http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/JasonWoodley/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from JasonWoodley en-us Sat, 28 Nov 2009 10:05:25 +0000 Sat, 28 Nov 2009 10:05:25 +0000 Over the last 9 months we have learned that you really canrsquot plan more than a couple of days ahead. We left the continent of Africa after an absolutely amazing time. Our tentative plan was to start in Greece and make our way up through Eastern Europe visiting some friends along the way. We made it to Greece and settled in easily to the beach lifestyle on Crete. We spent 3 weeks hanging out http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Greece/Crete/Paleohora/blog-208307.html It means ldquogive me a tiprdquo in Arabic weather I deserve one or not. Everyone asks for one some people definitely deserve it others maybe not but regardless of the backsheesh requests Arab hospitality is one of the best. We have been trying to describe our trip in Egypt but we ended up sounding like an advertising agency because we were both so impressed. Currently no travel agency is http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Lower-Egypt/Cairo/blog-192771.html We went to Tanzania to see some of the big sights like...Lake Victoria Jason ate fish from the lake and we visited a fishing village full of children. Interesting fact while sitting at dinner eating local lake fish someone was reading their guide book which noted the high concentration of pollution in the lake. We are still waiting to see if there are any effects. The Serengeti The wildebeest http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Tanzania/North/Ngorongoro-Conservation-Area/blog-189555.html Cape Town and AroundWe originally arrived on the African Continent on May 14th in Cape Town. Most of our African adventures originated out of Cape Town where we spent a lot of time relaxing and organizing our trips. We also spent a few days on separate occasions in Johannesburg creating a scouting report for the 2010 World Cup. We more specifically Jason focused on trying to get hoteliers and dr http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/South-Africa/Western-Cape/Cape-Town/blog-183468.html After our budget bus ride we opted for door to door service and hired a private taxi with air con to drive us to our hotel in Phnom Penh. The car ride was awesome and we felt good about our decision until the taxi driver was pulled over and subsequently arrested prior to our destination. Even though we were left on a corner we were actually in Phnom Penh when he was arrested so all we had to do wa http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/South/Phnom-Penh/blog-140554.html Depending on who you talk to we were either in Ho Chi Minh City HCMC or Saigon. The official name is HCMC but the locals seem to still refer to the city as Saigon. Strange thing is we became instant millionaires once we arrived. Thatrsquos right at most times we each have 23 million dong on us. Yep the local currency is called the dong and I am pretty sure one of us has used every double en http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Southeast/Ho-Chi-Minh-City/blog-142125.html We decided to split Vietnam into three major stops. The south HCMC the middle Hoi An and the north Hanoi. Hoi An is a smaller town on the river right next to the South China Sea. In the past it was actually a major international trade port for the Chinese Japanese and Portuguese. Today tourists tout it as the place to go in Vietnam if you want a custom made suit or knock off of any garment i http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/South-Central-Coast/Hoi-An/blog-144553.html We ended our tour of Vietnam in Hanoi. We parked ourselves for awhile to really see the city and take a break from constant bustrainplanetaxicycloboat hopping. We were lucky enough to find a local club called Hanoi Kids. They are university students who want to be professional tour guides. They give free tours around the city so they can practice their English. Since they are in school to be http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Red-River-Delta/Hanoi/blog-145987.html Welcome to the home of the 2008 Olympics You would never guess the Olympics are coming here with all of the construction and the advertisements at the Great Wall of China. This has been the absolute hardest city to communicate in but we have found the solution. Simply flag down the nearest 810 year old and voila you have a translator. If you want to find your favorite restaurant find a 7 year o http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Beijing/blog-149604.html People come to Xian for one reason the terracotta warriors. This archeological sight was discovered by a farmer in the 1970rsquos while trying to dig a hole for a well. He didnrsquot find water but he found what led to the discovery of at least 4000 lifesize terracotta warriors including horses and chariots. The crazy part is archeologists believe they have only touched the surface and that http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Shaanxi/Xi--an/blog-150880.html A trip to China is not complete without seeing the giant panda. We traveled to Chengdu to visit the Panda Research Center and to take a road trip near the Tibetan boarder. We met a couple at the guesthouse we were staying in that had already arranged a 5 day jeep tour in the area we wanted to go and they asked us if we wanted to join in. It was 5 days of amazing scenery and pure entertainment. We http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Sichuan/Chengdu/blog-153707.html The tourist slogan for India is ldquoIncredible Indiardquo and let me tell you that it lives up to its name. Everything is incredible you truly can not believe what you are seeing Taj Mahal Beautiful People of Jaipur Mumbai and the Bollywood crowd Humayunrsquos Tomb Qutub Minar Red Fort The craziness in Old Delhi Train travel AutoRickshawing many good debates took place before t http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/India/Rajasthan/blog-158823.html First of all we are not dead no one has been to prison and we have not been eaten by any animals or caught between warring tribes. We have been traveling over land through Namibia Botswana Zimbabwe and Zambia and have not been able to find a decent internet connection for quite awhile. To catch up after our exhausting trip in India we traveled to Cape Town. We settled in for a couple of week http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Namibia/Sossusvlei/blog-172580.html We entered Botswana and prepared to head to one of its most famous wildlife reserves in the Okavango Delta. To get to our campsite we took a local mode of transportation the mokoro. The mokoro is a hallowed out tree trunk in the shape of a canoe that is propelled by a local Botswanan Poler. The 3 hour ride to our campsite was a lot of fun although we thought we were going to sink or tip over sev http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Botswana/North-West/Okavango-Delta/blog-173767.html We didnrsquot think it was possible but New Zealand has fallen from number 1 to number 2. Zambia is our new favorite. Before we arrived in Zambia were in Zimbabwe where we ended our tour. We were there just long enough to see how Mugabersquos rule has affected the economy and people. For example when we arrived we were told not to exchange any money at the Zimbabwe banks. The exchange rate at http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Zambia/South-Luangwa/blog-175905.html If you read any newspaper travel warning or guide book about Kenya you will find out very quickly that your chances of being robbed extorted caught in a political conflict or between warring gangs are very high. We found out everything we needed to know about Kenya from Andrew O. We had the pleasure of meeting Andrew on our flight to Nairobi. He plays for the Kenya National Football team and g http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Kenya/Nairobi-Province/Nairobi/blog-186467.html We had an amazing time in Siem Reap touring the temples. While we were in Siem Reap we heard about a smaller city in Cambodia called Battambang. It seemed like a good place to go since the tour groups donrsquot stop there. We talked to a travel agent who said for 6 we could get there by bus. You may ask yourself what kind of bus does one get for 6 We can tell you itrsquos not good. Picture http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/North/Battambang/blog-138165.html Temples Temples Temples. We spent 4 days in Siem Reap and really took our time exploring the ancient Temples of Angkor. Most of the temples were built between the 10th12th centuries. I wonder if there were any vegetarians back thenI swear these pictures are over a period of 4 days however you will see the same exact clothes on both Woodley and Jason everyday. Laundry has become more difficu http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/North/Angkor/blog-136930.html If you ever want to know where to find the 3 time FIFA world player of the year and a vegetarianrsquos paradise it is in Northern Thailand of course Yes its true worlds can collide. A vegetarian and a soccer junkie can find their prize in the same place a city called Chiang Mai. Woodley discovered Chiang Mai is known for vegetarian restaurants cooking massage and yoga. Jason discovered Zin http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/North-West-Thailand/Chiang-Mai/blog-135923.html While looking at this blog please imagine Jason singing this for five days straighthellip.One night in Bangkok and the worldrsquos your oysterThe bars are temples but the pearls ain't freeYoursquoll find a god in every golden cloisterAnd if yoursquore lucky then the godrsquos a sheI can feel an angel sliding up to me.We had a choice of a 12 hour train ride or a 50 minute flight the diff http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/Central-Thailand/Bangkok/blog-133035.html