Bonding With My Bondi Family

Days 447-454, February 17-24, 2012

After a couple days with Steve at  the extremely posh hotel, I was kicked to the curb. Well, not really. Steve’s boyfriend Matthew was coming to Sydney and they wanted a little privacy. And since I’m not really a voyeur, nor are they exhibitionists, I left to find a new place to stay.

Luckily Australia seems to be the one area of the world where I have no limit to the number of people I know who are willing to offer a place for me to see. This time was no different. Back in December of 2010, I had met the lovely Carnegie family in Cuzco, Peru. I had stayed in contact with them throughout my trip and when it became known that I would be in Sydney, they hooked me up with their friend Paula whom they had met years ago in India.

Lorikeets on Paula’s deck

Chiang Mai Tweet-Ups

Day 399-403, December 31,2011 – January 4, 2012

At the start of my trip, oh so long ago, Chiang Mai was really just another Thai city on my list of ones I wanted to see. There was no real particular reason behind it, I didn’t know what there was to see or do in the city. That all changed probably around the beginning of October when I learned that Warren and Betsy of Married With Luggage were going to be settling down for a few months in Chiang Mai. Suddenly, I had a major incentive to go to Chiang Mai. A reason 1 year and 3 continents in the making.

1 Out Of 4000 Isn’t Bad

Days 379-381, December 11-13, 2011

Located a mere 5-10 minute drive from the border with Cambodia, the 4000 Islands of Laos are, for the most part, peoples first or last stop on their trip in the tiny, landlocked country. At this section of the Mekong, the river widens enough to create dozens upon dozens of islands. Maybe not the 4000 that the name implies, but there are plenty to see. However, there are only three that are usually on anyone's itineraries or radar. Most of the other “islands” are too small or too temporary to hold any sort of infrastructure.

My bungalow

Koh Samet–Bangkok’s Closest Paradise

Days 303-310, September 26-October 2, 2011

Koh Samet(or Samed, I’ve seen it spelled both ways) is a small island not too far away from Bangkok. It is actually the closest island to the city and thus a popular choice among Bangkokians to head over for a weekend away from The Big Smoke. The island isn’t very big, but for an introduction to Thai island living it does a pretty decent job.

And like most islands, it’s easy to get stuck and lost in the whole doing nothing vibe.

Delightful Dahab

The following takes place on Days 193-197, June 8-12, 2011

For Mick, Arnold, and I, the next day was fairly uneventful. As Vitaly and Ying had left the night before and with no actual tour for us, we had the day completely free. We took the opportunity to walk to the Luxor Museum to check that out as it hadn’t been on the itinerary for our tour. Finding it turned into a bit of a challenge as the road it was on was currently under construction/repair so it deceived us into thinking we couldn’t walk that way. Added a good half hour to our search.

When we did find it and went inside we were all pleasantly surprised. Sure, it was a bit smaller than the museum in Cairo(and more expensive), but it had a semblance of order. All the pieces were in their place with placards explaining their significance. It even had the mummy that had been rediscovered in a Niagara Falls museums back room.

We spent a good few hours there before heading back to the hotel where we spent the rest of the day by the hotel pool, with me meeting a family from England who gave me a few beers for free. Before we knew it though it was time to head to the train station. Arnold had the sitting train back which left half an hour before the sleeper train that Mick and I would be on.

Sunrise to Sunset

The following takes place on Day 190, June 5, 2011

I am not a morning person. Far from it. So when I realized that the second day of the tour required us to be awake and in the lobby by 5am, I was not a happy camper. I am much more of a night owl and have a hard time forcing myself asleep before midnight. But in order to get to the temple of Abu Simbel on the shores of Lake Nasser before it got too unbearably hot, we had to leave by 5:30am at the latest.

It used to be that in order to go there, one needed a police escort the entire way. They seem to have disposed of this in favour of a simpler stop check. If you go to Abu Simbel, your bus stops, the police take account of all who are on it, give the driver a form and then, after the tour in Abu Simbel, another stop check checks to make sure you didn’t take on any additional passengers. Mainly, illegal immigrants from the Sudan which is just across the water from the temple.

Days 99-100, First Steps in Tango Central

The following takes place on Sunday, March 6 and Monday, March 7, 2011

My bus from Mendoza pulled into the Retiro station in central Buenos Aires around one in the afternoon. After getting my bag and tipping the man who pulled the bags out from under the bus(this is a requirement in Argentina) I made my way onto the street and quickly found my way onto Buenos Aires’ aging metro system.

Compared to the subway system in Santiago, Buenos Aires certainly leaves a lot to be desired. Garbage littered the stairs leading down to the metro station and the floor was riddled with ripped up flooring. The cars also seemed like they had seen better days. But considering Buenos Aires had the first underground metro in all of South America, I guess we can let this slide. A little.

Days 73-86, Of Sun, Beach, Earthquakes, and Romance

The following takes place between Tuesday, February 8 and Monday, February 21, 2011

Oh, how grand life is. There are certain moments that really hit it home that I’m on a trip like no other. How else can one go from giant expanses of salt, to desert, to ocean side in the space of a week? It’s hard sometimes to remember how fortunate I am to be able to experience all that I am experiencing. The idea of going on a Round The World trip is such a foreign concept back home. You rarely, if ever, hear of people doing something like this. Either because it was always thought to be too expensive(back when the province was struggling), to now where it’s thought to be too much time to take off(now that the province is booming and everyone is putting more value in making money than in leisure time).

So here I am, in Iquique, a beautiful little city(smaller than Saskatoon even), nestled between the beginnings of the Andes and the Pacific Ocean. Rarely is there a cloud in the sky. Rarely is there a breeze in the air, and when the wind does blow, the smell of the salt water is ripe. It’s as close to paradise as I have been.

Days 70-73, Stepping away from the Tourist Gig

The following takes place between Saturday, February 5 and Monday, February 7, 2011

After I finished the trip through the Salar de Uyuni and the subsequent lagoons and such, and crossing the border into Chile, I made a decision. I was done with tourist things. Besides the short little stint in Cochabamba, and the few days of bed confining sickness in La Paz, I’ve been rushing around signing up for tour after tour after tour for weeks. I was getting sick of it.

I was getting sick of spending hours going through tour agencies looking for the best tour for the best price. I was losing my sense of wonder and awe at the things I was seeing. In a way, I was relearning the major differences between a trip like mine, and a regular holiday from work.

Days 60-64, Getting Lucky in Cochabamba

The Following takes place between Wednesday, January 26 to Sunday January 30, 2011

What happened to Days 57 to 59? Well, somehow I don’t think anyone would really want to hear me spout out how I spent most of those days curled up under the covers of my bed back in La Paz, throwing up every hour. I was not a pretty sight. And my mom can attest, when I’m sick, I kinda turn into a snivelling baby demanding attention and pity.

When I finally felt better I grabbed a night bus and headed off to Cochabamba. A beautiful city that isn’t really on a lot of backpackers radar. Which is just my luck. It was like I had the whole city to myself. Plus, there were other things that occured that made Cochabamba one of my favorite cities I’ve visited thus far.

Days 37-39, Wrapping up Cuzco

The Following takes place between Monday, January 3 and Wednesday, January 5, 2011

After the 80kms + that i had walked on the Salkantay trek, much like after the Colca Canyon, I had no desire to do much else but relax. Though, considering how much I had walked, and how late I got back to the hostel(12:30am), I surprised myself with how late I ended up staying up(2:30am). Maybe laying in an actual bed was so relaxing that I was too relaxed to sleep.

Or something like that.

Either way, the last three days I spent in Cuzco were relatively relaxing compared to the previous five.

Days 24-25, How to Recover from a Canyon Trek

The following takes place between December 21 and December 22, 2010

After two days of grueling work, one really needs something to do to recover. Especially when ones feet has been subjected to a multitude of injuries(and ones ass as well after a two and a half hour mule ride. Get your mind out of the gutter Mark).

Now that we were back at the hostel in Arequipa(in a private room no less), Patrick and I embarked on some interesting ways of attempting to recover.