the small towns along the road was by ship or ferry. -
![Queen Victoria Market]()
Marvelous Melbourne
Queen Victoria Market After a few days on the road from Sydney we arrived in Melbourne – the second largest city in Australia and the capital of the state of Victoria. Aside from a stroll though the Botanical Gardens and along the Yarra River, we spent most of our brief visit to the city at the Queen Victoria Market and at the Melbourne Zoo. -
![Captain Kangaroo]()
Phillip Island Wildlife Park
Captain Kangaroo Making our way west from Sydney toward Melbourne, we decided to head a little off route to visit Phillip Island just southeast of Melbourne. Our trusty guidebook highlighted a couple of interesting wildlife opportunities – one in particular where you could interact with and feed kangaroos, wallabies and emus.
Melbourne (3)
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![Sabu Elias & DeerVilla Home Stay]()
A Homely Stay
Sabu Elias & DeerVilla Home Stay Since arriving in India a little over three weeks ago, we’ve run the gamut on lodging options. We’ve stayed in overpriced, run down hotels, a rodent infested beach shack (Yes, we weren’t the only ones sharing that great view! -
![Beware of Monkeys!]()
Kumily & The Tiger Reserve
Beware of Monkeys! After a few days cooling off (literally in Munnar) we’ve headed down south to Kumily which we’ve used as a base to visit the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Count yourself extremely lucky if you see any tigers here. -
![American Giants with Indian Honeymooners]()
Run For The Hills
American Giants with Indian Honeymooners Ok, so technically we didn’t run. We took a bus. An old, well worn bus that wound its way back and forth around seemingly endless switchbacks for the 130km trip from Kochi to Munnar.
Munnar (3)
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![Book-Em]()
It's Raining Books
Book-Em As you might imagine, reading is a popular past time for Dave and I these days. It’s also something we were both looking forward to on the trip. Prior to our departure, as we packed up the house we made little piles of books we’d take and not so little piles of books we’d have our friend Mary send to us down the road. -
![Newton - One Hell of a Town]()
Newtown - One Hell of a Town
Newton - One Hell of a Town We’re back in Sydney for one night to return our rental car and jump on a plane to Darwin. Luckily this gives us a chance to visit one of our favorite neighborhoods in Sydney: Newtown. -
![Ride em Cowboy]()
Dave - Queen of the Mechanical Bull
Ride em Cowboy Some of you may be aware that Dave has always dreamed of riding a mechanical bull. Well his dream came true just the other day! No, it wasn’t at some dirty, dusty saloon somewhere in the middle of the Outback.
Newtown (3)
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![Mongolia its Grrreat]()
Sain Yavaarai Mongolia!
Mongolia its Grrreat For those planning a trip to Mongolia – don’t bother leaving UB if you are a Vegan or Lactose Intolerant. You will starve! These people love their meat and dairy products. It makes sense, most people here are nomads and don’t want to stick around in one place long enough to grow a crop. -
![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar. -
![Dragons Backbone Rive Terraces]()
The Dragon's Backbone
Dragons Backbone Rive Terraces From Yangshou, we headed back north through Guilin again and on to Longsheng – our base for visiting the Longji Rice Terraces, also known as the Dragon’s Backbone Rice Terraces. I’d read a post online from another traveler that Yangshou was really too touristy (true) and that if you really wanted to see the people and countryside, you should head to Longji and the villages within.
Physical geography (3)
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QANTASed Again!
It really never ends. It’s actually become quite comical. The wrath of QANTAS Beijing is still upon us. One of the changes we made was adding return flights to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe from Johannesburg. Again, after much confusion, we believed that these flights were confirmed. -
Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely. -
![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry.
QANTAS (3)
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![Gateway to India]()
Back to Mumbai - Indian Wrap Up
Gateway to India We’re back in Mumbai awaiting our flight out of India. Driving in from the train station it was hard to recognize the town as the big dirty smelly place that shocked us when we flew in two months ago. -
![Octopussy, Every Night]()
Notes From Octopussy's Lair
Octopussy, Every Night Udaipur is a great place to go if your extremely rich, or a fan of James Bond films. Actually, if your a fan of one James Bond film in particular: Octopussy. A large part of the film was shot here and even though it was released some 25 years ago, every restaurant in town still shows Octopussy every night at 7PM sharp. -
![Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur]()
Pink City - Jaipur
Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur Rajasthan, in northwestern India, is kind of what I had always pictured India being like – desert, lot’s of castles and old forts, monkeys all over and people in Turbans. And so far it is not disappointing me.
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![Mmmmm...Masala Popcorn]()
Queen of the Hills
Mmmmm...Masala Popcorn After our relaxing time in Rishikesh, we were still longing for some cooler temperatures so we made our way further north to Mussoorie, also known as the Queen of the Hill Stations. It certainly lives up to its name. -
![The Beatles Slept Here]()
Hippy Dippy Do - Rishikesh
The Beatles Slept Here Rishikesh is a smallish town set on the Ganges at the foothills of the Himalayas. In part due to it’s “auspicious” location it’s a pilgrimage site for Hindus. But of late there are a lot of other people here besides Hindus. -
![The Ganges River at Rishikesh]()
'Oh Dirty River'
The Ganges River at Rishikesh As I stood at the edge of the Ganges in Rishikesh, I couldn’t help but hum the final lyrics to Sleater Kinney’s “Light Rail Coyote.” Oh Dirty River, Come Let Me In Except, I have no desire to dip into the Ganges.
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![Kerala Backwaters]()
Cruising The Kerala Backwaters
Kerala Backwaters A highlight for many travelers in Kerala is taking a leisurely cruise through the 900km network of waterways known as the backwaters. The waterways vary from narrow shady canals fringed with homes and rice paddies to large lakes filled with fishing boats. -
![Bananas...]()
This Forks for You
Bananas... I’m currently working on a theory about the relative prices of eating out here in India. After a couple of weeks here we’ve been in big cities and small cities. Touristy places and less touristy places and we’ve been trying to come up with an explanation of the wide range of cost on what is basically the same food. -
![Fishermens Village, Mumbai]()
Mumbai Madness
Fishermens Village, Mumbai After a pleasant 9 hour flight from Darwin, we arrived in Mumbai (formerly known as Bombay) on Wednesday evening. Our arrival was as smooth as could be expected at any international city. Breeze through immigration, pick up our bags, change some money and walk right through customs.
rupees (3)
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![Kliptown, Soweto]()
Poverty & Apartheid
Kliptown, Soweto Despite the bad wrap and the inconvenience of being a tourist in Johannesburg, a trip there is well worth it to be able to visit Soweto and spend time in the Apartheid Museum. I would recommend, however, that you do not visit both in the same day like we did. -
![The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall]()
The Walls of Johannesburg
The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don’t go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass. -
Fear and Loathing on Flight 749 to Johannesburg
Things not to do on a flight to South Africa include: read a South African newspaper. LeeAnne did just that and it was fairly unnerving. South Africa in general and Johannesburg in particular have issues with crime. And while most of it is based in the poorer African Townships, it still makes the news.
Suburbs of Johannesburg (3)
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![The Obligatory Shot]()
A Tail of One City: Agra
The Obligatory Shot “It was the best of times and the worst of times.” Mr. Dickens could have been been talking about one city in India, rather than two cities in Europe. Agra, a few hours outside of Delhi is a study in contrast. -
![Fatehpur Sikri Gate]()
Mughal Mania
Fatehpur Sikri Gate During our time here in northern India, I have developed a particular fondness for the Mughals. Mughal is the Persian word for Mongol. The Mughals claim decendency from Genghis Khan and their empire ruled much of India and its surrounds during the 16th to 18th centuries. -
![Travel in 2nd Class]()
Life on the Rajdhani Express
Travel in 2nd Class A forty two hour train ride isn’t really something to be looked forward to. But after the better part of a month spent traveling further and further South, LeeAnne and I decided it was time to knock off a few of the “Must Do’s” in India – The Taj Mahal etc – so we had to find a way from Trivandrum (near the southern tip of India) to Delhi (in the North of the country).
Taj Mahal (3)
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![Thats A Big Wall]()
Olympic Fever - Beijing
Thats A Big Wall The truth about Beijing, if you’ve been in China a while, is you only need a few days to see the sights, then get out …unless you want to go shopping. Then you could be there a month. -
Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely. -
![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry.
the Olympics (3)
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![Kerala Backwaters]()
Cruising The Kerala Backwaters
Kerala Backwaters A highlight for many travelers in Kerala is taking a leisurely cruise through the 900km network of waterways known as the backwaters. The waterways vary from narrow shady canals fringed with homes and rice paddies to large lakes filled with fishing boats. -
![Beware of Monkeys!]()
Kumily & The Tiger Reserve
Beware of Monkeys! After a few days cooling off (literally in Munnar) we’ve headed down south to Kumily which we’ve used as a base to visit the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Count yourself extremely lucky if you see any tigers here. -
![American Giants with Indian Honeymooners]()
Run For The Hills
American Giants with Indian Honeymooners Ok, so technically we didn’t run. We took a bus. An old, well worn bus that wound its way back and forth around seemingly endless switchbacks for the 130km trip from Kochi to Munnar.
Tourism in Kerala (3)
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![Dave and Lolo at the Taj]()
India Notes for Budget Travelers
Dave and Lolo at the Taj India is a budget traveler’s dream. It’s certainly one of the cheapest countries on our itinerary. Our daily budget for two is probably less than you spent the last time you went out to dinner. -
![Wedding Season]()
Wedding Crashers
Wedding Season It doesn’t take a Vince Vaughn scheme to crash a wedding in India, especially during wedding season. We actually had one gentleman befriend us on the streets of Udaipur to “practice his English” and subsequently invite us to his wedding party the following evening. -
![Octopussy, Every Night]()
Notes From Octopussy's Lair
Octopussy, Every Night Udaipur is a great place to go if your extremely rich, or a fan of James Bond films. Actually, if your a fan of one James Bond film in particular: Octopussy. A large part of the film was shot here and even though it was released some 25 years ago, every restaurant in town still shows Octopussy every night at 7PM sharp.
udaipur (3)
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Where Are They Now?
“So what ever happened to that crazy couple that were going around the world? Where are they now?” The quick answer is, geographically we are back in the U.S. at home in Washington, D.C. where we are looking forward to returning to normal life and everything (good and bad) that that entails – Jobs, Mortgage, Health Insurance, Pets – bring it on. -
![Back in DC]()
Back in the 202 Area Code
Back in DC First reaction upon returning to Washington, D.C., where both LeeAnne and I have lived for over a decade: “Wow! It’s really small! Where are all of the people? Where is all the traffic? And pollution, what happened to that? -
They're Coming to America - Today!
And we’re back! After the better part of nine months on the road overseas we’re finally going to be Stateside again. Now here is where a lot of people will get caught up on the fact that we’re “Home” again. While we are indeed back in the States, and we won’t be having our passports stamped again on this trip – it’s not exactly over.
Washington (3)
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![Punakaiki Pancake Rocks]()
The Wild West Coast
Punakaiki Pancake Rocks After touring the Lakes District and Fiordland, we headed over Haast Pass to the west coast, described as wild and quite wet by most brochures and guidebooks. The drive over Haast was on one of our first clear, sunny days. -
![Sure Footed LeeAnne]()
The Ice Storm: Glacier Country
Sure Footed LeeAnne Traveling up the West Coast of the South Island we did hikes to the Ice faces of two of the biggest glaciers in New Zealand Fox Glacier and Franz Joseph Glacier. I’d never seen glaciers except on TV before and the experience was well worth the trip out. -
![Not ours, but I wish it was...]()
Diary of a Car Camper - New Zealand
Not ours, but I wish it was... We’re starting kind of a second leg of our stay here in New Zealand, the bikes are gone and we’re renting a car for the rest of the trip. Of course it’s going to give our legs a break and let us have a lot more range in terms of where we can go and what we can see in a day.
West Coast (3)
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![Spending Tips from the Experts!]()
New Zealand Notes for Budget Travelers
Spending Tips from the Experts! Some of you are probably wondering how the heck we are making our money stretch around the world. The answer is on a budget! As we planned and planned and then planned some more prior the trip, we did our best to estimate our costs from everything to tickets and visas and travel insurance to daily costs and special, one-time expenses like tours. -
Kia Aro from New Zealand!
After fifteen hours of flights and four or so hours of lay-overs we’ve arrived at our first destination: New Zealand. You may say to yourself: “Too Easy! An Around the world trip that starts half-way around the world, they’re cheating.” Well, yes maybe we are cheating. -
![Headed Out]()
Bonne Voyage!
Headed Out Remember how you felt before you started your last Round the World trip? No? Let me remind you: It’s really no sweat, you’re only leaving home for several months, going to God knows what kind of places where you won’t understand the locals, be familiar with their customs or know which way to look when you cross the street …and that’s just Australia.
world trip (3)
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![Goodbye China]()
Zai Jian China!
Goodbye China China is not a developing nation, it’s developed. And we all might understand soon just how developed they are. I’ve never met a people who are more determined to make an impression on the world than these folks. -
China Notes for Budget Travelers
Our original budget for China was based on the costs of the big cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. Our goal was to stay at or below $70 a day for both of us. We were able to get by on about that in Hong Kong, but were able to easily stay below $50 a day for most of China. -
![Sad Little Went Tent]()
Australia Notes For Budget Travelers
Sad Little Went Tent It should come as no surprise that Australia is not the cheapest of countries on our itinerary. That said, the country is well equipped for backpackers on a budget. Like New Zealand, if you watch your $ in the cities and self-cater (camp and cook yourself), you can stretch your dollars pretty far.
Youth Hostels Association (3)
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![The back streets of Zhongdian]()
Shangri-La - Not So Much
The back streets of Zhongdian Just north of Tiger Leaping Gorge at the edge of the Tibetan plateau sits the town of Zhongdian – recently renamed Shangri-La by the Chinese. It’s Tibetan name is Gyeltang, but no one uses it. -
![Lijiang]()
Earthquakes, Orchestras and Pictograms
Lijiang One of the top 10 tourist sites in China is the World Heritage Site of Lijiang, a small town in the mountains of the Yunnan Province. It was ankle to elbow full of tourists, but that didn’t stop us from enjoying the people and culture that abound. -
![Sam Walton ...Made in China]()
Notes From a Chinese Walmart
Sam Walton ...Made in China I’m sure Sam Walton is spinning in his grave. The man who billed his store as “All-American, and American Made” now has a huge business in China, with All-Chinese made products. We’re in Kunming, the capitol of Yunnan Province in the South-west of China, and our room is right around the corner from Yunnan’s first Walmart …how could we resist?
Yunnan Province (3)
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![The Obligatory Shot]()
A Tail of One City: Agra
The Obligatory Shot “It was the best of times and the worst of times.” Mr. Dickens could have been been talking about one city in India, rather than two cities in Europe. Agra, a few hours outside of Delhi is a study in contrast. -
![Fatehpur Sikri Gate]()
Mughal Mania
Fatehpur Sikri Gate During our time here in northern India, I have developed a particular fondness for the Mughals. Mughal is the Persian word for Mongol. The Mughals claim decendency from Genghis Khan and their empire ruled much of India and its surrounds during the 16th to 18th centuries.
Agra (2)
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![The Obligatory Shot]()
A Tail of One City: Agra
The Obligatory Shot “It was the best of times and the worst of times.” Mr. Dickens could have been been talking about one city in India, rather than two cities in Europe. Agra, a few hours outside of Delhi is a study in contrast. -
![Fatehpur Sikri Gate]()
Mughal Mania
Fatehpur Sikri Gate During our time here in northern India, I have developed a particular fondness for the Mughals. Mughal is the Persian word for Mongol. The Mughals claim decendency from Genghis Khan and their empire ruled much of India and its surrounds during the 16th to 18th centuries.
Agra Fort (2)
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![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry. -
Tickets - One World Explorer
We’ve researched a lot of different options on Round the World tickets. It’s a great way to control your costs on getting there and back, because after you pay a flat fee you can use as many or as few flights as you want too.
Airline tickets (2)
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![Kliptown, Soweto]()
Poverty & Apartheid
Kliptown, Soweto Despite the bad wrap and the inconvenience of being a tourist in Johannesburg, a trip there is well worth it to be able to visit Soweto and spend time in the Apartheid Museum. I would recommend, however, that you do not visit both in the same day like we did. -
![The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall]()
The Walls of Johannesburg
The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don’t go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass.
Apartheid Museum (2)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra. -
![Wedding Season]()
Wedding Crashers
Wedding Season It doesn’t take a Vince Vaughn scheme to crash a wedding in India, especially during wedding season. We actually had one gentleman befriend us on the streets of Udaipur to “practice his English” and subsequently invite us to his wedding party the following evening.
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![India Gate]()
Several Million Do Make A Difference
India Gate After a long, chilly train ride, we arrived in Delhi last Thursday. Delhi is India’s second largest city after Mumbai. And though I can not find consistent population numbers, it is a fact that several million fewer people live here than in Mumbai. -
![Tuk Tuk'ing Along]()
Escape from Mumbai
Tuk Tuk'ing Along When is a 12 hour train-ride in tropical heat with no air conditioning worth it? When it gets you out of Mumbai. Our journey began before dawn at Mumbai’s Central Station and would not end until just after night fell on us and our Auto-Ricksaw driver on a beach in Goa.
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![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar. -
![Dave and Lolo at the Taj]()
India Notes for Budget Travelers
Dave and Lolo at the Taj India is a budget traveler’s dream. It’s certainly one of the cheapest countries on our itinerary. Our daily budget for two is probably less than you spent the last time you went out to dinner.
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![Sad Little Went Tent]()
Australia Notes For Budget Travelers
Sad Little Went Tent It should come as no surprise that Australia is not the cheapest of countries on our itinerary. That said, the country is well equipped for backpackers on a budget. Like New Zealand, if you watch your $ in the cities and self-cater (camp and cook yourself), you can stretch your dollars pretty far. -
![Spending Tips from the Experts!]()
New Zealand Notes for Budget Travelers
Spending Tips from the Experts! Some of you are probably wondering how the heck we are making our money stretch around the world. The answer is on a budget! As we planned and planned and then planned some more prior the trip, we did our best to estimate our costs from everything to tickets and visas and travel insurance to daily costs and special, one-time expenses like tours.
Backpacking (2)
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![Sarah, Leah & Sue]()
Hei konā rā New Zealand
Sarah, Leah & Sue Tomorrow we say goodbye to New Zealand and the lovely Kiwis (people, fruit and birds) and head for Oz. New Zealand has been good to us. It’s a beautiful country to tour, and I imagine one of the easiest places in the world to travel. -
![Rainbow Falls]()
North Country
Rainbow Falls When Kiwis go on vacation they go to Northland. It’s the peninsula north of Auckland, and you’re sandwiched in between the South Pacific and the Tasman sea, so there are loads of beach options. It’s where most of the Maori population is located these days too.
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Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely. -
![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry.
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia. -
Mork to Orson, Come in Orson...
One thing we’ve been doing a lot of research on running up to the last days before we leave is telephones and phone cards. Keeping in touch with folks back home is really important to us so we want something reliable, but we also don’t want to pay a lot for that muffler.
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![Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites]()
It's Istanbul Not Constantinople Now
Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites Istanbul is a great city. It straddles the Bosphorus placing half the city in Europe and half in Asia. It’s an interesting mix of cosmopolitan and traditional is full of rich history and impressive structures left behind by the Greek, Roman and Ottoman empires. -
![Meow!]()
Muhammad's Cats
Meow! A curious thing about Istanbul is the number of healthy stray cats that freely wander the city. You can easily have a seat in the park near the Blue Mosque and count 20 or more in a matter of minutes.
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![Book-Em]()
It's Raining Books
Book-Em As you might imagine, reading is a popular past time for Dave and I these days. It’s also something we were both looking forward to on the trip. Prior to our departure, as we packed up the house we made little piles of books we’d take and not so little piles of books we’d have our friend Mary send to us down the road. -
![Descending the Giant Steps]()
The True Blue Mountains
Descending the Giant Steps We spent the final days of our Oz road trip in the Blue Mountains just an hour and a half outside of Sydney. It was quite amazing to watch the dry, dusty land gradually turn into rolling green as we made our approach.
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![Mad Maxs Car - Sweet!]()
Diesel & Dust - The Outback
Mad Maxs Car - Sweet! As our car camping adventure in Aus continues we headed back to Sydney via the Outback. To say there’s a lot of nothing out there is a bit of an understatement. Aside from mining towns, road houses, road trains and red dust there’s not too much. -
![Why, Why, Why?]()
Outback Radio, Oh-oh!
Why, Why, Why? One of the downsides of the outback is the dearth of radio stations available. We had grown use to pretty good radio here – much better than the states – Triple J is a standout. You loose all those once you leave the cities.
Broken Hill (2)
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![Beverage, Pastry, Why Not Both]()
Early Reflections on China
Beverage, Pastry, Why Not Both So we’ve been in China for almost two weeks now and I have to say, sometimes I need to remind myself we’re in the Third World. After two months in India, being here is …refreshing. -
![Fishermens Village, Mumbai]()
Mumbai Madness
Fishermens Village, Mumbai After a pleasant 9 hour flight from Darwin, we arrived in Mumbai (formerly known as Bombay) on Wednesday evening. Our arrival was as smooth as could be expected at any international city. Breeze through immigration, pick up our bags, change some money and walk right through customs.
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![Cape Town Rules]()
Chillin in Cape Town
Cape Town Rules Cape Town is easily the best city we’ve visited in Africa, by far, LeeAnne is even claiming it’s her favorite city on the whole trip (but I’m not ready to go that far yet). african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins Why all the enthusiasm? -
![Mmmmm...Masala Popcorn]()
Queen of the Hills
Mmmmm...Masala Popcorn After our relaxing time in Rishikesh, we were still longing for some cooler temperatures so we made our way further north to Mussoorie, also known as the Queen of the Hill Stations. It certainly lives up to its name.
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![Tribal Graffiti]()
Dunedin - San Francisco of the South?
Tribal Graffiti New Zealand is a very hilly place. Dunedin is the MOST hilly place we have been yet in the country. In fact it’s the home of the steepest street in the world – Baldwin Street. And the motorway in to town – the main artery for cars trucks etc. -
![Cadbury World]()
Eat Your Heart Out Charlie
Cadbury World If you’re like me, watching Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (the original with Gene Wilder) when you were a kid was a little disturbing. Our tour of Cadbury World in Dunedin proved to be full of a little of that same creepiness as well as loads of chocolate goodness!
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![Like Sands Through the Hourglass...]()
So Long Southern Africa!
Like Sands Through the Hourglass... I feel like we owe Africa another trip. Five weeks here just doesn’t do this wonder corner of the world justice. We’ve had a chance to pop around a bit in Southern Africa, but I feel like we just peeped through a keyhole and the place has a lot more to offer. -
![Cape Town Rules]()
Chillin in Cape Town
Cape Town Rules Cape Town is easily the best city we’ve visited in Africa, by far, LeeAnne is even claiming it’s her favorite city on the whole trip (but I’m not ready to go that far yet). african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins Why all the enthusiasm?
Cape Town (2)
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![Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin]()
Land of Limestone Towers & Caves - Guilin
Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin Guilin, it’s just one of the many cities in China with over a million inhabitants that you have probably never heard of. It’s also the first real stop for us in China (we spent a night in -
![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
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![Bıg Ben]()
England Notes for Budget Travelers
Bıg Ben Ok. Budget is a bit of a misnomer. Let’s refer to it as a bleeding. The U.K. is an expensive place to visit when you’re on vacation and headed back to work and a paycheck next Friday. -
![Big Ben - Parliament!]()
London Cousin
Big Ben - Parliament! After close calls with my Cousin Sam Forrest in both New Zealand and Shanghai, we are happy to say we have successfully made contact with my cousin Joe Bateman in London. Actually, he lives ın Watford, but he was nice enough to meet up with us in Central London and show us the sights.
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![Trekking in Central Mongolia]()
Tales from the Mongolian Countryside
Trekking in Central Mongolia Since my time in Peace Corps, my motto has kind of been “hope for the best, but expect the worst.” With this frame of mind, you’re generally prepared for everything to go wrong and pleasantly surprised when it doesn’t. -
![Can you say SOVIET?]()
Call Me UB - Ulaanbaator
Can you say SOVIET? Ulaanbaator is a sleepy medium-size town that happens to be the capitol and only real city of any size in Mongolia. The Soviets essentially built this city and it’s painfully obvious in the architecture, monuments and city planning that the Mongolians had little say.
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![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route. -
![Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin]()
Land of Limestone Towers & Caves - Guilin
Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin Guilin, it’s just one of the many cities in China with over a million inhabitants that you have probably never heard of. It’s also the first real stop for us in China (we spent a night in
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![Mongolia its Grrreat]()
Sain Yavaarai Mongolia!
Mongolia its Grrreat For those planning a trip to Mongolia – don’t bother leaving UB if you are a Vegan or Lactose Intolerant. You will starve! These people love their meat and dairy products. It makes sense, most people here are nomads and don’t want to stick around in one place long enough to grow a crop. -
![Hell Bus 2007]()
Modes of Travel in Mongolia
Hell Bus 2007 The tricky think about Mongolia is that you have to get out of UB and into the countryside to really get a feeling for the country, but it’s hard as hell to get out of UB.
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![Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV]()
The World Cup (of Cricket)
Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV One of the things we were excited about was being in India during the World Cup of Cricket. We arrived in Mumbai just a few days before the first match and were anticipating a huge outpouring of support for the national team from India’s billion plus people. -
![Passports at the ready]()
Passage to Mumbai
Passports at the ready So we’re getting on a plane bound for India this afternoon, and we’re full of excitement and anticipation. We’re also sadly saying good-bye to things like clean tap water, salads and the ubiquitous first world flush toilet.
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![Monks Chillin]()
Litang - Little Tibet
Monks Chillin So for various reasons (time and cost being the biggest two, hassle being another), we have chosen not to go to Tibet. Let me explain a little: there are now three ways to get to Tibet from China proper -
![Friendly Monks]()
One Night in Xiencheng
Friendly Monks Xiencheng is a very nice little town in Southwest China with very little tourist traffic that you probably have never heard of. If you’re in Xiencheng it’s probably to overnight here waiting for a bus to take you to another town.
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![Technically Austin...]()
The Byways of Dallas
Technically Austin... Dallas, Texas is all together different from Oregon. Goodbye green, hello brown. Goodbye wooded mountains, hello scrubby flatlands. Goodbye rain, hello warm weather and sunny skies. So it’s not all bad. If Portland was the City of Roses I suppose Dallas has to be the City of Byways. -
Plan D
Okay, this one is our bad. After getting screwed by the Irish travel agency back at Thanksgiving we decided on another course of action. “Originating” our OWE flight in the UK. It was going to be great, we would fly there for a few hundred, maybe catch a soccer game, stop in Dallas to see LeeAnnes family on the way to New Zealand and be on with our trip.
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![Sad Little Went Tent]()
Australia Notes For Budget Travelers
Sad Little Went Tent It should come as no surprise that Australia is not the cheapest of countries on our itinerary. That said, the country is well equipped for backpackers on a budget. Like New Zealand, if you watch your $ in the cities and self-cater (camp and cook yourself), you can stretch your dollars pretty far. -
![Welcome to the Year of the Pig!]()
New Year (Chinese New Year) in Sydney
Welcome to the Year of the Pig! So we’re here in Sydney and we’re learning that Sydney kind of marches to the beat of a different drummer. Part of the reason we came to Sydney when we did was timing.
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![Sad Little Went Tent]()
Australia Notes For Budget Travelers
Sad Little Went Tent It should come as no surprise that Australia is not the cheapest of countries on our itinerary. That said, the country is well equipped for backpackers on a budget. Like New Zealand, if you watch your $ in the cities and self-cater (camp and cook yourself), you can stretch your dollars pretty far. -
![Fanboat Lolo!]()
The Top End - Darwin
Fanboat Lolo! We’re in our last stop in Australia before we head off to India. Darwin is the capitol of the Northern Territory, but it’s only a city of about 50,000 people and it has a very different feel from most of the other Australian cities that we’ve visited.
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![The Treasury]()
Petra Rocks!
The Treasury Pun intended! There’s no doubt about it. Petra is an amazing place. Definitely among the most amazing places on our trip. When you think of Petra, you may envision Harrison Ford and Sean Connery on horse back emerging from a narrow canyon to see the magnificent Treasury. -
![Delroy!]()
Is That Who I Think It Is?
Delroy! It’s always kind of fun to see famous people, even when they’re not that interesting. I’m not sure why. I can remember acting like a groupie at a rock concert when a I saw Dukakis at a rally back in high school.
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Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong. -
Dude, Where's Our Stuff?
It was a lovely day, the sun was shining, birds were singing, the air was hot, the water was cold. Then we went back to the car… did you notice there’s no photo attached to this entry? Our second to last day in Adelaide our car was broken into and a bunch of stuff was stolen.
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Banking in Zim-Zam
If you’re planning a trip to Zimbabwe – okay, not that many people plan to go to Zim, lets start over – if you’re planning a trip to Victoria Falls and flying in, guess what, you’re going to Zimbabwe. The land of 7000 percent inflation, and the land where the government officially denies that there’s an issue with inflation. -
Travel Insurance
Going hand-in-hand with vaccinations is Travel Insurance. I’ve been out and about in the world before, but have never even considered getting it. But, this is a big trip and we are grown up now, so it seems like a good time to look at it.
Economics (2)
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![Fuel Shortage]()
So You Wanna Be A Millionaire
Fuel Shortage Who doesn’t want to be a millionaire? Well, if you travel to Zimbabwe your dreams can come true with less than $10. The problem is that you can’t legally change money at the “real” rate and when you do become a Zim millionaire, there’s very little left on the shelves to purchase. -
Banking in Zim-Zam
If you’re planning a trip to Zimbabwe – okay, not that many people plan to go to Zim, lets start over – if you’re planning a trip to Victoria Falls and flying in, guess what, you’re going to Zimbabwe. The land of 7000 percent inflation, and the land where the government officially denies that there’s an issue with inflation.
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![Victoria Falls]()
Victoria Falls - The Smoke That Thunders
Victoria Falls We are so glad to be leaving Johannesburg that the thought of going anywhere else is appealing. Even a departure to Zimbabwe – yes, that Zimbabwe, land of 7000% inflation, of dictatorial rule (Our first dictator, yes! -
![Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park]()
Elephantitis: Corbett National Park
Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park Leaving Delhi, we set off for Corbett National Park about 250 km north in the state of Uttarchanal. Our mission: elephant safari! And maybe spot some other wildlife as well. We were partially successful.
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![Giraffes!]()
The Viewing Game - Krueger National Park
Giraffes! After a little taste of wildlife viewing in Zimbabwe and Botswana, we were pretty psyched to head to Krueger National Park in northeastern South Africa for a four day safari. We were even more excited to be sharing the experience with friends from the States. -
![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us.
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![Big Ben - Parliament!]()
London Cousin
Big Ben - Parliament! After close calls with my Cousin Sam Forrest in both New Zealand and Shanghai, we are happy to say we have successfully made contact with my cousin Joe Bateman in London. Actually, he lives ın Watford, but he was nice enough to meet up with us in Central London and show us the sights. -
![Paddys Wigwam]()
Chillin in the Pool
Paddys Wigwam We ventured to Liverpool for very obvious reasons, but still without the promise of tickets to see the boys in red at Anfield. Luckily the tickets worked out, but I’ll let the footy fan tell his tale.
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![It's so nice to see you...]()
Well, Hello Dali!
It's so nice to see you... Dali is a beautiful city with mountains on one side and a picturesque lake on the other. It’s an old walled city and unlike many of it’s ilk it has not yet been totally changed by tourism. -
![Sure Footed LeeAnne]()
The Ice Storm: Glacier Country
Sure Footed LeeAnne Traveling up the West Coast of the South Island we did hikes to the Ice faces of two of the biggest glaciers in New Zealand Fox Glacier and Franz Joseph Glacier. I’d never seen glaciers except on TV before and the experience was well worth the trip out.
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![Windhoek - Its Off the Hook!]()
Wild Wild Windhoek
Windhoek - Its Off the Hook! Windhoek is the medium size capitol of a very small country, – Namibia only has 1.2 million residents – it’s also Namibia’s financial and transportation center. If you are coming to Namibia, at some point you will pass through Windhoek. -
![Big Dunes]()
The Southern Tour of Namibia
Big Dunes First things first. No, we didn’t come to Namibia because Brad and Angelina did. No, we didn’t see them. No, we didn’t even meet anyone who mentioned them. We were, however, shown the filming location of J Lo’s movie, The Cell, which of course we haven’t seen.
Etosha National Park (2)
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![Be Like Water]()
Hong Kong Part Deux
Be Like Water Wow, it’s hot in Hong Kong! When we were here in May it was just steamy, now it’s downright unpleasant. Thats not the only thing that changes quickly in Hong Kong: a bakery and Vegetarian Restaurant that we loved on our first trip were closed on our second visit – only two months later. -
Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely.
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![Windhoek - Its Off the Hook!]()
Wild Wild Windhoek
Windhoek - Its Off the Hook! Windhoek is the medium size capitol of a very small country, – Namibia only has 1.2 million residents – it’s also Namibia’s financial and transportation center. If you are coming to Namibia, at some point you will pass through Windhoek. -
![Big Dunes]()
The Southern Tour of Namibia
Big Dunes First things first. No, we didn’t come to Namibia because Brad and Angelina did. No, we didn’t see them. No, we didn’t even meet anyone who mentioned them. We were, however, shown the filming location of J Lo’s movie, The Cell, which of course we haven’t seen.
Fish River Canyon (2)
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![The Beatles Slept Here]()
Hippy Dippy Do - Rishikesh
The Beatles Slept Here Rishikesh is a smallish town set on the Ganges at the foothills of the Himalayas. In part due to it’s “auspicious” location it’s a pilgrimage site for Hindus. But of late there are a lot of other people here besides Hindus. -
![The Ganges River at Rishikesh]()
'Oh Dirty River'
The Ganges River at Rishikesh As I stood at the edge of the Ganges in Rishikesh, I couldn’t help but hum the final lyrics to Sleater Kinney’s “Light Rail Coyote.” Oh Dirty River, Come Let Me In Except, I have no desire to dip into the Ganges.
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![Kerala Backwaters]()
Cruising The Kerala Backwaters
Kerala Backwaters A highlight for many travelers in Kerala is taking a leisurely cruise through the 900km network of waterways known as the backwaters. The waterways vary from narrow shady canals fringed with homes and rice paddies to large lakes filled with fishing boats. -
![Kochi Coastline]()
Hot Time in Kochi
Kochi Coastline First off let me say we did not do Kochi justice. Kochi (formerly Cochin) needs to be seen in December or January – before it gets too hot. In late March it’s just too hot and too humid.
Geography of Kerala (2)
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![Book-Em]()
Little Adelaide
Book-Em It seems Adelaide has something of a self-image problem. It’s not hard to understand why – with competition like Sydney & Melbourne it’s easy to think of oneself as a little provincial. I can assure you this is not the case. -
![The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road]()
Notes From the Great Ocean Road
The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road We’re on the Great Ocean Road at the moment. It runs from the suburbs of Melbourne to the edge of South Australia and was built after WWI as kind of a works project to employ returning veterans in the 1920’s, before that the only way to access the small towns along the road was by ship or ferry.
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![Mmmmm...Masala Popcorn]()
Queen of the Hills
Mmmmm...Masala Popcorn After our relaxing time in Rishikesh, we were still longing for some cooler temperatures so we made our way further north to Mussoorie, also known as the Queen of the Hill Stations. It certainly lives up to its name. -
![The Ganges River at Rishikesh]()
'Oh Dirty River'
The Ganges River at Rishikesh As I stood at the edge of the Ganges in Rishikesh, I couldn’t help but hum the final lyrics to Sleater Kinney’s “Light Rail Coyote.” Oh Dirty River, Come Let Me In Except, I have no desire to dip into the Ganges.
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![Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort]()
Monkeyin' Around
Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort I guess it shouldn’t be that surprising, but there are monkeys everywhere in India. We’ve spotted a few in the wild, but most have been hanging around rooftops and historic forts. When Dave or I would spot monkeys on our safari in Corbett Reserve, all the locals just shrugged as if to say, “just a monkey”. -
![The Ganges River at Rishikesh]()
'Oh Dirty River'
The Ganges River at Rishikesh As I stood at the edge of the Ganges in Rishikesh, I couldn’t help but hum the final lyrics to Sleater Kinney’s “Light Rail Coyote.” Oh Dirty River, Come Let Me In Except, I have no desire to dip into the Ganges.
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![PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute.]()
Eugenius!!!
PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute. Our friends Deb and Craig moved out to Eugene, Oregon a couple of years a go and we’ve never visited them. Why? Many reasons, theres nothing even resembling a direct flight to Eugene from DC. -
![The Beatles Slept Here]()
Hippy Dippy Do - Rishikesh
The Beatles Slept Here Rishikesh is a smallish town set on the Ganges at the foothills of the Himalayas. In part due to it’s “auspicious” location it’s a pilgrimage site for Hindus. But of late there are a lot of other people here besides Hindus.
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China Notes for Budget Travelers
Our original budget for China was based on the costs of the big cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. Our goal was to stay at or below $70 a day for both of us. We were able to get by on about that in Hong Kong, but were able to easily stay below $50 a day for most of China. -
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High Road to China
We’re in! Well, almost …we’re crossing the border in a few hours, but LeeAnne was given a Visa. Just a ten day visa, but we’re hoping to get an extension in-country. Barring that, we’ll return to Hong Kong and reapply for a 30 day visa through a travel agency.
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![Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur]()
Pink City - Jaipur
Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur Rajasthan, in northwestern India, is kind of what I had always pictured India being like – desert, lot’s of castles and old forts, monkeys all over and people in Turbans. And so far it is not disappointing me. -
![Travel in 2nd Class]()
Life on the Rajdhani Express
Travel in 2nd Class A forty two hour train ride isn’t really something to be looked forward to. But after the better part of a month spent traveling further and further South, LeeAnne and I decided it was time to knock off a few of the “Must Do’s” in India – The Taj Mahal etc – so we had to find a way from Trivandrum (near the southern tip of India) to Delhi (in the North of the country).
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![Fuel Shortage]()
So You Wanna Be A Millionaire
Fuel Shortage Who doesn’t want to be a millionaire? Well, if you travel to Zimbabwe your dreams can come true with less than $10. The problem is that you can’t legally change money at the “real” rate and when you do become a Zim millionaire, there’s very little left on the shelves to purchase. -
![Victoria Falls]()
Victoria Falls - The Smoke That Thunders
Victoria Falls We are so glad to be leaving Johannesburg that the thought of going anywhere else is appealing. Even a departure to Zimbabwe – yes, that Zimbabwe, land of 7000% inflation, of dictatorial rule (Our first dictator, yes!
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Trouble in Photo Upload Town
Call it bad luck, call it damn bad luck. But we have had a heck of a time recently finding a machine and a connection to upload photos from. For this we apologized. Even if we can’t see what we’re posting you could, but recently we’ve either been in towns with no internet cafe’s, or towns with internet cafes and crap connections, or towns with good connections and machines so locked down we can’t even run the Flickr Uploadr. -
Gimme, Gimme, Gimme - Some More Internet Access!
One of the more mundane things we do – a lot, of thank you Mr. Blog – is find Internet access. For those of you who haven’t traveled abroad recently there are a lot of ways to get online. Some are surprising, others surprisingly stupid.
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Trouble in Photo Upload Town
Call it bad luck, call it damn bad luck. But we have had a heck of a time recently finding a machine and a connection to upload photos from. For this we apologized. Even if we can’t see what we’re posting you could, but recently we’ve either been in towns with no internet cafe’s, or towns with internet cafes and crap connections, or towns with good connections and machines so locked down we can’t even run the Flickr Uploadr. -
flickring Around the World
Hopefully soon we will have many many photos in here. We’re using flickr to host photos while we’re traveling. It’s easy to upload stuff from internet cafes and it beats trying to store everything on our own, and then either losing them. Besides we can share them with everyone else.
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![Along the Presidential Highway]()
Somewhere Between Clinton and Gore
Along the Presidential Highway So we are back on the road cycling. This time we are lighter (we dropped a bunch of stuff off with acquaintances in Christchurch), smarter (we’ve traveled south by bus and are riding north to keep the wind at our backs), and more motivated (if you read our post on Invercargill you’ll understand, we need to get out of here! -
![Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity]()
Invercargill Nights
Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity The Legend of Burt Munro Have you seen the movie “The Worlds Fastest Indian”? It’s the true story of an elderly Kiwi who breaks the world speed record for motorcycles at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah at the ripe old age of 69.
Invercargill (2)
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![Dave and Lolo at the Taj]()
India Notes for Budget Travelers
Dave and Lolo at the Taj India is a budget traveler’s dream. It’s certainly one of the cheapest countries on our itinerary. Our daily budget for two is probably less than you spent the last time you went out to dinner. -
The Itinerary - For Now...
Okay, the Irish screwed us. After going through everything, AND running our credit card they told us (by email) that they had quoted us for the wrong price. And it would be about 1,000 euros more! Now I don’t follow the currency market like I should, but I do know that right now the exchange rate for US Dollars to Euros is no good, and a thousand Euros is …well, more that we want to pay.
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![Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort]()
Monkeyin' Around
Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort I guess it shouldn’t be that surprising, but there are monkeys everywhere in India. We’ve spotted a few in the wild, but most have been hanging around rooftops and historic forts. When Dave or I would spot monkeys on our safari in Corbett Reserve, all the locals just shrugged as if to say, “just a monkey”. -
![Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur]()
Pink City - Jaipur
Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur Rajasthan, in northwestern India, is kind of what I had always pictured India being like – desert, lot’s of castles and old forts, monkeys all over and people in Turbans. And so far it is not disappointing me.
Jaipur (2)
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![Sabu Elias & DeerVilla Home Stay]()
A Homely Stay
Sabu Elias & DeerVilla Home Stay Since arriving in India a little over three weeks ago, we’ve run the gamut on lodging options. We’ve stayed in overpriced, run down hotels, a rodent infested beach shack (Yes, we weren’t the only ones sharing that great view! -
![Beware of Monkeys!]()
Kumily & The Tiger Reserve
Beware of Monkeys! After a few days cooling off (literally in Munnar) we’ve headed down south to Kumily which we’ve used as a base to visit the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Count yourself extremely lucky if you see any tigers here.
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Where Are They Now?
“So what ever happened to that crazy couple that were going around the world? Where are they now?” The quick answer is, geographically we are back in the U.S. at home in Washington, D.C. where we are looking forward to returning to normal life and everything (good and bad) that that entails – Jobs, Mortgage, Health Insurance, Pets – bring it on. -
Carbon Compensation
One more thing before we let you go – and I don’t want to get too Ed Begley Jr. here, but I think it does bear mentioning. When you travel around the world like we’ve done this year there are some unseen consequences, and I’m not talking about introducing Mongolian Nomads to iPods.
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![Mark Hanna Slept Here]()
New Lisbon
Mark Hanna Slept Here Lisbon, Ohio LeeAnne’s home town was one of our first stops on our return to the States. Lisbon is a little burg village located in north-eastern Ohio, but it is surprisingly deep in history and dare I say it? -
![Are we traveling light yet?]()
Packing, Packing, Packing
Are we traveling light yet? Wow! We have a lot of stuff for two people traveling light around the world. It’s embarrassing telling people your traveling around the world on a shoestring and then asking their help to pull your two large duffel bags, two fully packed back-packs and two or three carry-on’s out of the car for you.
Lisbon (2)
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![Welcome to Liverpool]()
This is Anfield
Welcome to Liverpool The first thing you’ll need to know is that İ’m a soccer fan, next it’s important to know that İ’m a fan of Liverpool FC in England, since we happen to be in the UK it would make sense to go to a game in Liverpool right? -
![Be Like Water]()
Hong Kong Part Deux
Be Like Water Wow, it’s hot in Hong Kong! When we were here in May it was just steamy, now it’s downright unpleasant. Thats not the only thing that changes quickly in Hong Kong: a bakery and Vegetarian Restaurant that we loved on our first trip were closed on our second visit – only two months later.
Liverpool FC (2)
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![Mao Meets Capitalism]()
Comrades and Capitalist Roaders
Mao Meets Capitalism If a picture is worth a thousand words, this one must be worth a thousand dollars. This is China today. New cars being sold at the foot of Chairman Mao while “Life in the Fast Lane” blasts from stereos. -
![View from Lhasa Express]()
That Can Do Spirit!
View from Lhasa Express When we were in the early stages of planning our trip, I was only lukewarm to coming to China. But then I began to read more, not just about the tourist sites, but also about the history of China and its people.
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet. -
![Mao Meets Capitalism]()
Comrades and Capitalist Roaders
Mao Meets Capitalism If a picture is worth a thousand words, this one must be worth a thousand dollars. This is China today. New cars being sold at the foot of Chairman Mao while “Life in the Fast Lane” blasts from stereos.
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Ma'Salama Jordan!
There are a couple of angles I could take with this particular country wrap-up. One is: Jordan – the only country we’ve visited to be ruled by a former guest star on Star Trek (It’s true – King Abdullah is a huge fan of Star Trek and worked his connection to get an appearance on an episode of Star Trek: Voyager. -
![Life is a Kings Highway]()
Life on the Kings Highway
Life is a Kings Highway There are two ways to get from Petra to Amman: the fast way is to take the Desert Highway, a name that leaves little to the imagination, the other is the Kings Highway. The King’s Highway was a major trade route in the ancient Mid-East.
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![Mongolia its Grrreat]()
Sain Yavaarai Mongolia!
Mongolia its Grrreat For those planning a trip to Mongolia – don’t bother leaving UB if you are a Vegan or Lactose Intolerant. You will starve! These people love their meat and dairy products. It makes sense, most people here are nomads and don’t want to stick around in one place long enough to grow a crop. -
![Flavored Milk is Big Down Here]()
Reflections on Sweet Potato, Pumpkin and Hokey Pokey
Flavored Milk is Big Down Here The three things that stand out about food here in New Zealand are their love of (In order) Ice Cream, Pumpkins and Sweet Potatoes (known locally as Kumara). Let’s cover the last first, when I first saw it listed on the menu I just assumed that Kumara was a strange type of sausage.
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![Hell Bus 2007]()
Modes of Travel in Mongolia
Hell Bus 2007 The tricky think about Mongolia is that you have to get out of UB and into the countryside to really get a feeling for the country, but it’s hard as hell to get out of UB. -
![American Giants with Indian Honeymooners]()
Run For The Hills
American Giants with Indian Honeymooners Ok, so technically we didn’t run. We took a bus. An old, well worn bus that wound its way back and forth around seemingly endless switchbacks for the 130km trip from Kochi to Munnar.
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![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is. -
![Can you say SOVIET?]()
Call Me UB - Ulaanbaator
Can you say SOVIET? Ulaanbaator is a sleepy medium-size town that happens to be the capitol and only real city of any size in Mongolia. The Soviets essentially built this city and it’s painfully obvious in the architecture, monuments and city planning that the Mongolians had little say.
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![Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort]()
Monkeyin' Around
Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort I guess it shouldn’t be that surprising, but there are monkeys everywhere in India. We’ve spotted a few in the wild, but most have been hanging around rooftops and historic forts. When Dave or I would spot monkeys on our safari in Corbett Reserve, all the locals just shrugged as if to say, “just a monkey”. -
![Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur]()
Pink City - Jaipur
Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur Rajasthan, in northwestern India, is kind of what I had always pictured India being like – desert, lot’s of castles and old forts, monkeys all over and people in Turbans. And so far it is not disappointing me.
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![The Obligatory Shot]()
A Tail of One City: Agra
The Obligatory Shot “It was the best of times and the worst of times.” Mr. Dickens could have been been talking about one city in India, rather than two cities in Europe. Agra, a few hours outside of Delhi is a study in contrast. -
![Fatehpur Sikri Gate]()
Mughal Mania
Fatehpur Sikri Gate During our time here in northern India, I have developed a particular fondness for the Mughals. Mughal is the Persian word for Mongol. The Mughals claim decendency from Genghis Khan and their empire ruled much of India and its surrounds during the 16th to 18th centuries.
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![Lijiang]()
Earthquakes, Orchestras and Pictograms
Lijiang One of the top 10 tourist sites in China is the World Heritage Site of Lijiang, a small town in the mountains of the Yunnan Province. It was ankle to elbow full of tourists, but that didn’t stop us from enjoying the people and culture that abound. -
![View from Lhasa Express]()
That Can Do Spirit!
View from Lhasa Express When we were in the early stages of planning our trip, I was only lukewarm to coming to China. But then I began to read more, not just about the tourist sites, but also about the history of China and its people.
Natural Disaster (2)
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![Descending the Giant Steps]()
The True Blue Mountains
Descending the Giant Steps We spent the final days of our Oz road trip in the Blue Mountains just an hour and a half outside of Sydney. It was quite amazing to watch the dry, dusty land gradually turn into rolling green as we made our approach. -
![Mad Maxs Car - Sweet!]()
Diesel & Dust - The Outback
Mad Maxs Car - Sweet! As our car camping adventure in Aus continues we headed back to Sydney via the Outback. To say there’s a lot of nothing out there is a bit of an understatement. Aside from mining towns, road houses, road trains and red dust there’s not too much.
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Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong. -
Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
Nikon D50 Digital Camera (2)
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![Sad Little Went Tent]()
Australia Notes For Budget Travelers
Sad Little Went Tent It should come as no surprise that Australia is not the cheapest of countries on our itinerary. That said, the country is well equipped for backpackers on a budget. Like New Zealand, if you watch your $ in the cities and self-cater (camp and cook yourself), you can stretch your dollars pretty far. -
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The Top End - Darwin
Fanboat Lolo! We’re in our last stop in Australia before we head off to India. Darwin is the capitol of the Northern Territory, but it’s only a city of about 50,000 people and it has a very different feel from most of the other Australian cities that we’ve visited.
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![Sarah, Leah & Sue]()
Hei konā rā New Zealand
Sarah, Leah & Sue Tomorrow we say goodbye to New Zealand and the lovely Kiwis (people, fruit and birds) and head for Oz. New Zealand has been good to us. It’s a beautiful country to tour, and I imagine one of the easiest places in the world to travel. -
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North Country
Rainbow Falls When Kiwis go on vacation they go to Northland. It’s the peninsula north of Auckland, and you’re sandwiched in between the South Pacific and the Tasman sea, so there are loads of beach options. It’s where most of the Maori population is located these days too.
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![Mark Hanna Slept Here]()
New Lisbon
Mark Hanna Slept Here Lisbon, Ohio LeeAnne’s home town was one of our first stops on our return to the States. Lisbon is a little burg village located in north-eastern Ohio, but it is surprisingly deep in history and dare I say it? -
![Are we traveling light yet?]()
Packing, Packing, Packing
Are we traveling light yet? Wow! We have a lot of stuff for two people traveling light around the world. It’s embarrassing telling people your traveling around the world on a shoestring and then asking their help to pull your two large duffel bags, two fully packed back-packs and two or three carry-on’s out of the car for you.
Ohio (2)
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![Be Like Water]()
Hong Kong Part Deux
Be Like Water Wow, it’s hot in Hong Kong! When we were here in May it was just steamy, now it’s downright unpleasant. Thats not the only thing that changes quickly in Hong Kong: a bakery and Vegetarian Restaurant that we loved on our first trip were closed on our second visit – only two months later. -
Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely.
oneworld explorer (2)
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![PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute.]()
Eugenius!!!
PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute. Our friends Deb and Craig moved out to Eugene, Oregon a couple of years a go and we’ve never visited them. Why? Many reasons, theres nothing even resembling a direct flight to Eugene from DC. -
![Smells Like a Rose Too]()
Rose City Welcomes You
Smells Like a Rose Too Having flights left on our OneWorld Ticket and friends in Oregon to visit we headed off to PDX. Portland, with it’s rivers and bridges, it’s mountains, manageable city size (and professional soccer team), has long been near the top of the relocation list for LeeAnne and I.
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![Punakaiki Pancake Rocks]()
The Wild West Coast
Punakaiki Pancake Rocks After touring the Lakes District and Fiordland, we headed over Haast Pass to the west coast, described as wild and quite wet by most brochures and guidebooks. The drive over Haast was on one of our first clear, sunny days. -
![Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne]()
Cycling New Zealand - That is a Wrap
Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne We are back in Christchurch finally, after spending the past few weeks biking the South Island. From here we rent a car and head to the west coast over the mountains and then back up to the North Island.
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![Big Day Out in Goa]()
Scootin' Around
Big Day Out in Goa Just to make sure we didn’t get totally bored of reading and relaxing on the beach all week, we decided to take a little day trip and see some sites beyond Palolem. We rented a scooter, bought a few liters of petrol and headed north. -
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Go, Go Goa
A Room With A View Following our escape from Mumbai, we decided to head south, where according to various parties it’s “less crazy.” We chose to come directly to Palolem Beach in southern Goa for a little chill time.
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London Cousin
Big Ben - Parliament! After close calls with my Cousin Sam Forrest in both New Zealand and Shanghai, we are happy to say we have successfully made contact with my cousin Joe Bateman in London. Actually, he lives ın Watford, but he was nice enough to meet up with us in Central London and show us the sights. -
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Papers Please
Passport Please One of the more frustrating things here in India has been the India love affair with red tape. Fair warning to all those who come to visit: memorize your passport number. You will need to produce it at many (unexpected)turns.
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![Try to Avoid it...]()
Crazy Taxi - South Africa Edition
Try to Avoid it... Why did we do it? We had little choice. Was there no other option? No, there wasn’t. These are only a few of the questions we found ourselves asking one another as we took our first African “Public Taxi”. -
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Return Ticket Please!
Incident at LAX Finally, after months of planning, preparations and daydreaming, we were off. Lee Anne’s sister in law and niece Megan saw us off in Dallas, and we were on our way to our first stop – New Zealand.
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![Trekking in Central Mongolia]()
Tales from the Mongolian Countryside
Trekking in Central Mongolia Since my time in Peace Corps, my motto has kind of been “hope for the best, but expect the worst.” With this frame of mind, you’re generally prepared for everything to go wrong and pleasantly surprised when it doesn’t. -
![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter.
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![Life is a Kings Highway]()
Life on the Kings Highway
Life is a Kings Highway There are two ways to get from Petra to Amman: the fast way is to take the Desert Highway, a name that leaves little to the imagination, the other is the Kings Highway. The King’s Highway was a major trade route in the ancient Mid-East. -
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Petra Rocks!
The Treasury Pun intended! There’s no doubt about it. Petra is an amazing place. Definitely among the most amazing places on our trip. When you think of Petra, you may envision Harrison Ford and Sean Connery on horse back emerging from a narrow canyon to see the magnificent Treasury.
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The Great Firewall of China Strikes Again!
Before we had arrived in mainland China we were aware that censorship was alive and well here. The televised news is little more than propaganda and access to other forms on information is limited. Many web-sites, several that we use regularly are blocked. -
flickring Around the World
Hopefully soon we will have many many photos in here. We’re using flickr to host photos while we’re traveling. It’s easy to upload stuff from internet cafes and it beats trying to store everything on our own, and then either losing them. Besides we can share them with everyone else.
Photo sharing (2)
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China Notes for Budget Travelers
Our original budget for China was based on the costs of the big cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. Our goal was to stay at or below $70 a day for both of us. We were able to get by on about that in Hong Kong, but were able to easily stay below $50 a day for most of China. -
![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route.
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![Let Their Be Water!]()
Looking for the Promised Land
Let Their Be Water! 7 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 8 Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink. -
![The Beatles Slept Here]()
Hippy Dippy Do - Rishikesh
The Beatles Slept Here Rishikesh is a smallish town set on the Ganges at the foothills of the Himalayas. In part due to it’s “auspicious” location it’s a pilgrimage site for Hindus. But of late there are a lot of other people here besides Hindus.
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On Top of the World!
So, since we’ve been back there have been a lot of questions about what was our favorite place, our favorite thing to do, etc. We’ll try and address that here. Some things stand out in our mind easily (like our favorite bathroom), others are a little harder to narrow down to just one thing (favorite place? -
![PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute.]()
Eugenius!!!
PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute. Our friends Deb and Craig moved out to Eugene, Oregon a couple of years a go and we’ve never visited them. Why? Many reasons, theres nothing even resembling a direct flight to Eugene from DC.
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![Like Sands Through the Hourglass...]()
So Long Southern Africa!
Like Sands Through the Hourglass... I feel like we owe Africa another trip. Five weeks here just doesn’t do this wonder corner of the world justice. We’ve had a chance to pop around a bit in Southern Africa, but I feel like we just peeped through a keyhole and the place has a lot more to offer. -
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Kanding Stopover
Rock Art I have to say we really didn’t really give Kanding a chance, we were only there one night before we moved on to Chengdu. If we had more time it probably would have been worth a day or two.
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![PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute.]()
Eugenius!!!
PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute. Our friends Deb and Craig moved out to Eugene, Oregon a couple of years a go and we’ve never visited them. Why? Many reasons, theres nothing even resembling a direct flight to Eugene from DC. -
![Smells Like a Rose Too]()
Rose City Welcomes You
Smells Like a Rose Too Having flights left on our OneWorld Ticket and friends in Oregon to visit we headed off to PDX. Portland, with it’s rivers and bridges, it’s mountains, manageable city size (and professional soccer team), has long been near the top of the relocation list for LeeAnne and I.
Portland (2)
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![The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall]()
The Walls of Johannesburg
The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don’t go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass. -
Fear and Loathing on Flight 749 to Johannesburg
Things not to do on a flight to South Africa include: read a South African newspaper. LeeAnne did just that and it was fairly unnerving. South Africa in general and Johannesburg in particular have issues with crime. And while most of it is based in the poorer African Townships, it still makes the news.
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![Take Us With You!]()
Doh! We've been Shanghai'd!
Take Us With You! Just when we thought everything was resolved with our flights, it turns out that it wasn’t. You’d think that even the less than stellar women at the Qantas office in Beijing who issued us new paper tickets or the very stellar AA women in the U. -
Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely.
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Black and White and Southern African All Over
This is the part of the blog where I get us in trouble. We’ve only been here five weeks or so, but it’s hard to leave here without making a comment about the racial tension in this part of the world, and it comes from both directions. -
![Fuel Shortage]()
So You Wanna Be A Millionaire
Fuel Shortage Who doesn’t want to be a millionaire? Well, if you travel to Zimbabwe your dreams can come true with less than $10. The problem is that you can’t legally change money at the “real” rate and when you do become a Zim millionaire, there’s very little left on the shelves to purchase.
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Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely. -
Tickets - One World Explorer
We’ve researched a lot of different options on Round the World tickets. It’s a great way to control your costs on getting there and back, because after you pay a flat fee you can use as many or as few flights as you want too.
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![Giraffes!]()
The Viewing Game - Krueger National Park
Giraffes! After a little taste of wildlife viewing in Zimbabwe and Botswana, we were pretty psyched to head to Krueger National Park in northeastern South Africa for a four day safari. We were even more excited to be sharing the experience with friends from the States. -
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Elephantitis: Corbett National Park
Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park Leaving Delhi, we set off for Corbett National Park about 250 km north in the state of Uttarchanal. Our mission: elephant safari! And maybe spot some other wildlife as well. We were partially successful.
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![Ger Ya Later!]()
Off We Ger
Ger Ya Later! Part of the allure of Mongolia is getting the heck out of UB and heading to the countryside. The only complication with that is that you can’t just hop on a bus and wing it like we have in other countries. -
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Somewhere Between Clinton and Gore
Along the Presidential Highway So we are back on the road cycling. This time we are lighter (we dropped a bunch of stuff off with acquaintances in Christchurch), smarter (we’ve traveled south by bus and are riding north to keep the wind at our backs), and more motivated (if you read our post on Invercargill you’ll understand, we need to get out of here!
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet. -
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Shangri-La - Not So Much
The back streets of Zhongdian Just north of Tiger Leaping Gorge at the edge of the Tibetan plateau sits the town of Zhongdian – recently renamed Shangri-La by the Chinese. It’s Tibetan name is Gyeltang, but no one uses it.
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The Great Firewall of China Strikes Again!
Before we had arrived in mainland China we were aware that censorship was alive and well here. The televised news is little more than propaganda and access to other forms on information is limited. Many web-sites, several that we use regularly are blocked. -
flickring Around the World
Hopefully soon we will have many many photos in here. We’re using flickr to host photos while we’re traveling. It’s easy to upload stuff from internet cafes and it beats trying to store everything on our own, and then either losing them. Besides we can share them with everyone else.
Social information processing (2)
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![Good Lord of the Rings!]()
Serious LOTR Country - Milford Sound
Good Lord of the Rings! Fjordland – the southwestern corner of the South Island – feels very different from the rest of the country. For one thing it’s almost all a huge temperate rain forest. So you’ll have a forest of conifers littered with huge ferns, and these crazy mountains that don’t belong in the Lord of the Rings – they’re the source material for it. -
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Somewhere Between Clinton and Gore
Along the Presidential Highway So we are back on the road cycling. This time we are lighter (we dropped a bunch of stuff off with acquaintances in Christchurch), smarter (we’ve traveled south by bus and are riding north to keep the wind at our backs), and more motivated (if you read our post on Invercargill you’ll understand, we need to get out of here!
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![Friendly Monks]()
One Night in Xiencheng
Friendly Monks Xiencheng is a very nice little town in Southwest China with very little tourist traffic that you probably have never heard of. If you’re in Xiencheng it’s probably to overnight here waiting for a bus to take you to another town. -
![Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin]()
Land of Limestone Towers & Caves - Guilin
Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin Guilin, it’s just one of the many cities in China with over a million inhabitants that you have probably never heard of. It’s also the first real stop for us in China (we spent a night in
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![Octopussy, Every Night]()
Notes From Octopussy's Lair
Octopussy, Every Night Udaipur is a great place to go if your extremely rich, or a fan of James Bond films. Actually, if your a fan of one James Bond film in particular: Octopussy. A large part of the film was shot here and even though it was released some 25 years ago, every restaurant in town still shows Octopussy every night at 7PM sharp. -
![The Beatles Slept Here]()
Hippy Dippy Do - Rishikesh
The Beatles Slept Here Rishikesh is a smallish town set on the Ganges at the foothills of the Himalayas. In part due to it’s “auspicious” location it’s a pilgrimage site for Hindus. But of late there are a lot of other people here besides Hindus.
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![Rainbow Falls]()
North Country
Rainbow Falls When Kiwis go on vacation they go to Northland. It’s the peninsula north of Auckland, and you’re sandwiched in between the South Pacific and the Tasman sea, so there are loads of beach options. It’s where most of the Maori population is located these days too. -
![Punakaiki Pancake Rocks]()
The Wild West Coast
Punakaiki Pancake Rocks After touring the Lakes District and Fiordland, we headed over Haast Pass to the west coast, described as wild and quite wet by most brochures and guidebooks. The drive over Haast was on one of our first clear, sunny days.
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![Spending Tips from the Experts!]()
New Zealand Notes for Budget Travelers
Spending Tips from the Experts! Some of you are probably wondering how the heck we are making our money stretch around the world. The answer is on a budget! As we planned and planned and then planned some more prior the trip, we did our best to estimate our costs from everything to tickets and visas and travel insurance to daily costs and special, one-time expenses like tours. -
![Good Lord of the Rings!]()
Serious LOTR Country - Milford Sound
Good Lord of the Rings! Fjordland – the southwestern corner of the South Island – feels very different from the rest of the country. For one thing it’s almost all a huge temperate rain forest. So you’ll have a forest of conifers littered with huge ferns, and these crazy mountains that don’t belong in the Lord of the Rings – they’re the source material for it.
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![The back streets of Zhongdian]()
Shangri-La - Not So Much
The back streets of Zhongdian Just north of Tiger Leaping Gorge at the edge of the Tibetan plateau sits the town of Zhongdian – recently renamed Shangri-La by the Chinese. It’s Tibetan name is Gyeltang, but no one uses it. -
![View from Lhasa Express]()
That Can Do Spirit!
View from Lhasa Express When we were in the early stages of planning our trip, I was only lukewarm to coming to China. But then I began to read more, not just about the tourist sites, but also about the history of China and its people.
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![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is. -
Dude, Where's Our Stuff?
It was a lovely day, the sun was shining, birds were singing, the air was hot, the water was cold. Then we went back to the car… did you notice there’s no photo attached to this entry? Our second to last day in Adelaide our car was broken into and a bunch of stuff was stolen.
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![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar. -
![Travel in 2nd Class]()
Life on the Rajdhani Express
Travel in 2nd Class A forty two hour train ride isn’t really something to be looked forward to. But after the better part of a month spent traveling further and further South, LeeAnne and I decided it was time to knock off a few of the “Must Do’s” in India – The Taj Mahal etc – so we had to find a way from Trivandrum (near the southern tip of India) to Delhi (in the North of the country).
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![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar. -
![Join Us, Won't You?]()
The Cult of Lonely Planet & Lodging in India
Join Us, Won't You? Our time in India is starting to wind down, so we would just like to pass on a few words about lodging here. We’re using the latest edition of “Lonely Planet – India” as our main guidebook and it’s great of course, very well documented, written, and well thought out.
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![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry. -
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High Road to China
We’re in! Well, almost …we’re crossing the border in a few hours, but LeeAnne was given a Visa. Just a ten day visa, but we’re hoping to get an extension in-country. Barring that, we’ll return to Hong Kong and reapply for a 30 day visa through a travel agency.
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The Itinerary - For Now...
Okay, the Irish screwed us. After going through everything, AND running our credit card they told us (by email) that they had quoted us for the wrong price. And it would be about 1,000 euros more! Now I don’t follow the currency market like I should, but I do know that right now the exchange rate for US Dollars to Euros is no good, and a thousand Euros is …well, more that we want to pay. -
Our Men in Dublin
Ticket Plan B – Okay, so we’re going to use a travel agent in Ireland to purchase our RTW tickets, fly there a few days before we “Originate” our One World Explorer tickets and then fly to New Zealand. Crazy, yes, but it’s going to save us a bunch on ticket costs.
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Plan D
Okay, this one is our bad. After getting screwed by the Irish travel agency back at Thanksgiving we decided on another course of action. “Originating” our OWE flight in the UK. It was going to be great, we would fly there for a few hundred, maybe catch a soccer game, stop in Dallas to see LeeAnnes family on the way to New Zealand and be on with our trip. -
The Itinerary - For Now...
Okay, the Irish screwed us. After going through everything, AND running our credit card they told us (by email) that they had quoted us for the wrong price. And it would be about 1,000 euros more! Now I don’t follow the currency market like I should, but I do know that right now the exchange rate for US Dollars to Euros is no good, and a thousand Euros is …well, more that we want to pay.
travel agents (2)
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![Spending Tips from the Experts!]()
New Zealand Notes for Budget Travelers
Spending Tips from the Experts! Some of you are probably wondering how the heck we are making our money stretch around the world. The answer is on a budget! As we planned and planned and then planned some more prior the trip, we did our best to estimate our costs from everything to tickets and visas and travel insurance to daily costs and special, one-time expenses like tours. -
Travel Insurance
Going hand-in-hand with vaccinations is Travel Insurance. I’ve been out and about in the world before, but have never even considered getting it. But, this is a big trip and we are grown up now, so it seems like a good time to look at it.
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![Travel in 2nd Class]()
Life on the Rajdhani Express
Travel in 2nd Class A forty two hour train ride isn’t really something to be looked forward to. But after the better part of a month spent traveling further and further South, LeeAnne and I decided it was time to knock off a few of the “Must Do’s” in India – The Taj Mahal etc – so we had to find a way from Trivandrum (near the southern tip of India) to Delhi (in the North of the country). -
![The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram]()
Three Nights in Thiruvananthapuram
The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram: the small town with a really long name! Formerly known as Trivandrum, the town elders decided to change the city name for brevity’s sake to Thiruvananthapuram in 1991. We’re in town for a few days waiting on a train to Delhi.
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![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is. -
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Call Me UB - Ulaanbaator
Can you say SOVIET? Ulaanbaator is a sleepy medium-size town that happens to be the capitol and only real city of any size in Mongolia. The Soviets essentially built this city and it’s painfully obvious in the architecture, monuments and city planning that the Mongolians had little say.
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![The Beatles Slept Here]()
Hippy Dippy Do - Rishikesh
The Beatles Slept Here Rishikesh is a smallish town set on the Ganges at the foothills of the Himalayas. In part due to it’s “auspicious” location it’s a pilgrimage site for Hindus. But of late there are a lot of other people here besides Hindus. -
![The Ganges River at Rishikesh]()
'Oh Dirty River'
The Ganges River at Rishikesh As I stood at the edge of the Ganges in Rishikesh, I couldn’t help but hum the final lyrics to Sleater Kinney’s “Light Rail Coyote.” Oh Dirty River, Come Let Me In Except, I have no desire to dip into the Ganges.
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Travel Insurance
Going hand-in-hand with vaccinations is Travel Insurance. I’ve been out and about in the world before, but have never even considered getting it. But, this is a big trip and we are grown up now, so it seems like a good time to look at it. -
Vaccinations - Don't Leave Home Without Them
First stop on the road to Round the World Travel is the Doctors office. It may not be the most romantic or adventuresome idea, but I’m pretty sure that before the best adventurers and explorers headed out they got their shots. How much could Indiana Jones have gotten done if he were bed-ridden with Hep B while chasing the Ark of the Covenant?
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![Cape Town Rules]()
Chillin in Cape Town
Cape Town Rules Cape Town is easily the best city we’ve visited in Africa, by far, LeeAnne is even claiming it’s her favorite city on the whole trip (but I’m not ready to go that far yet). african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins Why all the enthusiasm? -
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Hong Kong Part Deux
Be Like Water Wow, it’s hot in Hong Kong! When we were here in May it was just steamy, now it’s downright unpleasant. Thats not the only thing that changes quickly in Hong Kong: a bakery and Vegetarian Restaurant that we loved on our first trip were closed on our second visit – only two months later.
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![Trekking in Central Mongolia]()
Tales from the Mongolian Countryside
Trekking in Central Mongolia Since my time in Peace Corps, my motto has kind of been “hope for the best, but expect the worst.” With this frame of mind, you’re generally prepared for everything to go wrong and pleasantly surprised when it doesn’t. -
![Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin]()
Land of Limestone Towers & Caves - Guilin
Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin Guilin, it’s just one of the many cities in China with over a million inhabitants that you have probably never heard of. It’s also the first real stop for us in China (we spent a night in
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![Long Live China]()
Amen!
Long Live China Well it appears we’ve succeeded at obtaining a legitimate 30 day visa for me in China. While in Guilin, we visited the local Public Security Bureau to inquire about an extension. Word among travelers is that they are quite pleasant to deal with and offer a relatively quick turn around. -
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High Road to China
We’re in! Well, almost …we’re crossing the border in a few hours, but LeeAnne was given a Visa. Just a ten day visa, but we’re hoping to get an extension in-country. Barring that, we’ll return to Hong Kong and reapply for a 30 day visa through a travel agency.
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![Mongolia its Grrreat]()
Sain Yavaarai Mongolia!
Mongolia its Grrreat For those planning a trip to Mongolia – don’t bother leaving UB if you are a Vegan or Lactose Intolerant. You will starve! These people love their meat and dairy products. It makes sense, most people here are nomads and don’t want to stick around in one place long enough to grow a crop. -
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Off We Ger
Ger Ya Later! Part of the allure of Mongolia is getting the heck out of UB and heading to the countryside. The only complication with that is that you can’t just hop on a bus and wing it like we have in other countries.
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They're Coming to America - Today!
And we’re back! After the better part of nine months on the road overseas we’re finally going to be Stateside again. Now here is where a lot of people will get caught up on the fact that we’re “Home” again. While we are indeed back in the States, and we won’t be having our passports stamped again on this trip – it’s not exactly over. -
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Spotted - 9:30 Club Guy in Auckland
9:30 Club Guy So LeeAnne and I are back in Auckland briefly before we head north to visit Sarah. We’re here primarily to finally pick up our tickets and run a few other errands around town. So after we’ve finished our business we’re walking down by the harbor right around sunset and we approach a big guy on the sidewalk.
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Ma'Salama Jordan!
There are a couple of angles I could take with this particular country wrap-up. One is: Jordan – the only country we’ve visited to be ruled by a former guest star on Star Trek (It’s true – King Abdullah is a huge fan of Star Trek and worked his connection to get an appearance on an episode of Star Trek: Voyager. -
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Life on the Kings Highway
Life is a Kings Highway There are two ways to get from Petra to Amman: the fast way is to take the Desert Highway, a name that leaves little to the imagination, the other is the Kings Highway. The King’s Highway was a major trade route in the ancient Mid-East.
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![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route. -
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The Dragon's Backbone
Dragons Backbone Rive Terraces From Yangshou, we headed back north through Guilin again and on to Longsheng – our base for visiting the Longji Rice Terraces, also known as the Dragon’s Backbone Rice Terraces. I’d read a post online from another traveler that Yangshou was really too touristy (true) and that if you really wanted to see the people and countryside, you should head to Longji and the villages within.
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![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us. -
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Victoria Falls - The Smoke That Thunders
Victoria Falls We are so glad to be leaving Johannesburg that the thought of going anywhere else is appealing. Even a departure to Zimbabwe – yes, that Zimbabwe, land of 7000% inflation, of dictatorial rule (Our first dictator, yes!
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Banking in Zim-Zam
If you’re planning a trip to Zimbabwe – okay, not that many people plan to go to Zim, lets start over – if you’re planning a trip to Victoria Falls and flying in, guess what, you’re going to Zimbabwe. The land of 7000 percent inflation, and the land where the government officially denies that there’s an issue with inflation. -
![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry.
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![Fuel Shortage]()
So You Wanna Be A Millionaire
Fuel Shortage Who doesn’t want to be a millionaire? Well, if you travel to Zimbabwe your dreams can come true with less than $10. The problem is that you can’t legally change money at the “real” rate and when you do become a Zim millionaire, there’s very little left on the shelves to purchase. -
Banking in Zim-Zam
If you’re planning a trip to Zimbabwe – okay, not that many people plan to go to Zim, lets start over – if you’re planning a trip to Victoria Falls and flying in, guess what, you’re going to Zimbabwe. The land of 7000 percent inflation, and the land where the government officially denies that there’s an issue with inflation.
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London Cousin
Big Ben - Parliament! After close calls with my Cousin Sam Forrest in both New Zealand and Shanghai, we are happy to say we have successfully made contact with my cousin Joe Bateman in London. Actually, he lives ın Watford, but he was nice enough to meet up with us in Central London and show us the sights.
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![Thats A Big Wall]()
Olympic Fever - Beijing
Thats A Big Wall The truth about Beijing, if you’ve been in China a while, is you only need a few days to see the sights, then get out …unless you want to go shopping. Then you could be there a month.
2008 olympics (1)
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![9:30 Club Guy]()
Spotted - 9:30 Club Guy in Auckland
9:30 Club Guy So LeeAnne and I are back in Auckland briefly before we head north to visit Sarah. We’re here primarily to finally pick up our tickets and run a few other errands around town. So after we’ve finished our business we’re walking down by the harbor right around sunset and we approach a big guy on the sidewalk.
9:30 Club (1)
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![Bolliwood Stardom]()
Hooray for Bolliwood
Bolliwood Stardom Jokingly one of our goals on this trip was to get cast in a Bolliwood movie: Mission Accomplished! It was surprisingly easy. There are some 700 movies made in Mumbai a year so the numbers are working for you if you want to be cast as an extra.
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![Let Their Be Water!]()
Looking for the Promised Land
Let Their Be Water! 7 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 8 Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink.
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![Mark Hanna Slept Here]()
New Lisbon
Mark Hanna Slept Here Lisbon, Ohio LeeAnne’s home town was one of our first stops on our return to the States. Lisbon is a little burg village located in north-eastern Ohio, but it is surprisingly deep in history and dare I say it?
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A Disclaimer
With all of our frank musings about India, we realize that we might seem ethnocentric or judgemental to some. That is not our intention. And yes, we do like it here most of the time. As you travel through any developing country – or any country that is just different from your own – you’re faced with all kinds of different experiences.
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![Fanboat Lolo!]()
The Top End - Darwin
Fanboat Lolo! We’re in our last stop in Australia before we head off to India. Darwin is the capitol of the Northern Territory, but it’s only a city of about 50,000 people and it has a very different feel from most of the other Australian cities that we’ve visited.
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![Bıg Ben]()
England Notes for Budget Travelers
Bıg Ben Ok. Budget is a bit of a misnomer. Let’s refer to it as a bleeding. The U.K. is an expensive place to visit when you’re on vacation and headed back to work and a paycheck next Friday.
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![Lee Anne & The Asads]()
A Day Out with the Asads
Lee Anne & The Asads There is no denying it. The best way to explore a city is with a local. Not only do you get the insider’s perspective, but you get to see things that you may not seek out on your own.
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Carbon Compensation
One more thing before we let you go – and I don’t want to get too Ed Begley Jr. here, but I think it does bear mentioning. When you travel around the world like we’ve done this year there are some unseen consequences, and I’m not talking about introducing Mongolian Nomads to iPods.
Action on climate change (1)
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Bicycle Hire in New Zealand
For a couple of months we have been considering trying to work in some Bicycle touring as part of our travel. It didn’t take too long to identfy New Zealand as the place we wanted to do it in. It’s suppose to be one of the best places in the world for touring and camping.
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![Spending Tips from the Experts!]()
New Zealand Notes for Budget Travelers
Spending Tips from the Experts! Some of you are probably wondering how the heck we are making our money stretch around the world. The answer is on a budget! As we planned and planned and then planned some more prior the trip, we did our best to estimate our costs from everything to tickets and visas and travel insurance to daily costs and special, one-time expenses like tours.
Adventure travel (1)
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![Try to Avoid it...]()
Crazy Taxi - South Africa Edition
Try to Avoid it... Why did we do it? We had little choice. Was there no other option? No, there wasn’t. These are only a few of the questions we found ourselves asking one another as we took our first African “Public Taxi”.
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![Big Day Out in Goa]()
Scootin' Around
Big Day Out in Goa Just to make sure we didn’t get totally bored of reading and relaxing on the beach all week, we decided to take a little day trip and see some sites beyond Palolem. We rented a scooter, bought a few liters of petrol and headed north.
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![Tuk Tuk'ing Along]()
Escape from Mumbai
Tuk Tuk'ing Along When is a 12 hour train-ride in tropical heat with no air conditioning worth it? When it gets you out of Mumbai. Our journey began before dawn at Mumbai’s Central Station and would not end until just after night fell on us and our Auto-Ricksaw driver on a beach in Goa.
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Return Ticket Please!
Incident at LAX Finally, after months of planning, preparations and daydreaming, we were off. Lee Anne’s sister in law and niece Megan saw us off in Dallas, and we were on our way to our first stop – New Zealand.
air new Zealand (1)
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![Incident at LAX]()
Return Ticket Please!
Incident at LAX Finally, after months of planning, preparations and daydreaming, we were off. Lee Anne’s sister in law and niece Megan saw us off in Dallas, and we were on our way to our first stop – New Zealand.
airline (1)
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Tickets - One World Explorer
We’ve researched a lot of different options on Round the World tickets. It’s a great way to control your costs on getting there and back, because after you pay a flat fee you can use as many or as few flights as you want too.
airline alliances (1)
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![Bolliwood Stardom]()
Hooray for Bolliwood
Bolliwood Stardom Jokingly one of our goals on this trip was to get cast in a Bolliwood movie: Mission Accomplished! It was surprisingly easy. There are some 700 movies made in Mumbai a year so the numbers are working for you if you want to be cast as an extra.
airline passenger (1)
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Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
Ajanta Caves (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
Ajantha (1)
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Fear and Loathing on Flight 749 to Johannesburg
Things not to do on a flight to South Africa include: read a South African newspaper. LeeAnne did just that and it was fairly unnerving. South Africa in general and Johannesburg in particular have issues with crime. And while most of it is based in the poorer African Townships, it still makes the news.
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![Fatehpur Sikri Gate]()
Mughal Mania
Fatehpur Sikri Gate During our time here in northern India, I have developed a particular fondness for the Mughals. Mughal is the Persian word for Mongol. The Mughals claim decendency from Genghis Khan and their empire ruled much of India and its surrounds during the 16th to 18th centuries.
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Petra Rocks!
The Treasury Pun intended! There’s no doubt about it. Petra is an amazing place. Definitely among the most amazing places on our trip. When you think of Petra, you may envision Harrison Ford and Sean Connery on horse back emerging from a narrow canyon to see the magnificent Treasury.
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Cruising The Kerala Backwaters
Kerala Backwaters A highlight for many travelers in Kerala is taking a leisurely cruise through the 900km network of waterways known as the backwaters. The waterways vary from narrow shady canals fringed with homes and rice paddies to large lakes filled with fishing boats.
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![Kerala Backwaters]()
Cruising The Kerala Backwaters
Kerala Backwaters A highlight for many travelers in Kerala is taking a leisurely cruise through the 900km network of waterways known as the backwaters. The waterways vary from narrow shady canals fringed with homes and rice paddies to large lakes filled with fishing boats.
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![Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching]()
Big Birds, Sleepy Sealions and Super Cute Penguins
Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching Yesterday we threw the budget out and splurged for our first tour in New Zealand. Actually, it was quite a bargain and worth every penny! Stretching out from the Dunedin coast is the Otago Peninsula.
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![Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching]()
Big Birds, Sleepy Sealions and Super Cute Penguins
Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching Yesterday we threw the budget out and splurged for our first tour in New Zealand. Actually, it was quite a bargain and worth every penny! Stretching out from the Dunedin coast is the Otago Peninsula.
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On Top of the World!
So, since we’ve been back there have been a lot of questions about what was our favorite place, our favorite thing to do, etc. We’ll try and address that here. Some things stand out in our mind easily (like our favorite bathroom), others are a little harder to narrow down to just one thing (favorite place?
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![Sad Little Went Tent]()
Australia Notes For Budget Travelers
Sad Little Went Tent It should come as no surprise that Australia is not the cheapest of countries on our itinerary. That said, the country is well equipped for backpackers on a budget. Like New Zealand, if you watch your $ in the cities and self-cater (camp and cook yourself), you can stretch your dollars pretty far.
Alice Springs (1)
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![Kerala Backwaters]()
Cruising The Kerala Backwaters
Kerala Backwaters A highlight for many travelers in Kerala is taking a leisurely cruise through the 900km network of waterways known as the backwaters. The waterways vary from narrow shady canals fringed with homes and rice paddies to large lakes filled with fishing boats.
alleppey (1)
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![TimTams, the shadow currency of Australia]()
TimTams & The Lot
TimTams, the shadow currency of Australia Aussies are very close cousins to Americans in many ways, in fact had it not been for the American Revolution many of them (the convict labor) would have ended up in Georgia, not half-way around the world.
America (1)
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Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely.
American Airlines (1)
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![PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute.]()
Eugenius!!!
PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute. Our friends Deb and Craig moved out to Eugene, Oregon a couple of years a go and we’ve never visited them. Why? Many reasons, theres nothing even resembling a direct flight to Eugene from DC.
American cuisine (1)
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![Like Sands Through the Hourglass...]()
So Long Southern Africa!
Like Sands Through the Hourglass... I feel like we owe Africa another trip. Five weeks here just doesn’t do this wonder corner of the world justice. We’ve had a chance to pop around a bit in Southern Africa, but I feel like we just peeped through a keyhole and the place has a lot more to offer.
american dollar (1)
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![Kerala Backwaters]()
Cruising The Kerala Backwaters
Kerala Backwaters A highlight for many travelers in Kerala is taking a leisurely cruise through the 900km network of waterways known as the backwaters. The waterways vary from narrow shady canals fringed with homes and rice paddies to large lakes filled with fishing boats.
amma (1)
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![Lee Anne & The Asads]()
A Day Out with the Asads
Lee Anne & The Asads There is no denying it. The best way to explore a city is with a local. Not only do you get the insider’s perspective, but you get to see things that you may not seek out on your own.
Amman (1)
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![I Say Take it Back]()
Back in Bull Island
I Say Take it Back We’re back! A few days after landing in DC we’ve returned to my ancestral homeland of Poquoson, Virginia. Here we are visiting the parents, catching up with current events and trying to remember how Sales Tax works.
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![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route.
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![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts.
Andhra cuisine (1)
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![Paddys Wigwam]()
Chillin in the Pool
Paddys Wigwam We ventured to Liverpool for very obvious reasons, but still without the promise of tickets to see the boys in red at Anfield. Luckily the tickets worked out, but I’ll let the footy fan tell his tale.
Anglican Cathedral (1)
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![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is.
ankle bone (1)
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![Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity]()
Invercargill Nights
Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity The Legend of Burt Munro Have you seen the movie “The Worlds Fastest Indian”? It’s the true story of an elderly Kiwi who breaks the world speed record for motorcycles at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah at the ripe old age of 69.
Anthony Hopkins (1)
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Black and White and Southern African All Over
This is the part of the blog where I get us in trouble. We’ve only been here five weeks or so, but it’s hard to leave here without making a comment about the racial tension in this part of the world, and it comes from both directions.
Anti-communism (1)
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![Mao Meets Capitalism]()
Comrades and Capitalist Roaders
Mao Meets Capitalism If a picture is worth a thousand words, this one must be worth a thousand dollars. This is China today. New cars being sold at the foot of Chairman Mao while “Life in the Fast Lane” blasts from stereos.
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Vaccinations - Don't Leave Home Without Them
First stop on the road to Round the World Travel is the Doctors office. It may not be the most romantic or adventuresome idea, but I’m pretty sure that before the best adventurers and explorers headed out they got their shots. How much could Indiana Jones have gotten done if he were bed-ridden with Hep B while chasing the Ark of the Covenant?
Antimalarial drug (1)
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![The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road]()
Notes From the Great Ocean Road
The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road We’re on the Great Ocean Road at the moment. It runs from the suburbs of Melbourne to the edge of South Australia and was built after WWI as kind of a works project to employ returning veterans in the 1920’s, before that the only way to access the small towns along the road was by ship or ferry.
Apollo Bay (1)
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![Big Day Out in Goa]()
Scootin' Around
Big Day Out in Goa Just to make sure we didn’t get totally bored of reading and relaxing on the beach all week, we decided to take a little day trip and see some sites beyond Palolem. We rented a scooter, bought a few liters of petrol and headed north.
Arabian Sea (1)
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![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route.
Archaeology of China (1)
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![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is.
Archery (1)
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![The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall]()
The Walls of Johannesburg
The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don’t go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass.
armed response (1)
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![Kerala Backwaters]()
Cruising The Kerala Backwaters
Kerala Backwaters A highlight for many travelers in Kerala is taking a leisurely cruise through the 900km network of waterways known as the backwaters. The waterways vary from narrow shady canals fringed with homes and rice paddies to large lakes filled with fishing boats.
Ashtamudi Lake (1)
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Damn that Dollar!
England is great and London is possibly one of the greatest cities in the world. There are cool things to do, funky clothes to buy, good shows to see, and yummy food to eat (ethinic food of course). Too bad it costs so damn much to do any of it when you’re coming with US dollars.
Astoria (1)
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Bicycle Hire in New Zealand
For a couple of months we have been considering trying to work in some Bicycle touring as part of our travel. It didn’t take too long to identfy New Zealand as the place we wanted to do it in. It’s suppose to be one of the best places in the world for touring and camping.
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![Oh, What a Feeling!]()
Diary of a Car Camper - Australia
Oh, What a Feeling! We’re leaving Sydney and car camping again. If you’ll recall we were hooked up in New Zealand with a very cheap rental. In Australia, not so lucky. Still lucky, we have it for $29.00 a day AUD, and it’s a much sweeter ride.
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![Book-Em]()
Little Adelaide
Book-Em It seems Adelaide has something of a self-image problem. It’s not hard to understand why – with competition like Sydney & Melbourne it’s easy to think of oneself as a little provincial. I can assure you this is not the case.
aussie rules football (1)
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![Fanboat Lolo!]()
The Top End - Darwin
Fanboat Lolo! We’re in our last stop in Australia before we head off to India. Darwin is the capitol of the Northern Territory, but it’s only a city of about 50,000 people and it has a very different feel from most of the other Australian cities that we’ve visited.
australian cities (1)
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![Something about the label appeals]()
Vibrant Straw with Flecks of Brilliant Green
Something about the label appeals When you hear something like “vibrant straw with flecks of brilliant green”, what do you think? I am guessing it wasn’t, mmmm… pour me one of those. As you probably well know, Australia is home to many a wine that we enjoy in the U.
Australian wine (1)
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![Tuk Tuk'ing Along]()
Escape from Mumbai
Tuk Tuk'ing Along When is a 12 hour train-ride in tropical heat with no air conditioning worth it? When it gets you out of Mumbai. Our journey began before dawn at Mumbai’s Central Station and would not end until just after night fell on us and our Auto-Ricksaw driver on a beach in Goa.
Auto-Ricksaw driver (1)
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![Thats A Big Wall]()
Olympic Fever - Beijing
Thats A Big Wall The truth about Beijing, if you’ve been in China a while, is you only need a few days to see the sights, then get out …unless you want to go shopping. Then you could be there a month.
automobile traffic (1)
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![Be Like Water]()
Hong Kong Part Deux
Be Like Water Wow, it’s hot in Hong Kong! When we were here in May it was just steamy, now it’s downright unpleasant. Thats not the only thing that changes quickly in Hong Kong: a bakery and Vegetarian Restaurant that we loved on our first trip were closed on our second visit – only two months later.
avenue of the stars (1)
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![Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites]()
It's Istanbul Not Constantinople Now
Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites Istanbul is a great city. It straddles the Bosphorus placing half the city in Europe and half in Asia. It’s an interesting mix of cosmopolitan and traditional is full of rich history and impressive structures left behind by the Greek, Roman and Ottoman empires.
Aya Sophia (1)
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![Bolliwood Stardom]()
Hooray for Bolliwood
Bolliwood Stardom Jokingly one of our goals on this trip was to get cast in a Bolliwood movie: Mission Accomplished! It was surprisingly easy. There are some 700 movies made in Mumbai a year so the numbers are working for you if you want to be cast as an extra.
background actors (1)
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![India Gate]()
Several Million Do Make A Difference
India Gate After a long, chilly train ride, we arrived in Delhi last Thursday. Delhi is India’s second largest city after Mumbai. And though I can not find consistent population numbers, it is a fact that several million fewer people live here than in Mumbai.
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![One Pen]()
Coming From? - Common India 'Engrish'
One Pen There are a few phrases that any visitor to India will become familiar with rapidly. Here’s a quick run-down of common “Engrish” you’ll come across: Coming From? – The most benign, they just want to know what country you’re from.
Baksheesh (1)
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![Tribal Graffiti]()
Dunedin - San Francisco of the South?
Tribal Graffiti New Zealand is a very hilly place. Dunedin is the MOST hilly place we have been yet in the country. In fact it’s the home of the steepest street in the world – Baldwin Street. And the motorway in to town – the main artery for cars trucks etc.
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![Bananas...]()
This Forks for You
Bananas... I’m currently working on a theory about the relative prices of eating out here in India. After a couple of weeks here we’ve been in big cities and small cities. Touristy places and less touristy places and we’ve been trying to come up with an explanation of the wide range of cost on what is basically the same food.
banana (1)
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![Dragons Backbone Rive Terraces]()
The Dragon's Backbone
Dragons Backbone Rive Terraces From Yangshou, we headed back north through Guilin again and on to Longsheng – our base for visiting the Longji Rice Terraces, also known as the Dragon’s Backbone Rice Terraces. I’d read a post online from another traveler that Yangshou was really too touristy (true) and that if you really wanted to see the people and countryside, you should head to Longji and the villages within.
Banaue Rice Terraces (1)
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![Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin]()
Land of Limestone Towers & Caves - Guilin
Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin Guilin, it’s just one of the many cities in China with over a million inhabitants that you have probably never heard of. It’s also the first real stop for us in China (we spent a night in
banyan trees (1)
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![Be Like Water]()
Hong Kong Part Deux
Be Like Water Wow, it’s hot in Hong Kong! When we were here in May it was just steamy, now it’s downright unpleasant. Thats not the only thing that changes quickly in Hong Kong: a bakery and Vegetarian Restaurant that we loved on our first trip were closed on our second visit – only two months later.
barclays (1)
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![Thats A Big Wall]()
Olympic Fever - Beijing
Thats A Big Wall The truth about Beijing, if you’ve been in China a while, is you only need a few days to see the sights, then get out …unless you want to go shopping. Then you could be there a month.
bargain shopping (1)
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![Something about the label appeals]()
Vibrant Straw with Flecks of Brilliant Green
Something about the label appeals When you hear something like “vibrant straw with flecks of brilliant green”, what do you think? I am guessing it wasn’t, mmmm… pour me one of those. As you probably well know, Australia is home to many a wine that we enjoy in the U.
barossa valley wine (1)
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![Something about the label appeals]()
Vibrant Straw with Flecks of Brilliant Green
Something about the label appeals When you hear something like “vibrant straw with flecks of brilliant green”, what do you think? I am guessing it wasn’t, mmmm… pour me one of those. As you probably well know, Australia is home to many a wine that we enjoy in the U.
Barrossa Valley (1)
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![Shane Battier is Big in China]()
The NBA - It's Chan-Tastic!
Shane Battier is Big in China Move over Ping-Pong, make room for Basketball. The NBA is surprisingly huge here. After Soccer it’s probably the biggest spectator sport in the country. The NBA play-offs are broadcast twice a day here, live at 8AM in the morning and then again at night, followed by a highlights show with Chinese talking heads summarizing the game.
Basketball (1)
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![Hair is a Universal Language]()
Bazaar Haircut
Hair is a Universal Language So I needed a haircut some kind of bad. I haven’t had my ears lowered since before Christmas. I’d been holding out for some time, but the 110 degree heat in Delhi, combined with to opportunity to get a haircut on the street was too good to pass up.
bazaar (1)
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![The Beatles Slept Here]()
Hippy Dippy Do - Rishikesh
The Beatles Slept Here Rishikesh is a smallish town set on the Ganges at the foothills of the Himalayas. In part due to it’s “auspicious” location it’s a pilgrimage site for Hindus. But of late there are a lot of other people here besides Hindus.
beach boys (1)
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![Paddys Wigwam]()
Chillin in the Pool
Paddys Wigwam We ventured to Liverpool for very obvious reasons, but still without the promise of tickets to see the boys in red at Anfield. Luckily the tickets worked out, but I’ll let the footy fan tell his tale.
beatlemania (1)
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![The Beatles Slept Here]()
Hippy Dippy Do - Rishikesh
The Beatles Slept Here Rishikesh is a smallish town set on the Ganges at the foothills of the Himalayas. In part due to it’s “auspicious” location it’s a pilgrimage site for Hindus. But of late there are a lot of other people here besides Hindus.
beatles (1)
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![Paddys Wigwam]()
Chillin in the Pool
Paddys Wigwam We ventured to Liverpool for very obvious reasons, but still without the promise of tickets to see the boys in red at Anfield. Luckily the tickets worked out, but I’ll let the footy fan tell his tale.
beatles story (1)
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![It's so nice to see you...]()
Well, Hello Dali!
It's so nice to see you... Dali is a beautiful city with mountains on one side and a picturesque lake on the other. It’s an old walled city and unlike many of it’s ilk it has not yet been totally changed by tourism.
beautiful city (1)
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![Beef Anyone]()
Holy Cow!
Beef Anyone Ok, so you may know that cows are considered sacred animals in the Hindu religion. Very little beef eating going on here. Even McDonald’s has a sign stating “No beef or beef products served here.” (This is a surefire way to see a failed McDonald’s in the midwest!
beef products (1)
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![TimTams, the shadow currency of Australia]()
TimTams & The Lot
TimTams, the shadow currency of Australia Aussies are very close cousins to Americans in many ways, in fact had it not been for the American Revolution many of them (the convict labor) would have ended up in Georgia, not half-way around the world.
beets (1)
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![Thats A Big Wall]()
Olympic Fever - Beijing
Thats A Big Wall The truth about Beijing, if you’ve been in China a while, is you only need a few days to see the sights, then get out …unless you want to go shopping. Then you could be there a month.
Beijing Olympic Stadium (1)
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![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route.
Bell Tower (1)
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![Welcome to Liverpool]()
This is Anfield
Welcome to Liverpool The first thing you’ll need to know is that İ’m a soccer fan, next it’s important to know that İ’m a fan of Liverpool FC in England, since we happen to be in the UK it would make sense to go to a game in Liverpool right?
Benny Feilhaber (1)
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![It's so nice to see you...]()
Well, Hello Dali!
It's so nice to see you... Dali is a beautiful city with mountains on one side and a picturesque lake on the other. It’s an old walled city and unlike many of it’s ilk it has not yet been totally changed by tourism.
best cities (1)
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![Giraffes!]()
The Viewing Game - Krueger National Park
Giraffes! After a little taste of wildlife viewing in Zimbabwe and Botswana, we were pretty psyched to head to Krueger National Park in northeastern South Africa for a four day safari. We were even more excited to be sharing the experience with friends from the States.
Big Five game (1)
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
bike computers (1)
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
bike saddles (1)
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![A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office]()
Pedal, Pedal, Pedal
A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office So our plan for a while has been to bike while in New Zealand. After considerable research and contemplation, we decided to rent bikes and bike on the South Island only.
bike shop (1)
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Bicycle Hire in New Zealand
For a couple of months we have been considering trying to work in some Bicycle touring as part of our travel. It didn’t take too long to identfy New Zealand as the place we wanted to do it in. It’s suppose to be one of the best places in the world for touring and camping.
bikes (1)
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![TP is Good!]()
Gastrointestinal Update: No. 1
TP is Good! To appease our readers I will report that there have been no major gastrointestinal incidents in India as of yet. We are very careful about water, but have been enjoying a variety of local foods, juices (no water and no ice used) and veg (no lettuce) with little to no adverse result.
Biology (1)
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![Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites]()
It's Istanbul Not Constantinople Now
Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites Istanbul is a great city. It straddles the Bosphorus placing half the city in Europe and half in Asia. It’s an interesting mix of cosmopolitan and traditional is full of rich history and impressive structures left behind by the Greek, Roman and Ottoman empires.
Black Sea (1)
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Gimme, Gimme, Gimme - Some More Internet Access!
One of the more mundane things we do – a lot, of thank you Mr. Blog – is find Internet access. For those of you who haven’t traveled abroad recently there are a lot of ways to get online. Some are surprising, others surprisingly stupid.
Blog (1)
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![Incident at LAX]()
Return Ticket Please!
Incident at LAX Finally, after months of planning, preparations and daydreaming, we were off. Lee Anne’s sister in law and niece Megan saw us off in Dallas, and we were on our way to our first stop – New Zealand.
boarding passes (1)
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![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us.
boat cruises (1)
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![Welcome to Liverpool]()
This is Anfield
Welcome to Liverpool The first thing you’ll need to know is that İ’m a soccer fan, next it’s important to know that İ’m a fan of Liverpool FC in England, since we happen to be in the UK it would make sense to go to a game in Liverpool right?
Bobby Campbell (1)
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China Notes for Budget Travelers
Our original budget for China was based on the costs of the big cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. Our goal was to stay at or below $70 a day for both of us. We were able to get by on about that in Hong Kong, but were able to easily stay below $50 a day for most of China.
bok choy (1)
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![Newton - One Hell of a Town]()
Newtown - One Hell of a Town
Newton - One Hell of a Town We’re back in Sydney for one night to return our rental car and jump on a plane to Darwin. Luckily this gives us a chance to visit one of our favorite neighborhoods in Sydney: Newtown.
books store (1)
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![Theres No Place Like Dome]()
So Long Turkey!
Theres No Place Like Dome This entry should really be titled: “Hoşça kalın Türkiye”, but it was too hard to resist the chance to use that title. At least we didn’t title it “Get Lost Turkey!”. Leaving Turkey, this is the last time we will have our Passports stamped out on this trip.
Bosphorus (1)
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![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us.
Botswana (1)
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![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us.
botswana economy (1)
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![Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne]()
Cycling New Zealand - That is a Wrap
Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne We are back in Christchurch finally, after spending the past few weeks biking the South Island. From here we rent a car and head to the west coast over the mountains and then back up to the North Island.
boulders (1)
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![Fanboat Lolo!]()
The Top End - Darwin
Fanboat Lolo! We’re in our last stop in Australia before we head off to India. Darwin is the capitol of the Northern Territory, but it’s only a city of about 50,000 people and it has a very different feel from most of the other Australian cities that we’ve visited.
box jellyfish (1)
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![Kliptown, Soweto]()
Poverty & Apartheid
Kliptown, Soweto Despite the bad wrap and the inconvenience of being a tourist in Johannesburg, a trip there is well worth it to be able to visit Soweto and spend time in the Apartheid Museum. I would recommend, however, that you do not visit both in the same day like we did.
boycotts (1)
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![Big Dunes]()
The Southern Tour of Namibia
Big Dunes First things first. No, we didn’t come to Namibia because Brad and Angelina did. No, we didn’t see them. No, we didn’t even meet anyone who mentioned them. We were, however, shown the filming location of J Lo’s movie, The Cell, which of course we haven’t seen.
brad and angelina (1)
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![Trekking in Central Mongolia]()
Tales from the Mongolian Countryside
Trekking in Central Mongolia Since my time in Peace Corps, my motto has kind of been “hope for the best, but expect the worst.” With this frame of mind, you’re generally prepared for everything to go wrong and pleasantly surprised when it doesn’t.
bread molds (1)
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![Mad Maxs Car - Sweet!]()
Diesel & Dust - The Outback
Mad Maxs Car - Sweet! As our car camping adventure in Aus continues we headed back to Sydney via the Outback. To say there’s a lot of nothing out there is a bit of an understatement. Aside from mining towns, road houses, road trains and red dust there’s not too much.
Breaker Morant (1)
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The Itinerary - For Now...
Okay, the Irish screwed us. After going through everything, AND running our credit card they told us (by email) that they had quoted us for the wrong price. And it would be about 1,000 euros more! Now I don’t follow the currency market like I should, but I do know that right now the exchange rate for US Dollars to Euros is no good, and a thousand Euros is …well, more that we want to pay.
British Airways (1)
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Black and White and Southern African All Over
This is the part of the blog where I get us in trouble. We’ve only been here five weeks or so, but it’s hard to leave here without making a comment about the racial tension in this part of the world, and it comes from both directions.
British Commonwealth (1)
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![Lee Anne & The Asads]()
A Day Out with the Asads
Lee Anne & The Asads There is no denying it. The best way to explore a city is with a local. Not only do you get the insider’s perspective, but you get to see things that you may not seek out on your own.
British Embassy (1)
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Damn that Dollar!
England is great and London is possibly one of the greatest cities in the world. There are cool things to do, funky clothes to buy, good shows to see, and yummy food to eat (ethinic food of course). Too bad it costs so damn much to do any of it when you’re coming with US dollars.
british pounds (1)
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Damn that Dollar!
England is great and London is possibly one of the greatest cities in the world. There are cool things to do, funky clothes to buy, good shows to see, and yummy food to eat (ethinic food of course). Too bad it costs so damn much to do any of it when you’re coming with US dollars.
british slang (1)
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![If you can make it there...]()
NYC
If you can make it there... New York City, Sinatra used to sing that if you could make it there, you could make it anywhere. For us, if we could make it there, the trip must be over. It makes sense to make this our last leg on the trip, it’s the city (along with Las Vegas) that most people outside the US think of when they think about America.
brooklyn (1)
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![Be Like Water]()
Hong Kong Part Deux
Be Like Water Wow, it’s hot in Hong Kong! When we were here in May it was just steamy, now it’s downright unpleasant. Thats not the only thing that changes quickly in Hong Kong: a bakery and Vegetarian Restaurant that we loved on our first trip were closed on our second visit – only two months later.
Bruce Lee (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
Buddhism (1)
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet.
buddhist mountains (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
Buddhist pilgrimage (1)
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Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong.
Buddhist Temple (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
buddhist temples (1)
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![Dave and Lolo at the Taj]()
India Notes for Budget Travelers
Dave and Lolo at the Taj India is a budget traveler’s dream. It’s certainly one of the cheapest countries on our itinerary. Our daily budget for two is probably less than you spent the last time you went out to dinner.
Budget (1)
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![Mongolian Kid and Friend]()
Mongolia Notes for Budget Travelers
Mongolian Kid and Friend Mongolia is a bit different than the other countries we have visited thus far. There is only one real city, UB, and there is very little infrastructure to support public transport around the country. As we mentioned in Off We Ger if you want to get out into the countryside, which is really THE reason to come to Mongolia, then you need to a) join a tour; b) hire a jeep; or c) be completely raving madand take the local long distance buses.
budget backpackers (1)
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![Dave and Lolo at the Taj]()
India Notes for Budget Travelers
Dave and Lolo at the Taj India is a budget traveler’s dream. It’s certainly one of the cheapest countries on our itinerary. Our daily budget for two is probably less than you spent the last time you went out to dinner.
budget traveler (1)
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China Notes for Budget Travelers
Our original budget for China was based on the costs of the big cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. Our goal was to stay at or below $70 a day for both of us. We were able to get by on about that in Hong Kong, but were able to easily stay below $50 a day for most of China.
budget travelers (1)
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![Bananas...]()
This Forks for You
Bananas... I’m currently working on a theory about the relative prices of eating out here in India. After a couple of weeks here we’ve been in big cities and small cities. Touristy places and less touristy places and we’ve been trying to come up with an explanation of the wide range of cost on what is basically the same food.
budgets (1)
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![Giraffes!]()
The Viewing Game - Krueger National Park
Giraffes! After a little taste of wildlife viewing in Zimbabwe and Botswana, we were pretty psyched to head to Krueger National Park in northeastern South Africa for a four day safari. We were even more excited to be sharing the experience with friends from the States.
buffalo (1)
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
bungie cords (1)
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![Lively Auckland]()
The City of Sails
Lively Auckland We arrived in Auckland early Friday morning and spent three days there exploring the city. Since we only spent a few days in one city, it’s probably not fair to make any kind of sweeping generalizations about Kiwis or New Zealand for that matter.
burger fuel (1)
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![Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity]()
Invercargill Nights
Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity The Legend of Burt Munro Have you seen the movie “The Worlds Fastest Indian”? It’s the true story of an elderly Kiwi who breaks the world speed record for motorcycles at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah at the ripe old age of 69.
Burt Munro (1)
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![Hell Bus 2007]()
Modes of Travel in Mongolia
Hell Bus 2007 The tricky think about Mongolia is that you have to get out of UB and into the countryside to really get a feeling for the country, but it’s hard as hell to get out of UB.
Bus (1)
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![Giraffes!]()
The Viewing Game - Krueger National Park
Giraffes! After a little taste of wildlife viewing in Zimbabwe and Botswana, we were pretty psyched to head to Krueger National Park in northeastern South Africa for a four day safari. We were even more excited to be sharing the experience with friends from the States.
bush baby (1)
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![Is it Christchurch, or Epcot?]()
Christchurch... or Disneyland?
Is it Christchurch, or Epcot? I once had a conversation with an Australian woman about the nature of Kiwi’s, “They’re more British than the British she said.” Now, asking an Australian to define the nature of a Kiwi (or vice versa) is never recommended, and you shouldn’t expect an unbiased answer, but in the case of Christchurch …she may have been on to something.
Buskers festival (1)
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![Is it Christchurch, or Epcot?]()
Christchurch... or Disneyland?
Is it Christchurch, or Epcot? I once had a conversation with an Australian woman about the nature of Kiwi’s, “They’re more British than the British she said.” Now, asking an Australian to define the nature of a Kiwi (or vice versa) is never recommended, and you shouldn’t expect an unbiased answer, but in the case of Christchurch …she may have been on to something.
Busking (1)
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![Can I Have You Over For Dinner]()
Fresh, Really Fresh
Can I Have You Over For Dinner One thing you can’t say about Chinese food is that it isn’t fresh, no frozen peas need apply. As a way of demonstrating let me relate something that happened to LeeAnne and I just the other day on the way back to our room:
busy street (1)
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet.
buttons badges (1)
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![Technically Austin...]()
The Byways of Dallas
Technically Austin... Dallas, Texas is all together different from Oregon. Goodbye green, hello brown. Goodbye wooded mountains, hello scrubby flatlands. Goodbye rain, hello warm weather and sunny skies. So it’s not all bad. If Portland was the City of Roses I suppose Dallas has to be the City of Byways.
Byways (1)
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![Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites]()
It's Istanbul Not Constantinople Now
Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites Istanbul is a great city. It straddles the Bosphorus placing half the city in Europe and half in Asia. It’s an interesting mix of cosmopolitan and traditional is full of rich history and impressive structures left behind by the Greek, Roman and Ottoman empires.
Byzantine architecture (1)
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![Big Day Out in Goa]()
Scootin' Around
Big Day Out in Goa Just to make sure we didn’t get totally bored of reading and relaxing on the beach all week, we decided to take a little day trip and see some sites beyond Palolem. We rented a scooter, bought a few liters of petrol and headed north.
cabo de rama (1)
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![Cadbury World]()
Eat Your Heart Out Charlie
Cadbury World If you’re like me, watching Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (the original with Gene Wilder) when you were a kid was a little disturbing. Our tour of Cadbury World in Dunedin proved to be full of a little of that same creepiness as well as loads of chocolate goodness!
Cadbury World (1)
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Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong.
camera shops (1)
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The Fabulous Cook Family
Some of you know our friend Lorraine (aka cycling fool). Well if you do, then you are aware that she is one great lady. It should come as no surprise then that her family in Adelaide are equally awesome. We felt they were deserving of their very own entry!
camera store (1)
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![Punakaiki Pancake Rocks]()
The Wild West Coast
Punakaiki Pancake Rocks After touring the Lakes District and Fiordland, we headed over Haast Pass to the west coast, described as wild and quite wet by most brochures and guidebooks. The drive over Haast was on one of our first clear, sunny days.
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![Spending Tips from the Experts!]()
New Zealand Notes for Budget Travelers
Spending Tips from the Experts! Some of you are probably wondering how the heck we are making our money stretch around the world. The answer is on a budget! As we planned and planned and then planned some more prior the trip, we did our best to estimate our costs from everything to tickets and visas and travel insurance to daily costs and special, one-time expenses like tours.
campervans (1)
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![Are we traveling light yet?]()
Packing, Packing, Packing
Are we traveling light yet? Wow! We have a lot of stuff for two people traveling light around the world. It’s embarrassing telling people your traveling around the world on a shoestring and then asking their help to pull your two large duffel bags, two fully packed back-packs and two or three carry-on’s out of the car for you.
camping gear (1)
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![Cadbury World]()
Eat Your Heart Out Charlie
Cadbury World If you’re like me, watching Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (the original with Gene Wilder) when you were a kid was a little disturbing. Our tour of Cadbury World in Dunedin proved to be full of a little of that same creepiness as well as loads of chocolate goodness!
Candy bars (1)
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Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong.
Canon (1)
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![Not ours, but I wish it was...]()
Diary of a Car Camper - New Zealand
Not ours, but I wish it was... We’re starting kind of a second leg of our stay here in New Zealand, the bikes are gone and we’re renting a car for the rest of the trip. Of course it’s going to give our legs a break and let us have a lot more range in terms of where we can go and what we can see in a day.
Canterbury (1)
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![Rainbow Falls]()
North Country
Rainbow Falls When Kiwis go on vacation they go to Northland. It’s the peninsula north of Auckland, and you’re sandwiched in between the South Pacific and the Tasman sea, so there are loads of beach options. It’s where most of the Maori population is located these days too.
cape keri (1)
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![Cape Town Rules]()
Chillin in Cape Town
Cape Town Rules Cape Town is easily the best city we’ve visited in Africa, by far, LeeAnne is even claiming it’s her favorite city on the whole trip (but I’m not ready to go that far yet). african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins Why all the enthusiasm?
Cape of Good Hope (1)
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![Mao Meets Capitalism]()
Comrades and Capitalist Roaders
Mao Meets Capitalism If a picture is worth a thousand words, this one must be worth a thousand dollars. This is China today. New cars being sold at the foot of Chairman Mao while “Life in the Fast Lane” blasts from stereos.
Capitalist roader (1)
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![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us.
Caprivi Region (1)
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![Oh, What a Feeling!]()
Diary of a Car Camper - Australia
Oh, What a Feeling! We’re leaving Sydney and car camping again. If you’ll recall we were hooked up in New Zealand with a very cheap rental. In Australia, not so lucky. Still lucky, we have it for $29.00 a day AUD, and it’s a much sweeter ride.
car camper (1)
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![Crazy Blue Lake Tekapo]()
Lake Tekapo
Crazy Blue Lake Tekapo The first stop in our career as car campers is Lake Tekapo – a wonderfully blue-blue (almost phony looking) lake in the Southern Alps. We’re also at a pretty high altitude, and the lake is rather remote so residents of the lake area claim to have the clearest sky’s in New Zealand.
car campers (1)
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![Oh, What a Feeling!]()
Diary of a Car Camper - Australia
Oh, What a Feeling! We’re leaving Sydney and car camping again. If you’ll recall we were hooked up in New Zealand with a very cheap rental. In Australia, not so lucky. Still lucky, we have it for $29.00 a day AUD, and it’s a much sweeter ride.
car camping (1)
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![Mad Maxs Car - Sweet!]()
Diesel & Dust - The Outback
Mad Maxs Car - Sweet! As our car camping adventure in Aus continues we headed back to Sydney via the Outback. To say there’s a lot of nothing out there is a bit of an understatement. Aside from mining towns, road houses, road trains and red dust there’s not too much.
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Carbon Compensation
One more thing before we let you go – and I don’t want to get too Ed Begley Jr. here, but I think it does bear mentioning. When you travel around the world like we’ve done this year there are some unseen consequences, and I’m not talking about introducing Mongolian Nomads to iPods.
Carbon finance (1)
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Carbon Compensation
One more thing before we let you go – and I don’t want to get too Ed Begley Jr. here, but I think it does bear mentioning. When you travel around the world like we’ve done this year there are some unseen consequences, and I’m not talking about introducing Mongolian Nomads to iPods.
Carbon footprint (1)
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Carbon Compensation
One more thing before we let you go – and I don’t want to get too Ed Begley Jr. here, but I think it does bear mentioning. When you travel around the world like we’ve done this year there are some unseen consequences, and I’m not talking about introducing Mongolian Nomads to iPods.
Carbon offset (1)
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![Beware of Monkeys!]()
Kumily & The Tiger Reserve
Beware of Monkeys! After a few days cooling off (literally in Munnar) we’ve headed down south to Kumily which we’ve used as a base to visit the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Count yourself extremely lucky if you see any tigers here.
cardamom (1)
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![Beware of Monkeys!]()
Kumily & The Tiger Reserve
Beware of Monkeys! After a few days cooling off (literally in Munnar) we’ve headed down south to Kumily which we’ve used as a base to visit the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Count yourself extremely lucky if you see any tigers here.
Cardamom Hills (1)
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Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely.
carrier codes (1)
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![Take Us With You!]()
Doh! We've been Shanghai'd!
Take Us With You! Just when we thought everything was resolved with our flights, it turns out that it wasn’t. You’d think that even the less than stellar women at the Qantas office in Beijing who issued us new paper tickets or the very stellar AA women in the U.
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![The Treasury]()
Petra Rocks!
The Treasury Pun intended! There’s no doubt about it. Petra is an amazing place. Definitely among the most amazing places on our trip. When you think of Petra, you may envision Harrison Ford and Sean Connery on horse back emerging from a narrow canyon to see the magnificent Treasury.
cave dwelling (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
cave temples (1)
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![Paddys Wigwam]()
Chillin in the Pool
Paddys Wigwam We ventured to Liverpool for very obvious reasons, but still without the promise of tickets to see the boys in red at Anfield. Luckily the tickets worked out, but I’ll let the footy fan tell his tale.
Cavern Club (1)
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Mork to Orson, Come in Orson...
One thing we’ve been doing a lot of research on running up to the last days before we leave is telephones and phone cards. Keeping in touch with folks back home is really important to us so we want something reliable, but we also don’t want to pay a lot for that muffler.
cell phones (1)
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
cellular telephone (1)
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![Sad Little Went Tent]()
Australia Notes For Budget Travelers
Sad Little Went Tent It should come as no surprise that Australia is not the cheapest of countries on our itinerary. That said, the country is well equipped for backpackers on a budget. Like New Zealand, if you watch your $ in the cities and self-cater (camp and cook yourself), you can stretch your dollars pretty far.
Central Train Station (1)
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Damn that Dollar!
England is great and London is possibly one of the greatest cities in the world. There are cool things to do, funky clothes to buy, good shows to see, and yummy food to eat (ethinic food of course). Too bad it costs so damn much to do any of it when you’re coming with US dollars.
charity shop (1)
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![Lively Auckland]()
The City of Sails
Lively Auckland We arrived in Auckland early Friday morning and spent three days there exploring the city. Since we only spent a few days in one city, it’s probably not fair to make any kind of sweeping generalizations about Kiwis or New Zealand for that matter.
cheap grub (1)
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China Notes for Budget Travelers
Our original budget for China was based on the costs of the big cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. Our goal was to stay at or below $70 a day for both of us. We were able to get by on about that in Hong Kong, but were able to easily stay below $50 a day for most of China.
cheap lodging (1)
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![Tuk Tuk'ing Along]()
Escape from Mumbai
Tuk Tuk'ing Along When is a 12 hour train-ride in tropical heat with no air conditioning worth it? When it gets you out of Mumbai. Our journey began before dawn at Mumbai’s Central Station and would not end until just after night fell on us and our Auto-Ricksaw driver on a beach in Goa.
cheese sandwiches (1)
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet.
Chengdu Panda Research Center (1)
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![Travel in 2nd Class]()
Life on the Rajdhani Express
Travel in 2nd Class A forty two hour train ride isn’t really something to be looked forward to. But after the better part of a month spent traveling further and further South, LeeAnne and I decided it was time to knock off a few of the “Must Do’s” in India – The Taj Mahal etc – so we had to find a way from Trivandrum (near the southern tip of India) to Delhi (in the North of the country).
Chennai Rajdhani (1)
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![LeeAnne adds her marks to the door]()
One Night in the Jailhouse
LeeAnne adds her marks to the door An unexpected end to our second day of riding was that LeeAnne and I spent the night in the jailhouse. The Chevoit (Pronounced Chevy-Ut) Motel is built on the grounds of the old Cheviot jailhouse – which still stands.
cheviot (1)
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![LeeAnne adds her marks to the door]()
One Night in the Jailhouse
LeeAnne adds her marks to the door An unexpected end to our second day of riding was that LeeAnne and I spent the night in the jailhouse. The Chevoit (Pronounced Chevy-Ut) Motel is built on the grounds of the old Cheviot jailhouse – which still stands.
Cheviot jailhouse (1)
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![LeeAnne adds her marks to the door]()
One Night in the Jailhouse
LeeAnne adds her marks to the door An unexpected end to our second day of riding was that LeeAnne and I spent the night in the jailhouse. The Chevoit (Pronounced Chevy-Ut) Motel is built on the grounds of the old Cheviot jailhouse – which still stands.
chevoit (1)
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On Top of the World!
So, since we’ve been back there have been a lot of questions about what was our favorite place, our favorite thing to do, etc. We’ll try and address that here. Some things stand out in our mind easily (like our favorite bathroom), others are a little harder to narrow down to just one thing (favorite place?
China Favorite Hotel (1)
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![Be Like Water]()
Hong Kong Part Deux
Be Like Water Wow, it’s hot in Hong Kong! When we were here in May it was just steamy, now it’s downright unpleasant. Thats not the only thing that changes quickly in Hong Kong: a bakery and Vegetarian Restaurant that we loved on our first trip were closed on our second visit – only two months later.
China FC (1)
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![Welcome to the Year of the Pig!]()
New Year (Chinese New Year) in Sydney
Welcome to the Year of the Pig! So we’re here in Sydney and we’re learning that Sydney kind of marches to the beat of a different drummer. Part of the reason we came to Sydney when we did was timing.
Chinatown (1)
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![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter.
Chinese films (1)
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![Can I Have You Over For Dinner]()
Fresh, Really Fresh
Can I Have You Over For Dinner One thing you can’t say about Chinese food is that it isn’t fresh, no frozen peas need apply. As a way of demonstrating let me relate something that happened to LeeAnne and I just the other day on the way back to our room:
chinese language skills (1)
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![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter.
Chinese martial arts (1)
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![Welcome to the Year of the Pig!]()
New Year (Chinese New Year) in Sydney
Welcome to the Year of the Pig! So we’re here in Sydney and we’re learning that Sydney kind of marches to the beat of a different drummer. Part of the reason we came to Sydney when we did was timing.
Chinese New Year (1)
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![Mao Meets Capitalism]()
Comrades and Capitalist Roaders
Mao Meets Capitalism If a picture is worth a thousand words, this one must be worth a thousand dollars. This is China today. New cars being sold at the foot of Chairman Mao while “Life in the Fast Lane” blasts from stereos.
Chinese people (1)
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![Shane Battier is Big in China]()
The NBA - It's Chan-Tastic!
Shane Battier is Big in China Move over Ping-Pong, make room for Basketball. The NBA is surprisingly huge here. After Soccer it’s probably the biggest spectator sport in the country. The NBA play-offs are broadcast twice a day here, live at 8AM in the morning and then again at night, followed by a highlights show with Chinese talking heads summarizing the game.
Chinese San Antonio Spurs (1)
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![Rock Art]()
Kanding Stopover
Rock Art I have to say we really didn’t really give Kanding a chance, we were only there one night before we moved on to Chengdu. If we had more time it probably would have been worth a day or two.
chinese scenery (1)
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![Can you say SOVIET?]()
Call Me UB - Ulaanbaator
Can you say SOVIET? Ulaanbaator is a sleepy medium-size town that happens to be the capitol and only real city of any size in Mongolia. The Soviets essentially built this city and it’s painfully obvious in the architecture, monuments and city planning that the Mongolians had little say.
chingis khan (1)
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![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us.
Chobe (1)
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![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us.
Chobe District (1)
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![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us.
Chobe National Park (1)
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![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us.
Chobe River (1)
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![Cadbury World]()
Eat Your Heart Out Charlie
Cadbury World If you’re like me, watching Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (the original with Gene Wilder) when you were a kid was a little disturbing. Our tour of Cadbury World in Dunedin proved to be full of a little of that same creepiness as well as loads of chocolate goodness!
Chocolate (1)
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![Flavored Milk is Big Down Here]()
Reflections on Sweet Potato, Pumpkin and Hokey Pokey
Flavored Milk is Big Down Here The three things that stand out about food here in New Zealand are their love of (In order) Ice Cream, Pumpkins and Sweet Potatoes (known locally as Kumara). Let’s cover the last first, when I first saw it listed on the menu I just assumed that Kumara was a strange type of sausage.
Chocolate milk (1)
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![Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites]()
It's Istanbul Not Constantinople Now
Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites Istanbul is a great city. It straddles the Bosphorus placing half the city in Europe and half in Asia. It’s an interesting mix of cosmopolitan and traditional is full of rich history and impressive structures left behind by the Greek, Roman and Ottoman empires.
Chora Church (1)
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![Gateway to India]()
Back to Mumbai - Indian Wrap Up
Gateway to India We’re back in Mumbai awaiting our flight out of India. Driving in from the train station it was hard to recognize the town as the big dirty smelly place that shocked us when we flew in two months ago.
Chowpatty Beach (1)
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![Are we traveling light yet?]()
Packing, Packing, Packing
Are we traveling light yet? Wow! We have a lot of stuff for two people traveling light around the world. It’s embarrassing telling people your traveling around the world on a shoestring and then asking their help to pull your two large duffel bags, two fully packed back-packs and two or three carry-on’s out of the car for you.
Christmas (1)
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![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts.
Chutney (1)
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![Shane Battier is Big in China]()
The NBA - It's Chan-Tastic!
Shane Battier is Big in China Move over Ping-Pong, make room for Basketball. The NBA is surprisingly huge here. After Soccer it’s probably the biggest spectator sport in the country. The NBA play-offs are broadcast twice a day here, live at 8AM in the morning and then again at night, followed by a highlights show with Chinese talking heads summarizing the game.
city buses (1)
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![Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends]()
Hobbits & Elves
Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends We arrived in the capital city of Wellington on Monday evening after 11 hours on a bus traversing the North Island from Auckland.
city of wellington (1)
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![Octopussy, Every Night]()
Notes From Octopussy's Lair
Octopussy, Every Night Udaipur is a great place to go if your extremely rich, or a fan of James Bond films. Actually, if your a fan of one James Bond film in particular: Octopussy. A large part of the film was shot here and even though it was released some 25 years ago, every restaurant in town still shows Octopussy every night at 7PM sharp.
City Palace (1)
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![Something about the label appeals]()
Vibrant Straw with Flecks of Brilliant Green
Something about the label appeals When you hear something like “vibrant straw with flecks of brilliant green”, what do you think? I am guessing it wasn’t, mmmm… pour me one of those. As you probably well know, Australia is home to many a wine that we enjoy in the U.
Clare Valley (1)
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Carbon Compensation
One more thing before we let you go – and I don’t want to get too Ed Begley Jr. here, but I think it does bear mentioning. When you travel around the world like we’ve done this year there are some unseen consequences, and I’m not talking about introducing Mongolian Nomads to iPods.
Climate change (1)
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![Along the Presidential Highway]()
Somewhere Between Clinton and Gore
Along the Presidential Highway So we are back on the road cycling. This time we are lighter (we dropped a bunch of stuff off with acquaintances in Christchurch), smarter (we’ve traveled south by bus and are riding north to keep the wind at our backs), and more motivated (if you read our post on Invercargill you’ll understand, we need to get out of here!
Clinton (1)
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Damn that Dollar!
England is great and London is possibly one of the greatest cities in the world. There are cool things to do, funky clothes to buy, good shows to see, and yummy food to eat (ethinic food of course). Too bad it costs so damn much to do any of it when you’re coming with US dollars.
club football (1)
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![Kochi Coastline]()
Hot Time in Kochi
Kochi Coastline First off let me say we did not do Kochi justice. Kochi (formerly Cochin) needs to be seen in December or January – before it gets too hot. In late March it’s just too hot and too humid.
Cochin (1)
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![Bolliwood Stardom]()
Hooray for Bolliwood
Bolliwood Stardom Jokingly one of our goals on this trip was to get cast in a Bolliwood movie: Mission Accomplished! It was surprisingly easy. There are some 700 movies made in Mumbai a year so the numbers are working for you if you want to be cast as an extra.
Colaba (1)
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![Bolliwood Stardom]()
Hooray for Bolliwood
Bolliwood Stardom Jokingly one of our goals on this trip was to get cast in a Bolliwood movie: Mission Accomplished! It was surprisingly easy. There are some 700 movies made in Mumbai a year so the numbers are working for you if you want to be cast as an extra.
Colaba Causeway (1)
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![PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute.]()
Eugenius!!!
PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute. Our friends Deb and Craig moved out to Eugene, Oregon a couple of years a go and we’ve never visited them. Why? Many reasons, theres nothing even resembling a direct flight to Eugene from DC.
College Town (1)
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![Back in DC]()
Back in the 202 Area Code
Back in DC First reaction upon returning to Washington, D.C., where both LeeAnne and I have lived for over a decade: “Wow! It’s really small! Where are all of the people? Where is all the traffic? And pollution, what happened to that?
Columbia Heights (1)
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![Mark Hanna Slept Here]()
New Lisbon
Mark Hanna Slept Here Lisbon, Ohio LeeAnne’s home town was one of our first stops on our return to the States. Lisbon is a little burg village located in north-eastern Ohio, but it is surprisingly deep in history and dare I say it?
Columbiana County (1)
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![Mao Meets Capitalism]()
Comrades and Capitalist Roaders
Mao Meets Capitalism If a picture is worth a thousand words, this one must be worth a thousand dollars. This is China today. New cars being sold at the foot of Chairman Mao while “Life in the Fast Lane” blasts from stereos.
communist china (1)
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![School Days]()
God's Own Country
School Days No, we didn’t come up with this, the State of Kerala did. Signs and brochures are quick to coin Kerala as God’s country. I imagine much of this is due to its beautiful scenery, which in all honesty we haven’t had the chance to see much of as of yet.
communist government (1)
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![Shanghai Nights]()
Shanghai Shoppers
Shanghai Nights We’re in Shanghai at the moment, and we’ve had another near miss with my cousin Sam Forrest, we had a close encounter with him in New Zealand, but we were on opposite sides of the North Island.
Communist Party of China (1)
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![India Gate]()
Several Million Do Make A Difference
India Gate After a long, chilly train ride, we arrived in Delhi last Thursday. Delhi is India’s second largest city after Mumbai. And though I can not find consistent population numbers, it is a fact that several million fewer people live here than in Mumbai.
Connaught Place (1)
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![Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites]()
It's Istanbul Not Constantinople Now
Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites Istanbul is a great city. It straddles the Bosphorus placing half the city in Europe and half in Asia. It’s an interesting mix of cosmopolitan and traditional is full of rich history and impressive structures left behind by the Greek, Roman and Ottoman empires.
Constantinople (1)
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![Along the Presidential Highway]()
Somewhere Between Clinton and Gore
Along the Presidential Highway So we are back on the road cycling. This time we are lighter (we dropped a bunch of stuff off with acquaintances in Christchurch), smarter (we’ve traveled south by bus and are riding north to keep the wind at our backs), and more motivated (if you read our post on Invercargill you’ll understand, we need to get out of here!
country music capitol (1)
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One World Explorer Pricelist by Country
Okay, so one thing we learned very quickly from the One World Explorer FAQ is that OWE tickets are priced differently in every country they are sold in. Is that crazy or what? Originally, we were planning on flying from the states for 4,900 USD plus tax.
country of origin (1)
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![Try to Avoid it...]()
Crazy Taxi - South Africa Edition
Try to Avoid it... Why did we do it? We had little choice. Was there no other option? No, there wasn’t. These are only a few of the questions we found ourselves asking one another as we took our first African “Public Taxi”.
Crazy Taxi (1)
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![The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall]()
The Walls of Johannesburg
The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don’t go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass.
crime statistics (1)
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![Cadbury World]()
Eat Your Heart Out Charlie
Cadbury World If you’re like me, watching Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (the original with Gene Wilder) when you were a kid was a little disturbing. Our tour of Cadbury World in Dunedin proved to be full of a little of that same creepiness as well as loads of chocolate goodness!
crunchie (1)
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![The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall]()
The Walls of Johannesburg
The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don’t go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass.
crushed glass (1)
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![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us.
Cuando River (1)
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![TimTams, the shadow currency of Australia]()
TimTams & The Lot
TimTams, the shadow currency of Australia Aussies are very close cousins to Americans in many ways, in fact had it not been for the American Revolution many of them (the convict labor) would have ended up in Georgia, not half-way around the world.
Cuisine (1)
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![Cadbury World]()
Eat Your Heart Out Charlie
Cadbury World If you’re like me, watching Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (the original with Gene Wilder) when you were a kid was a little disturbing. Our tour of Cadbury World in Dunedin proved to be full of a little of that same creepiness as well as loads of chocolate goodness!
Curly Wurly (1)
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The Itinerary - For Now...
Okay, the Irish screwed us. After going through everything, AND running our credit card they told us (by email) that they had quoted us for the wrong price. And it would be about 1,000 euros more! Now I don’t follow the currency market like I should, but I do know that right now the exchange rate for US Dollars to Euros is no good, and a thousand Euros is …well, more that we want to pay.
currency market (1)
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The Big Mac Index
So I have to tell you, from a exchange rate perspective, 2007 has not been a great year to travel outside the United States. Well, at least not if you have American Dollars to change (thank you George W. Bush). The exchange rates of most of the currencies we changed for was usually worse when we left than when we arrived, it sucked.
currency value (1)
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![Bananas...]()
This Forks for You
Bananas... I’m currently working on a theory about the relative prices of eating out here in India. After a couple of weeks here we’ve been in big cities and small cities. Touristy places and less touristy places and we’ve been trying to come up with an explanation of the wide range of cost on what is basically the same food.
curry (1)
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![Headed Out]()
Bonne Voyage!
Headed Out Remember how you felt before you started your last Round the World trip? No? Let me remind you: It’s really no sweat, you’re only leaving home for several months, going to God knows what kind of places where you won’t understand the locals, be familiar with their customs or know which way to look when you cross the street …and that’s just Australia.
customs (1)
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![A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office]()
Pedal, Pedal, Pedal
A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office So our plan for a while has been to bike while in New Zealand. After considerable research and contemplation, we decided to rent bikes and bike on the South Island only.
Cycling (1)
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![A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office]()
Pedal, Pedal, Pedal
A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office So our plan for a while has been to bike while in New Zealand. After considerable research and contemplation, we decided to rent bikes and bike on the South Island only.
cyclist (1)
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![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Tiger Leaping Gorge
Tiger Leaping Gorge We just did a mini-trek at Tiger Leaping Gorge, it’s in the western part of Yunnan and it’s famous for being one of the steepest and most dramatic Gorges in the world. I have to say, it’s probably the highlight of China for us right now.
Daju (1)
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![Friendly Monks]()
One Night in Xiencheng
Friendly Monks Xiencheng is a very nice little town in Southwest China with very little tourist traffic that you probably have never heard of. If you’re in Xiencheng it’s probably to overnight here waiting for a bus to take you to another town.
Dalai Lama (1)
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![It's so nice to see you...]()
Well, Hello Dali!
It's so nice to see you... Dali is a beautiful city with mountains on one side and a picturesque lake on the other. It’s an old walled city and unlike many of it’s ilk it has not yet been totally changed by tourism.
dali (1)
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![Monks Chillin]()
Litang - Little Tibet
Monks Chillin So for various reasons (time and cost being the biggest two, hassle being another), we have chosen not to go to Tibet. Let me explain a little: there are now three ways to get to Tibet from China proper
Dali Lamas (1)
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![Technically Austin...]()
The Byways of Dallas
Technically Austin... Dallas, Texas is all together different from Oregon. Goodbye green, hello brown. Goodbye wooded mountains, hello scrubby flatlands. Goodbye rain, hello warm weather and sunny skies. So it’s not all bad. If Portland was the City of Roses I suppose Dallas has to be the City of Byways.
Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex (1)
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![Giraffes!]()
The Viewing Game - Krueger National Park
Giraffes! After a little taste of wildlife viewing in Zimbabwe and Botswana, we were pretty psyched to head to Krueger National Park in northeastern South Africa for a four day safari. We were even more excited to be sharing the experience with friends from the States.
dangerous land (1)
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Our Men in Dublin
Ticket Plan B – Okay, so we’re going to use a travel agent in Ireland to purchase our RTW tickets, fly there a few days before we “Originate” our One World Explorer tickets and then fly to New Zealand. Crazy, yes, but it’s going to save us a bunch on ticket costs.
dawson street (1)
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![Technically Austin...]()
The Byways of Dallas
Technically Austin... Dallas, Texas is all together different from Oregon. Goodbye green, hello brown. Goodbye wooded mountains, hello scrubby flatlands. Goodbye rain, hello warm weather and sunny skies. So it’s not all bad. If Portland was the City of Roses I suppose Dallas has to be the City of Byways.
Dealey Plaza (1)
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![Technically Austin...]()
The Byways of Dallas
Technically Austin... Dallas, Texas is all together different from Oregon. Goodbye green, hello brown. Goodbye wooded mountains, hello scrubby flatlands. Goodbye rain, hello warm weather and sunny skies. So it’s not all bad. If Portland was the City of Roses I suppose Dallas has to be the City of Byways.
Deep Ellum (1)
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![Flavored Milk is Big Down Here]()
Reflections on Sweet Potato, Pumpkin and Hokey Pokey
Flavored Milk is Big Down Here The three things that stand out about food here in New Zealand are their love of (In order) Ice Cream, Pumpkins and Sweet Potatoes (known locally as Kumara). Let’s cover the last first, when I first saw it listed on the menu I just assumed that Kumara was a strange type of sausage.
deep fryers (1)
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![Sabu Elias & DeerVilla Home Stay]()
A Homely Stay
Sabu Elias & DeerVilla Home Stay Since arriving in India a little over three weeks ago, we’ve run the gamut on lodging options. We’ve stayed in overpriced, run down hotels, a rodent infested beach shack (Yes, we weren’t the only ones sharing that great view!
Deer Villa (1)
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![Mmmmm...Masala Popcorn]()
Queen of the Hills
Mmmmm...Masala Popcorn After our relaxing time in Rishikesh, we were still longing for some cooler temperatures so we made our way further north to Mussoorie, also known as the Queen of the Hill Stations. It certainly lives up to its name.
Dehradun (1)
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![TP is Good!]()
Gastrointestinal Update: No. 1
TP is Good! To appease our readers I will report that there have been no major gastrointestinal incidents in India as of yet. We are very careful about water, but have been enjoying a variety of local foods, juices (no water and no ice used) and veg (no lettuce) with little to no adverse result.
delhi belly (1)
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![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts.
delhi dhaba (1)
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![Mao Meets Capitalism]()
Comrades and Capitalist Roaders
Mao Meets Capitalism If a picture is worth a thousand words, this one must be worth a thousand dollars. This is China today. New cars being sold at the foot of Chairman Mao while “Life in the Fast Lane” blasts from stereos.
Deng Xiaoping (1)
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![Delroy!]()
Is That Who I Think It Is?
Delroy! It’s always kind of fun to see famous people, even when they’re not that interesting. I’m not sure why. I can remember acting like a groupie at a rock concert when a I saw Dukakis at a rally back in high school.
Dennis Kucinich (1)
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![Life is a Kings Highway]()
Life on the Kings Highway
Life is a Kings Highway There are two ways to get from Petra to Amman: the fast way is to take the Desert Highway, a name that leaves little to the imagination, the other is the Kings Highway. The King’s Highway was a major trade route in the ancient Mid-East.
Desert Highway (1)
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A Disclaimer
With all of our frank musings about India, we realize that we might seem ethnocentric or judgemental to some. That is not our intention. And yes, we do like it here most of the time. As you travel through any developing country – or any country that is just different from your own – you’re faced with all kinds of different experiences.
developing country (1)
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![Big Dunes]()
The Southern Tour of Namibia
Big Dunes First things first. No, we didn’t come to Namibia because Brad and Angelina did. No, we didn’t see them. No, we didn’t even meet anyone who mentioned them. We were, however, shown the filming location of J Lo’s movie, The Cell, which of course we haven’t seen.
diamond mining ghost town (1)
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![Victoria Falls]()
Victoria Falls - The Smoke That Thunders
Victoria Falls We are so glad to be leaving Johannesburg that the thought of going anywhere else is appealing. Even a departure to Zimbabwe – yes, that Zimbabwe, land of 7000% inflation, of dictatorial rule (Our first dictator, yes!
dictator (1)
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Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong.
digital camera (1)
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Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong.
Digital photography (1)
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Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong.
Digital single-lens reflex camera (1)
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Vaccinations - Don't Leave Home Without Them
First stop on the road to Round the World Travel is the Doctors office. It may not be the most romantic or adventuresome idea, but I’m pretty sure that before the best adventurers and explorers headed out they got their shots. How much could Indiana Jones have gotten done if he were bed-ridden with Hep B while chasing the Ark of the Covenant?
doctors office (1)
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
document organizers (1)
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The Big Mac Index
So I have to tell you, from a exchange rate perspective, 2007 has not been a great year to travel outside the United States. Well, at least not if you have American Dollars to change (thank you George W. Bush). The exchange rates of most of the currencies we changed for was usually worse when we left than when we arrived, it sucked.
dollar exchange rates (1)
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![Bıg Ben]()
England Notes for Budget Travelers
Bıg Ben Ok. Budget is a bit of a misnomer. Let’s refer to it as a bleeding. The U.K. is an expensive place to visit when you’re on vacation and headed back to work and a paycheck next Friday.
dorm rooms (1)
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![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts.
Dosa (1)
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![Welcome to the Year of the Pig!]()
New Year (Chinese New Year) in Sydney
Welcome to the Year of the Pig! So we’re here in Sydney and we’re learning that Sydney kind of marches to the beat of a different drummer. Part of the reason we came to Sydney when we did was timing.
Dragon boat (1)
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![Victoria Falls]()
Victoria Falls - The Smoke That Thunders
Victoria Falls We are so glad to be leaving Johannesburg that the thought of going anywhere else is appealing. Even a departure to Zimbabwe – yes, that Zimbabwe, land of 7000% inflation, of dictatorial rule (Our first dictator, yes!
dramatic views (1)
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![Ger Ya Later!]()
Off We Ger
Ger Ya Later! Part of the allure of Mongolia is getting the heck out of UB and heading to the countryside. The only complication with that is that you can’t just hop on a bus and wing it like we have in other countries.
driver (1)
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They're Coming to America - Today!
And we’re back! After the better part of nine months on the road overseas we’re finally going to be Stateside again. Now here is where a lot of people will get caught up on the fact that we’re “Home” again. While we are indeed back in the States, and we won’t be having our passports stamped again on this trip – it’s not exactly over.
dulles (1)
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![Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching]()
Big Birds, Sleepy Sealions and Super Cute Penguins
Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching Yesterday we threw the budget out and splurged for our first tour in New Zealand. Actually, it was quite a bargain and worth every penny! Stretching out from the Dunedin coast is the Otago Peninsula.
Dunedin coast (1)
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![It's so nice to see you...]()
Well, Hello Dali!
It's so nice to see you... Dali is a beautiful city with mountains on one side and a picturesque lake on the other. It’s an old walled city and unlike many of it’s ilk it has not yet been totally changed by tourism.
earthquake (1)
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![Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites]()
It's Istanbul Not Constantinople Now
Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites Istanbul is a great city. It straddles the Bosphorus placing half the city in Europe and half in Asia. It’s an interesting mix of cosmopolitan and traditional is full of rich history and impressive structures left behind by the Greek, Roman and Ottoman empires.
Eastern Orthodox church buildings (1)
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![Bananas...]()
This Forks for You
Bananas... I’m currently working on a theory about the relative prices of eating out here in India. After a couple of weeks here we’ve been in big cities and small cities. Touristy places and less touristy places and we’ve been trying to come up with an explanation of the wide range of cost on what is basically the same food.
Eating (1)
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![Welcome to Liverpool]()
This is Anfield
Welcome to Liverpool The first thing you’ll need to know is that İ’m a soccer fan, next it’s important to know that İ’m a fan of Liverpool FC in England, since we happen to be in the UK it would make sense to go to a game in Liverpool right?
Eddie Lewis (1)
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![Life is a Kings Highway]()
Life on the Kings Highway
Life is a Kings Highway There are two ways to get from Petra to Amman: the fast way is to take the Desert Highway, a name that leaves little to the imagination, the other is the Kings Highway. The King’s Highway was a major trade route in the ancient Mid-East.
Edom (1)
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![The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall]()
The Walls of Johannesburg
The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don’t go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass.
electric fencing (1)
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![Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park]()
Elephantitis: Corbett National Park
Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park Leaving Delhi, we set off for Corbett National Park about 250 km north in the state of Uttarchanal. Our mission: elephant safari! And maybe spot some other wildlife as well. We were partially successful.
elephant safari (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
Ellora Caves (1)
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![Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends]()
Hobbits & Elves
Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends We arrived in the capital city of Wellington on Monday evening after 11 hours on a bus traversing the North Island from Auckland.
elves (1)
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![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route.
Emperor (1)
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![Big Dunes]()
The Southern Tour of Namibia
Big Dunes First things first. No, we didn’t come to Namibia because Brad and Angelina did. No, we didn’t see them. No, we didn’t even meet anyone who mentioned them. We were, however, shown the filming location of J Lo’s movie, The Cell, which of course we haven’t seen.
endless dunes (1)
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![Shane Battier is Big in China]()
The NBA - It's Chan-Tastic!
Shane Battier is Big in China Move over Ping-Pong, make room for Basketball. The NBA is surprisingly huge here. After Soccer it’s probably the biggest spectator sport in the country. The NBA play-offs are broadcast twice a day here, live at 8AM in the morning and then again at night, followed by a highlights show with Chinese talking heads summarizing the game.
endorsement deal (1)
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![Welcome to Liverpool]()
This is Anfield
Welcome to Liverpool The first thing you’ll need to know is that İ’m a soccer fan, next it’s important to know that İ’m a fan of Liverpool FC in England, since we happen to be in the UK it would make sense to go to a game in Liverpool right?
English footballers (1)
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China Notes for Budget Travelers
Our original budget for China was based on the costs of the big cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. Our goal was to stay at or below $70 a day for both of us. We were able to get by on about that in Hong Kong, but were able to easily stay below $50 a day for most of China.
english menu (1)
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![One Pen]()
Coming From? - Common India 'Engrish'
One Pen There are a few phrases that any visitor to India will become familiar with rapidly. Here’s a quick run-down of common “Engrish” you’ll come across: Coming From? – The most benign, they just want to know what country you’re from.
Engrish (1)
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![Hong Kong Phooey]()
Hong Kong Phooey
Hong Kong Phooey I have to say, after spending two months in India, there are few places better to go than Hong Kong. It’s clean, super-modern and very comfortable. We’re loving our time here, we’re staying in Kowloon, which is kind of a tourist ghetto, but a Hong Kong tourist ghetto is a lot better than a Indian, or even Australian tourist ghetto.
entry visas (1)
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![Kochi Coastline]()
Hot Time in Kochi
Kochi Coastline First off let me say we did not do Kochi justice. Kochi (formerly Cochin) needs to be seen in December or January – before it gets too hot. In late March it’s just too hot and too humid.
Ernakulam district (1)
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Damn that Dollar!
England is great and London is possibly one of the greatest cities in the world. There are cool things to do, funky clothes to buy, good shows to see, and yummy food to eat (ethinic food of course). Too bad it costs so damn much to do any of it when you’re coming with US dollars.
ethinic food (1)
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![Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin]()
Land of Limestone Towers & Caves - Guilin
Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin Guilin, it’s just one of the many cities in China with over a million inhabitants that you have probably never heard of. It’s also the first real stop for us in China (we spent a night in
ethnic minorities (1)
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![PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute.]()
Eugenius!!!
PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute. Our friends Deb and Craig moved out to Eugene, Oregon a couple of years a go and we’ve never visited them. Why? Many reasons, theres nothing even resembling a direct flight to Eugene from DC.
Eugene (1)
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The Big Mac Index
So I have to tell you, from a exchange rate perspective, 2007 has not been a great year to travel outside the United States. Well, at least not if you have American Dollars to change (thank you George W. Bush). The exchange rates of most of the currencies we changed for was usually worse when we left than when we arrived, it sucked.
exchange rates currency (1)
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![Bıg Ben]()
England Notes for Budget Travelers
Bıg Ben Ok. Budget is a bit of a misnomer. Let’s refer to it as a bleeding. The U.K. is an expensive place to visit when you’re on vacation and headed back to work and a paycheck next Friday.
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![Delroy!]()
Is That Who I Think It Is?
Delroy! It’s always kind of fun to see famous people, even when they’re not that interesting. I’m not sure why. I can remember acting like a groupie at a rock concert when a I saw Dukakis at a rally back in high school.
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![The Obligatory Shot]()
A Tail of One City: Agra
The Obligatory Shot “It was the best of times and the worst of times.” Mr. Dickens could have been been talking about one city in India, rather than two cities in Europe. Agra, a few hours outside of Delhi is a study in contrast.
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![Cape Town Rules]()
Chillin in Cape Town
Cape Town Rules Cape Town is easily the best city we’ve visited in Africa, by far, LeeAnne is even claiming it’s her favorite city on the whole trip (but I’m not ready to go that far yet). african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins Why all the enthusiasm?
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Our Trip By The Numbers
So here’s a quick rundown of our trip by the numbers, full of fresh statistics. Possibly interesting, possibly obsessive? You decide! -1269 : Lowest Altitude – The Dead Sea, Jordan -46 : Lowest Latitude in Degrees South – Invercargill, New Zealand 1 : Movies Appeared In – Mumbai, India
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![Ride em Cowboy]()
Dave - Queen of the Mechanical Bull
Ride em Cowboy Some of you may be aware that Dave has always dreamed of riding a mechanical bull. Well his dream came true just the other day! No, it wasn’t at some dirty, dusty saloon somewhere in the middle of the Outback.
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Travel Insurance
Going hand-in-hand with vaccinations is Travel Insurance. I’ve been out and about in the world before, but have never even considered getting it. But, this is a big trip and we are grown up now, so it seems like a good time to look at it.
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![Good Lord of the Rings!]()
Serious LOTR Country - Milford Sound
Good Lord of the Rings! Fjordland – the southwestern corner of the South Island – feels very different from the rest of the country. For one thing it’s almost all a huge temperate rain forest. So you’ll have a forest of conifers littered with huge ferns, and these crazy mountains that don’t belong in the Lord of the Rings – they’re the source material for it.
Fiordland (1)
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The Great Firewall of China Strikes Again!
Before we had arrived in mainland China we were aware that censorship was alive and well here. The televised news is little more than propaganda and access to other forms on information is limited. Many web-sites, several that we use regularly are blocked.
firewall (1)
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![Punakaiki Pancake Rocks]()
The Wild West Coast
Punakaiki Pancake Rocks After touring the Lakes District and Fiordland, we headed over Haast Pass to the west coast, described as wild and quite wet by most brochures and guidebooks. The drive over Haast was on one of our first clear, sunny days.
Fjord (1)
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![Good Lord of the Rings!]()
Serious LOTR Country - Milford Sound
Good Lord of the Rings! Fjordland – the southwestern corner of the South Island – feels very different from the rest of the country. For one thing it’s almost all a huge temperate rain forest. So you’ll have a forest of conifers littered with huge ferns, and these crazy mountains that don’t belong in the Lord of the Rings – they’re the source material for it.
Fjords of New Zealand (1)
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![Flavored Milk is Big Down Here]()
Reflections on Sweet Potato, Pumpkin and Hokey Pokey
Flavored Milk is Big Down Here The three things that stand out about food here in New Zealand are their love of (In order) Ice Cream, Pumpkins and Sweet Potatoes (known locally as Kumara). Let’s cover the last first, when I first saw it listed on the menu I just assumed that Kumara was a strange type of sausage.
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![Flavored Milk is Big Down Here]()
Reflections on Sweet Potato, Pumpkin and Hokey Pokey
Flavored Milk is Big Down Here The three things that stand out about food here in New Zealand are their love of (In order) Ice Cream, Pumpkins and Sweet Potatoes (known locally as Kumara). Let’s cover the last first, when I first saw it listed on the menu I just assumed that Kumara was a strange type of sausage.
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![Welcome to Liverpool]()
This is Anfield
Welcome to Liverpool The first thing you’ll need to know is that İ’m a soccer fan, next it’s important to know that İ’m a fan of Liverpool FC in England, since we happen to be in the UK it would make sense to go to a game in Liverpool right?
Football in the United Kingdom (1)
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![Thats A Big Wall]()
Olympic Fever - Beijing
Thats A Big Wall The truth about Beijing, if you’ve been in China a while, is you only need a few days to see the sights, then get out …unless you want to go shopping. Then you could be there a month.
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Black and White and Southern African All Over
This is the part of the blog where I get us in trouble. We’ve only been here five weeks or so, but it’s hard to leave here without making a comment about the racial tension in this part of the world, and it comes from both directions.
Foreign relations of Zimbabwe (1)
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![Kochi Coastline]()
Hot Time in Kochi
Kochi Coastline First off let me say we did not do Kochi justice. Kochi (formerly Cochin) needs to be seen in December or January – before it gets too hot. In late March it’s just too hot and too humid.
Fort Kochi (1)
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![Sure Footed LeeAnne]()
The Ice Storm: Glacier Country
Sure Footed LeeAnne Traveling up the West Coast of the South Island we did hikes to the Ice faces of two of the biggest glaciers in New Zealand Fox Glacier and Franz Joseph Glacier. I’d never seen glaciers except on TV before and the experience was well worth the trip out.
Fox Glacier (1)
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![Sure Footed LeeAnne]()
The Ice Storm: Glacier Country
Sure Footed LeeAnne Traveling up the West Coast of the South Island we did hikes to the Ice faces of two of the biggest glaciers in New Zealand Fox Glacier and Franz Joseph Glacier. I’d never seen glaciers except on TV before and the experience was well worth the trip out.
Franz Josef (1)
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![Sure Footed LeeAnne]()
The Ice Storm: Glacier Country
Sure Footed LeeAnne Traveling up the West Coast of the South Island we did hikes to the Ice faces of two of the biggest glaciers in New Zealand Fox Glacier and Franz Joseph Glacier. I’d never seen glaciers except on TV before and the experience was well worth the trip out.
Franz Josef Glacier (1)
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![Sure Footed LeeAnne]()
The Ice Storm: Glacier Country
Sure Footed LeeAnne Traveling up the West Coast of the South Island we did hikes to the Ice faces of two of the biggest glaciers in New Zealand Fox Glacier and Franz Joseph Glacier. I’d never seen glaciers except on TV before and the experience was well worth the trip out.
Franz Joseph Glacier (1)
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![Shanghai Nights]()
Shanghai Shoppers
Shanghai Nights We’re in Shanghai at the moment, and we’ve had another near miss with my cousin Sam Forrest, we had a close encounter with him in New Zealand, but we were on opposite sides of the North Island.
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![TimTams, the shadow currency of Australia]()
TimTams & The Lot
TimTams, the shadow currency of Australia Aussies are very close cousins to Americans in many ways, in fact had it not been for the American Revolution many of them (the convict labor) would have ended up in Georgia, not half-way around the world.
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![Book-Em]()
Little Adelaide
Book-Em It seems Adelaide has something of a self-image problem. It’s not hard to understand why – with competition like Sydney & Melbourne it’s easy to think of oneself as a little provincial. I can assure you this is not the case.
Fringe Festival (1)
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![Fatehpur Sikri Gate]()
Mughal Mania
Fatehpur Sikri Gate During our time here in northern India, I have developed a particular fondness for the Mughals. Mughal is the Persian word for Mongol. The Mughals claim decendency from Genghis Khan and their empire ruled much of India and its surrounds during the 16th to 18th centuries.
From Humayun's Tomb (1)
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![Be Like Water]()
Hong Kong Part Deux
Be Like Water Wow, it’s hot in Hong Kong! When we were here in May it was just steamy, now it’s downright unpleasant. Thats not the only thing that changes quickly in Hong Kong: a bakery and Vegetarian Restaurant that we loved on our first trip were closed on our second visit – only two months later.
Fulham (1)
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![Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching]()
Big Birds, Sleepy Sealions and Super Cute Penguins
Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching Yesterday we threw the budget out and splurged for our first tour in New Zealand. Actually, it was quite a bargain and worth every penny! Stretching out from the Dunedin coast is the Otago Peninsula.
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![Tribal Graffiti]()
Dunedin - San Francisco of the South?
Tribal Graffiti New Zealand is a very hilly place. Dunedin is the MOST hilly place we have been yet in the country. In fact it’s the home of the steepest street in the world – Baldwin Street. And the motorway in to town – the main artery for cars trucks etc.
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![Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites]()
It's Istanbul Not Constantinople Now
Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites Istanbul is a great city. It straddles the Bosphorus placing half the city in Europe and half in Asia. It’s an interesting mix of cosmopolitan and traditional is full of rich history and impressive structures left behind by the Greek, Roman and Ottoman empires.
Galata Bridge (1)
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Gimme, Gimme, Gimme - Some More Internet Access!
One of the more mundane things we do – a lot, of thank you Mr. Blog – is find Internet access. For those of you who haven’t traveled abroad recently there are a lot of ways to get online. Some are surprising, others surprisingly stupid.
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![Kliptown, Soweto]()
Poverty & Apartheid
Kliptown, Soweto Despite the bad wrap and the inconvenience of being a tourist in Johannesburg, a trip there is well worth it to be able to visit Soweto and spend time in the Apartheid Museum. I would recommend, however, that you do not visit both in the same day like we did.
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![The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall]()
The Walls of Johannesburg
The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don’t go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass.
Gauteng Province (1)
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![Can you say SOVIET?]()
Call Me UB - Ulaanbaator
Can you say SOVIET? Ulaanbaator is a sleepy medium-size town that happens to be the capitol and only real city of any size in Mongolia. The Soviets essentially built this city and it’s painfully obvious in the architecture, monuments and city planning that the Mongolians had little say.
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![Cape Town Rules]()
Chillin in Cape Town
Cape Town Rules Cape Town is easily the best city we’ve visited in Africa, by far, LeeAnne is even claiming it’s her favorite city on the whole trip (but I’m not ready to go that far yet). african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins Why all the enthusiasm?
Geography of Africa (1)
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![Big Dunes]()
The Southern Tour of Namibia
Big Dunes First things first. No, we didn’t come to Namibia because Brad and Angelina did. No, we didn’t see them. No, we didn’t even meet anyone who mentioned them. We were, however, shown the filming location of J Lo’s movie, The Cell, which of course we haven’t seen.
Geography of Namibia (1)
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![Crazy Blue Lake Tekapo]()
Lake Tekapo
Crazy Blue Lake Tekapo The first stop in our career as car campers is Lake Tekapo – a wonderfully blue-blue (almost phony looking) lake in the Southern Alps. We’re also at a pretty high altitude, and the lake is rather remote so residents of the lake area claim to have the clearest sky’s in New Zealand.
Geography of New Zealand (1)
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![Cape Town Rules]()
Chillin in Cape Town
Cape Town Rules Cape Town is easily the best city we’ve visited in Africa, by far, LeeAnne is even claiming it’s her favorite city on the whole trip (but I’m not ready to go that far yet). african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins Why all the enthusiasm?
Geography of South Africa (1)
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![Technically Austin...]()
The Byways of Dallas
Technically Austin... Dallas, Texas is all together different from Oregon. Goodbye green, hello brown. Goodbye wooded mountains, hello scrubby flatlands. Goodbye rain, hello warm weather and sunny skies. So it’s not all bad. If Portland was the City of Roses I suppose Dallas has to be the City of Byways.
Geography of Texas (1)
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![Monks Chillin]()
Litang - Little Tibet
Monks Chillin So for various reasons (time and cost being the biggest two, hassle being another), we have chosen not to go to Tibet. Let me explain a little: there are now three ways to get to Tibet from China proper
Geography of Tibet (1)
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![The Ganges River at Rishikesh]()
'Oh Dirty River'
The Ganges River at Rishikesh As I stood at the edge of the Ganges in Rishikesh, I couldn’t help but hum the final lyrics to Sleater Kinney’s “Light Rail Coyote.” Oh Dirty River, Come Let Me In Except, I have no desire to dip into the Ganges.
Geography of Uttar Pradesh (1)
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![Sure Footed LeeAnne]()
The Ice Storm: Glacier Country
Sure Footed LeeAnne Traveling up the West Coast of the South Island we did hikes to the Ice faces of two of the biggest glaciers in New Zealand Fox Glacier and Franz Joseph Glacier. I’d never seen glaciers except on TV before and the experience was well worth the trip out.
Geology (1)
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![Back in DC]()
Back in the 202 Area Code
Back in DC First reaction upon returning to Washington, D.C., where both LeeAnne and I have lived for over a decade: “Wow! It’s really small! Where are all of the people? Where is all the traffic? And pollution, what happened to that?
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![Windhoek - Its Off the Hook!]()
Wild Wild Windhoek
Windhoek - Its Off the Hook! Windhoek is the medium size capitol of a very small country, – Namibia only has 1.2 million residents – it’s also Namibia’s financial and transportation center. If you are coming to Namibia, at some point you will pass through Windhoek.
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![Windhoek - Its Off the Hook!]()
Wild Wild Windhoek
Windhoek - Its Off the Hook! Windhoek is the medium size capitol of a very small country, – Namibia only has 1.2 million residents – it’s also Namibia’s financial and transportation center. If you are coming to Namibia, at some point you will pass through Windhoek.
german speakers (1)
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![Windhoek - Its Off the Hook!]()
Wild Wild Windhoek
Windhoek - Its Off the Hook! Windhoek is the medium size capitol of a very small country, – Namibia only has 1.2 million residents – it’s also Namibia’s financial and transportation center. If you are coming to Namibia, at some point you will pass through Windhoek.
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On Top of the World!
So, since we’ve been back there have been a lot of questions about what was our favorite place, our favorite thing to do, etc. We’ll try and address that here. Some things stand out in our mind easily (like our favorite bathroom), others are a little harder to narrow down to just one thing (favorite place?
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![Anyone Smell Eggs?]()
That Smell: Rotorua
Anyone Smell Eggs? Rotorua stinks, literally (some may say figuratively too, but that’s another entry all together) it’s the center of a lot of geothermal activity here on the North Island. There are geysers and steam and the smell of rotten eggs all over up here.
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![Mad Maxs Car - Sweet!]()
Diesel & Dust - The Outback
Mad Maxs Car - Sweet! As our car camping adventure in Aus continues we headed back to Sydney via the Outback. To say there’s a lot of nothing out there is a bit of an understatement. Aside from mining towns, road houses, road trains and red dust there’s not too much.
Ghost town (1)
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet.
Giant Pandas (1)
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![Sure Footed LeeAnne]()
The Ice Storm: Glacier Country
Sure Footed LeeAnne Traveling up the West Coast of the South Island we did hikes to the Ice faces of two of the biggest glaciers in New Zealand Fox Glacier and Franz Joseph Glacier. I’d never seen glaciers except on TV before and the experience was well worth the trip out.
Glaciers of New Zealand (1)
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Mork to Orson, Come in Orson...
One thing we’ve been doing a lot of research on running up to the last days before we leave is telephones and phone cards. Keeping in touch with folks back home is really important to us so we want something reliable, but we also don’t want to pay a lot for that muffler.
Global System for Mobile communications (1)
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![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar.
Gobi desert (1)
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The Great Firewall of China Strikes Again!
Before we had arrived in mainland China we were aware that censorship was alive and well here. The televised news is little more than propaganda and access to other forms on information is limited. Many web-sites, several that we use regularly are blocked.
Google (1)
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![Along the Presidential Highway]()
Somewhere Between Clinton and Gore
Along the Presidential Highway So we are back on the road cycling. This time we are lighter (we dropped a bunch of stuff off with acquaintances in Christchurch), smarter (we’ve traveled south by bus and are riding north to keep the wind at our backs), and more motivated (if you read our post on Invercargill you’ll understand, we need to get out of here!
Gore Library (1)
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![Paddys Wigwam]()
Chillin in the Pool
Paddys Wigwam We ventured to Liverpool for very obvious reasons, but still without the promise of tickets to see the boys in red at Anfield. Luckily the tickets worked out, but I’ll let the footy fan tell his tale.
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![Book-Em]()
It's Raining Books
Book-Em As you might imagine, reading is a popular past time for Dave and I these days. It’s also something we were both looking forward to on the trip. Prior to our departure, as we packed up the house we made little piles of books we’d take and not so little piles of books we’d have our friend Mary send to us down the road.
Gould (1)
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![Book-Em]()
It's Raining Books
Book-Em As you might imagine, reading is a popular past time for Dave and I these days. It’s also something we were both looking forward to on the trip. Prior to our departure, as we packed up the house we made little piles of books we’d take and not so little piles of books we’d have our friend Mary send to us down the road.
Gould's Book Arcade (1)
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![Big Day Out in Goa]()
Scootin' Around
Big Day Out in Goa Just to make sure we didn’t get totally bored of reading and relaxing on the beach all week, we decided to take a little day trip and see some sites beyond Palolem. We rented a scooter, bought a few liters of petrol and headed north.
Grand Resort Goa (1)
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Mork to Orson, Come in Orson...
One thing we’ve been doing a lot of research on running up to the last days before we leave is telephones and phone cards. Keeping in touch with folks back home is really important to us so we want something reliable, but we also don’t want to pay a lot for that muffler.
gsm phone (1)
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Mork to Orson, Come in Orson...
One thing we’ve been doing a lot of research on running up to the last days before we leave is telephones and phone cards. Keeping in touch with folks back home is really important to us so we want something reliable, but we also don’t want to pay a lot for that muffler.
gsm phones (1)
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![Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin]()
Land of Limestone Towers & Caves - Guilin
Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin Guilin, it’s just one of the many cities in China with over a million inhabitants that you have probably never heard of. It’s also the first real stop for us in China (we spent a night in
Guangzhou (1)
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![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter.
guesthouses (1)
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![Punakaiki Pancake Rocks]()
The Wild West Coast
Punakaiki Pancake Rocks After touring the Lakes District and Fiordland, we headed over Haast Pass to the west coast, described as wild and quite wet by most brochures and guidebooks. The drive over Haast was on one of our first clear, sunny days.
Haast Pass (1)
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![Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites]()
It's Istanbul Not Constantinople Now
Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites Istanbul is a great city. It straddles the Bosphorus placing half the city in Europe and half in Asia. It’s an interesting mix of cosmopolitan and traditional is full of rich history and impressive structures left behind by the Greek, Roman and Ottoman empires.
Hagia Sophia (1)
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![Dragons Backbone Rive Terraces]()
The Dragon's Backbone
Dragons Backbone Rive Terraces From Yangshou, we headed back north through Guilin again and on to Longsheng – our base for visiting the Longji Rice Terraces, also known as the Dragon’s Backbone Rice Terraces. I’d read a post online from another traveler that Yangshou was really too touristy (true) and that if you really wanted to see the people and countryside, you should head to Longji and the villages within.
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![Hair is a Universal Language]()
Bazaar Haircut
Hair is a Universal Language So I needed a haircut some kind of bad. I haven’t had my ears lowered since before Christmas. I’d been holding out for some time, but the 110 degree heat in Delhi, combined with to opportunity to get a haircut on the street was too good to pass up.
Haircut (1)
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![Rock Art]()
Kanding Stopover
Rock Art I have to say we really didn’t really give Kanding a chance, we were only there one night before we moved on to Chengdu. If we had more time it probably would have been worth a day or two.
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![Shane Battier is Big in China]()
The NBA - It's Chan-Tastic!
Shane Battier is Big in China Move over Ping-Pong, make room for Basketball. The NBA is surprisingly huge here. After Soccer it’s probably the biggest spectator sport in the country. The NBA play-offs are broadcast twice a day here, live at 8AM in the morning and then again at night, followed by a highlights show with Chinese talking heads summarizing the game.
handsome mug (1)
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![Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort]()
Monkeyin' Around
Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort I guess it shouldn’t be that surprising, but there are monkeys everywhere in India. We’ve spotted a few in the wild, but most have been hanging around rooftops and historic forts. When Dave or I would spot monkeys on our safari in Corbett Reserve, all the locals just shrugged as if to say, “just a monkey”.
Hanuman (1)
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![The Ganges River at Rishikesh]()
'Oh Dirty River'
The Ganges River at Rishikesh As I stood at the edge of the Ganges in Rishikesh, I couldn’t help but hum the final lyrics to Sleater Kinney’s “Light Rail Coyote.” Oh Dirty River, Come Let Me In Except, I have no desire to dip into the Ganges.
Haridwar (1)
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![The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road]()
Notes From the Great Ocean Road
The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road We’re on the Great Ocean Road at the moment. It runs from the suburbs of Melbourne to the edge of South Australia and was built after WWI as kind of a works project to employ returning veterans in the 1920’s, before that the only way to access the small towns along the road was by ship or ferry.
haystacks (1)
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![Hair is a Universal Language]()
Bazaar Haircut
Hair is a Universal Language So I needed a haircut some kind of bad. I haven’t had my ears lowered since before Christmas. I’d been holding out for some time, but the 110 degree heat in Delhi, combined with to opportunity to get a haircut on the street was too good to pass up.
head massage (1)
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The Itinerary - For Now...
Okay, the Irish screwed us. After going through everything, AND running our credit card they told us (by email) that they had quoted us for the wrong price. And it would be about 1,000 euros more! Now I don’t follow the currency market like I should, but I do know that right now the exchange rate for US Dollars to Euros is no good, and a thousand Euros is …well, more that we want to pay.
heathrow (1)
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![Delroy!]()
Is That Who I Think It Is?
Delroy! It’s always kind of fun to see famous people, even when they’re not that interesting. I’m not sure why. I can remember acting like a groupie at a rock concert when a I saw Dukakis at a rally back in high school.
Heathrow Airport (1)
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![The Beatles Slept Here]()
Hippy Dippy Do - Rishikesh
The Beatles Slept Here Rishikesh is a smallish town set on the Ganges at the foothills of the Himalayas. In part due to it’s “auspicious” location it’s a pilgrimage site for Hindus. But of late there are a lot of other people here besides Hindus.
hebrew (1)
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![Trekking in Central Mongolia]()
Tales from the Mongolian Countryside
Trekking in Central Mongolia Since my time in Peace Corps, my motto has kind of been “hope for the best, but expect the worst.” With this frame of mind, you’re generally prepared for everything to go wrong and pleasantly surprised when it doesn’t.
herders (1)
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High Road to China
We’re in! Well, almost …we’re crossing the border in a few hours, but LeeAnne was given a Visa. Just a ten day visa, but we’re hoping to get an extension in-country. Barring that, we’ll return to Hong Kong and reapply for a 30 day visa through a travel agency.
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![Welcome to Liverpool]()
This is Anfield
Welcome to Liverpool The first thing you’ll need to know is that İ’m a soccer fan, next it’s important to know that İ’m a fan of Liverpool FC in England, since we happen to be in the UK it would make sense to go to a game in Liverpool right?
Hillsborough Disaster (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
Hindu Kailasa Temple (1)
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![Beef Anyone]()
Holy Cow!
Beef Anyone Ok, so you may know that cows are considered sacred animals in the Hindu religion. Very little beef eating going on here. Even McDonald’s has a sign stating “No beef or beef products served here.” (This is a surefire way to see a failed McDonald’s in the midwest!
hindu religion (1)
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![The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram]()
Three Nights in Thiruvananthapuram
The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram: the small town with a really long name! Formerly known as Trivandrum, the town elders decided to change the city name for brevity’s sake to Thiruvananthapuram in 1991. We’re in town for a few days waiting on a train to Delhi.
Hindu temple (1)
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![The Beatles Slept Here]()
Hippy Dippy Do - Rishikesh
The Beatles Slept Here Rishikesh is a smallish town set on the Ganges at the foothills of the Himalayas. In part due to it’s “auspicious” location it’s a pilgrimage site for Hindus. But of late there are a lot of other people here besides Hindus.
hindu temples (1)
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![The Beatles Slept Here]()
Hippy Dippy Do - Rishikesh
The Beatles Slept Here Rishikesh is a smallish town set on the Ganges at the foothills of the Himalayas. In part due to it’s “auspicious” location it’s a pilgrimage site for Hindus. But of late there are a lot of other people here besides Hindus.
Hinduism (1)
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![Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites]()
It's Istanbul Not Constantinople Now
Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites Istanbul is a great city. It straddles the Bosphorus placing half the city in Europe and half in Asia. It’s an interesting mix of cosmopolitan and traditional is full of rich history and impressive structures left behind by the Greek, Roman and Ottoman empires.
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![Life is a Kings Highway]()
Life on the Kings Highway
Life is a Kings Highway There are two ways to get from Petra to Amman: the fast way is to take the Desert Highway, a name that leaves little to the imagination, the other is the Kings Highway. The King’s Highway was a major trade route in the ancient Mid-East.
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![Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends]()
Hobbits & Elves
Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends We arrived in the capital city of Wellington on Monday evening after 11 hours on a bus traversing the North Island from Auckland.
Hobbit (1)
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![Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends]()
Hobbits & Elves
Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends We arrived in the capital city of Wellington on Monday evening after 11 hours on a bus traversing the North Island from Auckland.
hobbits (1)
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![Flavored Milk is Big Down Here]()
Reflections on Sweet Potato, Pumpkin and Hokey Pokey
Flavored Milk is Big Down Here The three things that stand out about food here in New Zealand are their love of (In order) Ice Cream, Pumpkins and Sweet Potatoes (known locally as Kumara). Let’s cover the last first, when I first saw it listed on the menu I just assumed that Kumara was a strange type of sausage.
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Plan D
Okay, this one is our bad. After getting screwed by the Irish travel agency back at Thanksgiving we decided on another course of action. “Originating” our OWE flight in the UK. It was going to be great, we would fly there for a few hundred, maybe catch a soccer game, stop in Dallas to see LeeAnnes family on the way to New Zealand and be on with our trip.
holidays (1)
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![Be Like Water]()
Hong Kong Part Deux
Be Like Water Wow, it’s hot in Hong Kong! When we were here in May it was just steamy, now it’s downright unpleasant. Thats not the only thing that changes quickly in Hong Kong: a bakery and Vegetarian Restaurant that we loved on our first trip were closed on our second visit – only two months later.
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![The Ganges River at Rishikesh]()
'Oh Dirty River'
The Ganges River at Rishikesh As I stood at the edge of the Ganges in Rishikesh, I couldn’t help but hum the final lyrics to Sleater Kinney’s “Light Rail Coyote.” Oh Dirty River, Come Let Me In Except, I have no desire to dip into the Ganges.
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![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter.
Hong Kong films (1)
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![Hong Kong Phooey]()
Hong Kong Phooey
Hong Kong Phooey I have to say, after spending two months in India, there are few places better to go than Hong Kong. It’s clean, super-modern and very comfortable. We’re loving our time here, we’re staying in Kowloon, which is kind of a tourist ghetto, but a Hong Kong tourist ghetto is a lot better than a Indian, or even Australian tourist ghetto.
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![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is.
Horse (1)
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![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is.
horse racing (1)
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet.
horse trekking (1)
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![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is.
horses (1)
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![Anyone Smell Eggs?]()
That Smell: Rotorua
Anyone Smell Eggs? Rotorua stinks, literally (some may say figuratively too, but that’s another entry all together) it’s the center of a lot of geothermal activity here on the North Island. There are geysers and steam and the smell of rotten eggs all over up here.
hot spring spas (1)
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![Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur]()
Pink City - Jaipur
Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur Rajasthan, in northwestern India, is kind of what I had always pictured India being like – desert, lot’s of castles and old forts, monkeys all over and people in Turbans. And so far it is not disappointing me.
Hotel Pearl Palace (1)
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![Travel in 2nd Class]()
Life on the Rajdhani Express
Travel in 2nd Class A forty two hour train ride isn’t really something to be looked forward to. But after the better part of a month spent traveling further and further South, LeeAnne and I decided it was time to knock off a few of the “Must Do’s” in India – The Taj Mahal etc – so we had to find a way from Trivandrum (near the southern tip of India) to Delhi (in the North of the country).
Howrah Rajdhani (1)
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![Kerala Backwaters]()
Cruising The Kerala Backwaters
Kerala Backwaters A highlight for many travelers in Kerala is taking a leisurely cruise through the 900km network of waterways known as the backwaters. The waterways vary from narrow shady canals fringed with homes and rice paddies to large lakes filled with fishing boats.
hugging mother (1)
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![Anyone Smell Eggs?]()
That Smell: Rotorua
Anyone Smell Eggs? Rotorua stinks, literally (some may say figuratively too, but that’s another entry all together) it’s the center of a lot of geothermal activity here on the North Island. There are geysers and steam and the smell of rotten eggs all over up here.
Hugo Weaving (1)
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![TP is Good!]()
Gastrointestinal Update: No. 1
TP is Good! To appease our readers I will report that there have been no major gastrointestinal incidents in India as of yet. We are very careful about water, but have been enjoying a variety of local foods, juices (no water and no ice used) and veg (no lettuce) with little to no adverse result.
Human gastrointestinal tract (1)
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![Headed Out]()
Bonne Voyage!
Headed Out Remember how you felt before you started your last Round the World trip? No? Let me remind you: It’s really no sweat, you’re only leaving home for several months, going to God knows what kind of places where you won’t understand the locals, be familiar with their customs or know which way to look when you cross the street …and that’s just Australia.
Human Interest (1)
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![Fanboat Lolo!]()
The Top End - Darwin
Fanboat Lolo! We’re in our last stop in Australia before we head off to India. Darwin is the capitol of the Northern Territory, but it’s only a city of about 50,000 people and it has a very different feel from most of the other Australian cities that we’ve visited.
hurricane katrina (1)
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![Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne]()
Cycling New Zealand - That is a Wrap
Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne We are back in Christchurch finally, after spending the past few weeks biking the South Island. From here we rent a car and head to the west coast over the mountains and then back up to the North Island.
hybrids (1)
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![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Tiger Leaping Gorge
Tiger Leaping Gorge We just did a mini-trek at Tiger Leaping Gorge, it’s in the western part of Yunnan and it’s famous for being one of the steepest and most dramatic Gorges in the world. I have to say, it’s probably the highlight of China for us right now.
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![Flavored Milk is Big Down Here]()
Reflections on Sweet Potato, Pumpkin and Hokey Pokey
Flavored Milk is Big Down Here The three things that stand out about food here in New Zealand are their love of (In order) Ice Cream, Pumpkins and Sweet Potatoes (known locally as Kumara). Let’s cover the last first, when I first saw it listed on the menu I just assumed that Kumara was a strange type of sausage.
Ice cream (1)
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![Thats A Big Wall]()
Olympic Fever - Beijing
Thats A Big Wall The truth about Beijing, if you’ve been in China a while, is you only need a few days to see the sights, then get out …unless you want to go shopping. Then you could be there a month.
IKEA (1)
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![Thats A Big Wall]()
Olympic Fever - Beijing
Thats A Big Wall The truth about Beijing, if you’ve been in China a while, is you only need a few days to see the sights, then get out …unless you want to go shopping. Then you could be there a month.
IKEA Cafe (1)
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
immunization records (1)
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![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts.
india food (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
Indian architecture (1)
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![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts.
Indian cuisine (1)
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![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts.
indian dish (1)
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![Mongolian Kid and Friend]()
Mongolia Notes for Budget Travelers
Mongolian Kid and Friend Mongolia is a bit different than the other countries we have visited thus far. There is only one real city, UB, and there is very little infrastructure to support public transport around the country. As we mentioned in Off We Ger if you want to get out into the countryside, which is really THE reason to come to Mongolia, then you need to a) join a tour; b) hire a jeep; or c) be completely raving madand take the local long distance buses.
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![Kochi Coastline]()
Hot Time in Kochi
Kochi Coastline First off let me say we did not do Kochi justice. Kochi (formerly Cochin) needs to be seen in December or January – before it gets too hot. In late March it’s just too hot and too humid.
Indian Ocean (1)
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![Tuk Tuk'ing Along]()
Escape from Mumbai
Tuk Tuk'ing Along When is a 12 hour train-ride in tropical heat with no air conditioning worth it? When it gets you out of Mumbai. Our journey began before dawn at Mumbai’s Central Station and would not end until just after night fell on us and our Auto-Ricksaw driver on a beach in Goa.
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![Bananas...]()
This Forks for You
Bananas... I’m currently working on a theory about the relative prices of eating out here in India. After a couple of weeks here we’ve been in big cities and small cities. Touristy places and less touristy places and we’ve been trying to come up with an explanation of the wide range of cost on what is basically the same food.
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![Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort]()
Monkeyin' Around
Monkeys at Jaigarh Fort I guess it shouldn’t be that surprising, but there are monkeys everywhere in India. We’ve spotted a few in the wild, but most have been hanging around rooftops and historic forts. When Dave or I would spot monkeys on our safari in Corbett Reserve, all the locals just shrugged as if to say, “just a monkey”.
indians (1)
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Gimme, Gimme, Gimme - Some More Internet Access!
One of the more mundane things we do – a lot, of thank you Mr. Blog – is find Internet access. For those of you who haven’t traveled abroad recently there are a lot of ways to get online. Some are surprising, others surprisingly stupid.
infamous Internet cafe (1)
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![So Sophisticated!]()
The Torch is Passed
So Sophisticated! Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of the Internet, it is my fond pleasure to introduce to you today the blog styling of Sophisticated Alpaca. This blog with the funny name is the round the world travel blog of our friends and former neighbors Dennis Campbell and Kristi Barnes.
informative travel writing (1)
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![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar.
inner mongolia (1)
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Travel Insurance
Going hand-in-hand with vaccinations is Travel Insurance. I’ve been out and about in the world before, but have never even considered getting it. But, this is a big trip and we are grown up now, so it seems like a good time to look at it.
Insurance (1)
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![Say Cheese!]()
See You Later UK!
Say Cheese! Our time in the UK was short, shorter than anywhere on the trip yet. You say – the UK has a lot to offer, the transportation system is excellent, why not stay longer? A few reasons: we’ve both been there before, we live on the US East Coast and flights to London are relatively cheap so we will probably go again, and the idea behind this trip was to go places that were a little less accessible to us for whatever reason – distant location, long flight time, crap internal transportation systems.
internal transportation systems (1)
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
international adaptors (1)
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
International Adaptors Ipod Digital Camera Fixture Ipod Speaker (1)
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Our Trip By The Numbers
So here’s a quick rundown of our trip by the numbers, full of fresh statistics. Possibly interesting, possibly obsessive? You decide! -1269 : Lowest Altitude – The Dead Sea, Jordan -46 : Lowest Latitude in Degrees South – Invercargill, New Zealand 1 : Movies Appeared In – Mumbai, India
international borders (1)
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![Mongolia its Grrreat]()
Sain Yavaarai Mongolia!
Mongolia its Grrreat For those planning a trip to Mongolia – don’t bother leaving UB if you are a Vegan or Lactose Intolerant. You will starve! These people love their meat and dairy products. It makes sense, most people here are nomads and don’t want to stick around in one place long enough to grow a crop.
international flights (1)
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Gimme, Gimme, Gimme - Some More Internet Access!
One of the more mundane things we do – a lot, of thank you Mr. Blog – is find Internet access. For those of you who haven’t traveled abroad recently there are a lot of ways to get online. Some are surprising, others surprisingly stupid.
Internet Acess (1)
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Gimme, Gimme, Gimme - Some More Internet Access!
One of the more mundane things we do – a lot, of thank you Mr. Blog – is find Internet access. For those of you who haven’t traveled abroad recently there are a lot of ways to get online. Some are surprising, others surprisingly stupid.
Internet cafe proprietor (1)
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Gimme, Gimme, Gimme - Some More Internet Access!
One of the more mundane things we do – a lot, of thank you Mr. Blog – is find Internet access. For those of you who haven’t traveled abroad recently there are a lot of ways to get online. Some are surprising, others surprisingly stupid.
Internet machines (1)
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Gimme, Gimme, Gimme - Some More Internet Access!
One of the more mundane things we do – a lot, of thank you Mr. Blog – is find Internet access. For those of you who haven’t traveled abroad recently there are a lot of ways to get online. Some are surprising, others surprisingly stupid.
Internet terminal (1)
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Plan D
Okay, this one is our bad. After getting screwed by the Irish travel agency back at Thanksgiving we decided on another course of action. “Originating” our OWE flight in the UK. It was going to be great, we would fly there for a few hundred, maybe catch a soccer game, stop in Dallas to see LeeAnnes family on the way to New Zealand and be on with our trip.
irish travel agency (1)
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![Fatehpur Sikri Gate]()
Mughal Mania
Fatehpur Sikri Gate During our time here in northern India, I have developed a particular fondness for the Mughals. Mughal is the Persian word for Mongol. The Mughals claim decendency from Genghis Khan and their empire ruled much of India and its surrounds during the 16th to 18th centuries.
Islamic architecture (1)
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![Let Their Be Water!]()
Looking for the Promised Land
Let Their Be Water! 7 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 8 Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink.
israelites (1)
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Kia Aro from New Zealand!
After fifteen hours of flights and four or so hours of lay-overs we’ve arrived at our first destination: New Zealand. You may say to yourself: “Too Easy! An Around the world trip that starts half-way around the world, they’re cheating.” Well, yes maybe we are cheating.
itenerary (1)
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![Bolliwood Stardom]()
Hooray for Bolliwood
Bolliwood Stardom Jokingly one of our goals on this trip was to get cast in a Bolliwood movie: Mission Accomplished! It was surprisingly easy. There are some 700 movies made in Mumbai a year so the numbers are working for you if you want to be cast as an extra.
Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na (1)
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![Life is a Kings Highway]()
Life on the Kings Highway
Life is a Kings Highway There are two ways to get from Petra to Amman: the fast way is to take the Desert Highway, a name that leaves little to the imagination, the other is the Kings Highway. The King’s Highway was a major trade route in the ancient Mid-East.
Jacob (1)
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![Something about the label appeals]()
Vibrant Straw with Flecks of Brilliant Green
Something about the label appeals When you hear something like “vibrant straw with flecks of brilliant green”, what do you think? I am guessing it wasn’t, mmmm… pour me one of those. As you probably well know, Australia is home to many a wine that we enjoy in the U.
Jacob's Creek winery (1)
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![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Things We Love(d) About China
Tiger Leaping Gorge There’s no denying it. We’ve enjoyed China. We didn’t fall in love with the big cities of the east coast, but the western and southwestern provinces are spectacular – filled with stunning scenery and diverse people.
Jade Travel (1)
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![Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur]()
Pink City - Jaipur
Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur Rajasthan, in northwestern India, is kind of what I had always pictured India being like – desert, lot’s of castles and old forts, monkeys all over and people in Turbans. And so far it is not disappointing me.
Jaigrah Fort (1)
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![LeeAnne adds her marks to the door]()
One Night in the Jailhouse
LeeAnne adds her marks to the door An unexpected end to our second day of riding was that LeeAnne and I spent the night in the jailhouse. The Chevoit (Pronounced Chevy-Ut) Motel is built on the grounds of the old Cheviot jailhouse – which still stands.
jail cell (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
jainism (1)
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![Octopussy, Every Night]()
Notes From Octopussy's Lair
Octopussy, Every Night Udaipur is a great place to go if your extremely rich, or a fan of James Bond films. Actually, if your a fan of one James Bond film in particular: Octopussy. A large part of the film was shot here and even though it was released some 25 years ago, every restaurant in town still shows Octopussy every night at 7PM sharp.
James Bond (1)
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![Delroy!]()
Is That Who I Think It Is?
Delroy! It’s always kind of fun to see famous people, even when they’re not that interesting. I’m not sure why. I can remember acting like a groupie at a rock concert when a I saw Dukakis at a rally back in high school.
Jamie Oliver (1)
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![Descending the Giant Steps]()
The True Blue Mountains
Descending the Giant Steps We spent the final days of our Oz road trip in the Blue Mountains just an hour and a half outside of Sydney. It was quite amazing to watch the dry, dusty land gradually turn into rolling green as we made our approach.
Jamison Valley (1)
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![Thats A Big Wall]()
Olympic Fever - Beijing
Thats A Big Wall The truth about Beijing, if you’ve been in China a while, is you only need a few days to see the sights, then get out …unless you want to go shopping. Then you could be there a month.
Jardine Matheson Group (1)
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![Let Their Be Water!]()
Looking for the Promised Land
Let Their Be Water! 7 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 8 Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink.
Jebel Haroun (1)
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
jet boil (1)
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Kia Aro from New Zealand!
After fifteen hours of flights and four or so hours of lay-overs we’ve arrived at our first destination: New Zealand. You may say to yourself: “Too Easy! An Around the world trip that starts half-way around the world, they’re cheating.” Well, yes maybe we are cheating.
Jet lag (1)
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![Kochi Coastline]()
Hot Time in Kochi
Kochi Coastline First off let me say we did not do Kochi justice. Kochi (formerly Cochin) needs to be seen in December or January – before it gets too hot. In late March it’s just too hot and too humid.
Jewtown (1)
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![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Things We Love(d) About China
Tiger Leaping Gorge There’s no denying it. We’ve enjoyed China. We didn’t fall in love with the big cities of the east coast, but the western and southwestern provinces are spectacular – filled with stunning scenery and diverse people.
Jie Jai (1)
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![Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park]()
Elephantitis: Corbett National Park
Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park Leaving Delhi, we set off for Corbett National Park about 250 km north in the state of Uttarchanal. Our mission: elephant safari! And maybe spot some other wildlife as well. We were partially successful.
Jim Corbett National Park (1)
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![Technically Austin...]()
The Byways of Dallas
Technically Austin... Dallas, Texas is all together different from Oregon. Goodbye green, hello brown. Goodbye wooded mountains, hello scrubby flatlands. Goodbye rain, hello warm weather and sunny skies. So it’s not all bad. If Portland was the City of Roses I suppose Dallas has to be the City of Byways.
John F. Kennedy assassination (1)
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![Mark Hanna Slept Here]()
New Lisbon
Mark Hanna Slept Here Lisbon, Ohio LeeAnne’s home town was one of our first stops on our return to the States. Lisbon is a little burg village located in north-eastern Ohio, but it is surprisingly deep in history and dare I say it?
John Hunt Morgan (1)
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![Mark Hanna Slept Here]()
New Lisbon
Mark Hanna Slept Here Lisbon, Ohio LeeAnne’s home town was one of our first stops on our return to the States. Lisbon is a little burg village located in north-eastern Ohio, but it is surprisingly deep in history and dare I say it?
John McKinnley (1)
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![Is it Christchurch, or Epcot?]()
Christchurch... or Disneyland?
Is it Christchurch, or Epcot? I once had a conversation with an Australian woman about the nature of Kiwi’s, “They’re more British than the British she said.” Now, asking an Australian to define the nature of a Kiwi (or vice versa) is never recommended, and you shouldn’t expect an unbiased answer, but in the case of Christchurch …she may have been on to something.
Juggling (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
kailasa temple (1)
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![Captain Kangaroo]()
Phillip Island Wildlife Park
Captain Kangaroo Making our way west from Sydney toward Melbourne, we decided to head a little off route to visit Phillip Island just southeast of Melbourne. Our trusty guidebook highlighted a couple of interesting wildlife opportunities – one in particular where you could interact with and feed kangaroos, wallabies and emus.
kangaroo (1)
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![Book-Em]()
Little Adelaide
Book-Em It seems Adelaide has something of a self-image problem. It’s not hard to understand why – with competition like Sydney & Melbourne it’s easy to think of oneself as a little provincial. I can assure you this is not the case.
Kangaroo Island (1)
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![Life is a Kings Highway]()
Life on the Kings Highway
Life is a Kings Highway There are two ways to get from Petra to Amman: the fast way is to take the Desert Highway, a name that leaves little to the imagination, the other is the Kings Highway. The King’s Highway was a major trade route in the ancient Mid-East.
Karak Castle (1)
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![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts.
Karnataka cuisine (1)
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![Book-Em]()
It's Raining Books
Book-Em As you might imagine, reading is a popular past time for Dave and I these days. It’s also something we were both looking forward to on the trip. Prior to our departure, as we packed up the house we made little piles of books we’d take and not so little piles of books we’d have our friend Mary send to us down the road.
Katoomba (1)
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![Kerala Backwaters]()
Cruising The Kerala Backwaters
Kerala Backwaters A highlight for many travelers in Kerala is taking a leisurely cruise through the 900km network of waterways known as the backwaters. The waterways vary from narrow shady canals fringed with homes and rice paddies to large lakes filled with fishing boats.
Kerala backwaters (1)
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![Rainbow Falls]()
North Country
Rainbow Falls When Kiwis go on vacation they go to Northland. It’s the peninsula north of Auckland, and you’re sandwiched in between the South Pacific and the Tasman sea, so there are loads of beach options. It’s where most of the Maori population is located these days too.
Keri Keri (1)
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![Monks Chillin]()
Litang - Little Tibet
Monks Chillin So for various reasons (time and cost being the biggest two, hassle being another), we have chosen not to go to Tibet. Let me explain a little: there are now three ways to get to Tibet from China proper
khampa (1)
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![Windhoek - Its Off the Hook!]()
Wild Wild Windhoek
Windhoek - Its Off the Hook! Windhoek is the medium size capitol of a very small country, – Namibia only has 1.2 million residents – it’s also Namibia’s financial and transportation center. If you are coming to Namibia, at some point you will pass through Windhoek.
Khomas Region (1)
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![The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram]()
Three Nights in Thiruvananthapuram
The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram: the small town with a really long name! Formerly known as Trivandrum, the town elders decided to change the city name for brevity’s sake to Thiruvananthapuram in 1991. We’re in town for a few days waiting on a train to Delhi.
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![Life is a Kings Highway]()
Life on the Kings Highway
Life is a Kings Highway There are two ways to get from Petra to Amman: the fast way is to take the Desert Highway, a name that leaves little to the imagination, the other is the Kings Highway. The King’s Highway was a major trade route in the ancient Mid-East.
King's Highway (1)
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![Is it Christchurch, or Epcot?]()
Christchurch... or Disneyland?
Is it Christchurch, or Epcot? I once had a conversation with an Australian woman about the nature of Kiwi’s, “They’re more British than the British she said.” Now, asking an Australian to define the nature of a Kiwi (or vice versa) is never recommended, and you shouldn’t expect an unbiased answer, but in the case of Christchurch …she may have been on to something.
Kiwi (1)
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![Lively Auckland]()
The City of Sails
Lively Auckland We arrived in Auckland early Friday morning and spent three days there exploring the city. Since we only spent a few days in one city, it’s probably not fair to make any kind of sweeping generalizations about Kiwis or New Zealand for that matter.
kiwis (1)
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![Kliptown, Soweto]()
Poverty & Apartheid
Kliptown, Soweto Despite the bad wrap and the inconvenience of being a tourist in Johannesburg, a trip there is well worth it to be able to visit Soweto and spend time in the Apartheid Museum. I would recommend, however, that you do not visit both in the same day like we did.
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![Captain Kangaroo]()
Phillip Island Wildlife Park
Captain Kangaroo Making our way west from Sydney toward Melbourne, we decided to head a little off route to visit Phillip Island just southeast of Melbourne. Our trusty guidebook highlighted a couple of interesting wildlife opportunities – one in particular where you could interact with and feed kangaroos, wallabies and emus.
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![Kochi Coastline]()
Hot Time in Kochi
Kochi Coastline First off let me say we did not do Kochi justice. Kochi (formerly Cochin) needs to be seen in December or January – before it gets too hot. In late March it’s just too hot and too humid.
Kochi (1)
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![Big Dunes]()
The Southern Tour of Namibia
Big Dunes First things first. No, we didn’t come to Namibia because Brad and Angelina did. No, we didn’t see them. No, we didn’t even meet anyone who mentioned them. We were, however, shown the filming location of J Lo’s movie, The Cell, which of course we haven’t seen.
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![Kerala Backwaters]()
Cruising The Kerala Backwaters
Kerala Backwaters A highlight for many travelers in Kerala is taking a leisurely cruise through the 900km network of waterways known as the backwaters. The waterways vary from narrow shady canals fringed with homes and rice paddies to large lakes filled with fishing boats.
kottayam (1)
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![Hong Kong Phooey]()
Hong Kong Phooey
Hong Kong Phooey I have to say, after spending two months in India, there are few places better to go than Hong Kong. It’s clean, super-modern and very comfortable. We’re loving our time here, we’re staying in Kowloon, which is kind of a tourist ghetto, but a Hong Kong tourist ghetto is a lot better than a Indian, or even Australian tourist ghetto.
kowloon (1)
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![Delroy!]()
Is That Who I Think It Is?
Delroy! It’s always kind of fun to see famous people, even when they’re not that interesting. I’m not sure why. I can remember acting like a groupie at a rock concert when a I saw Dukakis at a rally back in high school.
Kucinich (1)
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![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter.
Kung-Fu (1)
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![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter.
kung fu movies (1)
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![Sam Walton ...Made in China]()
Notes From a Chinese Walmart
Sam Walton ...Made in China I’m sure Sam Walton is spinning in his grave. The man who billed his store as “All-American, and American Made” now has a huge business in China, with All-Chinese made products. We’re in Kunming, the capitol of Yunnan Province in the South-west of China, and our room is right around the corner from Yunnan’s first Walmart …how could we resist?
Kunming (1)
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![Octopussy, Every Night]()
Notes From Octopussy's Lair
Octopussy, Every Night Udaipur is a great place to go if your extremely rich, or a fan of James Bond films. Actually, if your a fan of one James Bond film in particular: Octopussy. A large part of the film was shot here and even though it was released some 25 years ago, every restaurant in town still shows Octopussy every night at 7PM sharp.
Lake Palace (1)
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![Octopussy, Every Night]()
Notes From Octopussy's Lair
Octopussy, Every Night Udaipur is a great place to go if your extremely rich, or a fan of James Bond films. Actually, if your a fan of one James Bond film in particular: Octopussy. A large part of the film was shot here and even though it was released some 25 years ago, every restaurant in town still shows Octopussy every night at 7PM sharp.
Lake Palace Hotel (1)
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![Crazy Blue Lake Tekapo]()
Lake Tekapo
Crazy Blue Lake Tekapo The first stop in our career as car campers is Lake Tekapo – a wonderfully blue-blue (almost phony looking) lake in the Southern Alps. We’re also at a pretty high altitude, and the lake is rather remote so residents of the lake area claim to have the clearest sky’s in New Zealand.
Lake Tekapo (1)
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![Monks Chillin]()
Litang - Little Tibet
Monks Chillin So for various reasons (time and cost being the biggest two, hassle being another), we have chosen not to go to Tibet. Let me explain a little: there are now three ways to get to Tibet from China proper
lamasery (1)
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![Hell Bus 2007]()
Modes of Travel in Mongolia
Hell Bus 2007 The tricky think about Mongolia is that you have to get out of UB and into the countryside to really get a feeling for the country, but it’s hard as hell to get out of UB.
land cruisers (1)
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![Mongolian Kid and Friend]()
Mongolia Notes for Budget Travelers
Mongolian Kid and Friend Mongolia is a bit different than the other countries we have visited thus far. There is only one real city, UB, and there is very little infrastructure to support public transport around the country. As we mentioned in Off We Ger if you want to get out into the countryside, which is really THE reason to come to Mongolia, then you need to a) join a tour; b) hire a jeep; or c) be completely raving madand take the local long distance buses.
landcruisers (1)
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![Are we traveling light yet?]()
Packing, Packing, Packing
Are we traveling light yet? Wow! We have a lot of stuff for two people traveling light around the world. It’s embarrassing telling people your traveling around the world on a shoestring and then asking their help to pull your two large duffel bags, two fully packed back-packs and two or three carry-on’s out of the car for you.
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![Headed Out]()
Bonne Voyage!
Headed Out Remember how you felt before you started your last Round the World trip? No? Let me remind you: It’s really no sweat, you’re only leaving home for several months, going to God knows what kind of places where you won’t understand the locals, be familiar with their customs or know which way to look when you cross the street …and that’s just Australia.
leaving home (1)
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![Giraffes!]()
The Viewing Game - Krueger National Park
Giraffes! After a little taste of wildlife viewing in Zimbabwe and Botswana, we were pretty psyched to head to Krueger National Park in northeastern South Africa for a four day safari. We were even more excited to be sharing the experience with friends from the States.
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Ma'Salama Jordan!
There are a couple of angles I could take with this particular country wrap-up. One is: Jordan – the only country we’ve visited to be ruled by a former guest star on Star Trek (It’s true – King Abdullah is a huge fan of Star Trek and worked his connection to get an appearance on an episode of Star Trek: Voyager.
Levant (1)
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![Friendly Monks]()
One Night in Xiencheng
Friendly Monks Xiencheng is a very nice little town in Southwest China with very little tourist traffic that you probably have never heard of. If you’re in Xiencheng it’s probably to overnight here waiting for a bus to take you to another town.
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![Li River Scenery]()
Li River Daze
Li River Scenery One of the “must do” activities in China is a cruise down the Li River from Guilin to the smaller city of Yangshou. Like all good budget travelers we opted to join the Chinese tour. You get the same beautiful scenery sans the English commentary, but for half the price of the Foreigner’s tour.
Li River (1)
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![Lijiang]()
Earthquakes, Orchestras and Pictograms
Lijiang One of the top 10 tourist sites in China is the World Heritage Site of Lijiang, a small town in the mountains of the Yunnan Province. It was ankle to elbow full of tourists, but that didn’t stop us from enjoying the people and culture that abound.
Lijiang (1)
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![Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin]()
Land of Limestone Towers & Caves - Guilin
Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin Guilin, it’s just one of the many cities in China with over a million inhabitants that you have probably never heard of. It’s also the first real stop for us in China (we spent a night in
Limestone (1)
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![The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road]()
Notes From the Great Ocean Road
The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road We’re on the Great Ocean Road at the moment. It runs from the suburbs of Melbourne to the edge of South Australia and was built after WWI as kind of a works project to employ returning veterans in the 1920’s, before that the only way to access the small towns along the road was by ship or ferry.
limestone cliffs (1)
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![Li River Scenery]()
Li River Daze
Li River Scenery One of the “must do” activities in China is a cruise down the Li River from Guilin to the smaller city of Yangshou. Like all good budget travelers we opted to join the Chinese tour. You get the same beautiful scenery sans the English commentary, but for half the price of the Foreigner’s tour.
limestone hills (1)
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![Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin]()
Land of Limestone Towers & Caves - Guilin
Reed Flute Cave Near Gulin Guilin, it’s just one of the many cities in China with over a million inhabitants that you have probably never heard of. It’s also the first real stop for us in China (we spent a night in
Limestone Towers (1)
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![Giraffes!]()
The Viewing Game - Krueger National Park
Giraffes! After a little taste of wildlife viewing in Zimbabwe and Botswana, we were pretty psyched to head to Krueger National Park in northeastern South Africa for a four day safari. We were even more excited to be sharing the experience with friends from the States.
Lion (1)
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![Giraffes!]()
The Viewing Game - Krueger National Park
Giraffes! After a little taste of wildlife viewing in Zimbabwe and Botswana, we were pretty psyched to head to Krueger National Park in northeastern South Africa for a four day safari. We were even more excited to be sharing the experience with friends from the States.
lions (1)
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![Are we traveling light yet?]()
Packing, Packing, Packing
Are we traveling light yet? Wow! We have a lot of stuff for two people traveling light around the world. It’s embarrassing telling people your traveling around the world on a shoestring and then asking their help to pull your two large duffel bags, two fully packed back-packs and two or three carry-on’s out of the car for you.
lisbon ohio (1)
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![Monks Chillin]()
Litang - Little Tibet
Monks Chillin So for various reasons (time and cost being the biggest two, hassle being another), we have chosen not to go to Tibet. Let me explain a little: there are now three ways to get to Tibet from China proper
Litang (1)
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Damn that Dollar!
England is great and London is possibly one of the greatest cities in the world. There are cool things to do, funky clothes to buy, good shows to see, and yummy food to eat (ethinic food of course). Too bad it costs so damn much to do any of it when you’re coming with US dollars.
Liverpool Football Club (1)
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![Big Ben - Parliament!]()
London Cousin
Big Ben - Parliament! After close calls with my Cousin Sam Forrest in both New Zealand and Shanghai, we are happy to say we have successfully made contact with my cousin Joe Bateman in London. Actually, he lives ın Watford, but he was nice enough to meet up with us in Central London and show us the sights.
llyods of london (1)
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The Itinerary - For Now...
Okay, the Irish screwed us. After going through everything, AND running our credit card they told us (by email) that they had quoted us for the wrong price. And it would be about 1,000 euros more! Now I don’t follow the currency market like I should, but I do know that right now the exchange rate for US Dollars to Euros is no good, and a thousand Euros is …well, more that we want to pay.
London Heathrow Airport (1)
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![Join Us, Won't You?]()
The Cult of Lonely Planet & Lodging in India
Join Us, Won't You? Our time in India is starting to wind down, so we would just like to pass on a few words about lodging here. We’re using the latest edition of “Lonely Planet – India” as our main guidebook and it’s great of course, very well documented, written, and well thought out.
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![Dave and Lolo at the Taj]()
India Notes for Budget Travelers
Dave and Lolo at the Taj India is a budget traveler’s dream. It’s certainly one of the cheapest countries on our itinerary. Our daily budget for two is probably less than you spent the last time you went out to dinner.
long distance travel (1)
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Our Trip By The Numbers
So here’s a quick rundown of our trip by the numbers, full of fresh statistics. Possibly interesting, possibly obsessive? You decide! -1269 : Lowest Altitude – The Dead Sea, Jordan -46 : Lowest Latitude in Degrees South – Invercargill, New Zealand 1 : Movies Appeared In – Mumbai, India
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The Fabulous Cook Family
Some of you know our friend Lorraine (aka cycling fool). Well if you do, then you are aware that she is one great lady. It should come as no surprise then that her family in Adelaide are equally awesome. We felt they were deserving of their very own entry!
Lorraine (1)
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![Incident at LAX]()
Return Ticket Please!
Incident at LAX Finally, after months of planning, preparations and daydreaming, we were off. Lee Anne’s sister in law and niece Megan saw us off in Dallas, and we were on our way to our first stop – New Zealand.
Los Angeles International Airport (1)
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![The back streets of Zhongdian]()
Shangri-La - Not So Much
The back streets of Zhongdian Just north of Tiger Leaping Gorge at the edge of the Tibetan plateau sits the town of Zhongdian – recently renamed Shangri-La by the Chinese. It’s Tibetan name is Gyeltang, but no one uses it.
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![One Pen]()
Coming From? - Common India 'Engrish'
One Pen There are a few phrases that any visitor to India will become familiar with rapidly. Here’s a quick run-down of common “Engrish” you’ll come across: Coming From? – The most benign, they just want to know what country you’re from.
Macaronic language (1)
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![Life is a Kings Highway]()
Life on the Kings Highway
Life is a Kings Highway There are two ways to get from Petra to Amman: the fast way is to take the Desert Highway, a name that leaves little to the imagination, the other is the Kings Highway. The King’s Highway was a major trade route in the ancient Mid-East.
Madaba (1)
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![Shanghai Nights]()
Shanghai Shoppers
Shanghai Nights We’re in Shanghai at the moment, and we’ve had another near miss with my cousin Sam Forrest, we had a close encounter with him in New Zealand, but we were on opposite sides of the North Island.
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![It's so nice to see you...]()
Well, Hello Dali!
It's so nice to see you... Dali is a beautiful city with mountains on one side and a picturesque lake on the other. It’s an old walled city and unlike many of it’s ilk it has not yet been totally changed by tourism.
magnitude quake (1)
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![Octopussy, Every Night]()
Notes From Octopussy's Lair
Octopussy, Every Night Udaipur is a great place to go if your extremely rich, or a fan of James Bond films. Actually, if your a fan of one James Bond film in particular: Octopussy. A large part of the film was shot here and even though it was released some 25 years ago, every restaurant in town still shows Octopussy every night at 7PM sharp.
maharajah (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
Maharashtra (1)
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Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong.
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Vaccinations - Don't Leave Home Without Them
First stop on the road to Round the World Travel is the Doctors office. It may not be the most romantic or adventuresome idea, but I’m pretty sure that before the best adventurers and explorers headed out they got their shots. How much could Indiana Jones have gotten done if he were bed-ridden with Hep B while chasing the Ark of the Covenant?
Malaria (1)
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![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route.
mandarin (1)
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![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts.
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![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts.
mango season (1)
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet.
mao tse tong (1)
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet.
Mao Tse-tong's Medal Research Society (1)
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![Rainbow Falls]()
North Country
Rainbow Falls When Kiwis go on vacation they go to Northland. It’s the peninsula north of Auckland, and you’re sandwiched in between the South Pacific and the Tasman sea, so there are loads of beach options. It’s where most of the Maori population is located these days too.
maori population (1)
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![Flavored Milk is Big Down Here]()
Reflections on Sweet Potato, Pumpkin and Hokey Pokey
Flavored Milk is Big Down Here The three things that stand out about food here in New Zealand are their love of (In order) Ice Cream, Pumpkins and Sweet Potatoes (known locally as Kumara). Let’s cover the last first, when I first saw it listed on the menu I just assumed that Kumara was a strange type of sausage.
maouri (1)
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![Welcome to the Year of the Pig!]()
New Year (Chinese New Year) in Sydney
Welcome to the Year of the Pig! So we’re here in Sydney and we’re learning that Sydney kind of marches to the beat of a different drummer. Part of the reason we came to Sydney when we did was timing.
Mardi Gras (1)
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![Mongolia its Grrreat]()
Sain Yavaarai Mongolia!
Mongolia its Grrreat For those planning a trip to Mongolia – don’t bother leaving UB if you are a Vegan or Lactose Intolerant. You will starve! These people love their meat and dairy products. It makes sense, most people here are nomads and don’t want to stick around in one place long enough to grow a crop.
mares (1)
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![Mark Hanna Slept Here]()
New Lisbon
Mark Hanna Slept Here Lisbon, Ohio LeeAnne’s home town was one of our first stops on our return to the States. Lisbon is a little burg village located in north-eastern Ohio, but it is surprisingly deep in history and dare I say it?
Mark Hanna (1)
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![Wedding Season]()
Wedding Crashers
Wedding Season It doesn’t take a Vince Vaughn scheme to crash a wedding in India, especially during wedding season. We actually had one gentleman befriend us on the streets of Udaipur to “practice his English” and subsequently invite us to his wedding party the following evening.
Marriage (1)
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![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter.
Martial arts (1)
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![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter.
Martial arts films (1)
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![The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall]()
The Walls of Johannesburg
The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don’t go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass.
masonry walls (1)
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![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry.
Mauritius (1)
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![Trekking in Central Mongolia]()
Tales from the Mongolian Countryside
Trekking in Central Mongolia Since my time in Peace Corps, my motto has kind of been “hope for the best, but expect the worst.” With this frame of mind, you’re generally prepared for everything to go wrong and pleasantly surprised when it doesn’t.
meat lovers (1)
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![Ride em Cowboy]()
Dave - Queen of the Mechanical Bull
Ride em Cowboy Some of you may be aware that Dave has always dreamed of riding a mechanical bull. Well his dream came true just the other day! No, it wasn’t at some dirty, dusty saloon somewhere in the middle of the Outback.
mechanical bull (1)
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![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route.
medical picture translator (1)
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![Theres No Place Like Dome]()
So Long Turkey!
Theres No Place Like Dome This entry should really be titled: “Hoşça kalın Türkiye”, but it was too hard to resist the chance to use that title. At least we didn’t title it “Get Lost Turkey!”. Leaving Turkey, this is the last time we will have our Passports stamped out on this trip.
Mediterranean (1)
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet.
Mei Xiang (1)
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![Queen Victoria Market]()
Marvelous Melbourne
Queen Victoria Market After a few days on the road from Sydney we arrived in Melbourne – the second largest city in Australia and the capital of the state of Victoria. Aside from a stroll though the Botanical Gardens and along the Yarra River, we spent most of our brief visit to the city at the Queen Victoria Market and at the Melbourne Zoo.
Melbourne Zoo (1)
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![The Beatles Slept Here]()
Hippy Dippy Do - Rishikesh
The Beatles Slept Here Rishikesh is a smallish town set on the Ganges at the foothills of the Himalayas. In part due to it’s “auspicious” location it’s a pilgrimage site for Hindus. But of late there are a lot of other people here besides Hindus.
mid sixties (1)
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![Oh, What a Feeling!]()
Diary of a Car Camper - Australia
Oh, What a Feeling! We’re leaving Sydney and car camping again. If you’ll recall we were hooked up in New Zealand with a very cheap rental. In Australia, not so lucky. Still lucky, we have it for $29.00 a day AUD, and it’s a much sweeter ride.
milage (1)
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![Good Lord of the Rings!]()
Serious LOTR Country - Milford Sound
Good Lord of the Rings! Fjordland – the southwestern corner of the South Island – feels very different from the rest of the country. For one thing it’s almost all a huge temperate rain forest. So you’ll have a forest of conifers littered with huge ferns, and these crazy mountains that don’t belong in the Lord of the Rings – they’re the source material for it.
Milford Sound (1)
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![Good Lord of the Rings!]()
Serious LOTR Country - Milford Sound
Good Lord of the Rings! Fjordland – the southwestern corner of the South Island – feels very different from the rest of the country. For one thing it’s almost all a huge temperate rain forest. So you’ll have a forest of conifers littered with huge ferns, and these crazy mountains that don’t belong in the Lord of the Rings – they’re the source material for it.
Milford Sound Lodge (1)
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![Rock Art]()
Kanding Stopover
Rock Art I have to say we really didn’t really give Kanding a chance, we were only there one night before we moved on to Chengdu. If we had more time it probably would have been worth a day or two.
military transports (1)
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![Fuel Shortage]()
So You Wanna Be A Millionaire
Fuel Shortage Who doesn’t want to be a millionaire? Well, if you travel to Zimbabwe your dreams can come true with less than $10. The problem is that you can’t legally change money at the “real” rate and when you do become a Zim millionaire, there’s very little left on the shelves to purchase.
millionaire (1)
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![Hell Bus 2007]()
Modes of Travel in Mongolia
Hell Bus 2007 The tricky think about Mongolia is that you have to get out of UB and into the countryside to really get a feeling for the country, but it’s hard as hell to get out of UB.
mini buses (1)
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![Try to Avoid it...]()
Crazy Taxi - South Africa Edition
Try to Avoid it... Why did we do it? We had little choice. Was there no other option? No, there wasn’t. These are only a few of the questions we found ourselves asking one another as we took our first African “Public Taxi”.
minivan (1)
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![Be Like Water]()
Hong Kong Part Deux
Be Like Water Wow, it’s hot in Hong Kong! When we were here in May it was just steamy, now it’s downright unpleasant. Thats not the only thing that changes quickly in Hong Kong: a bakery and Vegetarian Restaurant that we loved on our first trip were closed on our second visit – only two months later.
Miradoor Mansion (1)
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Mork to Orson, Come in Orson...
One thing we’ve been doing a lot of research on running up to the last days before we leave is telephones and phone cards. Keeping in touch with folks back home is really important to us so we want something reliable, but we also don’t want to pay a lot for that muffler.
Mobile phone (1)
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Mork to Orson, Come in Orson...
One thing we’ve been doing a lot of research on running up to the last days before we leave is telephones and phone cards. Keeping in touch with folks back home is really important to us so we want something reliable, but we also don’t want to pay a lot for that muffler.
Mobile telecommunications (1)
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![Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne]()
Cycling New Zealand - That is a Wrap
Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne We are back in Christchurch finally, after spending the past few weeks biking the South Island. From here we rent a car and head to the west coast over the mountains and then back up to the North Island.
Moeraki (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
monasteries (1)
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
money belts (1)
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![Spending Tips from the Experts!]()
New Zealand Notes for Budget Travelers
Spending Tips from the Experts! Some of you are probably wondering how the heck we are making our money stretch around the world. The answer is on a budget! As we planned and planned and then planned some more prior the trip, we did our best to estimate our costs from everything to tickets and visas and travel insurance to daily costs and special, one-time expenses like tours.
money stretch (1)
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![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar.
mongolian border (1)
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![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar.
Mongolian language (1)
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![Monks Chillin]()
Litang - Little Tibet
Monks Chillin So for various reasons (time and cost being the biggest two, hassle being another), we have chosen not to go to Tibet. Let me explain a little: there are now three ways to get to Tibet from China proper
Monk Shops (1)
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![Octopussy, Every Night]()
Notes From Octopussy's Lair
Octopussy, Every Night Udaipur is a great place to go if your extremely rich, or a fan of James Bond films. Actually, if your a fan of one James Bond film in particular: Octopussy. A large part of the film was shot here and even though it was released some 25 years ago, every restaurant in town still shows Octopussy every night at 7PM sharp.
Monsoon Palace (1)
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![Li River Scenery]()
Li River Daze
Li River Scenery One of the “must do” activities in China is a cruise down the Li River from Guilin to the smaller city of Yangshou. Like all good budget travelers we opted to join the Chinese tour. You get the same beautiful scenery sans the English commentary, but for half the price of the Foreigner’s tour.
Moon Hill (1)
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![Good Lord of the Rings!]()
Serious LOTR Country - Milford Sound
Good Lord of the Rings! Fjordland – the southwestern corner of the South Island – feels very different from the rest of the country. For one thing it’s almost all a huge temperate rain forest. So you’ll have a forest of conifers littered with huge ferns, and these crazy mountains that don’t belong in the Lord of the Rings – they’re the source material for it.
Mordor (1)
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![Let Their Be Water!]()
Looking for the Promised Land
Let Their Be Water! 7 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 8 Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink.
Moses (1)
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![It's so nice to see you...]()
Well, Hello Dali!
It's so nice to see you... Dali is a beautiful city with mountains on one side and a picturesque lake on the other. It’s an old walled city and unlike many of it’s ilk it has not yet been totally changed by tourism.
mountains (1)
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet.
mr wang (1)
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![Fatehpur Sikri Gate]()
Mughal Mania
Fatehpur Sikri Gate During our time here in northern India, I have developed a particular fondness for the Mughals. Mughal is the Persian word for Mongol. The Mughals claim decendency from Genghis Khan and their empire ruled much of India and its surrounds during the 16th to 18th centuries.
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![Tuk Tuk'ing Along]()
Escape from Mumbai
Tuk Tuk'ing Along When is a 12 hour train-ride in tropical heat with no air conditioning worth it? When it gets you out of Mumbai. Our journey began before dawn at Mumbai’s Central Station and would not end until just after night fell on us and our Auto-Ricksaw driver on a beach in Goa.
Mumbai's Central Station (1)
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![Mmmmm...Masala Popcorn]()
Queen of the Hills
Mmmmm...Masala Popcorn After our relaxing time in Rishikesh, we were still longing for some cooler temperatures so we made our way further north to Mussoorie, also known as the Queen of the Hill Stations. It certainly lives up to its name.
Mussoorie (1)
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![Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends]()
Hobbits & Elves
Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends We arrived in the capital city of Wellington on Monday evening after 11 hours on a bus traversing the North Island from Auckland.
Māori (1)
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![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is.
Naadam (1)
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![The Treasury]()
Petra Rocks!
The Treasury Pun intended! There’s no doubt about it. Petra is an amazing place. Definitely among the most amazing places on our trip. When you think of Petra, you may envision Harrison Ford and Sean Connery on horse back emerging from a narrow canyon to see the magnificent Treasury.
Nabataeans (1)
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![Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur]()
Pink City - Jaipur
Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur Rajasthan, in northwestern India, is kind of what I had always pictured India being like – desert, lot’s of castles and old forts, monkeys all over and people in Turbans. And so far it is not disappointing me.
Nahargarh Fort (1)
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![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry.
Nairobi (1)
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![Lijiang]()
Earthquakes, Orchestras and Pictograms
Lijiang One of the top 10 tourist sites in China is the World Heritage Site of Lijiang, a small town in the mountains of the Yunnan Province. It was ankle to elbow full of tourists, but that didn’t stop us from enjoying the people and culture that abound.
Nakhi (1)
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![Big Dunes]()
The Southern Tour of Namibia
Big Dunes First things first. No, we didn’t come to Namibia because Brad and Angelina did. No, we didn’t see them. No, we didn’t even meet anyone who mentioned them. We were, however, shown the filming location of J Lo’s movie, The Cell, which of course we haven’t seen.
Namib Desert (1)
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![Shanghai Nights]()
Shanghai Shoppers
Shanghai Nights We’re in Shanghai at the moment, and we’ve had another near miss with my cousin Sam Forrest, we had a close encounter with him in New Zealand, but we were on opposite sides of the North Island.
Nanjing (1)
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![Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur]()
Pink City - Jaipur
Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur Rajasthan, in northwestern India, is kind of what I had always pictured India being like – desert, lot’s of castles and old forts, monkeys all over and people in Turbans. And so far it is not disappointing me.
Naragrah Fort (1)
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![Shane Battier is Big in China]()
The NBA - It's Chan-Tastic!
Shane Battier is Big in China Move over Ping-Pong, make room for Basketball. The NBA is surprisingly huge here. After Soccer it’s probably the biggest spectator sport in the country. The NBA play-offs are broadcast twice a day here, live at 8AM in the morning and then again at night, followed by a highlights show with Chinese talking heads summarizing the game.
National Basketball Association (1)
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![Shanghai Nights]()
Shanghai Shoppers
Shanghai Nights We’re in Shanghai at the moment, and we’ve had another near miss with my cousin Sam Forrest, we had a close encounter with him in New Zealand, but we were on opposite sides of the North Island.
National Congress (1)
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![Big Ben - Parliament!]()
London Cousin
Big Ben - Parliament! After close calls with my Cousin Sam Forrest in both New Zealand and Shanghai, we are happy to say we have successfully made contact with my cousin Joe Bateman in London. Actually, he lives ın Watford, but he was nice enough to meet up with us in Central London and show us the sights.
national gallery (1)
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![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is.
National Stadium (1)
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet.
National Zoo (1)
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![Trekking in Central Mongolia]()
Tales from the Mongolian Countryside
Trekking in Central Mongolia Since my time in Peace Corps, my motto has kind of been “hope for the best, but expect the worst.” With this frame of mind, you’re generally prepared for everything to go wrong and pleasantly surprised when it doesn’t.
Nature (1)
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![Lijiang]()
Earthquakes, Orchestras and Pictograms
Lijiang One of the top 10 tourist sites in China is the World Heritage Site of Lijiang, a small town in the mountains of the Yunnan Province. It was ankle to elbow full of tourists, but that didn’t stop us from enjoying the people and culture that abound.
Naxi language (1)
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![Shane Battier is Big in China]()
The NBA - It's Chan-Tastic!
Shane Battier is Big in China Move over Ping-Pong, make room for Basketball. The NBA is surprisingly huge here. After Soccer it’s probably the biggest spectator sport in the country. The NBA play-offs are broadcast twice a day here, live at 8AM in the morning and then again at night, followed by a highlights show with Chinese talking heads summarizing the game.
NBA (1)
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![India Gate]()
Several Million Do Make A Difference
India Gate After a long, chilly train ride, we arrived in Delhi last Thursday. Delhi is India’s second largest city after Mumbai. And though I can not find consistent population numbers, it is a fact that several million fewer people live here than in Mumbai.
Neighbourhoods of Delhi (1)
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![Cape Town Rules]()
Chillin in Cape Town
Cape Town Rules Cape Town is easily the best city we’ve visited in Africa, by far, LeeAnne is even claiming it’s her favorite city on the whole trip (but I’m not ready to go that far yet). african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins Why all the enthusiasm?
Nelson Mandela (1)
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![The Treasury]()
Petra Rocks!
The Treasury Pun intended! There’s no doubt about it. Petra is an amazing place. Definitely among the most amazing places on our trip. When you think of Petra, you may envision Harrison Ford and Sean Connery on horse back emerging from a narrow canyon to see the magnificent Treasury.
new seven wonders of the world (1)
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![Welcome to the Year of the Pig!]()
New Year (Chinese New Year) in Sydney
Welcome to the Year of the Pig! So we’re here in Sydney and we’re learning that Sydney kind of marches to the beat of a different drummer. Part of the reason we came to Sydney when we did was timing.
New Year's Day (1)
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![If you can make it there...]()
NYC
If you can make it there... New York City, Sinatra used to sing that if you could make it there, you could make it anywhere. For us, if we could make it there, the trip must be over. It makes sense to make this our last leg on the trip, it’s the city (along with Las Vegas) that most people outside the US think of when they think about America.
New York City (1)
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![Sure Footed LeeAnne]()
The Ice Storm: Glacier Country
Sure Footed LeeAnne Traveling up the West Coast of the South Island we did hikes to the Ice faces of two of the biggest glaciers in New Zealand Fox Glacier and Franz Joseph Glacier. I’d never seen glaciers except on TV before and the experience was well worth the trip out.
New Zealand Fox Glacier (1)
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Kia Aro from New Zealand!
After fifteen hours of flights and four or so hours of lay-overs we’ve arrived at our first destination: New Zealand. You may say to yourself: “Too Easy! An Around the world trip that starts half-way around the world, they’re cheating.” Well, yes maybe we are cheating.
New Zealand wine (1)
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![Victoria Falls]()
Victoria Falls - The Smoke That Thunders
Victoria Falls We are so glad to be leaving Johannesburg that the thought of going anywhere else is appealing. Even a departure to Zimbabwe – yes, that Zimbabwe, land of 7000% inflation, of dictatorial rule (Our first dictator, yes!
Niagara Falls (1)
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![Shane Battier is Big in China]()
The NBA - It's Chan-Tastic!
Shane Battier is Big in China Move over Ping-Pong, make room for Basketball. The NBA is surprisingly huge here. After Soccer it’s probably the biggest spectator sport in the country. The NBA play-offs are broadcast twice a day here, live at 8AM in the morning and then again at night, followed by a highlights show with Chinese talking heads summarizing the game.
Nike (1)
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Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong.
Nikon (1)
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Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong.
Nikon D50 (1)
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![The back streets of Zhongdian]()
Shangri-La - Not So Much
The back streets of Zhongdian Just north of Tiger Leaping Gorge at the edge of the Tibetan plateau sits the town of Zhongdian – recently renamed Shangri-La by the Chinese. It’s Tibetan name is Gyeltang, but no one uses it.
Noah's Cafe (1)
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![Ger Ya Later!]()
Off We Ger
Ger Ya Later! Part of the allure of Mongolia is getting the heck out of UB and heading to the countryside. The only complication with that is that you can’t just hop on a bus and wing it like we have in other countries.
nomads (1)
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![Fatehpur Sikri Gate]()
Mughal Mania
Fatehpur Sikri Gate During our time here in northern India, I have developed a particular fondness for the Mughals. Mughal is the Persian word for Mongol. The Mughals claim decendency from Genghis Khan and their empire ruled much of India and its surrounds during the 16th to 18th centuries.
northern india (1)
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![Rainbow Falls]()
North Country
Rainbow Falls When Kiwis go on vacation they go to Northland. It’s the peninsula north of Auckland, and you’re sandwiched in between the South Pacific and the Tasman sea, so there are loads of beach options. It’s where most of the Maori population is located these days too.
northland (1)
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![Big Ben - Parliament!]()
London Cousin
Big Ben - Parliament! After close calls with my Cousin Sam Forrest in both New Zealand and Shanghai, we are happy to say we have successfully made contact with my cousin Joe Bateman in London. Actually, he lives ın Watford, but he was nice enough to meet up with us in Central London and show us the sights.
number 10 downing street (1)
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![Not ours, but I wish it was...]()
Diary of a Car Camper - New Zealand
Not ours, but I wish it was... We’re starting kind of a second leg of our stay here in New Zealand, the bikes are gone and we’re renting a car for the rest of the trip. Of course it’s going to give our legs a break and let us have a lot more range in terms of where we can go and what we can see in a day.
NZD (1)
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![Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne]()
Cycling New Zealand - That is a Wrap
Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne We are back in Christchurch finally, after spending the past few weeks biking the South Island. From here we rent a car and head to the west coast over the mountains and then back up to the North Island.
Oamaru (1)
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![Octopussy, Every Night]()
Notes From Octopussy's Lair
Octopussy, Every Night Udaipur is a great place to go if your extremely rich, or a fan of James Bond films. Actually, if your a fan of one James Bond film in particular: Octopussy. A large part of the film was shot here and even though it was released some 25 years ago, every restaurant in town still shows Octopussy every night at 7PM sharp.
Octopussy (1)
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![Fuel Shortage]()
So You Wanna Be A Millionaire
Fuel Shortage Who doesn’t want to be a millionaire? Well, if you travel to Zimbabwe your dreams can come true with less than $10. The problem is that you can’t legally change money at the “real” rate and when you do become a Zim millionaire, there’s very little left on the shelves to purchase.
official exchange (1)
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![Mark Hanna Slept Here]()
New Lisbon
Mark Hanna Slept Here Lisbon, Ohio LeeAnne’s home town was one of our first stops on our return to the States. Lisbon is a little burg village located in north-eastern Ohio, but it is surprisingly deep in history and dare I say it?
Ohio River (1)
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![It's so nice to see you...]()
Well, Hello Dali!
It's so nice to see you... Dali is a beautiful city with mountains on one side and a picturesque lake on the other. It’s an old walled city and unlike many of it’s ilk it has not yet been totally changed by tourism.
old walled city (1)
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![Long Live China]()
Things to Do in Beijing
Long Live China I have to admit – we probably shouldn’t even do an entry on Beijing until we go back there next month. Our three nights and two days there on this leg were mainly occupied with chores: picking up tickets from the travel agency, finding a camera shop to repair our busted equipment, trying to make a few changes to our airline tickets and doing laundry.
olympics (1)
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Showdown at Qantas Office - Beijing
So part of the attraction of our Round the World ticket is it’s flexibility. Once you’ve identified you’re destinations and flight dates you can change your dates at will. So if you get some where and love it you can stay longer, or if you get somewhere and hate it you can jet out, and for a fee you can change your destinations entirely.
OneWorld Alliance (1)
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The Itinerary - For Now...
Okay, the Irish screwed us. After going through everything, AND running our credit card they told us (by email) that they had quoted us for the wrong price. And it would be about 1,000 euros more! Now I don’t follow the currency market like I should, but I do know that right now the exchange rate for US Dollars to Euros is no good, and a thousand Euros is …well, more that we want to pay.
oneworld partner (1)
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The Great Firewall of China Strikes Again!
Before we had arrived in mainland China we were aware that censorship was alive and well here. The televised news is little more than propaganda and access to other forms on information is limited. Many web-sites, several that we use regularly are blocked.
oneworld.com (1)
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flickring Around the World
Hopefully soon we will have many many photos in here. We’re using flickr to host photos while we’re traveling. It’s easy to upload stuff from internet cafes and it beats trying to store everything on our own, and then either losing them. Besides we can share them with everyone else.
Online social networking (1)
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Tickets - One World Explorer
We’ve researched a lot of different options on Round the World tickets. It’s a great way to control your costs on getting there and back, because after you pay a flat fee you can use as many or as few flights as you want too.
Open Travel Alliance (1)
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![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is.
opening ceremony (1)
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![Big Dunes]()
The Southern Tour of Namibia
Big Dunes First things first. No, we didn’t come to Namibia because Brad and Angelina did. No, we didn’t see them. No, we didn’t even meet anyone who mentioned them. We were, however, shown the filming location of J Lo’s movie, The Cell, which of course we haven’t seen.
Orange River (1)
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![Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching]()
Big Birds, Sleepy Sealions and Super Cute Penguins
Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching Yesterday we threw the budget out and splurged for our first tour in New Zealand. Actually, it was quite a bargain and worth every penny! Stretching out from the Dunedin coast is the Otago Peninsula.
Otago Peninsula (1)
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![Why, Why, Why?]()
Outback Radio, Oh-oh!
Why, Why, Why? One of the downsides of the outback is the dearth of radio stations available. We had grown use to pretty good radio here – much better than the states – Triple J is a standout. You loose all those once you leave the cities.
Outback Radio (1)
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![Is it Christchurch, or Epcot?]()
Christchurch... or Disneyland?
Is it Christchurch, or Epcot? I once had a conversation with an Australian woman about the nature of Kiwi’s, “They’re more British than the British she said.” Now, asking an Australian to define the nature of a Kiwi (or vice versa) is never recommended, and you shouldn’t expect an unbiased answer, but in the case of Christchurch …she may have been on to something.
Oxford (1)
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![Is it Christchurch, or Epcot?]()
Christchurch... or Disneyland?
Is it Christchurch, or Epcot? I once had a conversation with an Australian woman about the nature of Kiwi’s, “They’re more British than the British she said.” Now, asking an Australian to define the nature of a Kiwi (or vice versa) is never recommended, and you shouldn’t expect an unbiased answer, but in the case of Christchurch …she may have been on to something.
oxford england (1)
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![Octopussy, Every Night]()
Notes From Octopussy's Lair
Octopussy, Every Night Udaipur is a great place to go if your extremely rich, or a fan of James Bond films. Actually, if your a fan of one James Bond film in particular: Octopussy. A large part of the film was shot here and even though it was released some 25 years ago, every restaurant in town still shows Octopussy every night at 7PM sharp.
paddle boat (1)
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![India Gate]()
Several Million Do Make A Difference
India Gate After a long, chilly train ride, we arrived in Delhi last Thursday. Delhi is India’s second largest city after Mumbai. And though I can not find consistent population numbers, it is a fact that several million fewer people live here than in Mumbai.
Paharganj (1)
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![Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV]()
The World Cup (of Cricket)
Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV One of the things we were excited about was being in India during the World Cup of Cricket. We arrived in Mumbai just a few days before the first match and were anticipating a huge outpouring of support for the national team from India’s billion plus people.
Pakistan (1)
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Ma'Salama Jordan!
There are a couple of angles I could take with this particular country wrap-up. One is: Jordan – the only country we’ve visited to be ruled by a former guest star on Star Trek (It’s true – King Abdullah is a huge fan of Star Trek and worked his connection to get an appearance on an episode of Star Trek: Voyager.
Palestine (1)
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
palm tungsten (1)
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
palm tungsten e2 (1)
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![Big Day Out in Goa]()
Scootin' Around
Big Day Out in Goa Just to make sure we didn’t get totally bored of reading and relaxing on the beach all week, we decided to take a little day trip and see some sites beyond Palolem. We rented a scooter, bought a few liters of petrol and headed north.
palolem (1)
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
Pannier (1)
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QANTASed Again!
It really never ends. It’s actually become quite comical. The wrath of QANTAS Beijing is still upon us. One of the changes we made was adding return flights to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe from Johannesburg. Again, after much confusion, we believed that these flights were confirmed.
paper ticket (1)
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![Can you say SOVIET?]()
Call Me UB - Ulaanbaator
Can you say SOVIET? Ulaanbaator is a sleepy medium-size town that happens to be the capitol and only real city of any size in Mongolia. The Soviets essentially built this city and it’s painfully obvious in the architecture, monuments and city planning that the Mongolians had little say.
parliament house (1)
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![Passport Please]()
Papers Please
Passport Please One of the more frustrating things here in India has been the India love affair with red tape. Fair warning to all those who come to visit: memorize your passport number. You will need to produce it at many (unexpected)turns.
passport number (1)
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Our Trip By The Numbers
So here’s a quick rundown of our trip by the numbers, full of fresh statistics. Possibly interesting, possibly obsessive? You decide! -1269 : Lowest Altitude – The Dead Sea, Jordan -46 : Lowest Latitude in Degrees South – Invercargill, New Zealand 1 : Movies Appeared In – Mumbai, India
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![Passport Please]()
Papers Please
Passport Please One of the more frustrating things here in India has been the India love affair with red tape. Fair warning to all those who come to visit: memorize your passport number. You will need to produce it at many (unexpected)turns.
passport visa (1)
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![View from Lhasa Express]()
That Can Do Spirit!
View from Lhasa Express When we were in the early stages of planning our trip, I was only lukewarm to coming to China. But then I began to read more, not just about the tourist sites, but also about the history of China and its people.
Paul Theroux (1)
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![Smells Like a Rose Too]()
Rose City Welcomes You
Smells Like a Rose Too Having flights left on our OneWorld Ticket and friends in Oregon to visit we headed off to PDX. Portland, with it’s rivers and bridges, it’s mountains, manageable city size (and professional soccer team), has long been near the top of the relocation list for LeeAnne and I.
PDX (1)
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![Trekking in Central Mongolia]()
Tales from the Mongolian Countryside
Trekking in Central Mongolia Since my time in Peace Corps, my motto has kind of been “hope for the best, but expect the worst.” With this frame of mind, you’re generally prepared for everything to go wrong and pleasantly surprised when it doesn’t.
Peace Corps (1)
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![Ger Ya Later!]()
Off We Ger
Ger Ya Later! Part of the allure of Mongolia is getting the heck out of UB and heading to the countryside. The only complication with that is that you can’t just hop on a bus and wing it like we have in other countries.
peanut butter (1)
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![Lively Auckland]()
The City of Sails
Lively Auckland We arrived in Auckland early Friday morning and spent three days there exploring the city. Since we only spent a few days in one city, it’s probably not fair to make any kind of sweeping generalizations about Kiwis or New Zealand for that matter.
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![Friendly Monks]()
One Night in Xiencheng
Friendly Monks Xiencheng is a very nice little town in Southwest China with very little tourist traffic that you probably have never heard of. If you’re in Xiencheng it’s probably to overnight here waiting for a bus to take you to another town.
Pechin (1)
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![The Beatles Slept Here]()
Hippy Dippy Do - Rishikesh
The Beatles Slept Here Rishikesh is a smallish town set on the Ganges at the foothills of the Himalayas. In part due to it’s “auspicious” location it’s a pilgrimage site for Hindus. But of late there are a lot of other people here besides Hindus.
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![Is it Christchurch, or Epcot?]()
Christchurch... or Disneyland?
Is it Christchurch, or Epcot? I once had a conversation with an Australian woman about the nature of Kiwi’s, “They’re more British than the British she said.” Now, asking an Australian to define the nature of a Kiwi (or vice versa) is never recommended, and you shouldn’t expect an unbiased answer, but in the case of Christchurch …she may have been on to something.
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
Pedometer Wrist Watches (1)
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![Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching]()
Big Birds, Sleepy Sealions and Super Cute Penguins
Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching Yesterday we threw the budget out and splurged for our first tour in New Zealand. Actually, it was quite a bargain and worth every penny! Stretching out from the Dunedin coast is the Otago Peninsula.
Penguin (1)
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![Captain Kangaroo]()
Phillip Island Wildlife Park
Captain Kangaroo Making our way west from Sydney toward Melbourne, we decided to head a little off route to visit Phillip Island just southeast of Melbourne. Our trusty guidebook highlighted a couple of interesting wildlife opportunities – one in particular where you could interact with and feed kangaroos, wallabies and emus.
Penguin Parade (1)
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![Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne]()
Cycling New Zealand - That is a Wrap
Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne We are back in Christchurch finally, after spending the past few weeks biking the South Island. From here we rent a car and head to the west coast over the mountains and then back up to the North Island.
penguins (1)
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![Is it Christchurch, or Epcot?]()
Christchurch... or Disneyland?
Is it Christchurch, or Epcot? I once had a conversation with an Australian woman about the nature of Kiwi’s, “They’re more British than the British she said.” Now, asking an Australian to define the nature of a Kiwi (or vice versa) is never recommended, and you shouldn’t expect an unbiased answer, but in the case of Christchurch …she may have been on to something.
performance artist (1)
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![Beware of Monkeys!]()
Kumily & The Tiger Reserve
Beware of Monkeys! After a few days cooling off (literally in Munnar) we’ve headed down south to Kumily which we’ve used as a base to visit the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Count yourself extremely lucky if you see any tigers here.
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Near Miss - Cousin Sammy
At the same time LeeAnne and I are doing our around the world travel my cousin Sam Forrest is doing something very similar. Last I had heard he was in South America so I never really even thought about the possibility that our paths might cross, but small world that it is, it seems he jumped over the Pacific by way of the Galapagos and Easter Island and was in Auckland when we were in Wellington – opposite sides of the North Island.
Person Travel (1)
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![Passport Please]()
Papers Please
Passport Please One of the more frustrating things here in India has been the India love affair with red tape. Fair warning to all those who come to visit: memorize your passport number. You will need to produce it at many (unexpected)turns.
Personal identification (1)
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![Spending Tips from the Experts!]()
New Zealand Notes for Budget Travelers
Spending Tips from the Experts! Some of you are probably wondering how the heck we are making our money stretch around the world. The answer is on a budget! As we planned and planned and then planned some more prior the trip, we did our best to estimate our costs from everything to tickets and visas and travel insurance to daily costs and special, one-time expenses like tours.
Personal life (1)
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![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route.
pharmaceutical questions (1)
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![Captain Kangaroo]()
Phillip Island Wildlife Park
Captain Kangaroo Making our way west from Sydney toward Melbourne, we decided to head a little off route to visit Phillip Island just southeast of Melbourne. Our trusty guidebook highlighted a couple of interesting wildlife opportunities – one in particular where you could interact with and feed kangaroos, wallabies and emus.
Phillip Island (1)
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![Captain Kangaroo]()
Phillip Island Wildlife Park
Captain Kangaroo Making our way west from Sydney toward Melbourne, we decided to head a little off route to visit Phillip Island just southeast of Melbourne. Our trusty guidebook highlighted a couple of interesting wildlife opportunities – one in particular where you could interact with and feed kangaroos, wallabies and emus.
phillip island wildlife park (1)
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Mork to Orson, Come in Orson...
One thing we’ve been doing a lot of research on running up to the last days before we leave is telephones and phone cards. Keeping in touch with folks back home is really important to us so we want something reliable, but we also don’t want to pay a lot for that muffler.
phone cards (1)
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Mork to Orson, Come in Orson...
One thing we’ve been doing a lot of research on running up to the last days before we leave is telephones and phone cards. Keeping in touch with folks back home is really important to us so we want something reliable, but we also don’t want to pay a lot for that muffler.
phonecard (1)
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![One Pen]()
Coming From? - Common India 'Engrish'
One Pen There are a few phrases that any visitor to India will become familiar with rapidly. Here’s a quick run-down of common “Engrish” you’ll come across: Coming From? – The most benign, they just want to know what country you’re from.
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![Lijiang]()
Earthquakes, Orchestras and Pictograms
Lijiang One of the top 10 tourist sites in China is the World Heritage Site of Lijiang, a small town in the mountains of the Yunnan Province. It was ankle to elbow full of tourists, but that didn’t stop us from enjoying the people and culture that abound.
pictograms (1)
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![It's so nice to see you...]()
Well, Hello Dali!
It's so nice to see you... Dali is a beautiful city with mountains on one side and a picturesque lake on the other. It’s an old walled city and unlike many of it’s ilk it has not yet been totally changed by tourism.
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![Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur]()
Pink City - Jaipur
Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur Rajasthan, in northwestern India, is kind of what I had always pictured India being like – desert, lot’s of castles and old forts, monkeys all over and people in Turbans. And so far it is not disappointing me.
pink city (1)
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![TimTams, the shadow currency of Australia]()
TimTams & The Lot
TimTams, the shadow currency of Australia Aussies are very close cousins to Americans in many ways, in fact had it not been for the American Revolution many of them (the convict labor) would have ended up in Georgia, not half-way around the world.
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![Mongolia its Grrreat]()
Sain Yavaarai Mongolia!
Mongolia its Grrreat For those planning a trip to Mongolia – don’t bother leaving UB if you are a Vegan or Lactose Intolerant. You will starve! These people love their meat and dairy products. It makes sense, most people here are nomads and don’t want to stick around in one place long enough to grow a crop.
planning a trip (1)
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![Beware of Monkeys!]()
Kumily & The Tiger Reserve
Beware of Monkeys! After a few days cooling off (literally in Munnar) we’ve headed down south to Kumily which we’ve used as a base to visit the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Count yourself extremely lucky if you see any tigers here.
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Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong.
point and shoot digital camera (1)
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![Friendly Monks]()
One Night in Xiencheng
Friendly Monks Xiencheng is a very nice little town in Southwest China with very little tourist traffic that you probably have never heard of. If you’re in Xiencheng it’s probably to overnight here waiting for a bus to take you to another town.
Politics of Tibet (1)
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![Thats A Big Wall]()
Olympic Fever - Beijing
Thats A Big Wall The truth about Beijing, if you’ve been in China a while, is you only need a few days to see the sights, then get out …unless you want to go shopping. Then you could be there a month.
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![Anyone Smell Eggs?]()
That Smell: Rotorua
Anyone Smell Eggs? Rotorua stinks, literally (some may say figuratively too, but that’s another entry all together) it’s the center of a lot of geothermal activity here on the North Island. There are geysers and steam and the smell of rotten eggs all over up here.
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Damn that Dollar!
England is great and London is possibly one of the greatest cities in the world. There are cool things to do, funky clothes to buy, good shows to see, and yummy food to eat (ethinic food of course). Too bad it costs so damn much to do any of it when you’re coming with US dollars.
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![I Say Take it Back]()
Back in Bull Island
I Say Take it Back We’re back! A few days after landing in DC we’ve returned to my ancestral homeland of Poquoson, Virginia. Here we are visiting the parents, catching up with current events and trying to remember how Sales Tax works.
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![The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road]()
Notes From the Great Ocean Road
The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road We’re on the Great Ocean Road at the moment. It runs from the suburbs of Melbourne to the edge of South Australia and was built after WWI as kind of a works project to employ returning veterans in the 1920’s, before that the only way to access the small towns along the road was by ship or ferry.
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![Be Like Water]()
Hong Kong Part Deux
Be Like Water Wow, it’s hot in Hong Kong! When we were here in May it was just steamy, now it’s downright unpleasant. Thats not the only thing that changes quickly in Hong Kong: a bakery and Vegetarian Restaurant that we loved on our first trip were closed on our second visit – only two months later.
Portsmouth (1)
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![A Room With A View]()
Go, Go Goa
A Room With A View Following our escape from Mumbai, we decided to head south, where according to various parties it’s “less crazy.” We chose to come directly to Palolem Beach in southern Goa for a little chill time.
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![Big Day Out in Goa]()
Scootin' Around
Big Day Out in Goa Just to make sure we didn’t get totally bored of reading and relaxing on the beach all week, we decided to take a little day trip and see some sites beyond Palolem. We rented a scooter, bought a few liters of petrol and headed north.
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![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts.
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![Smells Like a Rose Too]()
Rose City Welcomes You
Smells Like a Rose Too Having flights left on our OneWorld Ticket and friends in Oregon to visit we headed off to PDX. Portland, with it’s rivers and bridges, it’s mountains, manageable city size (and professional soccer team), has long been near the top of the relocation list for LeeAnne and I.
Powells City (1)
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Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong.
prayer wheels (1)
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![Hong Kong Phooey]()
Hong Kong Phooey
Hong Kong Phooey I have to say, after spending two months in India, there are few places better to go than Hong Kong. It’s clean, super-modern and very comfortable. We’re loving our time here, we’re staying in Kowloon, which is kind of a tourist ghetto, but a Hong Kong tourist ghetto is a lot better than a Indian, or even Australian tourist ghetto.
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![Hong Kong Phooey]()
Hong Kong Phooey
Hong Kong Phooey I have to say, after spending two months in India, there are few places better to go than Hong Kong. It’s clean, super-modern and very comfortable. We’re loving our time here, we’re staying in Kowloon, which is kind of a tourist ghetto, but a Hong Kong tourist ghetto is a lot better than a Indian, or even Australian tourist ghetto.
PRC Visa Office (1)
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![Fuel Shortage]()
So You Wanna Be A Millionaire
Fuel Shortage Who doesn’t want to be a millionaire? Well, if you travel to Zimbabwe your dreams can come true with less than $10. The problem is that you can’t legally change money at the “real” rate and when you do become a Zim millionaire, there’s very little left on the shelves to purchase.
president mugabe (1)
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![Windhoek - Its Off the Hook!]()
Wild Wild Windhoek
Windhoek - Its Off the Hook! Windhoek is the medium size capitol of a very small country, – Namibia only has 1.2 million residents – it’s also Namibia’s financial and transportation center. If you are coming to Namibia, at some point you will pass through Windhoek.
pretzels (1)
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![Kochi Coastline]()
Hot Time in Kochi
Kochi Coastline First off let me say we did not do Kochi justice. Kochi (formerly Cochin) needs to be seen in December or January – before it gets too hot. In late March it’s just too hot and too humid.
princely state (1)
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![Mad Maxs Car - Sweet!]()
Diesel & Dust - The Outback
Mad Maxs Car - Sweet! As our car camping adventure in Aus continues we headed back to Sydney via the Outback. To say there’s a lot of nothing out there is a bit of an understatement. Aside from mining towns, road houses, road trains and red dust there’s not too much.
Priscilla Queen (1)
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![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us.
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The Great Firewall of China Strikes Again!
Before we had arrived in mainland China we were aware that censorship was alive and well here. The televised news is little more than propaganda and access to other forms on information is limited. Many web-sites, several that we use regularly are blocked.
propaganda (1)
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![Long Live China]()
Amen!
Long Live China Well it appears we’ve succeeded at obtaining a legitimate 30 day visa for me in China. While in Guilin, we visited the local Public Security Bureau to inquire about an extension. Word among travelers is that they are quite pleasant to deal with and offer a relatively quick turn around.
psb (1)
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![Long Live China]()
Amen!
Long Live China Well it appears we’ve succeeded at obtaining a legitimate 30 day visa for me in China. While in Guilin, we visited the local Public Security Bureau to inquire about an extension. Word among travelers is that they are quite pleasant to deal with and offer a relatively quick turn around.
Public Security Bureau (1)
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![Ger Ya Later!]()
Off We Ger
Ger Ya Later! Part of the allure of Mongolia is getting the heck out of UB and heading to the countryside. The only complication with that is that you can’t just hop on a bus and wing it like we have in other countries.
public transport (1)
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![Try to Avoid it...]()
Crazy Taxi - South Africa Edition
Try to Avoid it... Why did we do it? We had little choice. Was there no other option? No, there wasn’t. These are only a few of the questions we found ourselves asking one another as we took our first African “Public Taxi”.
public transportation (1)
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![Flavored Milk is Big Down Here]()
Reflections on Sweet Potato, Pumpkin and Hokey Pokey
Flavored Milk is Big Down Here The three things that stand out about food here in New Zealand are their love of (In order) Ice Cream, Pumpkins and Sweet Potatoes (known locally as Kumara). Let’s cover the last first, when I first saw it listed on the menu I just assumed that Kumara was a strange type of sausage.
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![Flavored Milk is Big Down Here]()
Reflections on Sweet Potato, Pumpkin and Hokey Pokey
Flavored Milk is Big Down Here The three things that stand out about food here in New Zealand are their love of (In order) Ice Cream, Pumpkins and Sweet Potatoes (known locally as Kumara). Let’s cover the last first, when I first saw it listed on the menu I just assumed that Kumara was a strange type of sausage.
pumpkins (1)
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![Punakaiki Pancake Rocks]()
The Wild West Coast
Punakaiki Pancake Rocks After touring the Lakes District and Fiordland, we headed over Haast Pass to the west coast, described as wild and quite wet by most brochures and guidebooks. The drive over Haast was on one of our first clear, sunny days.
Punakaiki (1)
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![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route.
qin (1)
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![Dragons Backbone Rive Terraces]()
The Dragon's Backbone
Dragons Backbone Rive Terraces From Yangshou, we headed back north through Guilin again and on to Longsheng – our base for visiting the Longji Rice Terraces, also known as the Dragon’s Backbone Rice Terraces. I’d read a post online from another traveler that Yangshou was really too touristy (true) and that if you really wanted to see the people and countryside, you should head to Longji and the villages within.
qing dynasty (1)
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![Mmmmm...Masala Popcorn]()
Queen of the Hills
Mmmmm...Masala Popcorn After our relaxing time in Rishikesh, we were still longing for some cooler temperatures so we made our way further north to Mussoorie, also known as the Queen of the Hill Stations. It certainly lives up to its name.
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![Queen Victoria Market]()
Marvelous Melbourne
Queen Victoria Market After a few days on the road from Sydney we arrived in Melbourne – the second largest city in Australia and the capital of the state of Victoria. Aside from a stroll though the Botanical Gardens and along the Yarra River, we spent most of our brief visit to the city at the Queen Victoria Market and at the Melbourne Zoo.
Queen Victoria Market (1)
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![Kliptown, Soweto]()
Poverty & Apartheid
Kliptown, Soweto Despite the bad wrap and the inconvenience of being a tourist in Johannesburg, a trip there is well worth it to be able to visit Soweto and spend time in the Apartheid Museum. I would recommend, however, that you do not visit both in the same day like we did.
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![Why, Why, Why?]()
Outback Radio, Oh-oh!
Why, Why, Why? One of the downsides of the outback is the dearth of radio stations available. We had grown use to pretty good radio here – much better than the states – Triple J is a standout. You loose all those once you leave the cities.
radio stations (1)
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![Travel in 2nd Class]()
Life on the Rajdhani Express
Travel in 2nd Class A forty two hour train ride isn’t really something to be looked forward to. But after the better part of a month spent traveling further and further South, LeeAnne and I decided it was time to knock off a few of the “Must Do’s” in India – The Taj Mahal etc – so we had to find a way from Trivandrum (near the southern tip of India) to Delhi (in the North of the country).
Rail transport (1)
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![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar.
Rail transport in the People's Republic of China (1)
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![Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur]()
Pink City - Jaipur
Astronomical Clocks in Jaipur Rajasthan, in northwestern India, is kind of what I had always pictured India being like – desert, lot’s of castles and old forts, monkeys all over and people in Turbans. And so far it is not disappointing me.
Raj Mandir (1)
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![Travel in 2nd Class]()
Life on the Rajdhani Express
Travel in 2nd Class A forty two hour train ride isn’t really something to be looked forward to. But after the better part of a month spent traveling further and further South, LeeAnne and I decided it was time to knock off a few of the “Must Do’s” in India – The Taj Mahal etc – so we had to find a way from Trivandrum (near the southern tip of India) to Delhi (in the North of the country).
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![Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park]()
Elephantitis: Corbett National Park
Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park Leaving Delhi, we set off for Corbett National Park about 250 km north in the state of Uttarchanal. Our mission: elephant safari! And maybe spot some other wildlife as well. We were partially successful.
ramnagar (1)
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![The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall]()
The Walls of Johannesburg
The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don’t go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass.
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
rear panniers (1)
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![India Gate]()
Several Million Do Make A Difference
India Gate After a long, chilly train ride, we arrived in Delhi last Thursday. Delhi is India’s second largest city after Mumbai. And though I can not find consistent population numbers, it is a fact that several million fewer people live here than in Mumbai.
Red Fort (1)
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet.
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
religious art (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
religious tolerance (1)
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![Goodbye China]()
Zai Jian China!
Goodbye China China is not a developing nation, it’s developed. And we all might understand soon just how developed they are. I’ve never met a people who are more determined to make an impression on the world than these folks.
Republic of China (1)
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![Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends]()
Hobbits & Elves
Well, San Francisco has hills and Cable Cars too. But that is where the comparison ends We arrived in the capital city of Wellington on Monday evening after 11 hours on a bus traversing the North Island from Auckland.
return of the king (1)
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![Giraffes!]()
The Viewing Game - Krueger National Park
Giraffes! After a little taste of wildlife viewing in Zimbabwe and Botswana, we were pretty psyched to head to Krueger National Park in northeastern South Africa for a four day safari. We were even more excited to be sharing the experience with friends from the States.
rhinos (1)
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![Hello Mr. Giraffe]()
How the Other Half Travels
Hello Mr. Giraffe One of the first countries we had talked about visiting in Africa was Botswana, but alas the Botswana economy is doing relatively well and tourism tends to cater to the up market, which needless to say is not us.
Rhodesia (1)
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![Dragons Backbone Rive Terraces]()
The Dragon's Backbone
Dragons Backbone Rive Terraces From Yangshou, we headed back north through Guilin again and on to Longsheng – our base for visiting the Longji Rice Terraces, also known as the Dragon’s Backbone Rice Terraces. I’d read a post online from another traveler that Yangshou was really too touristy (true) and that if you really wanted to see the people and countryside, you should head to Longji and the villages within.
rice terraces (1)
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![Tuk Tuk'ing Along]()
Escape from Mumbai
Tuk Tuk'ing Along When is a 12 hour train-ride in tropical heat with no air conditioning worth it? When it gets you out of Mumbai. Our journey began before dawn at Mumbai’s Central Station and would not end until just after night fell on us and our Auto-Ricksaw driver on a beach in Goa.
ricksaw (1)
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![India Gate]()
Several Million Do Make A Difference
India Gate After a long, chilly train ride, we arrived in Delhi last Thursday. Delhi is India’s second largest city after Mumbai. And though I can not find consistent population numbers, it is a fact that several million fewer people live here than in Mumbai.
Rickshaw (1)
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![The Ganges River at Rishikesh]()
'Oh Dirty River'
The Ganges River at Rishikesh As I stood at the edge of the Ganges in Rishikesh, I couldn’t help but hum the final lyrics to Sleater Kinney’s “Light Rail Coyote.” Oh Dirty River, Come Let Me In Except, I have no desire to dip into the Ganges.
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![The Ganges River at Rishikesh]()
'Oh Dirty River'
The Ganges River at Rishikesh As I stood at the edge of the Ganges in Rishikesh, I couldn’t help but hum the final lyrics to Sleater Kinney’s “Light Rail Coyote.” Oh Dirty River, Come Let Me In Except, I have no desire to dip into the Ganges.
Rivers of India (1)
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![Punakaiki Pancake Rocks]()
The Wild West Coast
Punakaiki Pancake Rocks After touring the Lakes District and Fiordland, we headed over Haast Pass to the west coast, described as wild and quite wet by most brochures and guidebooks. The drive over Haast was on one of our first clear, sunny days.
Rivers of New Zealand (1)
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![Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne]()
Cycling New Zealand - That is a Wrap
Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne We are back in Christchurch finally, after spending the past few weeks biking the South Island. From here we rent a car and head to the west coast over the mountains and then back up to the North Island.
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![Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne]()
Cycling New Zealand - That is a Wrap
Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne We are back in Christchurch finally, after spending the past few weeks biking the South Island. From here we rent a car and head to the west coast over the mountains and then back up to the North Island.
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![Oh, What a Feeling!]()
Diary of a Car Camper - Australia
Oh, What a Feeling! We’re leaving Sydney and car camping again. If you’ll recall we were hooked up in New Zealand with a very cheap rental. In Australia, not so lucky. Still lucky, we have it for $29.00 a day AUD, and it’s a much sweeter ride.
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![Cape Town Rules]()
Chillin in Cape Town
Cape Town Rules Cape Town is easily the best city we’ve visited in Africa, by far, LeeAnne is even claiming it’s her favorite city on the whole trip (but I’m not ready to go that far yet). african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins Why all the enthusiasm?
Robben Island (1)
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![Cape Town Rules]()
Chillin in Cape Town
Cape Town Rules Cape Town is easily the best city we’ve visited in Africa, by far, LeeAnne is even claiming it’s her favorite city on the whole trip (but I’m not ready to go that far yet). african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins Why all the enthusiasm?
robben island south africa (1)
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![Anyone Smell Eggs?]()
That Smell: Rotorua
Anyone Smell Eggs? Rotorua stinks, literally (some may say figuratively too, but that’s another entry all together) it’s the center of a lot of geothermal activity here on the North Island. There are geysers and steam and the smell of rotten eggs all over up here.
Rotorua (1)
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![Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching]()
Big Birds, Sleepy Sealions and Super Cute Penguins
Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching Yesterday we threw the budget out and splurged for our first tour in New Zealand. Actually, it was quite a bargain and worth every penny! Stretching out from the Dunedin coast is the Otago Peninsula.
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![Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching]()
Big Birds, Sleepy Sealions and Super Cute Penguins
Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching Yesterday we threw the budget out and splurged for our first tour in New Zealand. Actually, it was quite a bargain and worth every penny! Stretching out from the Dunedin coast is the Otago Peninsula.
Royal Albatross Center (1)
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![Lee Anne & The Asads]()
A Day Out with the Asads
Lee Anne & The Asads There is no denying it. The best way to explore a city is with a local. Not only do you get the insider’s perspective, but you get to see things that you may not seek out on your own.
Royal Automobile Museum (1)
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Vaccinations - Don't Leave Home Without Them
First stop on the road to Round the World Travel is the Doctors office. It may not be the most romantic or adventuresome idea, but I’m pretty sure that before the best adventurers and explorers headed out they got their shots. How much could Indiana Jones have gotten done if he were bed-ridden with Hep B while chasing the Ark of the Covenant?
rpcv (1)
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flickring Around the World
Hopefully soon we will have many many photos in here. We’re using flickr to host photos while we’re traveling. It’s easy to upload stuff from internet cafes and it beats trying to store everything on our own, and then either losing them. Besides we can share them with everyone else.
rtw (1)
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Our Men in Dublin
Ticket Plan B – Okay, so we’re going to use a travel agent in Ireland to purchase our RTW tickets, fly there a few days before we “Originate” our One World Explorer tickets and then fly to New Zealand. Crazy, yes, but it’s going to save us a bunch on ticket costs.
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Plan D
Okay, this one is our bad. After getting screwed by the Irish travel agency back at Thanksgiving we decided on another course of action. “Originating” our OWE flight in the UK. It was going to be great, we would fly there for a few hundred, maybe catch a soccer game, stop in Dallas to see LeeAnnes family on the way to New Zealand and be on with our trip.
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Our Trip By The Numbers
So here’s a quick rundown of our trip by the numbers, full of fresh statistics. Possibly interesting, possibly obsessive? You decide! -1269 : Lowest Altitude – The Dead Sea, Jordan -46 : Lowest Latitude in Degrees South – Invercargill, New Zealand 1 : Movies Appeared In – Mumbai, India
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![Rainbow Falls]()
North Country
Rainbow Falls When Kiwis go on vacation they go to Northland. It’s the peninsula north of Auckland, and you’re sandwiched in between the South Pacific and the Tasman sea, so there are loads of beach options. It’s where most of the Maori population is located these days too.
Russell (1)
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![Can you say SOVIET?]()
Call Me UB - Ulaanbaator
Can you say SOVIET? Ulaanbaator is a sleepy medium-size town that happens to be the capitol and only real city of any size in Mongolia. The Soviets essentially built this city and it’s painfully obvious in the architecture, monuments and city planning that the Mongolians had little say.
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![Can you say SOVIET?]()
Call Me UB - Ulaanbaator
Can you say SOVIET? Ulaanbaator is a sleepy medium-size town that happens to be the capitol and only real city of any size in Mongolia. The Soviets essentially built this city and it’s painfully obvious in the architecture, monuments and city planning that the Mongolians had little say.
Russian Embassy (1)
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![The Ganges River at Rishikesh]()
'Oh Dirty River'
The Ganges River at Rishikesh As I stood at the edge of the Ganges in Rishikesh, I couldn’t help but hum the final lyrics to Sleater Kinney’s “Light Rail Coyote.” Oh Dirty River, Come Let Me In Except, I have no desire to dip into the Ganges.
sacred burial site (1)
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![Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park]()
Elephantitis: Corbett National Park
Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park Leaving Delhi, we set off for Corbett National Park about 250 km north in the state of Uttarchanal. Our mission: elephant safari! And maybe spot some other wildlife as well. We were partially successful.
safari packages (1)
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![Big Dunes]()
The Southern Tour of Namibia
Big Dunes First things first. No, we didn’t come to Namibia because Brad and Angelina did. No, we didn’t see them. No, we didn’t even meet anyone who mentioned them. We were, however, shown the filming location of J Lo’s movie, The Cell, which of course we haven’t seen.
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![Kochi Coastline]()
Hot Time in Kochi
Kochi Coastline First off let me say we did not do Kochi justice. Kochi (formerly Cochin) needs to be seen in December or January – before it gets too hot. In late March it’s just too hot and too humid.
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![Fanboat Lolo!]()
The Top End - Darwin
Fanboat Lolo! We’re in our last stop in Australia before we head off to India. Darwin is the capitol of the Northern Territory, but it’s only a city of about 50,000 people and it has a very different feel from most of the other Australian cities that we’ve visited.
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![Fanboat Lolo!]()
The Top End - Darwin
Fanboat Lolo! We’re in our last stop in Australia before we head off to India. Darwin is the capitol of the Northern Territory, but it’s only a city of about 50,000 people and it has a very different feel from most of the other Australian cities that we’ve visited.
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![Sam Walton ...Made in China]()
Notes From a Chinese Walmart
Sam Walton ...Made in China I’m sure Sam Walton is spinning in his grave. The man who billed his store as “All-American, and American Made” now has a huge business in China, with All-Chinese made products. We’re in Kunming, the capitol of Yunnan Province in the South-west of China, and our room is right around the corner from Yunnan’s first Walmart …how could we resist?
Sam Walton (1)
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![Cape Town Rules]()
Chillin in Cape Town
Cape Town Rules Cape Town is easily the best city we’ve visited in Africa, by far, LeeAnne is even claiming it’s her favorite city on the whole trip (but I’m not ready to go that far yet). african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins Why all the enthusiasm?
San Francisco (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
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![Tropfest Crowd]()
Cinema Under the Stars
Tropfest Crowd A really fun part of life down here is that ever major city has an outdoor movie venue and most weeknight during the year you can go to the city park, pack a picnic and see a film under the stars.
Screen on the Green (1)
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![Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching]()
Big Birds, Sleepy Sealions and Super Cute Penguins
Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching Yesterday we threw the budget out and splurged for our first tour in New Zealand. Actually, it was quite a bargain and worth every penny! Stretching out from the Dunedin coast is the Otago Peninsula.
Sea lion (1)
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![Victoria Falls]()
Victoria Falls - The Smoke That Thunders
Victoria Falls We are so glad to be leaving Johannesburg that the thought of going anywhere else is appealing. Even a departure to Zimbabwe – yes, that Zimbabwe, land of 7000% inflation, of dictatorial rule (Our first dictator, yes!
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![Fatehpur Sikri Gate]()
Mughal Mania
Fatehpur Sikri Gate During our time here in northern India, I have developed a particular fondness for the Mughals. Mughal is the Persian word for Mongol. The Mughals claim decendency from Genghis Khan and their empire ruled much of India and its surrounds during the 16th to 18th centuries.
Shah Jahan (1)
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![Shane Battier is Big in China]()
The NBA - It's Chan-Tastic!
Shane Battier is Big in China Move over Ping-Pong, make room for Basketball. The NBA is surprisingly huge here. After Soccer it’s probably the biggest spectator sport in the country. The NBA play-offs are broadcast twice a day here, live at 8AM in the morning and then again at night, followed by a highlights show with Chinese talking heads summarizing the game.
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![The back streets of Zhongdian]()
Shangri-La - Not So Much
The back streets of Zhongdian Just north of Tiger Leaping Gorge at the edge of the Tibetan plateau sits the town of Zhongdian – recently renamed Shangri-La by the Chinese. It’s Tibetan name is Gyeltang, but no one uses it.
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![The back streets of Zhongdian]()
Shangri-La - Not So Much
The back streets of Zhongdian Just north of Tiger Leaping Gorge at the edge of the Tibetan plateau sits the town of Zhongdian – recently renamed Shangri-La by the Chinese. It’s Tibetan name is Gyeltang, but no one uses it.
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![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter.
Shaolin Fist (1)
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![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter.
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![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter.
Shaolin Monastery (1)
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![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter.
Shaolin Temple (1)
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![Try to Avoid it...]()
Crazy Taxi - South Africa Edition
Try to Avoid it... Why did we do it? We had little choice. Was there no other option? No, there wasn’t. These are only a few of the questions we found ourselves asking one another as we took our first African “Public Taxi”.
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![Life is a Kings Highway]()
Life on the Kings Highway
Life is a Kings Highway There are two ways to get from Petra to Amman: the fast way is to take the Desert Highway, a name that leaves little to the imagination, the other is the Kings Highway. The King’s Highway was a major trade route in the ancient Mid-East.
Shobak Castle (1)
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![Can you say SOVIET?]()
Call Me UB - Ulaanbaator
Can you say SOVIET? Ulaanbaator is a sleepy medium-size town that happens to be the capitol and only real city of any size in Mongolia. The Soviets essentially built this city and it’s painfully obvious in the architecture, monuments and city planning that the Mongolians had little say.
Shukbaataar Square (1)
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![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Things We Love(d) About China
Tiger Leaping Gorge There’s no denying it. We’ve enjoyed China. We didn’t fall in love with the big cities of the east coast, but the western and southwestern provinces are spectacular – filled with stunning scenery and diverse people.
Sichuan (1)
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![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route.
silk route (1)
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![Mad Maxs Car - Sweet!]()
Diesel & Dust - The Outback
Mad Maxs Car - Sweet! As our car camping adventure in Aus continues we headed back to Sydney via the Outback. To say there’s a lot of nothing out there is a bit of an understatement. Aside from mining towns, road houses, road trains and red dust there’s not too much.
Silverton (1)
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![Travel in 2nd Class]()
Life on the Rajdhani Express
Travel in 2nd Class A forty two hour train ride isn’t really something to be looked forward to. But after the better part of a month spent traveling further and further South, LeeAnne and I decided it was time to knock off a few of the “Must Do’s” in India – The Taj Mahal etc – so we had to find a way from Trivandrum (near the southern tip of India) to Delhi (in the North of the country).
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![Monks Chillin]()
Litang - Little Tibet
Monks Chillin So for various reasons (time and cost being the biggest two, hassle being another), we have chosen not to go to Tibet. Let me explain a little: there are now three ways to get to Tibet from China proper
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![Welcome to Liverpool]()
This is Anfield
Welcome to Liverpool The first thing you’ll need to know is that İ’m a soccer fan, next it’s important to know that İ’m a fan of Liverpool FC in England, since we happen to be in the UK it would make sense to go to a game in Liverpool right?
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Black and White and Southern African All Over
This is the part of the blog where I get us in trouble. We’ve only been here five weeks or so, but it’s hard to leave here without making a comment about the racial tension in this part of the world, and it comes from both directions.
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![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts.
soda water (1)
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![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar.
Soft sleeper (1)
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![Kliptown, Soweto]()
Poverty & Apartheid
Kliptown, Soweto Despite the bad wrap and the inconvenience of being a tourist in Johannesburg, a trip there is well worth it to be able to visit Soweto and spend time in the Apartheid Museum. I would recommend, however, that you do not visit both in the same day like we did.
Sophiatown (1)
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![So Sophisticated!]()
The Torch is Passed
So Sophisticated! Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of the Internet, it is my fond pleasure to introduce to you today the blog styling of Sophisticated Alpaca. This blog with the funny name is the round the world travel blog of our friends and former neighbors Dennis Campbell and Kristi Barnes.
sophisticatedalpaca.com (1)
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![Big Dunes]()
The Southern Tour of Namibia
Big Dunes First things first. No, we didn’t come to Namibia because Brad and Angelina did. No, we didn’t see them. No, we didn’t even meet anyone who mentioned them. We were, however, shown the filming location of J Lo’s movie, The Cell, which of course we haven’t seen.
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![Big Dunes]()
The Southern Tour of Namibia
Big Dunes First things first. No, we didn’t come to Namibia because Brad and Angelina did. No, we didn’t see them. No, we didn’t even meet anyone who mentioned them. We were, however, shown the filming location of J Lo’s movie, The Cell, which of course we haven’t seen.
Sossusvlei Dunes (1)
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Fear and Loathing on Flight 749 to Johannesburg
Things not to do on a flight to South Africa include: read a South African newspaper. LeeAnne did just that and it was fairly unnerving. South Africa in general and Johannesburg in particular have issues with crime. And while most of it is based in the poorer African Townships, it still makes the news.
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![Book-Em]()
Little Adelaide
Book-Em It seems Adelaide has something of a self-image problem. It’s not hard to understand why – with competition like Sydney & Melbourne it’s easy to think of oneself as a little provincial. I can assure you this is not the case.
South Australia (1)
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![Beverage, Pastry, Why Not Both]()
Early Reflections on China
Beverage, Pastry, Why Not Both So we’ve been in China for almost two weeks now and I have to say, sometimes I need to remind myself we’re in the Third World. After two months in India, being here is …refreshing.
south china (1)
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![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts.
south indian food (1)
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![Rainbow Falls]()
North Country
Rainbow Falls When Kiwis go on vacation they go to Northland. It’s the peninsula north of Auckland, and you’re sandwiched in between the South Pacific and the Tasman sea, so there are loads of beach options. It’s where most of the Maori population is located these days too.
South Pacific (1)
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![Big Ben - Parliament!]()
London Cousin
Big Ben - Parliament! After close calls with my Cousin Sam Forrest in both New Zealand and Shanghai, we are happy to say we have successfully made contact with my cousin Joe Bateman in London. Actually, he lives ın Watford, but he was nice enough to meet up with us in Central London and show us the sights.
southbank (1)
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![Giraffes!]()
The Viewing Game - Krueger National Park
Giraffes! After a little taste of wildlife viewing in Zimbabwe and Botswana, we were pretty psyched to head to Krueger National Park in northeastern South Africa for a four day safari. We were even more excited to be sharing the experience with friends from the States.
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![Crazy Blue Lake Tekapo]()
Lake Tekapo
Crazy Blue Lake Tekapo The first stop in our career as car campers is Lake Tekapo – a wonderfully blue-blue (almost phony looking) lake in the Southern Alps. We’re also at a pretty high altitude, and the lake is rather remote so residents of the lake area claim to have the clearest sky’s in New Zealand.
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![Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity]()
Invercargill Nights
Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity The Legend of Burt Munro Have you seen the movie “The Worlds Fastest Indian”? It’s the true story of an elderly Kiwi who breaks the world speed record for motorcycles at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah at the ripe old age of 69.
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![Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity]()
Invercargill Nights
Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity The Legend of Burt Munro Have you seen the movie “The Worlds Fastest Indian”? It’s the true story of an elderly Kiwi who breaks the world speed record for motorcycles at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah at the ripe old age of 69.
Southern Scenic Route (1)
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![Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching]()
Big Birds, Sleepy Sealions and Super Cute Penguins
Cute Yellow Eyed Penguins with Happy Feet while they are Marching Yesterday we threw the budget out and splurged for our first tour in New Zealand. Actually, it was quite a bargain and worth every penny! Stretching out from the Dunedin coast is the Otago Peninsula.
Southland Museum (1)
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![Along the Presidential Highway]()
Somewhere Between Clinton and Gore
Along the Presidential Highway So we are back on the road cycling. This time we are lighter (we dropped a bunch of stuff off with acquaintances in Christchurch), smarter (we’ve traveled south by bus and are riding north to keep the wind at our backs), and more motivated (if you read our post on Invercargill you’ll understand, we need to get out of here!
Southland Region (1)
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![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Things We Love(d) About China
Tiger Leaping Gorge There’s no denying it. We’ve enjoyed China. We didn’t fall in love with the big cities of the east coast, but the western and southwestern provinces are spectacular – filled with stunning scenery and diverse people.
southwestern provinces (1)
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![Kliptown, Soweto]()
Poverty & Apartheid
Kliptown, Soweto Despite the bad wrap and the inconvenience of being a tourist in Johannesburg, a trip there is well worth it to be able to visit Soweto and spend time in the Apartheid Museum. I would recommend, however, that you do not visit both in the same day like we did.
soweto (1)
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![Kliptown, Soweto]()
Poverty & Apartheid
Kliptown, Soweto Despite the bad wrap and the inconvenience of being a tourist in Johannesburg, a trip there is well worth it to be able to visit Soweto and spend time in the Apartheid Museum. I would recommend, however, that you do not visit both in the same day like we did.
Soweto uprising (1)
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![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is.
Sports (1)
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![Kliptown, Soweto]()
Poverty & Apartheid
Kliptown, Soweto Despite the bad wrap and the inconvenience of being a tourist in Johannesburg, a trip there is well worth it to be able to visit Soweto and spend time in the Apartheid Museum. I would recommend, however, that you do not visit both in the same day like we did.
squatter settlements (1)
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![Kochi Coastline]()
Hot Time in Kochi
Kochi Coastline First off let me say we did not do Kochi justice. Kochi (formerly Cochin) needs to be seen in December or January – before it gets too hot. In late March it’s just too hot and too humid.
st thomas (1)
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![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar.
St. Petersburg (1)
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![Rock Art]()
Kanding Stopover
Rock Art I have to say we really didn’t really give Kanding a chance, we were only there one night before we moved on to Chengdu. If we had more time it probably would have been worth a day or two.
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Tickets - One World Explorer
We’ve researched a lot of different options on Round the World tickets. It’s a great way to control your costs on getting there and back, because after you pay a flat fee you can use as many or as few flights as you want too.
Star Alliance (1)
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Ma'Salama Jordan!
There are a couple of angles I could take with this particular country wrap-up. One is: Jordan – the only country we’ve visited to be ruled by a former guest star on Star Trek (It’s true – King Abdullah is a huge fan of Star Trek and worked his connection to get an appearance on an episode of Star Trek: Voyager.
Star Trek: Voyager (1)
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![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route.
Starbucks (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
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![School Days]()
God's Own Country
School Days No, we didn’t come up with this, the State of Kerala did. Signs and brochures are quick to coin Kerala as God’s country. I imagine much of this is due to its beautiful scenery, which in all honesty we haven’t had the chance to see much of as of yet.
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On Top of the World!
So, since we’ve been back there have been a lot of questions about what was our favorite place, our favorite thing to do, etc. We’ll try and address that here. Some things stand out in our mind easily (like our favorite bathroom), others are a little harder to narrow down to just one thing (favorite place?
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![Queen Victoria Market]()
Marvelous Melbourne
Queen Victoria Market After a few days on the road from Sydney we arrived in Melbourne – the second largest city in Australia and the capital of the state of Victoria. Aside from a stroll though the Botanical Gardens and along the Yarra River, we spent most of our brief visit to the city at the Queen Victoria Market and at the Melbourne Zoo.
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![Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne]()
Cycling New Zealand - That is a Wrap
Lets Stick a Fork in this one LeeAnne We are back in Christchurch finally, after spending the past few weeks biking the South Island. From here we rent a car and head to the west coast over the mountains and then back up to the North Island.
steep hills (1)
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![Rock Art]()
Kanding Stopover
Rock Art I have to say we really didn’t really give Kanding a chance, we were only there one night before we moved on to Chengdu. If we had more time it probably would have been worth a day or two.
steep mountains (1)
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![Meow!]()
Muhammad's Cats
Meow! A curious thing about Istanbul is the number of healthy stray cats that freely wander the city. You can easily have a seat in the park near the Blue Mosque and count 20 or more in a matter of minutes.
Stray Cats (1)
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![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Things We Love(d) About China
Tiger Leaping Gorge There’s no denying it. We’ve enjoyed China. We didn’t fall in love with the big cities of the east coast, but the western and southwestern provinces are spectacular – filled with stunning scenery and diverse people.
stunning scenery (1)
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Mork to Orson, Come in Orson...
One thing we’ve been doing a lot of research on running up to the last days before we leave is telephones and phone cards. Keeping in touch with folks back home is really important to us so we want something reliable, but we also don’t want to pay a lot for that muffler.
Subscriber Identity Module (1)
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![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is.
Sumo (1)
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Carbon Compensation
One more thing before we let you go – and I don’t want to get too Ed Begley Jr. here, but I think it does bear mentioning. When you travel around the world like we’ve done this year there are some unseen consequences, and I’m not talking about introducing Mongolian Nomads to iPods.
sustainable energy projects (1)
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![Flavored Milk is Big Down Here]()
Reflections on Sweet Potato, Pumpkin and Hokey Pokey
Flavored Milk is Big Down Here The three things that stand out about food here in New Zealand are their love of (In order) Ice Cream, Pumpkins and Sweet Potatoes (known locally as Kumara). Let’s cover the last first, when I first saw it listed on the menu I just assumed that Kumara was a strange type of sausage.
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![Lively Auckland]()
The City of Sails
Lively Auckland We arrived in Auckland early Friday morning and spent three days there exploring the city. Since we only spent a few days in one city, it’s probably not fair to make any kind of sweeping generalizations about Kiwis or New Zealand for that matter.
sweet potato fries (1)
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![Lively Auckland]()
The City of Sails
Lively Auckland We arrived in Auckland early Friday morning and spent three days there exploring the city. Since we only spent a few days in one city, it’s probably not fair to make any kind of sweeping generalizations about Kiwis or New Zealand for that matter.
sweet potatoes (1)
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Mork to Orson, Come in Orson...
One thing we’ve been doing a lot of research on running up to the last days before we leave is telephones and phone cards. Keeping in touch with folks back home is really important to us so we want something reliable, but we also don’t want to pay a lot for that muffler.
T-Mobile (1)
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![Cape Town Rules]()
Chillin in Cape Town
Cape Town Rules Cape Town is easily the best city we’ve visited in Africa, by far, LeeAnne is even claiming it’s her favorite city on the whole trip (but I’m not ready to go that far yet). african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins african penguins Why all the enthusiasm?
Table Mountain (1)
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![The Obligatory Shot]()
A Tail of One City: Agra
The Obligatory Shot “It was the best of times and the worst of times.” Mr. Dickens could have been been talking about one city in India, rather than two cities in Europe. Agra, a few hours outside of Delhi is a study in contrast.
taj mahal agra (1)
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![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts.
Tamil cuisine (1)
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![American Giants with Indian Honeymooners]()
Run For The Hills
American Giants with Indian Honeymooners Ok, so technically we didn’t run. We took a bus. An old, well worn bus that wound its way back and forth around seemingly endless switchbacks for the 130km trip from Kochi to Munnar.
tata tea (1)
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![American Giants with Indian Honeymooners]()
Run For The Hills
American Giants with Indian Honeymooners Ok, so technically we didn’t run. We took a bus. An old, well worn bus that wound its way back and forth around seemingly endless switchbacks for the 130km trip from Kochi to Munnar.
Tata Tea Limited (1)
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![Paddys Wigwam]()
Chillin in the Pool
Paddys Wigwam We ventured to Liverpool for very obvious reasons, but still without the promise of tickets to see the boys in red at Anfield. Luckily the tickets worked out, but I’ll let the footy fan tell his tale.
tate museums (1)
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![Fishermens Village, Mumbai]()
Mumbai Madness
Fishermens Village, Mumbai After a pleasant 9 hour flight from Darwin, we arrived in Mumbai (formerly known as Bombay) on Wednesday evening. Our arrival was as smooth as could be expected at any international city. Breeze through immigration, pick up our bags, change some money and walk right through customs.
taxi driver (1)
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![Fishermens Village, Mumbai]()
Mumbai Madness
Fishermens Village, Mumbai After a pleasant 9 hour flight from Darwin, we arrived in Mumbai (formerly known as Bombay) on Wednesday evening. Our arrival was as smooth as could be expected at any international city. Breeze through immigration, pick up our bags, change some money and walk right through customs.
taxi ride (1)
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![The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall]()
The Walls of Johannesburg
The Safest Place in Joberg - The Mall Johannesburg is very sketchy, the crime statistics are scary and in a place where even locals don’t go out at night tourists have to adapt. As a consequence of crazy crime, the security business is booming – everyone has high masonry walls around their homes and at least one of the following on top: razor wire, barbed wire, electric fencing, or crushed glass.
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![Try to Avoid it...]()
Crazy Taxi - South Africa Edition
Try to Avoid it... Why did we do it? We had little choice. Was there no other option? No, there wasn’t. These are only a few of the questions we found ourselves asking one another as we took our first African “Public Taxi”.
Taxicabs (1)
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![American Giants with Indian Honeymooners]()
Run For The Hills
American Giants with Indian Honeymooners Ok, so technically we didn’t run. We took a bus. An old, well worn bus that wound its way back and forth around seemingly endless switchbacks for the 130km trip from Kochi to Munnar.
tea plantations (1)
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Camera Karma
Maybe we should have burned the yak butter at the Buddhist Temple or made one more round with the prayer wheels because we have had some kind of bad luck when it comes to cameras on this trip. After our misfortunes in Australia, we purchased another point and shoot digital camera to get us through until Hong Kong.
Technology (1)
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Mork to Orson, Come in Orson...
One thing we’ve been doing a lot of research on running up to the last days before we leave is telephones and phone cards. Keeping in touch with folks back home is really important to us so we want something reliable, but we also don’t want to pay a lot for that muffler.
Telephone card (1)
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Mork to Orson, Come in Orson...
One thing we’ve been doing a lot of research on running up to the last days before we leave is telephones and phone cards. Keeping in touch with folks back home is really important to us so we want something reliable, but we also don’t want to pay a lot for that muffler.
Telestial (1)
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![Mongolian Kid and Friend]()
Mongolia Notes for Budget Travelers
Mongolian Kid and Friend Mongolia is a bit different than the other countries we have visited thus far. There is only one real city, UB, and there is very little infrastructure to support public transport around the country. As we mentioned in Off We Ger if you want to get out into the countryside, which is really THE reason to come to Mongolia, then you need to a) join a tour; b) hire a jeep; or c) be completely raving madand take the local long distance buses.
tent (1)
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![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route.
Terracotta Army (1)
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![Terra Cotta Warriors]()
A Tale of Toes and Terra Cotta Warriors - Xian
Terra Cotta Warriors Of the many, must see' cities in China, Xi’an is certainly high on the list. It’s considered one of the four great ancient capitals of China and is the eastern terminus of the old Silk Route.
terracotta warriors (1)
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![Technically Austin...]()
The Byways of Dallas
Technically Austin... Dallas, Texas is all together different from Oregon. Goodbye green, hello brown. Goodbye wooded mountains, hello scrubby flatlands. Goodbye rain, hello warm weather and sunny skies. So it’s not all bad. If Portland was the City of Roses I suppose Dallas has to be the City of Byways.
Texas (1)
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![Technically Austin...]()
The Byways of Dallas
Technically Austin... Dallas, Texas is all together different from Oregon. Goodbye green, hello brown. Goodbye wooded mountains, hello scrubby flatlands. Goodbye rain, hello warm weather and sunny skies. So it’s not all bad. If Portland was the City of Roses I suppose Dallas has to be the City of Byways.
Texas Thrift Store (1)
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![Big Ben - Parliament!]()
London Cousin
Big Ben - Parliament! After close calls with my Cousin Sam Forrest in both New Zealand and Shanghai, we are happy to say we have successfully made contact with my cousin Joe Bateman in London. Actually, he lives ın Watford, but he was nice enough to meet up with us in Central London and show us the sights.
Thames (1)
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![Thats A Big Wall]()
Olympic Fever - Beijing
Thats A Big Wall The truth about Beijing, if you’ve been in China a while, is you only need a few days to see the sights, then get out …unless you want to go shopping. Then you could be there a month.
the 2008 Olympics (1)
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![Book-Em]()
Little Adelaide
Book-Em It seems Adelaide has something of a self-image problem. It’s not hard to understand why – with competition like Sydney & Melbourne it’s easy to think of oneself as a little provincial. I can assure you this is not the case.
the Adelaide Film Festival (1)
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![Paddys Wigwam]()
Chillin in the Pool
Paddys Wigwam We ventured to Liverpool for very obvious reasons, but still without the promise of tickets to see the boys in red at Anfield. Luckily the tickets worked out, but I’ll let the footy fan tell his tale.
The Beatles Story (1)
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![Shanghai Nights]()
Shanghai Shoppers
Shanghai Nights We’re in Shanghai at the moment, and we’ve had another near miss with my cousin Sam Forrest, we had a close encounter with him in New Zealand, but we were on opposite sides of the North Island.
The Bund (1)
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![Beef Anyone]()
Holy Cow!
Beef Anyone Ok, so you may know that cows are considered sacred animals in the Hindu religion. Very little beef eating going on here. Even McDonald’s has a sign stating “No beef or beef products served here.” (This is a surefire way to see a failed McDonald’s in the midwest!
the Hindu (1)
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![View from Lhasa Express]()
That Can Do Spirit!
View from Lhasa Express When we were in the early stages of planning our trip, I was only lukewarm to coming to China. But then I began to read more, not just about the tourist sites, but also about the history of China and its people.
The Lhasa Express (1)
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![Good Lord of the Rings!]()
Serious LOTR Country - Milford Sound
Good Lord of the Rings! Fjordland – the southwestern corner of the South Island – feels very different from the rest of the country. For one thing it’s almost all a huge temperate rain forest. So you’ll have a forest of conifers littered with huge ferns, and these crazy mountains that don’t belong in the Lord of the Rings – they’re the source material for it.
The Lord of the Rings (1)
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![Travel in 2nd Class]()
Life on the Rajdhani Express
Travel in 2nd Class A forty two hour train ride isn’t really something to be looked forward to. But after the better part of a month spent traveling further and further South, LeeAnne and I decided it was time to knock off a few of the “Must Do’s” in India – The Taj Mahal etc – so we had to find a way from Trivandrum (near the southern tip of India) to Delhi (in the North of the country).
the Rajdhani Express (1)
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![Big Ben - Parliament!]()
London Cousin
Big Ben - Parliament! After close calls with my Cousin Sam Forrest in both New Zealand and Shanghai, we are happy to say we have successfully made contact with my cousin Joe Bateman in London. Actually, he lives ın Watford, but he was nice enough to meet up with us in Central London and show us the sights.
The Tower Bridge (1)
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![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar.
the Trans-Mongolian Express (1)
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![The Beatles Slept Here]()
Hippy Dippy Do - Rishikesh
The Beatles Slept Here Rishikesh is a smallish town set on the Ganges at the foothills of the Himalayas. In part due to it’s “auspicious” location it’s a pilgrimage site for Hindus. But of late there are a lot of other people here besides Hindus.
The White Album (1)
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![Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV]()
The World Cup (of Cricket)
Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV One of the things we were excited about was being in India during the World Cup of Cricket. We arrived in Mumbai just a few days before the first match and were anticipating a huge outpouring of support for the national team from India’s billion plus people.
the World Cup (1)
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![Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity]()
Invercargill Nights
Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity The Legend of Burt Munro Have you seen the movie “The Worlds Fastest Indian”? It’s the true story of an elderly Kiwi who breaks the world speed record for motorcycles at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah at the ripe old age of 69.
The Worlds Fastest Indian (1)
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![Beware of Monkeys!]()
Kumily & The Tiger Reserve
Beware of Monkeys! After a few days cooling off (literally in Munnar) we’ve headed down south to Kumily which we’ve used as a base to visit the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Count yourself extremely lucky if you see any tigers here.
Thekkady (1)
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![The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram]()
Three Nights in Thiruvananthapuram
The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram: the small town with a really long name! Formerly known as Trivandrum, the town elders decided to change the city name for brevity’s sake to Thiruvananthapuram in 1991. We’re in town for a few days waiting on a train to Delhi.
Thiruvananthapuram (1)
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![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Tiger Leaping Gorge
Tiger Leaping Gorge We just did a mini-trek at Tiger Leaping Gorge, it’s in the western part of Yunnan and it’s famous for being one of the steepest and most dramatic Gorges in the world. I have to say, it’s probably the highlight of China for us right now.
Three Gorges (1)
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![Descending the Giant Steps]()
The True Blue Mountains
Descending the Giant Steps We spent the final days of our Oz road trip in the Blue Mountains just an hour and a half outside of Sydney. It was quite amazing to watch the dry, dusty land gradually turn into rolling green as we made our approach.
Three Sisters (1)
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![Thats A Big Wall]()
Olympic Fever - Beijing
Thats A Big Wall The truth about Beijing, if you’ve been in China a while, is you only need a few days to see the sights, then get out …unless you want to go shopping. Then you could be there a month.
Tiananmen Square (1)
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![Rock Art]()
Kanding Stopover
Rock Art I have to say we really didn’t really give Kanding a chance, we were only there one night before we moved on to Chengdu. If we had more time it probably would have been worth a day or two.
tibetan culture (1)
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![Monks Chillin]()
Litang - Little Tibet
Monks Chillin So for various reasons (time and cost being the biggest two, hassle being another), we have chosen not to go to Tibet. Let me explain a little: there are now three ways to get to Tibet from China proper
tibetan prayer flags (1)
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![Monks Chillin]()
Litang - Little Tibet
Monks Chillin So for various reasons (time and cost being the biggest two, hassle being another), we have chosen not to go to Tibet. Let me explain a little: there are now three ways to get to Tibet from China proper
Tibeten Plateau (1)
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Our Men in Dublin
Ticket Plan B – Okay, so we’re going to use a travel agent in Ireland to purchase our RTW tickets, fly there a few days before we “Originate” our One World Explorer tickets and then fly to New Zealand. Crazy, yes, but it’s going to save us a bunch on ticket costs.
ticket costs (1)
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Our Men in Dublin
Ticket Plan B – Okay, so we’re going to use a travel agent in Ireland to purchase our RTW tickets, fly there a few days before we “Originate” our One World Explorer tickets and then fly to New Zealand. Crazy, yes, but it’s going to save us a bunch on ticket costs.
ticket plan (1)
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Our Men in Dublin
Ticket Plan B – Okay, so we’re going to use a travel agent in Ireland to purchase our RTW tickets, fly there a few days before we “Originate” our One World Explorer tickets and then fly to New Zealand. Crazy, yes, but it’s going to save us a bunch on ticket costs.
Tickets (1)
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![Something about the label appeals]()
Vibrant Straw with Flecks of Brilliant Green
Something about the label appeals When you hear something like “vibrant straw with flecks of brilliant green”, what do you think? I am guessing it wasn’t, mmmm… pour me one of those. As you probably well know, Australia is home to many a wine that we enjoy in the U.
Tim Adams Winery (1)
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![TimTams, the shadow currency of Australia]()
TimTams & The Lot
TimTams, the shadow currency of Australia Aussies are very close cousins to Americans in many ways, in fact had it not been for the American Revolution many of them (the convict labor) would have ended up in Georgia, not half-way around the world.
Tim Tam (1)
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![Goodbye China]()
Zai Jian China!
Goodbye China China is not a developing nation, it’s developed. And we all might understand soon just how developed they are. I’ve never met a people who are more determined to make an impression on the world than these folks.
time in beijing (1)
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![Join Us, Won't You?]()
The Cult of Lonely Planet & Lodging in India
Join Us, Won't You? Our time in India is starting to wind down, so we would just like to pass on a few words about lodging here. We’re using the latest edition of “Lonely Planet – India” as our main guidebook and it’s great of course, very well documented, written, and well thought out.
time in india (1)
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![A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office]()
Pedal, Pedal, Pedal
A Bad day on the bike is better than a good day in the office So our plan for a while has been to bike while in New Zealand. After considerable research and contemplation, we decided to rent bikes and bike on the South Island only.
Touring bicycle (1)
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China Notes for Budget Travelers
Our original budget for China was based on the costs of the big cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. Our goal was to stay at or below $70 a day for both of us. We were able to get by on about that in Hong Kong, but were able to easily stay below $50 a day for most of China.
Tourism (1)
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![The Treasury]()
Petra Rocks!
The Treasury Pun intended! There’s no doubt about it. Petra is an amazing place. Definitely among the most amazing places on our trip. When you think of Petra, you may envision Harrison Ford and Sean Connery on horse back emerging from a narrow canyon to see the magnificent Treasury.
Tourism in Jordan (1)
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![Buddhas at Ajanta]()
Ellora & Ajanta
Buddhas at Ajanta As we were making plans for our final week in India, we really wanted to find a way to visit the caves at Ellora and Ajanta – World Heritage Sites located in the state of Maharashtra.
Tourism in Maharashtra (1)
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![Good Lord of the Rings!]()
Serious LOTR Country - Milford Sound
Good Lord of the Rings! Fjordland – the southwestern corner of the South Island – feels very different from the rest of the country. For one thing it’s almost all a huge temperate rain forest. So you’ll have a forest of conifers littered with huge ferns, and these crazy mountains that don’t belong in the Lord of the Rings – they’re the source material for it.
Tourism in New Zealand (1)
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![Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites]()
It's Istanbul Not Constantinople Now
Aya Sophia - Just One of Many Photogenic Sites Istanbul is a great city. It straddles the Bosphorus placing half the city in Europe and half in Asia. It’s an interesting mix of cosmopolitan and traditional is full of rich history and impressive structures left behind by the Greek, Roman and Ottoman empires.
Tourism in Turkey (1)
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![Fatehpur Sikri Gate]()
Mughal Mania
Fatehpur Sikri Gate During our time here in northern India, I have developed a particular fondness for the Mughals. Mughal is the Persian word for Mongol. The Mughals claim decendency from Genghis Khan and their empire ruled much of India and its surrounds during the 16th to 18th centuries.
Tourism in Uttar Pradesh (1)
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![Kochi Coastline]()
Hot Time in Kochi
Kochi Coastline First off let me say we did not do Kochi justice. Kochi (formerly Cochin) needs to be seen in December or January – before it gets too hot. In late March it’s just too hot and too humid.
Tourist attractions in Kochi (1)
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![Friendly Monks]()
One Night in Xiencheng
Friendly Monks Xiencheng is a very nice little town in Southwest China with very little tourist traffic that you probably have never heard of. If you’re in Xiencheng it’s probably to overnight here waiting for a bus to take you to another town.
tourist traffic (1)
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![Big Ben - Parliament!]()
London Cousin
Big Ben - Parliament! After close calls with my Cousin Sam Forrest in both New Zealand and Shanghai, we are happy to say we have successfully made contact with my cousin Joe Bateman in London. Actually, he lives ın Watford, but he was nice enough to meet up with us in Central London and show us the sights.
tower bridge (1)
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![Big Ben - Parliament!]()
London Cousin
Big Ben - Parliament! After close calls with my Cousin Sam Forrest in both New Zealand and Shanghai, we are happy to say we have successfully made contact with my cousin Joe Bateman in London. Actually, he lives ın Watford, but he was nice enough to meet up with us in Central London and show us the sights.
Tower of London (1)
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![Can you say SOVIET?]()
Call Me UB - Ulaanbaator
Can you say SOVIET? Ulaanbaator is a sleepy medium-size town that happens to be the capitol and only real city of any size in Mongolia. The Soviets essentially built this city and it’s painfully obvious in the architecture, monuments and city planning that the Mongolians had little say.
Town square (1)
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![Sad Little Went Tent]()
Australia Notes For Budget Travelers
Sad Little Went Tent It should come as no surprise that Australia is not the cheapest of countries on our itinerary. That said, the country is well equipped for backpackers on a budget. Like New Zealand, if you watch your $ in the cities and self-cater (camp and cook yourself), you can stretch your dollars pretty far.
Townsville (1)
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![Wedding Season]()
Wedding Crashers
Wedding Season It doesn’t take a Vince Vaughn scheme to crash a wedding in India, especially during wedding season. We actually had one gentleman befriend us on the streets of Udaipur to “practice his English” and subsequently invite us to his wedding party the following evening.
traditional attire (1)
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![Rock Art]()
Kanding Stopover
Rock Art I have to say we really didn’t really give Kanding a chance, we were only there one night before we moved on to Chengdu. If we had more time it probably would have been worth a day or two.
traditional buildings (1)
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![Rock Art]()
Kanding Stopover
Rock Art I have to say we really didn’t really give Kanding a chance, we were only there one night before we moved on to Chengdu. If we had more time it probably would have been worth a day or two.
traditional clothes (1)
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![Li River Scenery]()
Li River Daze
Li River Scenery One of the “must do” activities in China is a cruise down the Li River from Guilin to the smaller city of Yangshou. Like all good budget travelers we opted to join the Chinese tour. You get the same beautiful scenery sans the English commentary, but for half the price of the Foreigner’s tour.
traditional flute music (1)
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![Rock Art]()
Kanding Stopover
Rock Art I have to say we really didn’t really give Kanding a chance, we were only there one night before we moved on to Chengdu. If we had more time it probably would have been worth a day or two.
traditional structures (1)
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![Big Ben - Parliament!]()
London Cousin
Big Ben - Parliament! After close calls with my Cousin Sam Forrest in both New Zealand and Shanghai, we are happy to say we have successfully made contact with my cousin Joe Bateman in London. Actually, he lives ın Watford, but he was nice enough to meet up with us in Central London and show us the sights.
Trafalger Square (1)
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![Try to Avoid it...]()
Crazy Taxi - South Africa Edition
Try to Avoid it... Why did we do it? We had little choice. Was there no other option? No, there wasn’t. These are only a few of the questions we found ourselves asking one another as we took our first African “Public Taxi”.
train lines (1)
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![Dave and Lolo at the Taj]()
India Notes for Budget Travelers
Dave and Lolo at the Taj India is a budget traveler’s dream. It’s certainly one of the cheapest countries on our itinerary. Our daily budget for two is probably less than you spent the last time you went out to dinner.
train travel (1)
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![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar.
trains in china (1)
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![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar.
trans mongolian express (1)
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![India Gate]()
Several Million Do Make A Difference
India Gate After a long, chilly train ride, we arrived in Delhi last Thursday. Delhi is India’s second largest city after Mumbai. And though I can not find consistent population numbers, it is a fact that several million fewer people live here than in Mumbai.
Transport in India (1)
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![Like Sands Through the Hourglass...]()
So Long Southern Africa!
Like Sands Through the Hourglass... I feel like we owe Africa another trip. Five weeks here just doesn’t do this wonder corner of the world justice. We’ve had a chance to pop around a bit in Southern Africa, but I feel like we just peeped through a keyhole and the place has a lot more to offer.
transportation (1)
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![Windhoek - Its Off the Hook!]()
Wild Wild Windhoek
Windhoek - Its Off the Hook! Windhoek is the medium size capitol of a very small country, – Namibia only has 1.2 million residents – it’s also Namibia’s financial and transportation center. If you are coming to Namibia, at some point you will pass through Windhoek.
transportation center (1)
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![Goodbye China]()
Zai Jian China!
Goodbye China China is not a developing nation, it’s developed. And we all might understand soon just how developed they are. I’ve never met a people who are more determined to make an impression on the world than these folks.
transportation in china (1)
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The Itinerary - For Now...
Okay, the Irish screwed us. After going through everything, AND running our credit card they told us (by email) that they had quoted us for the wrong price. And it would be about 1,000 euros more! Now I don’t follow the currency market like I should, but I do know that right now the exchange rate for US Dollars to Euros is no good, and a thousand Euros is …well, more that we want to pay.
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![So Sophisticated!]()
The Torch is Passed
So Sophisticated! Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of the Internet, it is my fond pleasure to introduce to you today the blog styling of Sophisticated Alpaca. This blog with the funny name is the round the world travel blog of our friends and former neighbors Dennis Campbell and Kristi Barnes.
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![So Sophisticated!]()
The Torch is Passed
So Sophisticated! Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of the Internet, it is my fond pleasure to introduce to you today the blog styling of Sophisticated Alpaca. This blog with the funny name is the round the world travel blog of our friends and former neighbors Dennis Campbell and Kristi Barnes.
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The Great Firewall of China Strikes Again!
Before we had arrived in mainland China we were aware that censorship was alive and well here. The televised news is little more than propaganda and access to other forms on information is limited. Many web-sites, several that we use regularly are blocked.
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![Dragons Backbone Rive Terraces]()
The Dragon's Backbone
Dragons Backbone Rive Terraces From Yangshou, we headed back north through Guilin again and on to Longsheng – our base for visiting the Longji Rice Terraces, also known as the Dragon’s Backbone Rice Terraces. I’d read a post online from another traveler that Yangshou was really too touristy (true) and that if you really wanted to see the people and countryside, you should head to Longji and the villages within.
travel show (1)
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The Great Firewall of China Strikes Again!
Before we had arrived in mainland China we were aware that censorship was alive and well here. The televised news is little more than propaganda and access to other forms on information is limited. Many web-sites, several that we use regularly are blocked.
Travel sites (1)
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![Ger Ya Later!]()
Off We Ger
Ger Ya Later! Part of the allure of Mongolia is getting the heck out of UB and heading to the countryside. The only complication with that is that you can’t just hop on a bus and wing it like we have in other countries.
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![Are we traveling light yet?]()
Packing, Packing, Packing
Are we traveling light yet? Wow! We have a lot of stuff for two people traveling light around the world. It’s embarrassing telling people your traveling around the world on a shoestring and then asking their help to pull your two large duffel bags, two fully packed back-packs and two or three carry-on’s out of the car for you.
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![Are we traveling light yet?]()
Packing, Packing, Packing
Are we traveling light yet? Wow! We have a lot of stuff for two people traveling light around the world. It’s embarrassing telling people your traveling around the world on a shoestring and then asking their help to pull your two large duffel bags, two fully packed back-packs and two or three carry-on’s out of the car for you.
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![If you can make it there...]()
NYC
If you can make it there... New York City, Sinatra used to sing that if you could make it there, you could make it anywhere. For us, if we could make it there, the trip must be over. It makes sense to make this our last leg on the trip, it’s the city (along with Las Vegas) that most people outside the US think of when they think about America.
travels (1)
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![Shanghai Nights]()
Shanghai Shoppers
Shanghai Nights We’re in Shanghai at the moment, and we’ve had another near miss with my cousin Sam Forrest, we had a close encounter with him in New Zealand, but we were on opposite sides of the North Island.
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![Why, Why, Why?]()
Outback Radio, Oh-oh!
Why, Why, Why? One of the downsides of the outback is the dearth of radio stations available. We had grown use to pretty good radio here – much better than the states – Triple J is a standout. You loose all those once you leave the cities.
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![Tuk Tuk'ing Along]()
Escape from Mumbai
Tuk Tuk'ing Along When is a 12 hour train-ride in tropical heat with no air conditioning worth it? When it gets you out of Mumbai. Our journey began before dawn at Mumbai’s Central Station and would not end until just after night fell on us and our Auto-Ricksaw driver on a beach in Goa.
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
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![Theres No Place Like Dome]()
So Long Turkey!
Theres No Place Like Dome This entry should really be titled: “Hoşça kalın Türkiye”, but it was too hard to resist the chance to use that title. At least we didn’t title it “Get Lost Turkey!”. Leaving Turkey, this is the last time we will have our Passports stamped out on this trip.
Turkey (1)
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![Theres No Place Like Dome]()
So Long Turkey!
Theres No Place Like Dome This entry should really be titled: “Hoşça kalın Türkiye”, but it was too hard to resist the chance to use that title. At least we didn’t title it “Get Lost Turkey!”. Leaving Turkey, this is the last time we will have our Passports stamped out on this trip.
Turkish lira (1)
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![Masala Dosa]()
A Few of My Favorite Things
Masala Dosa During our time in India, I have been making a list of my favorite things. Not surprisingly, most of them are food related! But there are a few other things unique to India which have also won our hearts.
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![Welcome to Liverpool]()
This is Anfield
Welcome to Liverpool The first thing you’ll need to know is that İ’m a soccer fan, next it’s important to know that İ’m a fan of Liverpool FC in England, since we happen to be in the UK it would make sense to go to a game in Liverpool right?
UEFA Champions League Final (1)
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![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar.
Ulaanbaatar (1)
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![A Thriving Mongolian Community]()
Life on the Trans-Mongolian Express
A Thriving Mongolian Community When young Mongolians ask their parents where white people come from I’m sure many are tempted to say “From the Trans-Mongolian Express”. After being a pair of white dots in a sea of Chinese faces for over a month it was a little shocking being in the majority on this train from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar.
Ulan Bator (1)
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![Fanboat Lolo!]()
The Top End - Darwin
Fanboat Lolo! We’re in our last stop in Australia before we head off to India. Darwin is the capitol of the Northern Territory, but it’s only a city of about 50,000 people and it has a very different feel from most of the other Australian cities that we’ve visited.
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![Sad Little Went Tent]()
Australia Notes For Budget Travelers
Sad Little Went Tent It should come as no surprise that Australia is not the cheapest of countries on our itinerary. That said, the country is well equipped for backpackers on a budget. Like New Zealand, if you watch your $ in the cities and self-cater (camp and cook yourself), you can stretch your dollars pretty far.
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![Hong Kong Phooey]()
Hong Kong Phooey
Hong Kong Phooey I have to say, after spending two months in India, there are few places better to go than Hong Kong. It’s clean, super-modern and very comfortable. We’re loving our time here, we’re staying in Kowloon, which is kind of a tourist ghetto, but a Hong Kong tourist ghetto is a lot better than a Indian, or even Australian tourist ghetto.
united states conference of catholic bishops (1)
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The Big Mac Index
So I have to tell you, from a exchange rate perspective, 2007 has not been a great year to travel outside the United States. Well, at least not if you have American Dollars to change (thank you George W. Bush). The exchange rates of most of the currencies we changed for was usually worse when we left than when we arrived, it sucked.
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![PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute.]()
Eugenius!!!
PRI - Pizza. Research. Institute. Our friends Deb and Craig moved out to Eugene, Oregon a couple of years a go and we’ve never visited them. Why? Many reasons, theres nothing even resembling a direct flight to Eugene from DC.
University of Oregon (1)
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![The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram]()
Three Nights in Thiruvananthapuram
The Main Drag in Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram: the small town with a really long name! Formerly known as Trivandrum, the town elders decided to change the city name for brevity’s sake to Thiruvananthapuram in 1991. We’re in town for a few days waiting on a train to Delhi.
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![Try to Avoid it...]()
Crazy Taxi - South Africa Edition
Try to Avoid it... Why did we do it? We had little choice. Was there no other option? No, there wasn’t. These are only a few of the questions we found ourselves asking one another as we took our first African “Public Taxi”.
US Consulate in Cape Town (1)
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On Top of the World!
So, since we’ve been back there have been a lot of questions about what was our favorite place, our favorite thing to do, etc. We’ll try and address that here. Some things stand out in our mind easily (like our favorite bathroom), others are a little harder to narrow down to just one thing (favorite place?
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![The Obligatory Shot]()
A Tail of One City: Agra
The Obligatory Shot “It was the best of times and the worst of times.” Mr. Dickens could have been been talking about one city in India, rather than two cities in Europe. Agra, a few hours outside of Delhi is a study in contrast.
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![Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park]()
Elephantitis: Corbett National Park
Elephant Safari Jim Corbett National Park Leaving Delhi, we set off for Corbett National Park about 250 km north in the state of Uttarchanal. Our mission: elephant safari! And maybe spot some other wildlife as well. We were partially successful.
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Vaccinations - Don't Leave Home Without Them
First stop on the road to Round the World Travel is the Doctors office. It may not be the most romantic or adventuresome idea, but I’m pretty sure that before the best adventurers and explorers headed out they got their shots. How much could Indiana Jones have gotten done if he were bed-ridden with Hep B while chasing the Ark of the Covenant?
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Vaccinations - Don't Leave Home Without Them
First stop on the road to Round the World Travel is the Doctors office. It may not be the most romantic or adventuresome idea, but I’m pretty sure that before the best adventurers and explorers headed out they got their shots. How much could Indiana Jones have gotten done if he were bed-ridden with Hep B while chasing the Ark of the Covenant?
Vaccine (1)
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![Mongolia its Grrreat]()
Sain Yavaarai Mongolia!
Mongolia its Grrreat For those planning a trip to Mongolia – don’t bother leaving UB if you are a Vegan or Lactose Intolerant. You will starve! These people love their meat and dairy products. It makes sense, most people here are nomads and don’t want to stick around in one place long enough to grow a crop.
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![Lively Auckland]()
The City of Sails
Lively Auckland We arrived in Auckland early Friday morning and spent three days there exploring the city. Since we only spent a few days in one city, it’s probably not fair to make any kind of sweeping generalizations about Kiwis or New Zealand for that matter.
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![Beverage, Pastry, Why Not Both]()
Early Reflections on China
Beverage, Pastry, Why Not Both So we’ve been in China for almost two weeks now and I have to say, sometimes I need to remind myself we’re in the Third World. After two months in India, being here is …refreshing.
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![The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road]()
Notes From the Great Ocean Road
The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road We’re on the Great Ocean Road at the moment. It runs from the suburbs of Melbourne to the edge of South Australia and was built after WWI as kind of a works project to employ returning veterans in the 1920’s, before that the only way to access the small towns along the road was by ship or ferry.
Victoria (1)
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QANTASed Again!
It really never ends. It’s actually become quite comical. The wrath of QANTAS Beijing is still upon us. One of the changes we made was adding return flights to Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe from Johannesburg. Again, after much confusion, we believed that these flights were confirmed.
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![Be Like Water]()
Hong Kong Part Deux
Be Like Water Wow, it’s hot in Hong Kong! When we were here in May it was just steamy, now it’s downright unpleasant. Thats not the only thing that changes quickly in Hong Kong: a bakery and Vegetarian Restaurant that we loved on our first trip were closed on our second visit – only two months later.
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![I Say Take it Back]()
Back in Bull Island
I Say Take it Back We’re back! A few days after landing in DC we’ve returned to my ancestral homeland of Poquoson, Virginia. Here we are visiting the parents, catching up with current events and trying to remember how Sales Tax works.
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![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Tiger Leaping Gorge
Tiger Leaping Gorge We just did a mini-trek at Tiger Leaping Gorge, it’s in the western part of Yunnan and it’s famous for being one of the steepest and most dramatic Gorges in the world. I have to say, it’s probably the highlight of China for us right now.
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![Passport Please]()
Papers Please
Passport Please One of the more frustrating things here in India has been the India love affair with red tape. Fair warning to all those who come to visit: memorize your passport number. You will need to produce it at many (unexpected)turns.
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![Hong Kong Phooey]()
Hong Kong Phooey
Hong Kong Phooey I have to say, after spending two months in India, there are few places better to go than Hong Kong. It’s clean, super-modern and very comfortable. We’re loving our time here, we’re staying in Kowloon, which is kind of a tourist ghetto, but a Hong Kong tourist ghetto is a lot better than a Indian, or even Australian tourist ghetto.
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Mork to Orson, Come in Orson...
One thing we’ve been doing a lot of research on running up to the last days before we leave is telephones and phone cards. Keeping in touch with folks back home is really important to us so we want something reliable, but we also don’t want to pay a lot for that muffler.
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![Smells Like a Rose Too]()
Rose City Welcomes You
Smells Like a Rose Too Having flights left on our OneWorld Ticket and friends in Oregon to visit we headed off to PDX. Portland, with it’s rivers and bridges, it’s mountains, manageable city size (and professional soccer team), has long been near the top of the relocation list for LeeAnne and I.
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![Mongolian Kid and Friend]()
Mongolia Notes for Budget Travelers
Mongolian Kid and Friend Mongolia is a bit different than the other countries we have visited thus far. There is only one real city, UB, and there is very little infrastructure to support public transport around the country. As we mentioned in Off We Ger if you want to get out into the countryside, which is really THE reason to come to Mongolia, then you need to a) join a tour; b) hire a jeep; or c) be completely raving madand take the local long distance buses.
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![Rainbow Falls]()
North Country
Rainbow Falls When Kiwis go on vacation they go to Northland. It’s the peninsula north of Auckland, and you’re sandwiched in between the South Pacific and the Tasman sea, so there are loads of beach options. It’s where most of the Maori population is located these days too.
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![Sam Walton ...Made in China]()
Notes From a Chinese Walmart
Sam Walton ...Made in China I’m sure Sam Walton is spinning in his grave. The man who billed his store as “All-American, and American Made” now has a huge business in China, with All-Chinese made products. We’re in Kunming, the capitol of Yunnan Province in the South-west of China, and our room is right around the corner from Yunnan’s first Walmart …how could we resist?
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Hello World - A Word About Why We Are on this Trip
Maybe we need to explain a little about why we are doing this: LeeAnne and I have always had a bit of the wander lust. She’s a Returned Peace Corp Volunteer and I’m know in my office as “The Guy That Leaves, But Then Comes Back”, or “TGTLBTCB” for short.
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet.
Wang (1)
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet.
Wang's Tiny Museum (1)
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![The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road]()
Notes From the Great Ocean Road
The 12 Apostles Along the Great Ocean Road We’re on the Great Ocean Road at the moment. It runs from the suburbs of Melbourne to the edge of South Australia and was built after WWI as kind of a works project to employ returning veterans in the 1920’s, before that the only way to access the small towns along the road was by ship or ferry.
Warrnambool (1)
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Where Are They Now?
“So what ever happened to that crazy couple that were going around the world? Where are they now?” The quick answer is, geographically we are back in the U.S. at home in Washington, D.C. where we are looking forward to returning to normal life and everything (good and bad) that that entails – Jobs, Mortgage, Health Insurance, Pets – bring it on.
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![Passports at the ready]()
Passage to Mumbai
Passports at the ready So we’re getting on a plane bound for India this afternoon, and we’re full of excitement and anticipation. We’re also sadly saying good-bye to things like clean tap water, salads and the ubiquitous first world flush toilet.
Water (1)
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![Big Ben - Parliament!]()
London Cousin
Big Ben - Parliament! After close calls with my Cousin Sam Forrest in both New Zealand and Shanghai, we are happy to say we have successfully made contact with my cousin Joe Bateman in London. Actually, he lives ın Watford, but he was nice enough to meet up with us in Central London and show us the sights.
watford (1)
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The Great Firewall of China Strikes Again!
Before we had arrived in mainland China we were aware that censorship was alive and well here. The televised news is little more than propaganda and access to other forms on information is limited. Many web-sites, several that we use regularly are blocked.
web-sites (1)
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![The Wedding Planner]()
Lolo the Wedding Planner
The Wedding Planner How do you know that you are some one’s good friend? When they ask you to manage their wedding. How does someone know when you are their very good friend? When there are almost five hundred people attending your wedding, and you say “Yes”.
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![The Wedding Planner]()
Lolo the Wedding Planner
The Wedding Planner How do you know that you are some one’s good friend? When they ask you to manage their wedding. How does someone know when you are their very good friend? When there are almost five hundred people attending your wedding, and you say “Yes”.
Wedding Planner (1)
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![Wedding Season]()
Wedding Crashers
Wedding Season It doesn’t take a Vince Vaughn scheme to crash a wedding in India, especially during wedding season. We actually had one gentleman befriend us on the streets of Udaipur to “practice his English” and subsequently invite us to his wedding party the following evening.
wedding season (1)
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![India Gate]()
Several Million Do Make A Difference
India Gate After a long, chilly train ride, we arrived in Delhi last Thursday. Delhi is India’s second largest city after Mumbai. And though I can not find consistent population numbers, it is a fact that several million fewer people live here than in Mumbai.
Wenger's bakery (1)
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![Punakaiki Pancake Rocks]()
The Wild West Coast
Punakaiki Pancake Rocks After touring the Lakes District and Fiordland, we headed over Haast Pass to the west coast, described as wild and quite wet by most brochures and guidebooks. The drive over Haast was on one of our first clear, sunny days.
Westland District (1)
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Where Are They Now?
“So what ever happened to that crazy couple that were going around the world? Where are they now?” The quick answer is, geographically we are back in the U.S. at home in Washington, D.C. where we are looking forward to returning to normal life and everything (good and bad) that that entails – Jobs, Mortgage, Health Insurance, Pets – bring it on.
Where are they now? (1)
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Black and White and Southern African All Over
This is the part of the blog where I get us in trouble. We’ve only been here five weeks or so, but it’s hard to leave here without making a comment about the racial tension in this part of the world, and it comes from both directions.
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![Giraffes!]()
The Viewing Game - Krueger National Park
Giraffes! After a little taste of wildlife viewing in Zimbabwe and Botswana, we were pretty psyched to head to Krueger National Park in northeastern South Africa for a four day safari. We were even more excited to be sharing the experience with friends from the States.
wildlife viewing (1)
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![Paddys Wigwam]()
Chillin in the Pool
Paddys Wigwam We ventured to Liverpool for very obvious reasons, but still without the promise of tickets to see the boys in red at Anfield. Luckily the tickets worked out, but I’ll let the footy fan tell his tale.
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![Cadbury World]()
Eat Your Heart Out Charlie
Cadbury World If you’re like me, watching Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (the original with Gene Wilder) when you were a kid was a little disturbing. Our tour of Cadbury World in Dunedin proved to be full of a little of that same creepiness as well as loads of chocolate goodness!
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1)
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![Windhoek - Its Off the Hook!]()
Wild Wild Windhoek
Windhoek - Its Off the Hook! Windhoek is the medium size capitol of a very small country, – Namibia only has 1.2 million residents – it’s also Namibia’s financial and transportation center. If you are coming to Namibia, at some point you will pass through Windhoek.
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![Windhoek - Its Off the Hook!]()
Wild Wild Windhoek
Windhoek - Its Off the Hook! Windhoek is the medium size capitol of a very small country, – Namibia only has 1.2 million residents – it’s also Namibia’s financial and transportation center. If you are coming to Namibia, at some point you will pass through Windhoek.
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![Something about the label appeals]()
Vibrant Straw with Flecks of Brilliant Green
Something about the label appeals When you hear something like “vibrant straw with flecks of brilliant green”, what do you think? I am guessing it wasn’t, mmmm… pour me one of those. As you probably well know, Australia is home to many a wine that we enjoy in the U.
Wine (1)
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![Book-Em]()
Little Adelaide
Book-Em It seems Adelaide has something of a self-image problem. It’s not hard to understand why – with competition like Sydney & Melbourne it’s easy to think of oneself as a little provincial. I can assure you this is not the case.
wine regions (1)
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Pretrip Gearlist (Or Things We Should Have Left Behind)
Below is a partially complete list of stuff we’ve set out with. Too much (almost certainly), not enough (what are you smoking?), we shall see. Please note that the Cycling stuff is going home after we leave New Zealand, and the Camping stuff is going home after Australia.
Wireless Keyboard SD Cards 16MB (1)
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![Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV]()
The World Cup (of Cricket)
Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV One of the things we were excited about was being in India during the World Cup of Cricket. We arrived in Mumbai just a few days before the first match and were anticipating a huge outpouring of support for the national team from India’s billion plus people.
Wisden Cricketers of the Year (1)
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet.
Wolong National Nature Reserve (1)
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![Panda Mania!]()
Mr. Wang & The Giant Pandas
Panda Mania! For many travelers who venture beyond the East Coast of China, it seems that the city of Chengdu is a natural stopping point and with good reason. As capital of the Sichuan Province, it’s a gateway to a number of great adventures and a popular jumping off point for Tibet.
wolong nature reserve (1)
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![Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV]()
The World Cup (of Cricket)
Satellite TV, On a Black and White TV One of the things we were excited about was being in India during the World Cup of Cricket. We arrived in Mumbai just a few days before the first match and were anticipating a huge outpouring of support for the national team from India’s billion plus people.
world cup (1)
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One World Explorer Pricelist by Country
Okay, so one thing we learned very quickly from the One World Explorer FAQ is that OWE tickets are priced differently in every country they are sold in. Is that crazy or what? Originally, we were planning on flying from the states for 4,900 USD plus tax.
world explorer (1)
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![The Treasury]()
Petra Rocks!
The Treasury Pun intended! There’s no doubt about it. Petra is an amazing place. Definitely among the most amazing places on our trip. When you think of Petra, you may envision Harrison Ford and Sean Connery on horse back emerging from a narrow canyon to see the magnificent Treasury.
world heritage site (1)
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![Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity]()
Invercargill Nights
Invercargill is not a hotbed of activity The Legend of Burt Munro Have you seen the movie “The Worlds Fastest Indian”? It’s the true story of an elderly Kiwi who breaks the world speed record for motorcycles at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah at the ripe old age of 69.
world speed record (1)
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Kia Aro from New Zealand!
After fifteen hours of flights and four or so hours of lay-overs we’ve arrived at our first destination: New Zealand. You may say to yourself: “Too Easy! An Around the world trip that starts half-way around the world, they’re cheating.” Well, yes maybe we are cheating.
world travelers (1)
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Trouble in Photo Upload Town
Call it bad luck, call it damn bad luck. But we have had a heck of a time recently finding a machine and a connection to upload photos from. For this we apologized. Even if we can’t see what we’re posting you could, but recently we’ve either been in towns with no internet cafe’s, or towns with internet cafes and crap connections, or towns with good connections and machines so locked down we can’t even run the Flickr Uploadr.
World Wide Web (1)
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![Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore]()
Nadaam
Nadaam - Not Just for Men Anymore Nadaam is the national festival of Mongolia. Indeed, the Mongolian word for festival is Nadaam. Imagine, if you will, a very large State Fair with a Super Bowl type opening ceremony and an emphasis on sports and you will come close to what Nadaam is.
Wrestling (1)
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![Shaolin Wushu Students]()
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Wushu Students What can I say – Lonely Planet you got it wrong again! The LP entry on Shaolin kind of disses on it, making it seem like an over-touristed slock show. LeeAnne and I went in with very low expectations, but if you’ve seen as many Kung-Fu movies as I have, going to China without visiting Shaolin Temple is like eating a peanut butter sandwich with no peanut butter.
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![Long Live China]()
Amen!
Long Live China Well it appears we’ve succeeded at obtaining a legitimate 30 day visa for me in China. While in Guilin, we visited the local Public Security Bureau to inquire about an extension. Word among travelers is that they are quite pleasant to deal with and offer a relatively quick turn around.
Yahoo! (1)
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![Ger Ya Later!]()
Off We Ger
Ger Ya Later! Part of the allure of Mongolia is getting the heck out of UB and heading to the countryside. The only complication with that is that you can’t just hop on a bus and wing it like we have in other countries.
yak (1)
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![Let Their Be Water!]()
Looking for the Promised Land
Let Their Be Water! 7 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 8 Take the rod, and gather thou the assembly together, thou, and Aaron thy brother, and speak ye unto the rock before their eyes; and it shall give forth his water, and thou shalt bring forth to them water out of the rock: so thou shalt give the congregation and their beasts drink.
Yam Suph (1)
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![Li River Scenery]()
Li River Daze
Li River Scenery One of the “must do” activities in China is a cruise down the Li River from Guilin to the smaller city of Yangshou. Like all good budget travelers we opted to join the Chinese tour. You get the same beautiful scenery sans the English commentary, but for half the price of the Foreigner’s tour.
Yangshou (1)
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![Tiger Leaping Gorge]()
Tiger Leaping Gorge
Tiger Leaping Gorge We just did a mini-trek at Tiger Leaping Gorge, it’s in the western part of Yunnan and it’s famous for being one of the steepest and most dramatic Gorges in the world. I have to say, it’s probably the highlight of China for us right now.
Yangtze (1)
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![Shane Battier is Big in China]()
The NBA - It's Chan-Tastic!
Shane Battier is Big in China Move over Ping-Pong, make room for Basketball. The NBA is surprisingly huge here. After Soccer it’s probably the biggest spectator sport in the country. The NBA play-offs are broadcast twice a day here, live at 8AM in the morning and then again at night, followed by a highlights show with Chinese talking heads summarizing the game.
Yao Ming (1)
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![Queen Victoria Market]()
Marvelous Melbourne
Queen Victoria Market After a few days on the road from Sydney we arrived in Melbourne – the second largest city in Australia and the capital of the state of Victoria. Aside from a stroll though the Botanical Gardens and along the Yarra River, we spent most of our brief visit to the city at the Queen Victoria Market and at the Melbourne Zoo.
Yarra River (1)
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China Notes for Budget Travelers
Our original budget for China was based on the costs of the big cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong. Our goal was to stay at or below $70 a day for both of us. We were able to get by on about that in Hong Kong, but were able to easily stay below $50 a day for most of China.
yha hostels (1)
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![Ger Ya Later!]()
Off We Ger
Ger Ya Later! Part of the allure of Mongolia is getting the heck out of UB and heading to the countryside. The only complication with that is that you can’t just hop on a bus and wing it like we have in other countries.
yogurt (1)
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![Lijiang]()
Earthquakes, Orchestras and Pictograms
Lijiang One of the top 10 tourist sites in China is the World Heritage Site of Lijiang, a small town in the mountains of the Yunnan Province. It was ankle to elbow full of tourists, but that didn’t stop us from enjoying the people and culture that abound.
yulong (1)
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![Lijiang]()
Earthquakes, Orchestras and Pictograms
Lijiang One of the top 10 tourist sites in China is the World Heritage Site of Lijiang, a small town in the mountains of the Yunnan Province. It was ankle to elbow full of tourists, but that didn’t stop us from enjoying the people and culture that abound.
Yulong Snow Mountain (1)
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![Ger Ya Later!]()
Off We Ger
Ger Ya Later! Part of the allure of Mongolia is getting the heck out of UB and heading to the countryside. The only complication with that is that you can’t just hop on a bus and wing it like we have in other countries.
Yurt (1)
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![Victoria Falls]()
Victoria Falls - The Smoke That Thunders
Victoria Falls We are so glad to be leaving Johannesburg that the thought of going anywhere else is appealing. Even a departure to Zimbabwe – yes, that Zimbabwe, land of 7000% inflation, of dictatorial rule (Our first dictator, yes!
Zambezi River (1)
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![The back streets of Zhongdian]()
Shangri-La - Not So Much
The back streets of Zhongdian Just north of Tiger Leaping Gorge at the edge of the Tibetan plateau sits the town of Zhongdian – recently renamed Shangri-La by the Chinese. It’s Tibetan name is Gyeltang, but no one uses it.
Zhongdian (1)
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Black and White and Southern African All Over
This is the part of the blog where I get us in trouble. We’ve only been here five weeks or so, but it’s hard to leave here without making a comment about the racial tension in this part of the world, and it comes from both directions.