Blog info

Hi there, this is my old blog. After April 2009 I stopped blogging but I didn't stop traveling. I have made a new blog with some of my favorite highlights from this blog and some of the highlights of my travels since April 2009. I will continue to update the new blog with highlights as I see fit. I can always be contacted by leaving a comment here. Thanks for looking.

Korean Air - Seoul to Los Angeles

Airline #71. This was my first time flying in business class on a 747. I really wanted to sit upstairs but it didn't happen :( I didn't get to sit in the nose either. I had never been quite sure how seating was arranged on a 747 but on Korean Air at least it's like this; 12 first class seats in the nose, and 24 business class seats upstairs, all in rows of two on both sides of the aisle, and then a bunch of rows of business class seats downstairs after first (that's where I was).

Getting home from The Seychelles

There is no such thing as "the perfect beach" - Mahe Island, Seychelles

Baie Lazare

Okay, so I visited The Seychelles, home of the most photographed beach in the world. You would expect to see lots of pictures of beaches here in this post right? What a lousy time to get burned out, but burnout is exactly what happened and searching for beaches wasn't high on my priorities. I also got physically sick and didn't have the energy to go around all of the island or to the nearby islands. Still it wasn't a complete disaster, I did find some really nice beaches.



When the first beach you go to looks like this then maybe it's actually a good time to get burned out. I mean, why leave? Why look for anything else? This is Anse Major and it takes either a boat or a really enjoyable hike to get here, and there are not many people around.



Another view of Anse Major

Another day another island - Mahe, Seychelles

Aside from being one of the most exotic places I have ever been to The Seychelles are notable for me as the 100th country stamped in my current passport (110th overall). And what an interesting stamp!



Good morning Seychelles!



This is really a unique set of islands here in the Indian Ocean. Unlike most tropical islands that are volcanic or coral these islands are granite, so that means they have been sticking up there ever since the continents were first formed and started drifting apart.



My first encounter with Geocaching.

Not really an island - Qatar

I say "not really an island" because Qatar is the home of the news network Al Jazeera which in Arabic means "The Island". In the Arabic language Al Jazeera is also used to refer to the Arabian Peninsula itself (of which Qatar is a part and is itself a smaller peninsula jutting off from the big one).



Qatar's pre-oil economy was mainly based around pearling, and trading.





The wooden dhow is the traditional Arab sailing ship and features prominently in the country's art, culture, and leisure time.



Qatar has a I.M. Pei designed Museum of Islamic Art.



Among it's treasures is this beautiful map of the world from medieval times.

Qatar Airways - Kuala Lumpur to Doha

Airline #70



It just warmed my heart to look out the window and see all that brown down below, after way way way too much green in SE Asia.

Back to the good life - Malaysia

Within SE Asia it's hard to beat Malaysia for the right balance of cheap and comfortable transport, great food, and weird and wonderful things to see. It was just a quick transit but it was good to be back in Malaysia.



My first Malaysian train ride. I splashed out for the sleeping berth, it was worth it!



This was still an amazingly cheap train ride, by any standard.





You can easily find some top notch Indian food here.





Along with variations on the usual stuff I had grown accustomed to on this trip.



And I found doctor fish!

Another day another island - Singapore

this is apparently the worlds largest fountain







a Singapore variation on ice cream from street vendors



I got red bean of course



You really aren't supposed to walk across the causeway between Singapore and Malaysia anymore



Fortress Singapore. The immigration complex at the border is massive!

SIN

Singapore's Changi International Airport is the best airport in the world!













After over 12 hours there it was VERY hard to leave.

JetStar - Darwin to Singapore

Airline #69

How to see Australia

Australia is huge! Most of the center and the interesting natural places are barely populated and getting around in them and between them isn't easy or cheap. These are your options:



Take a tour with a bunch of losers



Buy an old car and load it up with your gear and drive around, like this French guy did



Rent an expensive 4WD



or do it the way we did with a normal rental car and a lot of restrictions.

This is the main problem with Australia (aside from the mosquitoes). Numbers 2 and 3 are clearly the best choices but they require either cash or commitment. I don't want to waste either my cash or my commitment on Australia and that is probably why I've never enjoyed the country. But then who cares? If there are countries that require neither cash nor commitment then why bother with Australia at all?

Dreamtime

Kakadu is home to some amazing Aboriginal rock art





And some incredible landscapes.