Have Itch, Will Travel

People rave about their trips to Ethiopia . It's off-the-beaten-track but full of amazingness and culture... I suspect these people enjoyed Ethiopia in the comfort of their 3- or 4-star hotels, coaches, and internal flights, according to a planned and packaged tour. Now, I'm not saying Ethiopia isn't amazing or doesn't provide a different experience in culture etc. The towns (and especially the local markets ) are lively and exciting places, their cuisine is surprisingly varied and tasty, the coffee is the best in the world, and unique landscapes like the Simien Mountain range and the other-worldly Danakil Depression are found there. Hiking the Simien Mountains was a highlight. Finding a place to pee in the bushes around camp where 50 other people shit, not so much. Ethiopia is also a land of fine print, smarmy opportunists , entitled children demanding money, and money-grubbing tourism operators. If you are thinking about going to Ethiopia, I would say, "...

Johannesburg to Cape Town Road Trip - Part 4 Most people who visit rate Cape Town highly, so I was curious to discover what carried Cape Town over other big cities. Apart from the dominating Table Mountain backdrop (on a clear, fogless day), we found that it didn't offer much more than any other city. The colourful neighbourhood of Bokamp is photogenic but there's not a lot happening. There were cafes , bars , restaurants , and shopping malls as you would expect. The bulk of tourists seemed to congregate at the V&A Waterfront , a harbour area rejuvenated into a large, muddled tourist trap of full-priced boutique shops and restaurants. A nearby " market " proved a disappointment as gullible tourists gathered under the white marquee to dine atop fake grass and pallet furniture, paying top dollar for dressed up pancakes and smoothies marketed as organic, vegan, gluten-free, or subscribe to some sort of eco-friendly/health fad. The best of Cape Town was...

Johannesburg to Cape Town Road Trip - Part 1 Maboneng is a trendy district in Johannesburg ; the streets are lined with hipster cafes , moody restaurants , artisan stalls, and boutiques. There are sculptures in the lanes and murals on the industrial brick walls. Maboneng is also only as big as two blocks and security staff man each entry, making the district a European-style island haven surrounded by dodginess. In fact, it was recommended that we Uber it to anywhere outside of Maboneng, even to another "safe" neighbourhood just 1 km away. We felt stuck and needed to leave, despite the welcome cheap offerings of excellent food and coffee , and planned to navigate our way out of dodge in a surprisingly affordable rental car . After a few nervous wrong turns, thanks to closed on-ramps and an inaccurate map, we raised our arms on the freeway bound for Cape Town, wooting, "Road trip!" Rob had been to Cape Town several years ago and considered it one of his f...

I always wanted to visit Budapest . I had envisioned an exotic and grand city, but strangely, this "vision" had no formed image. I had no idea what its buildings looked like, whether there were mountains or snow, I didn't even know that the Danube River ran through it (wasn't that in Austria?). The extent of my knowledge was this: vizslas, salami, and langos. One can enjoy a delectable, fully loaded, fried bread in Budapest (or Eat Street Markets, Brisbane) We stayed in one of the hundreds of apartment blocks on the Pest side of the city. An enduring memory of mine involves the gridded streets of residential buildings, great concrete things several stories high, seemingly identical but somehow each unique. The clatter of trams and trilling of the overhead wires echoed off the walls, providing regular reminders of our location whenever our minds meandered. We always liked a city with affordable light rail, but discovered a more fun alternative: MolBubi , Budap...

Jeremy Clarkson said it was the greatest road ever made, so naturally, Rob wanted to test the hairpins of Romania 's TransFagarasan Highway. We started our Transylvania loop in the 13th century town of Braşov , and enjoyed the activity in the ridiculously photogenic Piata Sfatului . People slurped on frappes and sucked down gelati under cafe umbrellas as rows of delightfully pastel buildings embraced the cobblestone square. The spires of the ominously gothic Black Church  meanwhile, peered over the goings-on from nearby. Piata Sfatului was originally a marketplace. Before embarking on the TransFagarasan, Rob warmed up our trusty steed for the week, a pure white Renault Clio. The TransBucegi Highway  (Route DJ 713) gave us a taste of the Transylvanian alps as we wound through Bucegi Natural Park , and reached an altitude of just under 2000m. But the 39km stretch was only a primer for the TransFagarasan Highway. The TransFagarasan connects the centre to the south, and wa...

Do not underestimate the road to Tatev. "I don't know what to do!" sobbed Rob, at the end of his tether. I pulled apart his backpack, but there were no drugs to help. He was losing fluids, electrolytes, and sleep, and all I had was water. It was 3am and we were in the middle of nowhere. Less than 24 hours earlier, we were at a car rental agency in Armenia's buzzing capital, Yerevan . We had hoped to hire the classic Russian 4x4, the Lada Niva , but none was available for the time we needed. Instead, we started our six hour cross-country journey in a black Kia Rio; our first night was to be  Tatev , a remote village of less than 900 people. Most visitors to its nearby cliff-top monastery arrived by the record-breaking 5.7km cable car " Wings of Tatev " and we learned why. "Well, she said the Rio could do it!" Rob sighed, recalling the rental agent's remark. The road had deteriorated into rocks and water-worn pits after the second switchba...

Once upon a time, only Soviet cities with populations over one million could have an underground railway. Georgian-born Josef  Stalin insisted that his country's capital have a metro, though he did not live to see his will done. Without Stalin, Tbilisi was denied the privilege of a metro, but as USSR was involved in a Cold War with the USA at the time, they were allowed to build bomb shelters. The story is told that these bomb shelters were eventually linked to form the metro. Whether you would like to believe the story of Georgian cunning or not, trust me when I say that using the metro was an experience in itself. Like most ex-Soviet metros, the system was deep underground, and the escalator that whisked us down at triple the speed of your conventional mall escalator was like an old tractor; rugged, rough, needing constant maintenance, and likely to devour you if your shoelace was caught. We observed the other passengers keenly and learned that their slight desperation t...

Wikitravel is a good resource for transport to Ani from Kars , but we found some details were outdated or not applicable when we visited in May, 2018 ( shoulder season ). Here are some notes from our experience: We checked with the wait staff at Antik Café  who told us that the bus service was operating once daily, departing from outside the cafe at 1100 . They advised us to turn up at 1030; the bus arrived outside the café at this time and departed at 1100 . There were 16 passengers  in our trip, so lots of seats were not filled. The journey cost  14TRY return per person . (Our hotel offered us a private car for 150TRY!) The site entrance fee was 8TRY per person , but multi-site passes were accepted also. There was a snack and tea shop at the entrance. There was a WC (1TRY) at the new complex across the road. We were at the site for 2 hours , which was enough time. It was cold and windy at the site, and there was a little rain. Dress appropr...

The Lycian Way is a continuous hiking trail along 500km of Turkey's southern coastline, starting from Ölüdeniz and ending in  Geyikbayırı (near Antalya). It is named after the ancient Lycian people who inhabited the coast from 1200-1500 BC until the 7th to 9th centuries AD, when the culture and population declined due to earthquakes, war, conquests, the introduction of Christianity, and the plague. Remnants of the ancient culture can be found along the trail in the form of city ruins and sarcophagi. In 1999, the trail was researched and marked by Kate Clow, and has since attracted hikers from around the world. View of Ölüdeniz from above This post outlines some tips and lessons learned from personal experiences. You may find them useful if you are interested in hiking the Western section from Fethiye to Alınca, and I highly recommend that you do! Context Route: Fethiye to Kabak trail and then a Kabak - Alınca - Kabak loop Time of year: April Weather: no rain,...

So we loved the train travel in Burma, with its excitingly bumpy and rocking ride, but this does not help when you want to use the toilet! Indeed, I avoided it as much as I could, sometimes waiting for our destination to use the station toilets. I had surmised they would be a measure of clean, or at least a little bit more so, but it was not always the case. The bumping and swaying made it challenging enough for me to hover, and for Rob to aim ("I nearly pissed on my shorts!"), never mind the near complete darkness in some lavatories. It's enough to make you obsess over the damp soles of your shoes or flip flops. Then, there's the heat of day stagnating that windowless metal box, warming the misfires so you return to your seat, sniffing your clothes and asking your travel partner if you still smell like loo. Oh! What about station stops? The train would be stationary, won't it? I can hear you ask. Well, yes... But the thing is, there's a toilet, but no sept...

Burmese train travel . It is the only way to get around in Burma. Rob and I had seen Anthony Bourdain's Burma trip in Parts Unknown , and decided that a crazy bumpy train ride was a must-have experience. So we plotted our route and ensured we would take every train that connected the towns we wanted to visit. In Yangon, we bought Upper Class tickets and boarded the train to Thazi. The train staff were helpful in locating our seats, since the numbers above the seats weren't always the actual seat numbers. We loaded our packs in the overhead racks, noting some of the locals had looped their bag straps through the rack to somewhat secure them. Could this be an indication of how bumpy the ride would be? Sitting down, we took in the scene around us. Upper Class was a carriage fitted with old airplane seats, upholstery torn and foam sagging. The scuffed lino was littered with days', maybe weeks', worth of dust and sunflower seed husks. Surprisingly, the seats were comfo...

I haven't traveled overseas since Latin America, but didn't know where to visit next. I met Rob in November 2013 and found someone inspiring. Rob is similar to me; active and inquisitive, but a true jet-setter, having visited many places in Europe, Africa, South America and South East Asia. Though he doesn't do long trips, he goes overseas twice a year. While he was on one of his trips, crossing Sri Lanka by motorbike, I imagined a fantastic time joining him on his next trip. There were a few places neither of us had visited; South Korea, Japan, Burma, Morocco, North India... On our look-out for cheap flights to any of these places, we stumbled upon a great deal to Burma with Singapore Airlines . Needless to say, flights were quickly booked! The to-do list: 1. Get a passport . Tragically, it's been so long, mine expired. 2. Get a visa . This is recommended to get in advance; availability of visa on arrival is irregular. The Myanmar embassy in Australia is in Canb...

There is an excellent new resource on the web by a Dutch expat living in Peru and it's all about combi routes through Lima , including tips and jargon. If you're looking at spending time in Lima, Rutas Recomendables might be worth a look at; certainly, getting around Lima by combi or micro is something to experience if you've never done anything like it, it's easy and also very cheap!

Travelers have a love/hate relationship with cab drivers. On one hand, they will take you to a familiar place if you are lost , but on the other hand, they are far more expensive than public transport, even when they're not ripping you off. They don't provide you with the authentic local experience like public transport does, but they can be more comfortable . Some cab drivers are honest and have suggestions for places to stay or eat... that is, if they are not getting a commission from the owner of the place. Cab drivers can be a great source of other information though, and good practice on your language skills... if they are not distracting you from their partner in crime pulling out a knife in order to mug you... Yes, there is a love/hate relationship with cab drivers. Individuals may have many good attributes and generally, taking a cab can have advantages , especially when you are not confident in taking public transport, have luggage or shopping, are lost, in a dodgy ne...

With very little time to make good on my promise to be back in Lima before my birthday, I booked the three day direct bus from Buenos Aires to Lima. I bought the ticket the morning of the massive earthquake in Chile , that decimated the nation's capital, toppling skyways and buildings to rubble like you see in disaster movies. It was very real and the news everywhere in Buenos Aires was about that tragedy, as well as the recent smaller quake in beautiful Salta of Northern Argentina. The quake didn't impact my travels, though the bus had to change its route to avoid the disaster zone. All in all, three days on the bus wasn't so bad... if you can believe that! The most memorable things of the trip included the ever changing scenery out the window as we drove across Argentina, in particular, the Andean snow capped peaks , pink with the low light of the rising sun. It was quite a sight when I woke up that morning. We entered Chile in the middle of the freezing high altitude nig...

I had promised Joe that I wouldn't be away from Peru too long, and was determined to make it back to Lima by my birthday. I had six days left; the last three needed to be allocated to the full three day bus trip from Buenos Aires to Lima, so I was left with just three days to experience the Falls on both the Brazilian and Argentinean sides, as well as allow for overnight stays to get buses. It seemed like an impossible task, but I was to have a few lucky days. I finally arrived in the town of Foz do Iguaçu in Brazil at 2:30pm. I thought it was too late to see the Falls and had all but decided to find accommodation for the night. Before I left the bus station, I went to the tourist information desk for details on how to get to the Falls and they said I still had time today. What the hell! I thought. I jumped on the next shuttle and was pleased to see that the visitor's centre had lockers where I could stow away my pack and be free to wander. The Falls were just incredible....

Shortly after Santa Theresa gave me that taste of a hillside view of Rio, I took a bus to Pao de Açucar ( Sugar Loaf ), a striking hill by the coast. It was as easy as walking a couple of blocks in Centro to where everyone was waiting for a bus and then hopping on the first one headed to the neighborhood of Urca . Bus fares seemed to be mostly the same, at R$2.35 ($1.45AU). I overshot the stop by two blocks when the bus turned into the smaller suburban streets, but it was a pleasant walk back to the plaza. If you want to live in Rio, Urca is the place to buy a house. Quiet, by the beach and full of neat little houses in cool leafy streets. To ride the cable cars up to Sugar Loaf was about R$22 and certainly worthwhile. An afternoon visit produced a lot of glare off the water as the sun sets behind Christ The Redeemer on Corcovado , so a morning visit would've probably been better. But the view was stunning. The ocean on both sides, fading into mistiness, yachts and sailboats...

When I arrived in Rio de Janeiro , I was disappointed. Where was the amazing and beautiful city I had imagined? Not here. Instead, there was a conglomeration of ugly buildings that I pictured still housed furniture from the seventies, cluttered sidewalks and graffiti tagging every wall. Occasionally, there would be a surprise around the corner; an interesting monument, a park or a colonial style building wedged between plain concrete ones. The main square in Centro expectedly had some attractive buildings surrounding it, but there was not much more beyond that. This was what I saw initially. But on closer observation, it was a lively city bustling with people doing their daily things. With every other step I encountered a suco (juice) bar or restaurant, vendors selling delicious coconut water or snacks. For every wall that was a canvas for a vandal there was a bold graffiti art that was welcome on the otherwise grey street. The boulevards were shady and everything was convenient. ...

It was Carnaval time in Brazil and after stop overs in Cancún, Miami, and São Paolo, I finally landed in Recife. My final destination was actually to be Salvador de Bahia for the week, but I had the better part of the day to explore Recife before the bus south. I hadn't even left the airport and already I knew I was going to like Brazil. There was a colorful welcome committee waiting for us in baggage claim, where a small band played lively music for costumed dancers. It seemed no one wanted to leave the airport while awaiting relatives outside wondered what the delay was. Recife In 6 Hours There was an extremely helpful and friendly staff at the airport tourist information desk and thankfully, they spoke English perfectly. The ladies there rang around to find out approximate times for buses to Salvador and explained how and which local bus I was to catch to the estaçao. Meanwhile, they said, I could stop at a popular tourist area to check out the beach and restaurant strip...

I landed in Miami from Mexico, knowing that I was stuck there until I got a Brazilian visa. I didn't know how long that would take, but my first priority was to get past customs without my Cuban souvenirs being found. For a few minutes I was a little nervous, as one of the custom officers questioned me about my travels, apparently suspicious that I had been traveling for so long and with just a 35L pack. The bag sat on the bench between us, ready for the evidence of a Cuban visit to be found, but fortunately, I was let away without an inspection. After rescheduling my flight and getting the necessary information on visa applications, I headed to Miami Beach for a cheap hostel. I really should've stayed in a cheap hotel within Miami proper since the cab ride to the cheap hostel easily made up the difference in price. I spent the evening hanging around a Dutch girl from the hostel. We had the most awesome pizza I had had since the beginning of the trip and wandered up and down...