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LivingTheDream - Ben Beiske

My visited countries

Map Legend: 23%, 61 of 263 Territories

Visited on this trip

Visited previously

Living the Dream - Ben travels around the world (for however long the money or the excitement lasts...)

In April 2008, I quit my job, sold most of my belongings, and left on a world trip - and never looked back. Starting in Berlin (Germany) and heading east, time will tell where my journey eventually leads me...

If you like what you see and want to receive an email whenever I add a new blog entry, simply subscribe to this blog!

I hope you enjoy my stories as much as I enjoy my journey. Any feedback (public comment on any blog entry or private message) is always much appreciated! Please also take note that my intention in this blog is not to judge, but merely to share my experiences (good and bad) - so please do not be offended by my entries.

Also have a look at my pictures on Flickr and at my route!

My journey so far: Turkey (9 days) - Germany (2 days) - Lithuania (6 days) - Latvia (4 days) - Estonia (5 days) - Finland (4 days) - Russia (26 days) - Mongolia (17 days) - China (70 days) - Japan (42 days) - South Korea (10 days) - North Korea (10 minutes) - China (8 days) - Vietnam (15 days) - Laos (35 days) - Thailand (3 days) - Myanmar (25 days) - Thailand (9 days) - Malaysia, Peninsular (74 days) - Singapore (7 days) - Indonesia, Sumatra (27 days) - Malaysia, western Borneo (36 days) - Brunei (4 days) - Malaysia, eastern Borneo (42 days) - Indonesia, Java & Bali (28 days) - Singapore (7 days) - Taiwan (17 days) - Philippines (18 days) - Malaysia, KL (2 days) - Indonesia, Lombok & Bali (10 days) - Australia - ???

-Ben Beiske

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Joined on: February 6th 2008
Last Login: November 11th 2009

Blog Entries: 126
Photos: 470
Recommended by 8, Recommends 16

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Blogs & Travel Journals

by LivingTheDream, order by Date newest first.

By LivingTheDream
October 28th 2009

Private space and peace at last (Darwin, NT, Australia) Oceania » Australia » Northern Territory » Darwin » City of Darwin

Enjoying the sunset at Mindil Beach

(Day 572 on the road) I am in Australia, and I keep having to pinch myself to believe just how different this place is compared to Southeast Asia. A mere two hour flight southeast of Bali, it feels like a different world altogether. After travelling across Asia for the last year and a half, some things that I once considered normal and a part of everyday life in Europe suddenly seem odd and new, yet strangely familiar. Some of the things I noticed on my first few days in Darwin and which caught my attention: Pedestrian crossings where cars actually stop [View Full Entry]

What a place for a swim (at Florence Falls in Litchfield NP)

By LivingTheDream
October 21st 2009

Adieu Asia - after 18 months of criss-crossing the entire region (Ubud, Bali, Indonesia) Asia » Indonesia

Want postcard mister?

(Day 565 on the road) So here it is, my last blog entry about Southeast Asia after travelling across the entire region (plus a few other "nearby" countries) for the last 18 months or so. On the way back to Bali from Lombok I had met adventurous and ever-smiling Suzanne from The Netherlands, and the next two days we were to explore central Bali together on a rented motorbike. My last stay in Kuta on Bali hadn't been the most wonderful experience for me, but I had heard good things about Ubud and its surrounding and was determined to give Bali [View Full Entry]

Everybody is on the way to the temple with offerings

By LivingTheDream
October 18th 2009

Drift-snorkeling with giant turtles (Gili Trawangan, Lombok, Indonesia) Asia » Indonesia » Lombok » Gilli Trawangan

A hundred fish and me

(Day 562 on the road) I have done my fair share of diving all over Southeast Asia in the last year or so, but nothing comes even close to how amazing the underwater life is here in the Gili Islands off Lombok's north coast. Apparently, the fishermen are paid by the local dive operators NOT to fish, and it more than shows in the marine life to be found just a few metres from the beach. Visibility is amazing with 20 to 30 metres, and thousands of tropical fish (many in big swarms) and some turtles are all over the place. [View Full Entry]

Want some peace and quiet, ma'am? Or water?

By LivingTheDream
October 11th 2009

Hello little birdies (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) Asia » Malaysia » Wilayah Persekutuan » Kuala Lumpur

Rainbow Lorikeet parrots at at the amazing Kuala Lumpur Bird Park

(Day 555 on the road) I am back in Kuala Lumpur, and I love it just as much as on my previous few visits here. Of all the Southeast Asian countries, I definitely like Malaysia the most, with its mix of immensely friendly and tolerant people and its diverse natural beauty. If I ever chose to live in a country in this part of the world, it would almost certainly have to be Malaysia. This time however I was only here for a one-day stopover on my way back to Indonesia. In the morning I met up with Ali, the guy [View Full Entry]

By LivingTheDream
October 9th 2009

Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) Asia » Philippines » Pampanga » Clark

No minors allowed in Angeles

(Day 553 on the road) How to write a blog entry about a place that has such an awful reputation as Angeles City in the Philippines? The place is possibly the sex capital of the world, with between 10.000 and 20.000 prostitutes selling their bodies every night. During the time of the U.S. airbase here, as many as 100.000 working girls were offering their services. I had a morning flight the next day from Clark airport just outside of Angeles, and decided to spend the night here instead of crazy Manila and see this place for myself. I soon realised that [View Full Entry]

Bored prostitutes inside one of the countless bars

Going home after a hard night's work - Deserted Fields Avenue in the morning

Apparently Angeles is not quite the safest place to be - Security guard at my hotel

By LivingTheDream
October 8th 2009

An island within a lake on an island within a lake on an island (Taal Volcano, Luzon, Philippines) Asia » Philippines » Taal Lake

The Taal volcano crater lake

(Day 552 on the road) Here is something I learned during the last year and a half of travelling in Southeast Asia: Whenever somebody claims to give you the "cheapest room in town" or a similar sounding offer, rest assured that there are much better deals to be had. This proved true once again when I shunned the guy who made just such a claim as I was looking for a place to crash in the unremarkable town of Talisay at the edge of Lake Taal. Just ten minutes later I found a much better deal, in terms of price, location [View Full Entry]

Local woman riding up the path to the volcano

School dance and singing before classes start

By LivingTheDream
October 5th 2009

A scary ocean crossing indeed, followed by unexpected hospitality (Coron, Palawan, Philippines) Asia » Philippines » Palawan » Coron

Stunning bay on Coron Island

(Day 549 on the road) Leaving El Nido was a lot more difficult than anticipated. Ongoing typhoon warnings caused all ferries and flights from El Nido to be cancelled for days on end. I had already booked a flight from the island of Coron, about eight hours north by boat, for the day after tomorrow, and when I found out that the overnight ferry I had been hoping to take was cancelled I was starting to get a bit nervous. Forced to spend another night in El Nido, I was up at seven o'clock the next morning, exploring all the possible [View Full Entry]

My friendly boatman and 8 of his 10 children

By LivingTheDream
October 3rd 2009

Pictures simply cannot do this place any justice (Bacuit Archipelago, Palawan, Philippines) Asia » Philippines » Palawan » El Nido

Small Lagoon - can the water be any clearer?

(Day 546 on the road) There are places in the world that are just perfect for people taking pictures of them. And then there are places like the Bacuit Archipelago in the Philippines where I am at the moment, that no matter how many pictures you take of them, their true beauty can never be captured in a photograph. This place here is so amazing I sometimes had to pinch myself to believe it is real. I must say that I don't get this feeling too often these days, this feeling of being completely awestruck by a landscape or a sight, [View Full Entry]

One of countless tiny and deserted bays in the Bacuit Archipelago

By LivingTheDream
September 24th 2009

3 islands down, 7104 to go (Honda Bay, Palawan, Philippines) Asia » Philippines » Palawan » Puerto Princesa

Snake Island - the perfect beach?

(Day 538 on the road) The guidebook had called Manila airport dirty, chaotic and dark. I was expecting the worst, but instead after arriving here from Taipei I found it super-clean, well sign-posted and modern. Maybe they have recently upgraded it or I arrived at a different terminal? Leaving the airport I braced myself for the usual army of taxi drivers and other hawkers but I found - nothing. Not a single person approached me, and I had time to get my bearings. How nice! Shunning the expensive coupon taxis I took a shuttle bus that took me to a broad [View Full Entry]

By LivingTheDream
September 21st 2009

Bye bye friendly Taiwan (Taipei, Taiwan) Asia » Taiwan » Taipei

Imposing statue at the Museum of World Religion

(Day 535 on the road) Going back to Taipei to complete our loop around Taiwan, we opted for the high speed train that connects Taiwan's major towns. The system is very efficient and the stations and trains sparkling new. The next train to Taipei left less than twenty minutes after we bought our tickets, so soon we found ourselves going north at 300 km/ h. The next morning I accompanied my mum to the airport, where she caught a plane to Hong Kong for a three day stopover in this amazing city before flying back to Germany from there. We have [View Full Entry]

First place for the award 'Shortest hot pants in Taipei'

Taiwanese enjoying one of their countless hot springs

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