Here I go....
In and around World
getting started
Route taken and entries by Real Traveler ShellyG
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1
I'm finally here....now what am I doing?
I think that was the question I was asking myself when I walked out of the hostel at 8am and promptly headed 2 miles in the wrong direction...... Continue reading »
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2
What do you get when you cross a sheep and a camel?
So according to the random van driver, you get a shamel when you breed a sheep and a camel (please don't try to picture it I almost lost sleep over... Continue reading »
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3
I made peace with the sand for the day
Many of you may know of my extreme dislike for sand (I know its strange) but today I was OK with it. The peacemaker? Sandboarding... Continue reading »
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4
It doesn't look that far on the map....
I opted against all of the prepacked tours that abound in Paihia and decided to spend the day hiking. The visitors center had provided m... Continue reading »
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5
At least we didn't lose the car
Haven arrived early this morning but she was either an impressively light packer or the airline lost her bag. Unfortunately it was the latter... Continue reading »
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6
Caving with glowworms
We stayed at a hostel in Waitomo where there was no one there when we arrived, no one there when we left (we left a note and money on the front des... Continue reading »
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7
It smells like cabbage boiling in rotten eggs
Haven and I have been real party animals ever since we arrived. Last night we even stayed up until 10pm. It gets completely dark by 6pm... Continue reading » -
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Zorbing
Several years ago I read a story about zorbing. The activity is pretty simple as it just involves rolling down a hill in a giant, infla... Continue reading »
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9
Kea Ora!
The region around Rotorua is also renowned for it's link to the Maori culture. The
Maori's are the New Zealand native... Continue reading »
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10
Seems like a good day to jump out of a plane...
Haven and I made a reservation for skydiving for 10:30am on the 30th. Neither one of us had ever been but we were both very excited.&nb... Continue reading »
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11
The Tongariro Crossing
The Tongariro Crossing (which took only slightly less time to learn to pronounce than it did to complete) has been called the best one day hike in... Continue reading »
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12
Starting in third gear is not easy!
Our first long drive of the trip,clocking in at about 5 hours, was from National Park to Wellington. I'd felt guilty up until this point... Continue reading »
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13
We are so sophisticated
We crossed over into the South Island and were greeted with no people and even fewer roads. Someone told me that there were only 500,00... Continue reading »
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14
It was a long drive, but there was plenty to look at
We left the wineries behind in Nelson for the long drive down the west coast of the South Island. There was about 8 hours of driving to do, s... Continue reading »
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15
Can Queenie live up to the hype?
Ever since I stepped off the plane (and really even before that) I've heard folks talk about how Queenstown is so great. Based on multip... Continue reading »
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16
If all of your friends jumped off of a bridge, would you?
Well yes, I would also jump off of the bridge.
I've never had the urge to bungy jump before. It always seemed, well, crazy, but th... Continue reading »
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17
Matchbox cars are good in the snow right?
Milford Sound is known for being remote and beautiful. I'd wanted to get there on this trip, but I wasn't sure how to fit it in. The So... Continue reading »
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18
"Rocked to sleep" has a whole new meaning....
My three weeks were up and I had to say goodbye to NZ. Haven and I had a blast but I know her husband missed her and I was ready to see a new... Continue reading »
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19
They don't call it "Great" for nothing.
The whole point of including Australia on my itinerary was so that I could dive at the Great Barrier Reef. I signed up for a 3 day live-aboar... Continue reading »
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20
Sunshine my a**
In multiple locations, my Lonely Planet describes Sydney as having "over 300 days of sunshine every year..." Apparently I came on the other 6... Continue reading »
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21
Everything's bigger in.....Sydney?
It rained (hard!) for 5 straight days. During those days I did eat some excellent food and toured around some nice museums, but mo... Continue reading »
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22
There are a whole lot of Chinese people here...
When I planned this trip, I thought the month in NZ and Oz would sort of break me into traveling and then I'd be ready for China. In reality,... Continue reading »
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23
Dinner. On a Stick!
I managed to solve the food dilemma by meeting a very fun couple from Seattle who invited me to grab a bite to eat with them at the Night Market. To... Continue reading » -
24
It's not forbidden anymore
Megan arrived safely on morning of the 24th although she had a close call with making her flight. I was very happy to see her and we im... Continue reading »
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25
Wow....that's quite a wall
The Great Wall of China can not actually be seen from the moon but it the longest man made structure. It took millions of men, an u... Continue reading »
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26
The Chinese Bellagio...
Megan and I managed to take the overnight train to Xi'an without too much drama. I will say that on the way to the train station we saw a who... Continue reading »
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27
Man of Terra Cotta doesn't sound as impressive as Man of Steel, does it?
Apparently a whole bunch of Chinese emperors got on a kick to make lots (and I mean lots) of warriors out of clay and then bury them in elabor... Continue reading »
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28
Blue Sky and Buddha
It turns out that the sky is still blue although our excursion to Tibet was our first visual confirmation since our arrival in China. The wai... Continue reading »
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29
Skipping stones doesn't require a language
Our last day in Tibet we got out of Lhasa for an excursion to Yamdruk Lake. Our guide Lobsang and our Chinese driver who spoke no English were along... Continue reading » -
30
I think there is a river here...
We left the lovely clear skies of Tibet and flew to Chongqing for the start of our cruise down the Yangtze River. Chongqing's smog is the thickest... Continue reading »
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31
We need politicians like this in DC
Megan and I spent the first evening on our boat trying to figure out when the boat was leaving the dock. We were under the impression that we were le... Continue reading » -
32
Visa is NOT everywhere I want to be
We ended our cruise in Yichang (we didn't really know where it was either) and said goodbye to our Australian friends. We had arranged a transfer fr... Continue reading » -
33
Hot and dirty, but not in the good way
We arrived in Shanghai after our debacle in Yichang close to exhausted. Our only desire was to make it to our hostel and relax. Unfortunately, we di... Continue reading » -
34
Tokyo Part I
I met Nick at the airport in Tokyo as his flight got in about an hour before mine. It had been about 7 weeks since I'd seen him, but it turns out I... Continue reading »
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35
He wore an itsy bitsy teeny weeny....
Our first trip outside of Tokyo was made specifically to see very fat men in very small diapers, but since it was a sumo basho (tournament) I guess... Continue reading »
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36
7,845 Shrines + 1 Festival + 1 Typhoon = A Darn Good Time
We headed away from Nagoya in the rain at 6am to meet friends in Kyoto. Unfortunately, the only instructions we had to go on was "We will mee... Continue reading »
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37
Ammanno....Amona...Amah..What?
The greatest part about meeting up with Rika (in addition to having fun friends to hang out with) was all of the changes it inspired in my travel p... Continue reading »
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38
You think you can squeeze through that nostril?
We headed out from Kyoto for the day to explore Nara. I've heard from several people that this is a great town and it was a pleasant way to s... Continue reading »
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39
Times I wish I had a helmet...
We were ready for a little adventure after so much culture, but maybe we should be careful what we wish for. Our first stop in Shikoku was th... Continue reading »
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40
What I've learned in Japan
OK so nothing too crazy happened on this section of my trip to Japan. We spent some lovely time with Rika in Matsuyama and got a chance to re... Continue reading »
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41
How Much is that Tori in the Water?
We left the comforts of Rika's apartment in Shikoku and took the ferry to Hiroshima (one ore city that wasn't on the original itinerary). Hir... Continue reading »
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42
And then adventures ensued...
The Japanese have a saying that a wise man climbs Mt Fuji once but a fool cilmbs it twice. I understand the second half of that statemen... Continue reading »
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43
Rest and Relaxation
Still feeling groggy from my crazy Mt Fuji climb, I said goodbye to Japan and headed for a few days in Bangkok. I was so out of it when I arr... Continue reading »
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44
It's a Jungle Out There
I arrived in India to the wonderful hospitality of my old friends. They picked me up from the airport and whisked me to their home for a week... Continue reading »
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45
Delhi & Varanasi (aka The Craziest Place on Earth)
When I stepped off the plane in India I had almost no idea of what I would be doing for the next three weeks. I had a plane ticket north to D... Continue reading »
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46
Learning a thing or two at the temples....
Yes I know I'm home, but I feel the need to do India justice so I've got a few more of these things coming.... Continue reading »
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