FastEddie
Edward Hadad Joined: March 12th 2008
Logged in: February 21st 2012
Logged in: February 21st 2012
Travel Blog Posts
Crossing the Bridge
Tibet is known as the Roof of The World for it is the highest and largest plateau on earth, and to that roof is where I wanted to go. While still in Nepal roaming around the neighborhoods of Kathmandu, I was able to find a travel company that offered a seven-day guided package trip up to the politically turbulent region. In general, I’ve become reluctant to taking extended guided tours with set itineraries for I loathe having every minute of my day planned for. Instead of discovering a place on your own, there’s a loss of freedom as you are shuffled around from site to site like a member of a clueless herd of cattle. To get into Tibet, however, there was no choice. The Chinese government currently mandates that all foreign travelers be accompanied by ... read more
Heading to Nepal
From India I headed north for the mighty Himalayas of Nepal. Before leaving, I paid the equivalent of just under fourteen dollars for a trip that included a bus ride all the way to the Indian/Nepalese border, a stay in a hostel, a second bus ride into central Nepal, and, as if that wasn’t enough, free breakfast! I was smug with my seasoned worldly bargain-hunting prowess. My complacent grin, however, wouldn’t last long. After receiving one egg on a piece of bread, I boarded the morning bus with about twenty-five others who had procured the trip. We traversed miles and miles through northern India on an exceptionally long and hot ride. I stared at the dry countryside go by, hour after hour, as the heat slowly and gradually wore away at me. Even though you may ... read more
Welcome To India
As I exited the Mumbai airport in the backseat of a classic 30 year-old non air-conditioned corroding cab and drove towards the city, my brain struggled to process the superabundance of stimuli it was receiving. Out the open window I was introduced to the heat, the dirt, the crowds, the traffic, the noise, the cows, the dogs, the goats, the poor, the rich, the slums, the rising new shiny buildings, the smells, the honking, the colors, the frenzy of human activity, the good, the bad and everything in between. Landing in India was like dropping into another dimension. I had eagerly anticipated coming here, convinced it would be a fascinating country to see, and from the first moment, it did not disappoint. I was headed to the Wadala East neighborhood where my friend Anne and her ... read more
Thailand
I headed over to Thailand to meet my two friends from home, Rob and Buster, who were flying in from New York. (Editor’s note: Buster’s real name is Michael, and he is a fine and intelligent fellow who has long outgrown his old nickname, but it feels unnatural for me to refer to him as anything else. So for our purposes here, he will be “Buster.” Thanks for your cooperation. Let’s continue.) Buster had two weeks off and Rob had four, so we wanted to make the most we could out of this promising mancation. We started off this Southeast Asian adventure in Thailand’s capital, Bangkok, where I was impressed with Rob and Buster’s eagerness to power through any jetlag. By hitting the ground running we took a riverboat cruise through the center of the city ... read more
Korea
Following my two-month interlude back in the USA, I decided to kick off the Eastern leg of my trip in Seoul, Korea. My Canadian friend Ben, whom I met last summer while we were both traveling in Israel, lives in Seoul and encouraged me to come on over. You may recall from my Israel post that Ben is the worm truck delivery driver, which is true, but when not in North America, his main occupation is teaching English abroad. Ben cautioned that at this time of year, Korea was cold, but if I wanted, I was free to visit and stay in his apartment. After enduring a 13-hour flight, I landed in Seoul and was greeted with 10 degree-Fahrenheit temperatures. I had also caught a cold the day before I left New York which seemed to ... read more
New York, NY
After traveling for seven richly filled months, the idea of a return home for a break appealed to me. I missed my friends and family. I could get a rest, save some money, be home for Thanksgiving, the presidential election, and even celebrate the most important day of the year, Halloween. When I landed at JFK, my mother and sister Sara were there to excitedly greet me. As we drove from the airport and I received a debriefing on the classified intricate state of political affairs in my mother’s office, I looked out the window and viewed the approaching New York skyline. It felt surreal. One of the central elements of this return was that except for my family, no one knew I was coming home. My brother and I had discussed the idea of specifically ... read more
Dublin
Well, my friends, as most of you know, I am currently sitting in the continental United States of America and am basking in my return home. I hope that everyone is enjoying the holiday season and I wish the best new year to you all. This post is probably overdue, but the American people have conspired to keep me extremely busy. I will be hitting the road again soon, starting in South Korea, but before I recently set foot on my home soil, I did spend a quick two weeks in Ireland. A number of my ancestors came from there and I decided a visit was in order before concluding my time in Europe. My friend from high school Tom Benevento and his wife Kathleen happened to be taking a trip there as well, and due ... read more
Welcome To France
Before I decided to throw my life into a backpack and head across the ocean, I had a job. I worked for a French company and one of the beautiful little perks at this company was that at no charge at all, one could sign up for private French lessons, which I took full advantage of. When I announced that I was respectfully resigning in the pursuit of giving my passport a workout, my French tutor Sophie told me, “Well, you must go to Paris. I have friends there. You will stay for free.” This offer, to say the least, sounded quite enticing. Sophie is a very humorous and warm middle-aged woman who has a penchant for smoking cigarettes and telling dirty jokes, preferably at the same time. One of the quirky aspects of Sophie is ... read more
Kayseri, Turkey
Following my cargo ship ride from Israel, I spent a few days on the island of Cyprus and then bought a ticket on a ferry bound for Turkey. I boarded the modern boat and sat down inside next to a middle-aged, pudgy, short man who was wearing jean shorts and had his white socks pulled high. The boat quickly filled up with its 300 passengers and then we were off. A few minutes into the trip, he leaned over and said something in Turkish. I gave him an apologetic shrug and told him I only spoke English. He then asked, “What are you? British? Australian?” “No, I’m American.” “You are alone,” he asked. “Yes, I’m traveling alone.” Surprised, he dug deeper, “Alone? Who are you? A diplomat? CIA? FBI?” I laughed a little and said, “No, ... read more
Jerusalem
Hello All, I’m sorry I’ve been a little behind on my blog. I left Israel and have been in southern Turkey along the coast and it is hot. It is gorgeous down here, but the heat of the Middle East in July can wear you down to the point where you don’t want to do anything that requires any physical or mental effort. But I digress; let’s get on to Israel: Following my three hours with the welcoming committee down at the Eilat border, I headed straight for Jerusalem. The history, religious significance and current political climate make this one of the most unique places on Earth. You can just walk around the old city and let your eyes and ears take it all in. Within a short distance, this city has the holiest site in ... read more
