Travel Blog Posts
September 6th 2010
So it comes to an end. It'll be weird not living out of a bag anymore, or waking up in the morning and figuring out where to next. The ultimate display of freedom, a hell of a ride. Still I traveled for way longer than I could have anticipated and have no regrets. Some people say traveling will change you as a person, and no I'm definitely the same person but I do think I have broadened my horizons and have learnt and experienced much about other cultures. I also got to know myself better as a person and what my advantages and shortcomings are. I'm happy to say I surprised myself in certain ways, but need work in many others. Here are some stats I've compiled along the way, most are guesstimates... STATS Countries Visited: ... read more
September 1st 2010
Wow. After nine months here I am back to where it all began. And this time I'm not all messed up and jet lagged either! I came in by short ferry hop from Macau and was looking forward to making the most of my time back in HK. Low and behold I ended up staying again at the Chunking mansion, you will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. Or was that Mos Eisley's spaceport? In any case it was seedy as ever, people packed in from every corner of the world and touts trying their best to annoy me with promises of tailor made suits, Rolex watches, Chinese women, you name it. The Islamic center near Chunking was packed as Ramadan was in gear. Never realized how many devout Muslims lived in ... read more
August 29th 2010
Macau was originally a Portuguese colony as well as the first and last colony in the far east. It was handed back to China in 1999 but still remains autonomous in most ways. It's economy relies on tourism and in fact it's gambling sector now generates more money than Las Vegas. It is through and through a city built for entertainment with an interesting blend of Chinese and Colonial elements. Portuguese is an official language and is still found on all signs. Most residents can only speak Cantonese though and I had some trouble with even finding English speakers in some areas. I also found out it has the highest life expectancy in the world. The wheels landed down in the evening, it was my first time on a plane in over eight months (not counting ... read more
August 27th 2010
Tokyo, fast paced, bright, dense, the political, economical, and cultural centre of Japan and home to state of the art technology and the largest metro system in the world. It is home to the Japanese Imperial family. Top nightclubs, shops, restaurants, and truly an international city with nothing quite like it. Tokyo was originally called Edo about a hundred and fifty years ago and even then was one of the most populated cities. And now it is considered one of several alpha cities of the world.If you have money you can have a blast here, course if you're like me, a nearly broke backpacker, you can still have fun, but you need to be creative about it. The bus came into Marunouchi district to a massive bus and train terminal in central Tokyo close to the ... read more
August 24th 2010
The Japanese say he/she who has not climbed Fuji is a fool but he/she who climbs it twice is an even bigger fool! I came through Nogoya and several other places on my way here, stopping at Shin Fuji station. Then I continued onwards to a base town called Gawaguchink. I was here to tackle Fuji and I'd be doing it during the night! At 3776 m, Mt Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan and considered it's holiest. It has a near perfect symmetrical cone shape to it and is one of the most famous symbols in all of Japan. Numerous people make the trek up each year, luckily I've come here during climbing season which is only July and August. Any other times are quite dangerous with fatalities to show it. Some people have ... read more
August 22nd 2010
Yet another site to ancient capitals, only forty minutes away from Kyoto. I local trained it and then checked into a cheap hostel I found near the station. The owner was a really friendly guy. I went off to the main sight area and spent some hours walking about. I also took a power nap on a park bench during mid-day. Truth be told, although many of these temples and shrines were impressive, I'm at my wits end with them. It's crazy temple overload for me and I think this will be the last city that I actively seek out some temple sights because it just doesn't do it for me anymore. Neverthess in terms of nature this city was gorgeous. There were deer that roamed the park area unobstructed, as well as patios in the ... read more
August 21st 2010
The former Imperial capital of Japan, Kyoto teems with history at every corner yet still maintains a grip on the cutting edge, like most Japanese cities these days. I arrived after spending the night on a bus. Although only early morning, the fact that Kyoto lies surrounded by hills traps the already unbearable heat even more. I gave Aaron a call, I contacted him on couchsurfing.com and he agreed to host me for my time in the city. He was originally from Vietnam but had been living in Japan for the past few years and spoke the language perfectly. He also enjoyed traveling around extensively when he could. He turned out to be a great host, providing me with loads of info, giving me food, and letting me use his washing machine. His place was small ... read more
August 18th 2010
The first thought invoked by the word Hiroshima for nearly anyone is that it was the first city to suffer the devastation of an atomic bomb. On August 6th, 1945 a plane, the Enola Gay, approached the city. Many citizens thought that it was just a surveillance plane. Two more planes were behind and they would be used for measuring the bombs effect. The military saw them on radar but figured the contingent couldn't do much damage and thought nothing more of it. Up until this point Hiroshima had been spared any significant bombings but the truth was that the Allies decided to leave the city intact so it could study the effect of their new bomb. Also the two main things that sealed Hiroshima's fate was that there was no POW camp suspected of being ... read more
August 15th 2010
Japan has been a long time coming. It is a country where you can find traditional culture and beliefs as well as being on the forefront of technological innovation of all forms. It has the fastest bullet trains, most densely populated cities, home of the Sumo, massive video game arcades, calm and orderly people, neon lights all over buildings, grown men reading manga comics, karaoke, super toilets, etc. Basically it's a place like no other and some might say almost on a different planet. Definitely a place I'd always been curious about visiting. The boat left from Busan on an overnight ride towards the land of the rising sun. On board I met a British couple who kept me company. We had beer and stayed up quite late. The boat arrived at six am and I ... read more
August 14th 2010
I arrived in Busan as a Typhoon was passing through the city. Great timing. Luckily the metro station was attached to the bus terminal so I needn't go outside. After a few stations I showed up at the cheapest hostel I could find in Busan which seemed comfortable and then met some other travelers staying there. It was about three pm and one of them had just woken up. I then left to explore a bit of Busan on my own. It's one of the bigger port cities in the world and has a subtropical climate. I first checked out a famous fish market right on the water front. The market was actually indoors and there was obviously water and hoses everywhere, I wondered how long a building like that would be able to last without ... read more
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