 Ben Beiske - LivingTheDream | All Comments |
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| 22nd December 2009 Agustian | Guest Blogging? - From: My new mattress on wheels - the "Ben-Van" if you like (Auckland, North Island, New Zealand) Hi Ben, I came across your pictures on flickr and ended up reading your blog. Your surely are living the dream! and I envy you for that. The reason for my email is to ask if you would be interested in guest blogging for http://turisku.com. It is a Indonesian Informative site that I'm working on and I'd be honor to have you share your Indonesian trip experience with my readers. You got great stories to share and I'm so excited to have as turisku.com guest blogger! I look forward to hearing from you! Agustian Hermanto |
| 21st December 2009 Peter Schönhofen | Weihnachten und Neujahr - From: My new mattress on wheels - the "Ben-Van" if you like (Auckland, North Island, New Zealand) Hallo Weltenbummler, ich darf Sie doch noch so nennen ? Jetzt als Pensionär hätte ich mich eigentlich schon früher einmal melden können . . ., aber Sie wissen ja, Rentner und Pensionäre haben extrem wenig Zeit. Ich habe Ihre Route weiterhin mit Interesse und auch mit etwas Neid verfolgt und hoffe, dass Sie noch viel Schönes erleben und Interessantes kennen lernen. Zunächst wünsche ich Ihnen ein fröhliches und besinnliches Weihnachtsfest und für das kommende Jahr viele schöne Erlebnisse, vor allem aber viel Gesundheit und möglichst keine Enttäuschungen. Vielleicht finden Sie ja auch im kommenden Jahr eine neue Perspektive für die Zeit danach; aber Nichts überstürzen. Für heute seien Sie herzlich gegrüßt Ihr "alter" Exkollege und junger Pensionär Peter Schönhofen |
| 18th December 2009 Mar che | Awesome - From: My new mattress on wheels - the "Ben-Van" if you like (Auckland, North Island, New Zealand) Im'a have to get me one of those! |
| 18th December 2009 Harriet | - From: My new mattress on wheels - the "Ben-Van" if you like (Auckland, North Island, New Zealand) Ben went to a sauna... there's a surprise! I'm in Dunedin, but hitting the north island in the new year! Have you got any thoughts on where you're going in the van, or you just following your nose? |
| 17th December 2009 luke | price for bikes - From: Buying motorbikes to ride across Laos (Savannakhet, Southern Laos) hey! great story. my girlfriend and I are currently in Vientiane and are looking to buy bikes to ride into Vietnam. How much did you pay for your bikes? Did you get any paperwork with them? From what I understand, we'll have no find a Lao citizen to help us out. Do you remember the name of the place where you met your friend? Any information would be extremely helpful. Thanks! |
| 14th December 2009 Talita | Ben-Van - From: My new mattress on wheels - the "Ben-Van" if you like (Auckland, North Island, New Zealand) Congratulations! It's a good feeling having a home on wheels! Perhaps if you come to the far ends of NZ which is Karamea, we can point you in the direction to put that fishing rod to good use. |
| 14th December 2009 Patricia Johnson | - From: My new mattress on wheels - the "Ben-Van" if you like (Auckland, North Island, New Zealand) Did you see the metorite shower over there? I'm watching it now. |
| 14th December 2009 Jawad | - From: My new mattress on wheels - the "Ben-Van" if you like (Auckland, North Island, New Zealand) I LIKE :) just get some air freshners :) |
| 14th December 2009 karen | Toyota what....? - From: My new mattress on wheels - the "Ben-Van" if you like (Auckland, North Island, New Zealand) Well Benjamin, your standards have dropped somewhat since our Borneo days. Toyota Hi-lux out of reach was it? You could have put the tent in the back... And you could have picked up hitch hikers :) |
| 14th December 2009 liliram | Wow - From: My new mattress on wheels - the "Ben-Van" if you like (Auckland, North Island, New Zealand) Hey, that sounds real exciting. Drive safely and enjoy NZ! |
| 14th December 2009 Momoko | Bonzer times in Sydney! - From: Enjoying a break from travelling with good friends (Sydney, NSW, Australia) Hi! Ben &Ben Van! I also had a wonderful times with you and Henry and Carmen and Miranda. You could be a gifted writer of a record od your wonderful travels as Henry said. I'm looking forward to hearing your terrific travel stories even though it takes a couple of hours when I read your travel blog.. Take care of yourself!! |
| 14th December 2009 Suzanne | - From: My new mattress on wheels - the "Ben-Van" if you like (Auckland, North Island, New Zealand) Hi Ben! Whoohoo, ur in Kiwiland! Wish I was there with you. Its soooo cold here and I got my first job rejection already... Doesn't hurt too much, enough fish in the sea. If I only had a fishing rod... ;) I actually have no nicer name for u, but maybe u can come up with a nice contest? The winner can earn Kiwi's.... ha ha! |
| 14th December 2009 Sophie and Dale | love your van! - From: My new mattress on wheels - the "Ben-Van" if you like (Auckland, North Island, New Zealand) looks fab Ben.. you will have some great times in that. Although we only hired ours we fell in love with it and nearly cried when we had to give it back :o( There really are some incredible places to park up and wake up in the morning to think "am I really here" and enjoy your cornflakes & coffee.. best of all.. they are free! |
| 14th December 2009 Mathias Leiner | Meet in NewZea? - From: My new mattress on wheels - the "Ben-Van" if you like (Auckland, North Island, New Zealand) Hi Ben, Mathias hier aus Mainz. Bin vom 8.1. bis zum 6.2. in Neuseeland. Vielleicht schaffen wir es ja auf nen Kaffee? Gruß aus dem kalten Mainz Mathias |
| 14th December 2009 Arjan and Albertine | - From: My new mattress on wheels - the "Ben-Van" if you like (Auckland, North Island, New Zealand) Great van! We miss ours. It's on the road in NZ. |
| 13th December 2009 Henry | Living the dream - From: Enjoying a break from travelling with good friends (Sydney, NSW, Australia) My dear friend, Well done on your blog. We love it! My feeling about the blog is tremendous when reading it and seeing our daily lives appearing eventually in your "living the dream". However, it was not our intention to remind you about the crude realities of life. Once finishing the reading, an idea of publishing your "living the dream" comes out from my mind. Like the "travel the world in 80 days", you could possibly make a fortune out of the journey if you have a theme in the travelling blog. The central theme of the journey could be every things that interest people, for instance, travelling national galleries around the world, or how to travel the world with budget, etc. The blog is your invaluable resource when you eventually finish the journey. With your excellent writing skill, you could publish your story in different languages, at least Germen and English, plus Chinese perhaps. After all, it just needs you a little extra effort to turn it into something meaningful to other people, not just your personal record. Do not let the journey end up into your memory. Think about it, Buddy. Henry P.S. Carmen gives you a big hug. |
| 13th December 2009 karen | Live it - From: Enjoying a break from travelling with good friends (Sydney, NSW, Australia) mmm, I'm just sitting at the PC putting off updating my CV (well there's not much work experience to add) and contemplating what I want to do when I grow up. I suggest you just keep 'living the dream' and put this bit off as long as possible!! Maybe I'll just finish that last blog entry instead and look at your flickr photos once more.... |
| 13th December 2009 sayhau | - From: Adieu Asia - after 18 months of criss-crossing the entire region (Ubud, Bali, Indonesia) i had some bad experience in Bali as well, been cheated and treated really rude when we refused to pay more. There was a driver who even banged his car door when we about to leave his car! |
| 12th December 2009 sayhau | - From: Enjoying a break from travelling with good friends (Sydney, NSW, Australia) Hey, nice blog! Been enjoy reading it! |
| 12th December 2009 endah | - From: Enjoying a break from travelling with good friends (Sydney, NSW, Australia) u really got many nice pics in OZ,i love the country and its trully beautifull!! |
| 9th December 2009 Suzanne | - From: Familiar faces (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) Hello! Seems like you are enjoying yourself very much still! I remember myself that it was soo nice to visit my family on Java and seeing my friends back in Brizzie. Not the usual talk but you continue basically the last conversation you had... :) Have fun the last couple of days in Ozzie and have a good trip to kiwiland! I had my first job interview today, quite exciting. Unfortunately, they will let me know if I pass this round between now and 6 weeks! gosh... Patience is a virtue! Keep us updated! |
| 7th December 2009 Karina | Great trip! - From: Cruising along the Great Ocean Road (Adelaide to Melbourne, Australia) Hey Ben, thank you for the nice time. It was really great fun travelling with you and Chris!! I like your blog!! Wish you happy travels wherever you go! Danke :-) Karina |
| 2nd December 2009 kathryn | Melbourne - From: Familiar faces (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) Ah, my home town from afar....Yes it is a very livealble city! Beach/parks & inner-city living & countryside all close by...Glad you enjoyed it! |
| 2nd December 2009 Clarissa | Recommendation - From: Cruising along the Great Ocean Road (Adelaide to Melbourne, Australia) Hi there, I have been reading your blogs on your great adventure....what an amazing trip! I wondered if I could get your advice on a trip I am planning. I am thinking of either going to Borneo of to Indonesia for 3 weeks and wanted to know which you think is the best option? I can't choose. Also which is more expensive? So far my most favorite places in Southeast Asia have been Loas (mostly Luang Prabang) , Cambodia ( I love Siem Reap and Sihanoukville) and Vietnam (I love Sapa).... to give you an idea of what I like. Many thanks, Clarissa |
| 26th November 2009 Suzanne | - From: Cruising along the Great Ocean Road (Adelaide to Melbourne, Australia) Hi There! Great stories! I haven't had a 'homesick' experience to travelworld untill now. Would love to go there myself one day... Untill then I have to face the cold dark winter days of the lowlands. Enjoy every bit of it and good to hear u found yourself a nice travelling partner! |
| 25th November 2009 kathryn | Great Ocean Road - From: Cruising along the Great Ocean Road (Adelaide to Melbourne, Australia) Hi there, It was timely to read your blog. I am currently living in Abu Dhabi, a long way from home in the parts of Aus you mentioned. I grew up near the 12 Apostles/ Grampians/Tower Hill etc... & woke up thinking about revisiting the Great Ocean Road. Enjoy it all, it is a beautiful part of the world! |
| 25th November 2009 karen | stunning - From: Cruising along the Great Ocean Road (Adelaide to Melbourne, Australia) From your photos it looks even more amazing than I remember. Keep up the great blog it will keep me going on my return to the European winter. |
| 25th November 2009 Patricia Johnson | Living the Dream - From: Duly impressed by that big rock out there (Ayers Rock, NT, Australia) What happened? Have'nt seen any travelblog trip news from you!! Has your trip ened? Patricia |
| 20th November 2009 Ritchie | Hi - From: The smallest yet richest country in Asia (Borneo, Brunei Darussalam) Hi, i was a bit mad at the time i saw the ''Bandar Seri Begawan is a strange place". i must admit as a bruneian, brunei is quite a boring place to be but it is the most wonderful and peaceful place to be. you should go to thier 6 star hotel- the empire hotel. bet you will finish reading lots of your book while lying under the relaxing atmosphere around the hotel's man-made beach. yah. although brunei was boring but people are happy and feel save at night as their is no violence drinker or etc roaming the street. hope to see you one day at brunei again. your friend- karen was a pretty lady. cheers mate. peace letter from brunei.(although im studying in australia but i cant wait to go back brunei this new year.) Ritchie. |
| 17th November 2009 Suzanne Bakema | - From: Duly impressed by that big rock out there (Ayers Rock, NT, Australia) Hi Ben! How have you been? Great story on ur website. Tried to post a comment but somehow it didn't exactly what I wanted (NO, not women and technology issue! :p). I'm in Bangkok right now, enjoying my last few days of hot weather. Sound perhaps weird but I'm going to miss the beautiful humit and hot climate :( |
| 14th November 2009 Sophie and Dale | glad you liked it! - From: Duly impressed by that big rock out there (Ayers Rock, NT, Australia) Hey Ben fab photos! We loved Ayers Rock.. it's so much better than you think it's going to be isn't it, it was actually my second visit last year but I enjoyed it every bit as much as the first time and can also boast that on both my visits I saw rain on the rock which is apparently something quite special.. maybe one day I'll see it dry too! Hope you are enjoying Oz.. sounds like you are but wait until you get to NZ.... oh wow you will fall in love for sure! Take care xx |
| 13th November 2009 Dorothée Hartmann | - From: Duly impressed by that big rock out there (Ayers Rock, NT, Australia) Absolutely! Jens-Hon, we should go back some time - it's been eleven year since we've been there (and nearly died of thirst...). Ben, I cannot believe you climbed that holy site!!! Now what have we learned about cultural and religious issues on our journey so far....? You would not climb an altar in a church either, would you? And: It's not up to the Aborgines to allow or deny people to climb the rock as in their eyes they do not own it. So even though it's been talked and thought about many times, I believe it is up to one's own accountability. ... Anyway, walking around it is a thousand times more interesting as you get to see so many more strange shapes and features. And Zebra finches. And Budgereegahs. |
| 12th November 2009 Jens Hartmann | - From: Duly impressed by that big rock out there (Ayers Rock, NT, Australia) Yep! Quite something. Watch for Budgies and Zebrafinches. Quite cute in contrast! |
| 11th November 2009 Kevin Donnachie | The Delay - From: Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) Hey man, now I know how those Harry Potter fans felt when they had to wait for the next installment :) On the subject of some abusive emails, I would forget about that some people would rather live in a "sugar coated" world the hear the truth. I personally have found that you have saved me time & money by telling me what like some countries are to the backpacker. Cheers & happy travels |
| 5th November 2009 anonymous | - From: Private space and peace at last (Darwin, NT, Australia) Yay!!! Steps closer to Melbourne...can't wait to see you again Ben!!! (Nells) |
| 5th November 2009 Jens Hartmann | - From: Private space and peace at last (Darwin, NT, Australia) Just mind the croc bites! Litchfield is such a real little paradise! |
| 5th November 2009 Michael | - From: Private space and peace at last (Darwin, NT, Australia) Hey Ben, wie ich sehe, gehts Dir immernoch gut und du hast Freude an der Reise. Das ist schön! Und ich bekomme direkt Fernweh, wenn ich nun Deine Bilder aus Australien sehe. Mensch- das ist nun auch schon wieder drei Jahre her, dass ich da war. Bin allerdings überrascht, dass Du auf den Ayers Rock geklettert bist. Vor drei Jahren sind da nur wenige Leute rauf. Wir haben uns damals aus Respekt vor den religiösen Ansichten der Ureinwohner gegen eine Besteigung entschieden (offiziell). Inoffiziell war es uns einfach zu heiß :-) Wo gehts denn weiter hin? Nach Süden bis Melbourne oder an die Ostküste nach Cairns und Brisbane? Liebe Grüße aus dem sonnig kalten Mainz. Das Büro steht noch :-) Michael |
| 4th November 2009 Tara Anderson | Hi Ben - From: Private space and peace at last (Darwin, NT, Australia) Hello! Fist of all I would like to say good for you for having the courage to take such an amazing trip! Iam so very jealous:) Anyway I am hoping to do an around the world trip and I have been savin for a long time. I ran across your blog (which I have very much enjoyed reading) and I was wondering if you had any tips for me. The thing I am finding most difficult is deciding how much money I will need. I know it will depend alot on where I wish to travel but its still hard to account for everything I will be spending on. I dont want to be too intrusive but it you could just give me an idea of how much you spent on like a monthly basis or in the first year or whatever that would be very helpful. any any other tips would be greatly appriciated as well! oh and did you have the places in mind before you visited them or are you just "seeing where it takes you"? Thanks so much! Happy travels! Tara |
| 3rd November 2009 Kevin | No more chickens? - From: Private space and peace at last (Darwin, NT, Australia) My favorite part of getting to OZ from Indo - no more sharing transport with chickens and pigs... |
| 3rd November 2009 meobeo | - From: Private space and peace at last (Darwin, NT, Australia) Hello Ben, I've been following your blog for a while, a lot of emotions reading your notes about traveling South-east Asia, mostly Vietnam where i came from. I have to admit that they did hurt a lot. I won't want to describe to you other aspects of asian life/people, since you will not see it if you aren't born and grown from this land. And this entry makes me feel much better. I see that, somehow, despite all the discomforts and annoys that it brings you, it gets into your heart somehow. I don’t know how, maybe of all the things that you listed above, but I’m just simply glad. Wish you all the best on your journey. |
| 3rd November 2009 bob | cool - From: The most famous volcano in the world erupting (Krakatau, Sumatra, Indonesia) wow |
| 3rd November 2009 Deronda | Money Woes - From: Private space and peace at last (Darwin, NT, Australia) You might be able to make some money fruit picking. |
| 2nd November 2009 Irene Kocher | - From: Adieu Asia - after 18 months of criss-crossing the entire region (Ubud, Bali, Indonesia) Hey Ben, du Globetrotter! Huebsches Photo von dir im J-Hoppers in Hiroshima, haha! Wuensch dir eine gute Zeit in Australia. Ist eine andere Welt als Asien.. Geniess es! Btw, wann kommst du eigentlich wieder mal nach Europa?? |
| 31st October 2009 Danial | brunei - From: The smallest yet richest country in Asia (Borneo, Brunei Darussalam) brunei is rich and the sultan is richest royal in the world and it peace and it good and cheap price if you buy the staff. |
| 26th October 2009 sprucemoose | nice one - From: Adieu Asia - after 18 months of criss-crossing the entire region (Ubud, Bali, Indonesia) epic journey mate! haha good one re the corrupt cops, suckers indeed. sounds a lot like the situation in kyrgyzstan! there is NO concept of subtlety! :) |
| 26th October 2009 pinky | aufweidersehen - From: Adieu Asia - after 18 months of criss-crossing the entire region (Ubud, Bali, Indonesia) hope you can just laugh these hassles off in your future journeys Ben. after 2 consecutive entries with recurring peddlers galore encounters, you desrve all the peace and quiet and comfor that australia offers. enjoy your time there! and trust that you are always welcome to criss-cross asia anytime you feel like it!;D |
| 26th October 2009 Lisa Groebler | - From: Adieu Asia - after 18 months of criss-crossing the entire region (Ubud, Bali, Indonesia) ist irgendwie lustig... ich bin jetzt in HH in eine wohnung gezogen..1.woche zahnmedizin laeuft..und es ist schweinekalt hier...und jetzt denke ich an tauchen, sonne, speedboat fahren...nicht in den naechsten 2,5 jahren;) |
| 26th October 2009 Suzanne Ly | - From: Adieu Asia - after 18 months of criss-crossing the entire region (Ubud, Bali, Indonesia) Es ist nur ein "aufwiedersehen" - sagt man auf franzosich. You'll be back I'm sure and Australia sounds so awesome! I'd love to join you there! When do you think you'll get to new Zealand? |
| 26th October 2009 Miikka Vornanen | - From: Adieu Asia - after 18 months of criss-crossing the entire region (Ubud, Bali, Indonesia) Ben, What is your next destination? Its been such a joy follow ur travelblog =:). Keep up the good work! |
| 25th October 2009 LivingTheDream | Not tired of travelling, just tired of the hassle - From: Adieu Asia - after 18 months of criss-crossing the entire region (Ubud, Bali, Indonesia) Walter, thanks for the nice comment (don't we all love compliments?)! Luckily I am not tired of travelling, I am just worn out by the hassle. So I am really enjoying Australia now, where people just let me be. How wonderful! |
| 25th October 2009 Walter | Thank you - From: Adieu Asia - after 18 months of criss-crossing the entire region (Ubud, Bali, Indonesia) Dear Ben, I will miss your reports about travelling in Asia. I feel sorry that you left Asia finaly with such a bitter feeling, maybe you should make a brake from travelling. Because of your report we really consider going to the Philippines in Feb. next year. Thank you for letting us share your experience! I wish you good time in Australia! walter |
| 25th October 2009 Walter | walter: similar experience - From: Drift-snorkeling with giant turtles (Gili Trawangan, Lombok, Indonesia) Unfortunatly we have made similar experience on Lombok and at Pura Besakih on Bali. Hawkers got very aggresive, we even thought they would soon start to hit us. We were very scared. But on the other hand our trip some years ago from Jakarta to Bali was one of our most favourid trips we ever have made. With the exception of Lombok we would not hesitate to come back. Kind regards walter |
| 25th October 2009 Sophie and Dale | Unsurprised! - From: Adieu Asia - after 18 months of criss-crossing the entire region (Ubud, Bali, Indonesia) Woah your blog brings back all the terrible memories we had to encounter on that awful island too! It's such a shame really but as you pointed out in a previous blog the kind of people who go here and to Lombok are 2 week holidaymakers who don't care how much things cost (as it's less than back home) and only get transported from the airport to their hotel and then from their hotel to the tourist sights all by nice minibus therefore avoiding the local touts and rip off artists. The only locals they are going to meet are in the markets and as I said they will pay well above what something should cost so will receive none of the abuse that us backpackers would for proposing the correct amount. Gosh I'm getting mad just writing this remembering how awful it was there! That said I'm glad you enjoyed Ubud for it's beauty if nothing else.. I hope you enjoyed the shopping there.. I did ;o) ! Have fun in Oz.. it's expensive but at least you know you'll be paying the same as everyone else!! x |
| 24th October 2009 Alan | Costs - From: Drift-snorkeling with giant turtles (Gili Trawangan, Lombok, Indonesia) Hi Really enjoying the blog. Im just wondering what kind of budget do you look to live on to keep on the road for so long? Keep up the good work. Kind regards, Alan |
| 24th October 2009 Kevin | - From: Drift-snorkeling with giant turtles (Gili Trawangan, Lombok, Indonesia) It's amazing how tiring it can be to deal with hawkers, isn't it? I spent three months in Indo many years ago traveling overland/water from Sumatra all the way to West Timor. Yes, you are missing out on some amazing sights, but I know how burned out I was from the experience, and that was after only a total of 6 months on the road! I still remember how great it felt to arrive into Darwin from Kupang, being able to relax and just blend into the crowd again. BTW, the one thing that worked for me with obnoxious hawkers was to name a ridiculous price for whatever they were selling. It seemed that telling the water guy that you would buy his bottle for 100 Rupiah would work better than telling him you weren't interested at all. I think they figure out you're only interested in wasting their time and messing with them and will go off and bother someone else. But you're right - if that's what it's come to, it may just be best to get out of the game... |
| 23rd October 2009 Mell | - From: Drift-snorkeling with giant turtles (Gili Trawangan, Lombok, Indonesia) HaHa! Love that picture of the tout. Such a typical scene. I can't stand the touts though! Check this out. http://www.travelblog.org/Forum/Threads/21024-1.html |
| 23rd October 2009 Endah | - From: Drift-snorkeling with giant turtles (Gili Trawangan, Lombok, Indonesia) hahahaa...funny things read ur blog now.seems ur really uncomfortable with the hilarious hawkers in indonesia.not only u actually,but me as indonesian also feel shame abt it.well,just relax,dont bother him as tht what i always do when i facing many hawkers in a tourist area. just try to understand that they r trying to make money and try to offering as that what a seller must do. just b an ignorant person if u really dont like hawkers and not tend to buy their product.just go straight dont look at them and dont hear wht they told u! lol. it's about wht we discussed on a ferry,remember? Gili Trawangan is amazing,but seems tht time when we visit there not many tourist cuz they said its quite as Gili trawangan is famous as a "party" Gili,and the other two is more peacefull.but seeing from ur pics,seems tht many hawkers in Gili Air rather than trawangan,um?? ahh.....the island will be too silent without hawkers Ben,just enjoy it all in all :)) |
| 20th October 2009 Arjan and Albertine | - From: Hello little birdies (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) KL has the best and cheapest Indian restaurant in Malaysia! Went there at least 5 times in the two times we visited the city. Are you going to Gili Meno. Spend 8 days there, just relaxing. Went one day to Trawangan (needed cash, but the ATM didn't work), but we were happy to leave the island and spend more time on Meno. We stayed in Mimphi Manis (or something like that). Have fun! |
| 19th October 2009 karen | Interesting entry - From: Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) A fair, non-judgemental entry. A very sad story, whether in Philippines, Thailand or anywhere else. Good on you for publishing this for all to see. Why should this be kept quiet? I never went to Angeles, but saw enough of the fat, sweaty westerners with poor young girls in other places around the islands. |
| 18th October 2009 KathyH | Rainbow Lorikeets - From: Hello little birdies (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) Parrots are lovely. It was funny to see our Australian Rainbow Lorikeets in your photo of the Kuala Lumpur Bird Park, though. I wonder if they have the same birds in Indonesia or if they brought them in just for the aviary. If you like these colourful birds you should go to Queensland to the Currumbin Bird Sanctuary. They feed the birds every day and literally thousands of them descend from the local area to feed from the plates of sweet meal that the spectators can hold. They will sit on your head and on the plates while feeding. It lasts about 1/2 hour and then they will all just fly off to roost for the night miles away. Im afraid it also has a fairly high entrance fee (as I remember) but it is well worth the visit. |
| 18th October 2009 Adam | The truth - From: Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) Tell the truth nothing but the truth. Love your blog, especially this one. Keep it up.. and stay clean, God bless you. |
| 17th October 2009 Paul | Prostitution is NEVER a cultural thing ! - From: Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) No woman would want to prostitute themselves in asia, maybe yes to some women in countries where they can make quick big bucks ! I just hope readers are smart enough not to believe everything you write because your thoughts are toxic. But then again, there are a lot of stuckup ignorant people like you and will believe everything they read in blogs and the internet. |
| 17th October 2009 spidermiss | Interesting - From: Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) I just want to let you know that Im enjoying your travelblogs. Im planning a career break in a couple of years and its nice to be inspired by other travelblog members for ideas. Your blog is interesting and paints a sad and realistic picture of how these women really live (not just in Angeles City but in many other places). Anyway, happy travels, Dawn. |
| 17th October 2009 joe | good for you - From: Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) these topics need to be discussed.i guess the negative posts are probably from men who have been there and are afraiid their wives will read about this. |
| 17th October 2009 dixie | dhix_seventeen@yahoo.com - From: Bye bye friendly Taiwan (Taipei, Taiwan) hi there.im dixie and im from the philippines. just want to ask someone who has been to taiwan already, and since u have been to a lot of places already u might have some tips for me. im planning to go to taiwan probably this december or early next year. ill be traveling just by myself. is it safe to be do that?are the people there friendly and approachable, are there a lot of english speaking people i could ask around? also, would u know any cheap hotels i could stay for like 3 days in taipei? ill also be visiting miaoili in taiwan, have u been there?will be visiting a friend over there. sorry i have a lot of questions. i hope u could find the time to reply to me. i know you e kinda busy in your travel adventures. anyway, thanks and keep on discovering the world! =) dixie |
| 16th October 2009 patricia Johnson | phillipines - From: Hello little birdies (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) I read your last blog and you should try to take that off. They have enough to deal with over there with out teaching the whole world how it works over there in Angel City. Some of those girls will end up marrying these ugly men who come there for some kind service. They end up in another country where thier problems really can begin. I met quite a few women coming to france and america all the same story. They were translators or guides. The next thing they find them selves in a womens shelter trying to escape from the men that married them. some beaten others mentally drained. Not only women from the Phillipines but other contries too. Its sad. It would have been better to write about Emelda Marcos shoes.. |
| 16th October 2009 Seth | The Truth is ... - From: Hello little birdies (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) SEX sells. Nobody really wants to read about cute little birdies (well except me). Readers, tourists, backpackers, travelers and the likes all want to read stuff that have sex written all over it, simply because people are drawn to sex ! SEX SEX SEX ! So bloggers like you go out of their way and spend they time and money going to Asias Red Light districts so they can blog about it. Why ? maybe to get the blog hits ? or try to prove to themselves and to the world that they are ot like those fat/old western men who use their wealth to prey on the under-privilege girls in third world countries ? The other truth is, you can write something offensive and disparaging about a country after only spending 3 weeks and not get a criticism about it. Just a thought ... |
| 16th October 2009 Lili | Thanks, Ben - From: Drinking in the sublime views from Mount Bromo (Gunung Bromo, Java, Indonesia) Thanks for the comment. Ive actually been reading up on your blogs about the same time you wrote in your comment! Been planning a short trip to Yogyakarta + Bali, but have not figured out yet what to do. Can be away too long. Safe travels........enjoy Taiwan. Do the mountains.......something i failed to do. |
| 16th October 2009 Lili | How are you? - From: Pictures simply cannot do this place any justice (Bacuit Archipelago, Palawan, Philippines) Hope you are doing fine there. Metro Manila is a mess. Flooded yesterday, many stranded, some without homes, cars left "drowning" in streets. We have no water here at home. Thankfully, we have power though our cable tv is not working. Stay safe. |
| 16th October 2009 sadia | - From: Living life with no sense of time (Kuta, Bali, Indonesia) Hi Ben how r u doing, I presume your balance is back to normal. Can I ask why r u going round in circles you seem to be stuck in this part of Asia any plans to move forward out to some other part of world? Take good care Sadia XX |
| 16th October 2009 vrilisda br sitepu | hello ben.. - From: Climbing an active volcano (Berastagi, Sumatra, Indonesia) hello ben.. my name is vrilisda br sitepu i live in jakarta, but my home town is in brastagi, north sumatra. i'm so happy when i was joined in flickr, and i can found my home town's photos from you. but i want download the videos. can you send the videos about brastagi or kabanjahe for me??? i hope your help.. thank you so much.. |
| 16th October 2009 Emily | likeminded travelbloggers! - From: Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) hey, i saw yr travelblog and its great! i can believe youve been on the road for 555 days!! my partner & i also quit our jobs in april of 2009, sold all of our stuff and headed to eastern europe. we do wish we could have travelled in asia like u but we figure that will be next time. we are in turkey now and will head to mexico next. have fun and safe travels!!! and i hope yr moneys not running out! .emily |
| 16th October 2009 Sophie and Dale | Quite sad really - From: Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) Im so glad you took the time out to write about how little these girls get paid (and respected). Its nice that you took the time to find out exactly what their lives are really like and really opened our eyes to just how rubbish their world is. I disagree with posts that you shouldn have published it, it made for interesting reading, particularly for people back home who are unaware of how bad the problem is not only here in the Philippines but throughout SE Asia. Yes it goes on back at home but Im pretty sure it isn as widespread as this, to make matters worse if its so easily accessible at home then why on gods earth do fat sweaty Western men feel the need to go on holidays just to enjoy getting their rocks off with young girls for 2 weeks??? |
| 15th October 2009 Jo Trouble | Fuji as it should be climbed - From: Climbing and camping on the top of Japan (Mount Fuji, Japan) Loved this entry :-) If I climb Fuji again I'm definitely going in the off-season. thanks! |
| 15th October 2009 Pinky | - From: Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) You really got me into thinking why prostitution is so bad here. Im really hoping this is not a cultural matter, but somehow you're right. We have been under bitter spanish rule for about 400years, wherein the society was stratified into classes bestowed with different privileges and abuses. Maybe the social trend to copulate with the white race and later on with rich japanese and taiwanese guys started off as a social survival technique during colonial times (???). Historians and anthropologists might be scandalized with this though, but at the moment i could not think of of any other explanation :D Then again its likely a host of more complex issues. It's the reason behind some of the bad reputation that is disturbing. You are right on pointing out that most western tourists here are lonely, fat, old caucasian guys seeking companionship of girls barely out of gradeschool. It seems everyone's blaming poverty for this, when it's mainly lame-duck mentality. And Angeles' city of fallen angels-character has spread to other areas, even though the GIs have left a long time ago. Nonetheless, please accept my deepest gratitude for your kind words on El Nido in one of your previous posts. Have a good trip! |
| 15th October 2009 Lisa | Preconceptions and Own Prejudice - From: Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) Are you implying that Filipino women like to prostitute themselves ??? ... by saying that it is a cultural thing ? OMG, get over yourself ! And where are you getting your facts that Philippines is the Prostitute capital of the world ? Philippines has higher population living in under the poverty line. The only reason they do it is because they were left with no other options. Your ignorant preconsumption is the same as saying - Promiscuity and Sexual Perversion in the West must also be a cultural thing ? |
| 15th October 2009 Joe | Why publish the blog? - From: Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) I don't really understand why you would publish a blog about the sex trade which you don't agree with? By publishing the blog it further promotes the place. Additionally, by you buying drinks in the bars and staying in the hotels there you are adding to their success in business and therefor perpetuating this sex trade that you despise. You didn't have to stay there. You knew what the place was about before you went there and yet you still chose to stay there rather than Manila. Yes, its a sad, depressing place but prostitution happens all over the world for many many reasons. You must have had a sheltered travelling experience to not witness this in other countries but then again some places are just more obvious about it than other places. |
| 15th October 2009 Philipp Höllermann | - From: Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) Amazing post... as always. Depressing though. Good luck with your travels, Ben! |
| 15th October 2009 Steve | philippines - From: An island within a lake on an island within a lake on an island (Taal Volcano, Luzon, Philippines) Hi Ben, first of all your a king!I was reading your travel stories about the philippines and left me thinking.I am ttraveling tp philippines next december but am confused to cancel the trip or not because of the disaster occurred.Since you are ecperience it can you please give me some info about the sitiuation. Thanks and good luck with your journey steve |
| 15th October 2009 Peter Psaila | Good day boss - From: An island within a lake on an island within a lake on an island (Taal Volcano, Luzon, Philippines) I am travelling to Philippines with some friends and I would like to know if the place is good for traveling after that bad weather. Thanks for your blog and may all your dreams come true. Peter Malta EU |
| 13th October 2009 pinky | sad - From: Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) sense of helplessness so strong it made them blind from decent though toilsome options that do exist, and easy preys for flesh-trade entrepreneurs. grim yet honest perspective. thanks for sharing! |
| 13th October 2009 Jack | Stereotypes - From: Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) Yes ... Philippines is not only about prostitutes like Thailand. It is a beautiful place with lots of nice and wonderful people (who can speak English). |
| 13th October 2009 Mark | wha ? - From: Achtung baby - alone in Angeles (Angeles City, Luzon, Philippines) Did you just get sprung from some sort of cloistered existance or what ? You seem almost shocked that things such as this go on in Asia. Actually, it goes on in the western world and it's just as prevelant, the only difference is that it's prettied up for people like you who pretend that it's only 'them' that it happens to. That and the fact that it's more hidden and underground over here because of our puritanical history. They make less money over there because the cost of living is less. Is prostitution a new concept for you ? Have you only been staying in 5-star resorts or something ? I further submit that you chose to go there, perhaps not to partake, but because you subconsciously needed a wake-up call. How can you travel the world and still be so naive and ignorant ? |
| 13th October 2009 Marc | Overrated - From: Living life with no sense of time (Kuta, Bali, Indonesia) Kuta is so overrated... |
| 11th October 2009 liliram | A pity! - From: An island within a lake on an island within a lake on an island (Taal Volcano, Luzon, Philippines) Talisay? Tagaytay is the better place to crash, and there are 3 roads leading from there to Talisay where you can take a boat to cross the lake towards the volcano. You'd be at the edge of the lake in well under 30 minutes from Tagaytay, where lodgings are so much better and where the climate and daily walks fare so much better. Tagaytay is one of my favorite places because the volcano views from the Ridge is so much better, and there is a wide range of choices for eats and lodgings. But you got a good deal on the boat ride, Ben! Business must be real slow, for them to take you at P650 solo. It usually costs 500 pesos (US$10) per person for 3 passengers on a boat. Guess you can't win them all! Take care. |
| 9th October 2009 dusty | amazing - From: An island within a lake on an island within a lake on an island (Taal Volcano, Luzon, Philippines) your picture and storys never stop intresting me in this area |
| 9th October 2009 EdVallance | thanks - From: A scary ocean crossing indeed, followed by unexpected hospitality (Coron, Palawan, Philippines) your blog and photos bring back many happy memories of my time in this beautiful country and many scary ones of awful boat crossings like the one you experienced! cheers |
| 9th October 2009 pinky | bet it's one hell of a boatride - From: A scary ocean crossing indeed, followed by unexpected hospitality (Coron, Palawan, Philippines) its a boat trip risky enough even during off-typhoon season. such a crazy decision!xD you should thank EU for introducing users' fee in the area. they used to have a protected area devt proj in the Calamianes, and one of the strategies was to get tourists' fees to support conservation. just dont know how much of it actually go into nature conservation (you did mention the garbage beneath the floating community). the "stunning bay" photo reminded me of the cliff that divides the sea and kayangan lake. i believe i have the same shot, though it was taken 9yrs ago (w/ an analog cam). thanks for sharing this adventure! once again, a wonderful post! |
| 8th October 2009 karen | typhoon joy - From: Pictures simply cannot do this place any justice (Bacuit Archipelago, Palawan, Philippines) it rained all the way on that journey for me too, but we were the lucky ones, the other guys from Banwa took a private van (at considerably more pesos) and they got stuck in the mud... and i sent you that photo from Coron to make you feel better do you remember? the miserable grey one? i assume you wont be diving in coron? Do go to the hot springs especially if its raining. late afternoon to early evening is the best. enjoy. |
| 8th October 2009 karen | funny fish - From: 3 islands down, 7104 to go (Honda Bay, Palawan, Philippines) Me and a guy Mark were snorkelling off snake island and spent ages teasing one of those territorial fish. We were in stitches it was the funniest thing... |
| 8th October 2009 PA Leslie | Souvenirs - From: Pictures simply cannot do this place any justice (Bacuit Archipelago, Palawan, Philippines) Sorry, forget to sign my comments, it was us! Peter |
| 8th October 2009 marc | philippines - From: Pictures simply cannot do this place any justice (Bacuit Archipelago, Palawan, Philippines) hi ben, i just read parts of your blog about the philippines. i will travel there myself october, 17th. i want to visit siargao island for surfing and palawan. can you recommend a god place to stay in el nido? it was good to get some first hand information of the weather situation as i am indeed a bit scared to go after all you hear about the floods in the northern philippines and the earthquakes in indonesia. have a good time a be save! marc/ berlin |
| 8th October 2009 TinNiE | lovely! - From: Pictures simply cannot do this place any justice (Bacuit Archipelago, Palawan, Philippines) We will be in Coron this weekend with a couple of my co-workers! now, you just made me alot more excited! YAY! can't wait to see Palawan! ... just the time needed to try and forget the trauma brought by Typhoon Ondoy. |
| 8th October 2009 anonymous | Souvenirs - From: Pictures simply cannot do this place any justice (Bacuit Archipelago, Palawan, Philippines) We were in El Nido for a week exactly at the same time last year....what a souvenir...and yes indeed , the place is just one of the nicest beach/sea in the world...and I've seen my fair share of them! Great entry! |
| 8th October 2009 Sophie and Dale | Fabulous - From: Pictures simply cannot do this place any justice (Bacuit Archipelago, Palawan, Philippines) Looks amazing Ben.. we are so looking forward to our time there but plans are changing by the day. We now think we might go at the end of this month (my sister is meeting us there) stay for 21 days then fly out to KK then fly back for another 60 days and take in the festival that is there mid January. means we'll be there over xmas which could be expensive but at least we'll get nearly 3 months there to do many things as it all looks amazing.. your blogs are making us want to go even more! Will look forward to your next edition back from Indonesia.. we'll be interested to see how you get on with your route as it's one we'd have liked to have done if we had more time on our visa! take care |
| 8th October 2009 Jon | hanoi is probably the worst - From: Tranquility and dishonesty around Halong Bay (Cat Ba Island, Vietnam) Hi mate, great blog and really enjoyng reading it!! i was in vietnam a few years ago and never had any troubles until i reached hanoi. I was on the back of a motorbike taxi and as i got off and paid i turned to walk a way and i felt a slash at the back of my pants and i saw the bike speed away they had used a razor to slash at my back pocket to get at my wallet and lucky for me i had good jeans on the wallet was just hanging on!!! lesson learned... never carry your wallet in your back pocket!!! take care and good luck with the rest of the travels! |
| 8th October 2009 Kevin Donnachie | Outstanding! - From: Pictures simply cannot do this place any justice (Bacuit Archipelago, Palawan, Philippines) Hi Ben I have been reading your blog for some months now & I felt compelled just to say "Outstanding!" best blog on this site, full of impartial informative info on the backpackers life. Best of Luck mate with further travels. |
| 8th October 2009 Patricia | NYC/ must meet U and your mom - From: Pictures simply cannot do this place any justice (Bacuit Archipelago, Palawan, Philippines) If you come to the east coast . U must contact me. I 'd love to meet your mom too. I bet she is about my age or younger? Love your pictures and blog. Patricia |
| 7th October 2009 dustin | breath taking - From: Pictures simply cannot do this place any justice (Bacuit Archipelago, Palawan, Philippines) i have seen your pictures before and i think the phillipeans would be the most beautiful place on earth. i just seen your have spent 546 days on the road, and i wanted 2 know how you afford that? do you work on the road? please get back to me im planning my adventure for next summer. thanks |
| 7th October 2009 Marc | Indeed, pictures can't do justice to that place - From: Pictures simply cannot do this place any justice (Bacuit Archipelago, Palawan, Philippines) But great pictures you have, nonetheless. |
| 7th October 2009 anonymous | - From: Dr. Fish nibbling at my feet (Busan, South Korea) where was the doctor fish cafe |
| 7th October 2009 Sophie and Dale | Great! - From: 3 islands down, 7104 to go (Honda Bay, Palawan, Philippines) Thanks for the info Ben.. we are going to the Philippines on the 29th October and plan to travel to Palawan, it sounds lovely so we'll look forward to it. Is it really 50euros to extend the visa.. we hadn't realised it was that much as we were planning to stay for around 6 weeks but may have to reconsider.. especially considering our flights out are £80 each!! Comes with travelling over xmas we suppose! Anyway have fun in El Nido.. will look forward to the next edition! Take care ps interesting about Evgenia, we have also met people who travel like her and it amazes us.. they still do everything we do though so obviously have something right! |
| 7th October 2009 pinky | welcome! - From: 3 islands down, 7104 to go (Honda Bay, Palawan, Philippines) hi! nice post! been reading your blog since last year (chanced upon it while searching for matsumoto photos) and im glad you finally made it to the philippines! if ever you're in for another visit maybe you should also try seeing apo reef & apo island (2 different diving havens, the 1st being at the north of busuanga is., the other at the southern tip of negros is.). have an enjoyable and SAFE stay! |
| 7th October 2009 Chi | Tainan to Sun Moon Lake - From: Boating across and biking around (Sun Moon Lake, Taiwan) I read your day 532 entry on your blog and would like to know the combination of train and bus you took from Tainan to Sun Moon Lake? I am planning to go to Taiwan in Nov to see the sights and Tainan to Sun Moon Lake is one section that I would be travelling on. Many thanks! |
| 6th October 2009 liliram | Hi Ben - From: 3 islands down, 7104 to go (Honda Bay, Palawan, Philippines) I can tell you have been enjoying the beach and relatively good weather down there in Palawan. I hear it gets better as you go up north. Good for you to leave Manila at the time you did. Enjoy the rest of your 21-day stay in my country (we really ought to do something about that......), bring a coconut to sip the juice and eat the meat while just being lazy down a deserted beach, try the local fish and other seafood there---simply grilled or eaten with salted red egg, eat some sweet pineapples, buy some cashew nuts there, get a massage, and just have fun! Btw, I can tell some rice varieties. And yes, it is well over 30. Also, you arrived in the newer, though smaller airport terminal. Quiet there. |
| 6th October 2009 Hector Coronado | - From: Bye bye friendly Taiwan (Taipei, Taiwan) Read your blog and I'd say that is quite a nice journey you're doing. I wish I have your courage! Keep on traveling! |
| 30th September 2009 Ade | Thank You for your Travel Story - From: Drinking in the sublime views from Mount Bromo (Gunung Bromo, Java, Indonesia) Hallo, apa kabar (How do you do) Mr. Beiske? I am Indonesian and I thank you for you to tell the world travel story about Mount (Gunung) Bromo, Lautan Pasir (The Sand Sea), Gunung Batok and everything. Yes, transportation is still our main problem in urban or in rural parts of Indonesia. But there are many hiring car you can hired at the city to visit many great location at Java, Bali, Sumatera, Borneo, Celebes, and Papua, after you arrive at the airport. Indonesian people are usually friendly, maybe you find a tired or unsleep people or a local tourist, :) Thank you, please come again, Visit Indonesia |
| 27th September 2009 Albertine | - From: Templed-out (Tainan, Taiwan) Remember a shop in Beijing with the longest queu ever. The reason: yohurt. |
| 23rd September 2009 willam | great - From: Enjoying the seawater hot springs under the stars (Green Island, Taiwan) 好漂亮！好喜欢！好想去！ |
| 22nd September 2009 anny | - From: Enjoying the seawater hot springs under the stars (Green Island, Taiwan) It's looks beautiful, but I never go there, I live in the south of TW. The east of TW always famous with its beautiful scenes. = ) |
| 22nd September 2009 Patricia | your stories - From: Enjoying the seawater hot springs under the stars (Green Island, Taiwan) I do not know how you found me to send these wonderfull stories but they are great. Love your photos and how you write about them.Patricia |
| 19th September 2009 Careers Nigeria | Very Nice Place !! - From: Extreme beauty of the world and a pleasing delight of hills and water (Taroko Gorge, Taiwan) Hi There !! It looks great. Very nice place and good pictures. Thanks for the post http://cv.careersnigeria.com/ |
| 19th September 2009 Dorothée | - From: Extreme beauty of the world and a pleasing delight of hills and water (Taroko Gorge, Taiwan) You look really happy! |
| 14th September 2009 irrine | enquires - From: Living life with no sense of time (Kuta, Bali, Indonesia) hi.read your blog,looks like your trip is interesting. i'm heading to Kuta for my 1st trip in march 2010. intend to stay in either Harris Resort or Alam Kul Kul. Can you recommend rate ranging from USD50-60 max? TQ very much. |
| 13th September 2009 liliram | You finally got there! - From: At last - The Ilha Formosa (Taipei, Taiwan) Been waiting for your blog. Good to know it's all sunny when you got there. How long will you be in Taiwan? Great photos too, give my regards to your mom! |
| 13th September 2009 Jo | Hikingalone in the Japan Alps - From: Hiking across the Northern Japan Alps (Japan Alps National Park, Central Honshu, Japan) Hello Ben, I've been living in Japan for a while, but still haven't been into the alps enough! I have exactly one month left here and thought your route from Kamikochi sounded really great. I would have to hike it alone however as all my friends are working..haha. I have a decent level of fitness but not much experience hiking alone. I often trail run around where I live - Madarao, Shinetsu Trail and hike up a mountain I know quite often, but rarely venture high up mountains I don't know...especially alone. Your route sounds doable, but what preparatoins are needed for a 4-day hike? Also, I have heard Yarigatake is a hard climb and a little dangerous? Or that could just be my boyfriend not wanting me to venture it alone! Thank you in advance, Jo |
| 7th September 2009 Adrian Zermeno | Hello - From: Why is Singapore so different? (Singapore) Hi there. Just wanted to say that I've just spent quite some time looking through all of your blogs. They are so fascinating and interesting and this trip really seems incredible. I am planning an around the world in the next few years. I ned to finish my last year of college and then save for a bit. |
| 5th September 2009 Sophie and Dale | One step ahead... - From: Living life with no sense of time (Kuta, Bali, Indonesia) Another blog reflecting much of the same views of us on Kuta.. we had a particularly bad experience there which you will no doubt read about when we manage to catch up but we will never return to this overpriced, overhyped island where they will do anything to squeeze every last Rp out of you. Hope you are enjoying whereever you are at now though.. we are off to Sulwesi next after a very flying visit to Lombok and Flores.. the dragons are amazing if you are coming (or are already) this way! |
| 29th August 2009 Nicole | Hello! - From: Living life with no sense of time (Kuta, Bali, Indonesia) Hi Ben... I am sitting here in Kuta just having posted a blog from my previous destination - Fiji, when yours on Bali popped up there on the home page... Funny I am heading to all the places you have already been... I also read with interest that you quit your job and sold most of your belongings... :)... I have done the same... I was curious as to your reasons for making such a dramatic change to your life... Happy travels and enjoy Singapore... I am heading there in about 25 days... Nic |
| 29th August 2009 liliram | I love that sunset photo! - From: Living life with no sense of time (Kuta, Bali, Indonesia) No crowded beaches for me. Guess i can skip Kuta, per your advice. But that sunset photo is a winner! |
| 28th August 2009 Sputnik | Hello there - From: Drinking in the sublime views from Mount Bromo (Gunung Bromo, Java, Indonesia) Great blog! and been enjoying reading your entries especially around Myanmar and Indonesia. Myself am itching to travel whole lot of Indonesia soon! Many tips gathered from your blog and keep it up... http://sputnikme.blogspot.com/ |
| 27th August 2009 Agni | - From: Drinking in the sublime views from Mount Bromo (Gunung Bromo, Java, Indonesia) Hello Ben, I went through your amazing story and I'm so happy for you that you have been able to do what I can only dream of doing. The journey you have undertaken is nothing less than a profound spiritual experience for me. Travelling makes you nothing but more knowledgeable , enlightened and a much better person. Some day I too would like to embark upon such a trip. As I follow your trail I see that you are very close to India, my country of birth. Do visit this wonderful land full of life enhancing experiences. I have been away from my country for 3 yrs now and miss it everyday. I would wait eagerly for your updates if you do visit India. Remember India has been quite rightly named a sub-continent as she holds all possible climatic contitions and geographical features within her, not forgetting the diverse cultures intertwined in a complex but beautiful medley. I wish you the best and good health thoughout your trip. Bye. Agni |
| 26th August 2009 Adam | - From: Drinking in the sublime views from Mount Bromo (Gunung Bromo, Java, Indonesia) What about Americans? Are they easy to spot while traveling? Great pictures, by the way! |
| 26th August 2009 patricia johnson | Can French speak English?? - From: Drinking in the sublime views from Mount Bromo (Gunung Bromo, Java, Indonesia) I spent 20 years in France with out speaking good french. Most French can speak some words of English and those that can speak fair English hisitate in fear of sounding wrong or afraid to make mistakes. If you had a small dictionary and ask for some help to understand a french word they would jump at the chance to help you. You can make friends fast. I'm sure. I just finished travel with my french friend for two months (( in Central America )) and when you travel with french and hook up with other french you are sure to eat well!! My friends English is fairly limited. But we managed and had a great time. Patricia |
| 25th August 2009 JMV | Wonderful travel experience - From: Drinking in the sublime views from Mount Bromo (Gunung Bromo, Java, Indonesia) But why do you expect everyone to know English? Why don't you learn French? |
| 24th August 2009 Jason | Great Story - From: Climbing and camping on the top of Japan (Mount Fuji, Japan) Loved your blog. I've climbed Mt Fuji 3 times now, all during the normal hiking season. Off season definatly sounds like a lot of fun (no crowds). |
| 21st August 2009 dnice | help on visa extension - From: Extending my visa (Guilin, Guangxi Province, China) where exactly in guilin did you extend your visa?? please provide the address and steps for extension. thanks.. |
| 21st August 2009 Nelle | Welcome to my Indonesia - From: Magnificent temples, persistent hassle and discriminatory foreigner pricing (Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia) I hope Bromo leaves you feel a bit better...haha. Also like I said, if you're heading back to Bali, maybe go to Lombok, the next island across. Much more civilised although it is getting rather touristy, maybe because I've been telling people to go to Lombok and not Bali for AGES hahaha. Spewing that I am not there while you're there, would've LOVED to show you Lampung area in Sumatra where I grew up. Of course if you were travelling with me it would be a bit 'clinical' as I have a strong dislike of public transport in Indonesia, for reasons I am sure you'd appreciate. But in all, I think we are a very friendly, courteous (except when driving), helpful people, and much as there are to improve upon, the beautiful nature of the Indonesian people occassionaly shines through. |
| 20th August 2009 Sophie and Dale | Similar Yogya experience - From: Magnificent temples, persistent hassle and discriminatory foreigner pricing (Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia) Interesting read as I type this in a Yogya internet cafe waiting for our 01.18 train to get us part way to Mt Bromo... We too were dismayed to learn the difference in pricing for the locals vs us foreigners. We have the same argument that if these people came to the UK there would be uproar that we were discriminating against them being able to enjoy the attractions, it's very frustrating but we either have to like it or lump it and obviously tend to head towards liking it :o( |
| 20th August 2009 Silke | Indonesien und so - From: Magnificent temples, persistent hassle and discriminatory foreigner pricing (Yogyakarta, Java, Indonesia) Hallo Ben, schön, dass du wieder fit bist! Und schön, dass du dich derzeit in Gegenden herumtreibst, in denen ich auch schon einmal mit dem Rucksack unterwegs war. Ich bin gespannt was du vom Bromo schreibst. Wir haben es damals nicht geschafft zum Sonnenaufgang da zu sein, sondern haben ihn während des Tages erwandert. Schön fand ich deinen Eindruck in Yogya und am Tempel, uns ist es genauso gegange. Das was wir glaube ich am meisten gehört haben war: \"special price only for you and only today...\" Lass es dir gutgehen Silke |
| 19th August 2009 Katrin | Gute Besserung - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Hallo Ben, wuensche Dir Gute Besserung. Pass auf Dich auf und uebertreibe es nicht. Bleib bzw. werde gesund. Alles Gute aus Thailand, wo ich unterwegs bin. Katrin |
| 18th August 2009 Marco | Hello! - From: Lessons in solidarity and relaxation (Jakarta, Java, Indonesia) Hello traveller Ben Freud mich. Well, to make it short, my name is Marco. I am from Hong Kong and also like travelling so much in my whole life. Coincidentally, I just saw your experience sharing when surfing "travel blog", and I was very impressed with your passion for travel and its impacts bringing to your life. Congrats, you are really a true global trekker, like Ian Wright. So if you don't mind, I want to add you as a friend to exchange more travel views, especially I plan to revisit to Germany again in the year-end. I'd like to hear more advice from you in Germany. (P.S: I have been learning German for a few years but it is not an easy one) In general, people like to travel tend to be more friendler and open-minded, and that's my point of view. Gute reise! Marco |
| 18th August 2009 Adam | Nervous? - From: Lessons in solidarity and relaxation (Jakarta, Java, Indonesia) Hey Ben, were you a bit nervous traveling back to Jakarta since the recent bombings? What were the locals' reactions to the incident? Hope you get some R & R in Bali, buddy. -Adam |
| 18th August 2009 Timo | Taiwan - From: Lessons in solidarity and relaxation (Jakarta, Java, Indonesia) Hi Ben, hoffe es geht Dir wieder besser mit Deiner Ohrengeschichte. Jedenfalls weiterhin gute Besserung! Das ist ja klasse, dass Deine Mutter zusammen mit Dir auf Reisen geht fuer eine Weile. Zur Info, Chiu und ich werden vom 1.-7.10. in Taiwan sein. Vielleicht bietet sich ja ein Treffen an. Falls ja, melde Dich einfach. Sei gegruesst Timo |
| 12th August 2009 Kiat | Hi - From: Lessons in solidarity and relaxation (Jakarta, Java, Indonesia) Hi Ben, I'm Kiat from Malaysia and have been a regular visitor to your blog. I enjoy reading your adventure and aspire to be a world traveller like yourself. Keep up the good job and hope your ear condition gets better soon. Cheers. Regards, Kiat |
| 11th August 2009 Endah | - From: Lessons in solidarity and relaxation (Jakarta, Java, Indonesia) u missed the story about couple who gave us a ride to kawah putih,how they behave by keeping our change money for entrance fee to kawah putih. ..and how friendly my roomate to u except tht the "old dragon",and u have a teenager fans who wanna took a picture with u,hahaaa.... |
| 9th August 2009 Sachin Mevada | - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Scary experience. Hope you are feeling much better now. Get well soon! |
| 9th August 2009 Kirty Naran | - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Read your blog... youve really had an adventure if you can call it that! Just glad you recovering. Hope u have a fab time with your mom. |
| 9th August 2009 Oliver Nafe | - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Hi Ben, Anja war grad hier und wir haben Dir nen Kommentar in den Blog geschrieben. Hoffen, dass alles gut wird und Du Deinen Trip fortsetzen kannst. Viele Grüße aus Berlin |
| 9th August 2009 Philipp Höllermann | - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Wow, Ben... the scans are extremly impressive, the story is... well, scary indeed. Hope you'll fully recover soon and wish you all the best for your travels! Keep going! |
| 9th August 2009 Céline Richard | - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Oh... Borneo's hospitals love us ! Take care. It's good if your mother comes. (For me, it was not dengue but pyelonephritis - an ascending urinary tract infection) |
| 9th August 2009 Kirty Naran | - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Sorry to hear that, hope you feel better soon. |
| 9th August 2009 Sarah Lamming | - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Do take care of yourself ... thinking of you |
| 9th August 2009 Clara Estrems | - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Ben I hope you will be completely fine soon |
| 9th August 2009 Joko Schulte | - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Mr. Ben, alles Jute für die weitere Reise!! Lass dich nicht unterkriegen. |
| 9th August 2009 Steven Aquilina | - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) I hope you are now recovering well. Take care in Jakarta! let me know if/when you are coming to Melbourne!Maybe dose of cold weather will do you good! :) |
| 9th August 2009 Steven Aquilina | - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) I hope you are now recovering well. Take care in Jakarta! let me know if/when you are coming to Melbourne!Maybe dose of cold weather will do you good! :) |
| 3rd August 2009 karen | Drs crudentials - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) I'm surprised that you didn't mention that your consultant used to be the doctor for the Sultan of Brunei. Its not like you to miss a name dropping opportunity.... I'm just about to have my last Horlick Ping and Roti Cannai. Missing them already. |
| 30th July 2009 Denise | Best wishes to you - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Hi Ben, Are you getting better now after leaving the hospital ? very sorry to know that you were very sick. Hope you having a speedy recovery. Will pray for you! Denise |
| 30th July 2009 Kate | You are welcome in Singapore - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Hi Ben, If you need some time to recover, please do not hesitate to come on up to Singapore. I am around for the next three weeks (away for some of September) and then i am also in Singapore for much of October. Let me know if you need anything! K |
| 30th July 2009 Natalie | Hi! - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Hi Mr. Ben!!! ;-) I read you last notice in your dairy - it's very unpleasant assist in the hospital :-( I Hope that everything is Okay and you fully recover your health :-) and soon you'll be delight us new pictures and stories :-) You are a GREAT TRAVELER!!! with best wishes, Natalie |
| 29th July 2009 iyo | - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) It's quite coincidence that I watched House (the TV series) where a patient fell sick on the plane during a flight from Malaysia. And the reason for such occurrence is that the traveler went for diving before taking the flight which cause sudden change of air pressure environment. Maybe the same case of your (and in the same country as well...heheh) |
| 28th July 2009 Dennis | Skifahren noch möglich? - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Hey Ben, auch von mir gute Besserung - ich hoffe, dass sich Deine Perilymphfistel nicht dauerhaft auf Deine Skikünste auswirkt? ;-) Viele Grüße aus Münster, Dennis |
| 27th July 2009 Oli und Anja | Gute Besserung - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Hi Ben, Anja ist grad hier und wir haben Deinen Blogeintrag gelesen. Wir wünschen Dir gute Besserung , dass Du noch viel erleben kannst und Deine Reise fortsetzen kannst. Viele Grüße aus Berlin Anja und Oli |
| 27th July 2009 Chicco | From Banda Aceh to Singapore - From: Not a great start in Indonesia (Medan, Sumatra, Indonesia) From Banda Aceh to Singapore Hi there Ben, great blog Can I ask you something? I have been surfing on the net for a few hours but all my attempts to work out the below are faling, my spanish credit card gets rejected I am a Spaniard who will be landing in Indonesia on July 27th, I have no exit ticket from the country, I only have a ticket from Thailand to Hong Kong on Nov 04th Due to the recent blasts in Jakarta I have the feeling that in the border they might be particularly picky and careful with the conditions for my entry in Indonesia, I am trying to get a flight on the net from Banda Aceh to Singapore (my next country) but I cant. Is it possible a ferry from Banda to Singapore? Otherwise, do I have to take it from Medan? Are you in agreement with the fact that I should get an exit ticket before getting into the country? Thanks mate Chicco |
| 27th July 2009 Sandy | take care! - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Hi ben, Sad to hear about it..but I guess health is the most important, maybe you will regret later if anything serious happened...but for travel, you can start again later ever though you are working, you can travel short trips every time.. I am really worrying about you, do keep us post on your situation.. |
| 27th July 2009 Lutz aus Mainz | Ups... - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Pass auf Dich auf - ich drücke Dir die Daumen, dass Du weiter reisen kannst |
| 27th July 2009 Svente | Gute Besserung - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Hey my friend, hope you will turn back well pretty soon. Strange thing what happened to you! In my mind I am with you all time, your friend, Svente |
| 27th July 2009 Sadia | - From: Mr. Ben in hospital (Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia) Hey Ben, are you sure u r ok to continue, doesnt sound very good to me. It could potentially be dangerous as you might fall or injure yourself more. But be careful its your health dont end up having any long term effects from the injury. Take care Sadia |
| 23rd July 2009 Timo | Taiwan - From: No more 'Hello Mister', my friend (Bogor, Java, Indonesia) Hallo Ben, ueber die letzten Monate habe ich Deine Reiseberichte meist verfolgt. Sehr interessant. Es ermutigt uns, die eine oder andere Reise vielleicht selbst einmal zu machen. Jetzt lese ich, dass Du vor hast nach Taiwan zu reisen. Nun habe ich dorthin ja eine besondere Beziehung, denn meine liebe Frau stammt von dort und ich war in den letzten 10 Jahren bestimmt 12mal dort. Wie lange hast Du denn vor dort zu verbringen? Welche Orte willst Du besuchen? Viele Gruesse aus Peking! Timo |
| 23rd July 2009 PJ | Stay in Bogor - From: No more 'Hello Mister', my friend (Bogor, Java, Indonesia) Hi Ben, I have just been reading your travel blog. We are travelling to Bogor shortly and wondered where you stayed as you described it as being nice. Thanks PJ |
| 23rd July 2009 Silke Janser | Grüsse aus dem Norden in den Osten - From: Drug junkie look-alike (Melaka, Malaysia) Hallo Ben, nun bin ich doch tatsächlich auf deinen Blog gestossen. Und ich werde schon ein bisschen neidisch, wenn ich deine Berichte lese und das schoene Wetter sehe. Seit fast einem Jahr bin ich nicht mehr im Marktbereich, sondern wohne in Kopenhagen. übrigens auch eine schöne Stadt. Wenn ich auf deine Weltkarte sehe, dann warst du wohl noch nie in Dänemark. Du bist hier herzlich willkommen. Bis nächstes Jahr im Februar sind wir auf jeden Fall noch hier. ;-) Gruss aus Kopenhagen Silke |
| 23rd July 2009 Alrun | Impressed - From: Golf, Golf, Golf (Port Dickson, Malaysia) Lieber Ben, habe mir gerade einige deiner Fotoalben angeguckt - großartig!!! Da bekomme ich prompt Lust, selbst wieder loszufliegen, nur leider wird das zumindest in den nächsten paar Jahren etwas schwieriger, denn Jan und ich erwarten zu Ostern Nachwuchs. Auch recht aufregend, wenn auch auf eine andere Art... Wünsche dir / euch noch viele traumhafte und vor allem lustige und skurrile Erlebnisse und gutes, trockenes Wetter. Gruß Alrun |
| 23rd July 2009 Joel | Mt. Hua Shan - From: The second most terrifying experience of my life (Hua Shan, Shaanxi Province, China) Do you mind answering a question about the dangerous Mt. Hua Shan hike? I have seen pictures of the trail showing dangerous-looking parts of the climb. My wife likes to hike, but fortunately/unfortunately she does not want to try a section that’s "too" risky. I have read about the 5 peaks, and I’ve seen pictures of sections of the trails, but I'm still having trouble visualizing how it all comes together and where the different pictures were taken. Can you advise how the paths go, how the peaks are connected, what options the hikers have, etc? I’m reading about people who do it in 5 hours, but then also people who take 23 hours. (?) Also, if you take the cable car up (I know, true hikers would never do this but we may have to), how much more hiking to the top (of the North Peak??) and how dangerous is that part? I guess I'm asking, what peaks make your heart race vs. what peaks just have really steep steps? Finally, if someone does avoid the most treacherous spots, is it still even worth it to go up? Thank you. |
| 23rd July 2009 anonymous | Home@158 - From: Jaywalking and chewing gum in the Lion City (Singapore) Hi, I was reading your blog and observed you stayed at Home@158 Singapore. by chance do you have the Email of this Hostel. Ratna Prasad India |
| 13th July 2009 ronnie | Mosuo customs - From: Offbeat adventures around Lugu Lake (Lugu Hu, Yunnan & Sichuan Province, China) Mosuo society may perhaps be matrilineal, but it is not matriarchal and women certainly do not call all the shots. Further, fixed marriage most definitely is practised. Portryal of the Mosuo as at once both matriarchal and 'the land of easy women' is a contradiction perpetuated by the local tourist industry, state discourse on minorities and is increasingly entering into the mindset and vocabulary of tourist-conscious locals. Perhaps you ought to stick to the scenery and refrain from projecting your Orientalist assumptions onto "local culture". |
| 13th July 2009 TraceyDoxey | too scary - From: The second most terrifying experience of my life (Hua Shan, Shaanxi Province, China) looking at this makes me want to close my eyes and pretend it doesn't exist. too scary. I live in Suzhou and looked up Shangri la and saw your blog - I'm aiming to go down there in Sept and meet a group and walk the Kawa Karpo Kora - apparently, it purifies a life time of negative karma. starting at deqin. anyway, your blog is great. |
| 13th July 2009 tina | Hospital? - From: Diving with massive turtles and sharks (Sipadan, Borneo, Malaysia) Hi Ben, habe bei Deinen Fotos gesehen, dass du im Krankenhaus warst? Was war denn los? Oh Mann, jetzt ist schon Juli und du hast den asiatischen Kontinent noch nicht einmal verlassen! So viel Zeit würde ich gerne auch mal haben, um die vielen Kulturen, Länder, Vegetationsformen, etc. kennenzulernen.... Wie sieht denn Deine weitere Planung aus? Bin ja mal gespannt, was du zu den Philippinen sagst und wie lange du noch insgesamt unterwegs sein wirst. Wenn Australien und Südamerika nach wie vor auch noch auf dem Plan stehen, brauchen wir ja in den nächsten zwei Jahren nicht mit Dir zu rechnen... :-)! Ich wünsche Dir auf alle Fälle weiterhin viel Spaß! Joko und ich überlegen, im April 2010 nach Australien zu fahren.... vielleicht lässt sich da ja ein Treffen einrichten ?!?!?! Gaaaaaanz liebe Grüße aus der Ex-Heimat Berlin! Tina |
| 12th July 2009 Niels | It's not that bad - From: Tranquility and dishonesty around Halong Bay (Cat Ba Island, Vietnam) LOL Well Ben, I hope you can laugh about your misadventures looking back, but I certainly did. I've been living in Vietnam for four years now, and yes I know every situation you described, many of them happened to me too. But in 4 years I was nowehere ripped of as often as you managed to get in 11 days, so I guess yes, you must have had some bad luck. That said, and this may quite surprise you, I still think 99% of the Vietnamese are -sometimes amazingly- friendly people, but you have to get off the beaten track a little. Around touristic areas, hotels, guesthouses, souvenirshops and other places that draw the foreign masses, there indeed the intentions of many Vietnamese are entirely focused on your money, and the many decent in indecent ways to, um, liberate your from it. To any readers of this topic; always make sure you negociate your transactions thoroughly before you get out your wallet, and it makes sense for example in hotels to write down your agreements and have them signed. If the other party refuses to do so, just leave, there is always another option to go to. Always make very sure what you may expect and what is included in the deal you're about to make. I've never met, or ever heard of Vietnamese that wanted to physically hurt anyone. Never. Always, in any dispute, stay calm and make sure you don't make people "lose face", the worst that can happen to most Asians. If things don't work out, pay whatever you think is right and quitely leave. I read you're quite welltravelled, which surpirses me even more. If it comes to Vietnam, please understand that most of the people you meet make less in a year than that wristwatch you're wearing. You can't really blame them to look at you as a walking pot of gold and they too have a family to feed. And even if you know they're trying to overcharge you (unless it's too much and too evidently) remember that this dollar you're about to get ripped off for buys them dinner for grandma and the kids. Don't misunderstand me, in the tourist areas you will get ripped off, people will lie to you, your helmet may get stolen if you leave it for a fraction of a seond unattended, but, let's say, Amsterdam really isn't much better. I cannot repeat enough for anyone that reads this and plans to go to VN; get off the beaten track, rent a motorbike, ride 2 kilometers in any given direction and you'll meet very different people. Ha Long Bay and Cat Ba, Ha Noi and Tam Coc, amongst many more places, beautiful as they, do have a very bad reputation if it comes to ripping off tourists, that's absolutely true. But with that in mind, and some simple awareness, there is a good chance you may actually love Vietnam. Cherios, Niels. |
| 10th June 2009 endah | - From: Exploring a few caves (Niah Caves, Borneo, Malaysia) PS: i love ur style doing hitchhiking :P |
| 10th June 2009 endah | :P - From: Into Borneo proper (Batang Rajang River Area, Borneo, Malaysia) haiyaa...does tht kind of rules still exist???same with Karen and Kate i dont wanna eat after u either,wont feel enough for me :p hmm...but at least i know how to feel given u hand feeding after me(dinner in bogor),i just gave u a small one rather than mine,kwkwkwwk...:P |
| 6th June 2009 eend | :) - From: Exploring a few caves (Niah Caves, Borneo, Malaysia) U should definitely feel excited about ur future trip to taiwan because that country is really beautiful. The people, culture and everything is fascinating |
| 2nd June 2009 celine | - From: Unallocated time is my greatest asset (Kuching, Borneo, Malaysia) Pfff... I don t speak english as you write ! :-) Yes ???? |
| 30th May 2009 karen | Huh! - From: Into Borneo proper (Batang Rajang River Area, Borneo, Malaysia) bloody cheek. i suppose i should wash your feet for you too? ps carry your own dragon fruit next time |
| 27th May 2009 Kate | Hey you! - From: Into Borneo proper (Batang Rajang River Area, Borneo, Malaysia) It was great to catch up in Kuching. Re the rubbish in Borneo, I noticed it too, particularly on the beach. I thought that maybe people dropped it as they walked but I begun to realise that the rubbish is actually being washed up. It is very disappointing, and something that pains me to see as well, particularly when Borneo is so beautiful. Say hi to Karen for me - you go girl - you eat with the men and dont let Ben push you around! He's a bully in a sweet guy's body! Great to see you guys and hope our paths cross again soon. K x |
| 25th May 2009 endah | - From: Unallocated time is my greatest asset (Kuching, Borneo, Malaysia) wow,love the pictures Ben! wht a perfect picture sunset,and nice beach also. good photographer *wink wink* |
| 22nd May 2009 happyman | - From: Golf, Golf, Golf (Port Dickson, Malaysia) was in port dickson laz week and i wanted to have some nice drinks over a football mactch and music .. but the only place i was told by the locals was head on to a hotel lobby. i was very supprise to find out there isnt any pub or cafe in the whole of port dickson to cater me and my friends . i suggest Port Dickson should have pubs or cafe’s out side hotels so that the visitor can walk in casuall and relaxed . Hotel outlets are expensive and have to be decent attire ( no slippers or shorts) .. Common laaa .. we come to Port Dickson to enjoy and not to spoil the mood . I hope the nex time I come with my frens to Port Dickson . i ll see a normal street pub or cafe . thanks |
| 12th May 2009 endah | - From: No more 'Hello Mister', my friend (Bogor, Java, Indonesia) hahahha...Bela say Hi to u Ben.hair creambath with back pain after tht,huh.no more...! |
| 10th May 2009 Sadia | - From: The most famous volcano in the world erupting (Krakatau, Sumatra, Indonesia) Hi, you made me laugh with your account of u,Endah and an Ex. I havent read your last few blogs so have to ask now who is this Endah and how come you ended up with her. Take good care and have fun . |
| 7th May 2009 Wanda | - From: Up close with the Orang Utans (Bukit Lawang, Sumatra, Indonesia) there must be a way to save these beautiful apes, the organizations need to buy up the land..... |
| 7th May 2009 Karen | peace and quiet - From: Sumatra rain and dog or dinner (Lake Toba, Sumatra, Indonesia) You'll soon be looking back wishing for those days of solitude after a few days sharing with me again... just booking my flight now, see you soon :) |
| 4th May 2009 Tony from UK | Vietnamese ARE dishonest people - From: Tranquility and dishonesty around Halong Bay (Cat Ba Island, Vietnam) I have had many similar bad experiences in Vietnam. I'm surprised how tourists keep coming here! |
| 4th May 2009 Katrin | Hallo aus Marl - From: Climbing an active volcano (Berastagi, Sumatra, Indonesia) Hallo Ben, ich bin gerade bei meinen Eltern in Marl, um Oma, Katze und Haus zu hüten. Wenn ich hier bin, nutze ich immer die Zeit, um im Internet zu surfen. Ich bin wirklich begeistert von Deinen Fotos. Super. Ich gehe davon aus, dass es Dir auch weiterhin gut geht. Ich plane in diesem Jahr auch mal wieder eine Reise Richtung Asien. Allerdings sind da mehr als 4 Wochen nicht drin. Es soll nach Thailand, Vietnam und Kambodscha gehen. Mal sehen, wo es am besten gefällt. Eventuell auch Laos, aber das wissen wir noch nicht genau. Ansonsten geht es mir gut. Habe gerade in der vorletzten Woche Post von Michael Lechelt aus Mainz bekommen. Sie haben Nachwuchs bekommen. die Nachricht hats Du vielleicht auch bekommen. Ich habe ja immer mal wieder sporadischen Kontakt zu den "alten" Railion-Kollegen. Also, ich wünsche Dir alles Gute und bis demnächst. Viele liebe Grüße aus Deuschland. Katrin |
| 28th April 2009 Endah | - From: Climbing an active volcano (Berastagi, Sumatra, Indonesia) u r absolutely rite,indonesia is very huge!!,1 month is not enough to discover all island in indonesia so take few weeks or more n u will have a great journey on another beautiful island in Indo more than wht u've been experienced in Sumatra.about the airlines it self,dun worry Ben,u can flight save now,the News tht u read sometimes announce too over about the accident tht was happend caused by the non-existent safety standards of the aircraft,but indeed u must avoid some of airlines such as LION Air,W**GS Air,or BATAVIA Air which preety often got accident with their flight even only small accident such as crash landing or back wheel cant open,etc. but anyway the fact is tht flying to some destination in indonesia (java,some of sumatera n Bali) is more cheaper rathen than overland route,but for east indonesia flight could b little bit expensive rather than overland. so,enjoy indonesia and all the unique things inside :) |
| 26th April 2009 Adam | - From: Konnichiwa, Japan! (Kyoto, Japan) Hi, I was curious as to how much the ferry was from Tianjin - Kobe? Also, did you have to make reservations for the ferry and, if so, how long in advance? The reason why I am inquiring, is because I am planning on taking this same route, as well. Thanks! Adam |
| 26th April 2009 Oli Nafe | - From: Golf, Golf, Golf (Port Dickson, Malaysia) Nun bist Du schon fast ein Jahr unterwegs, da schick ich Dir mal ein paar Grüße aus Deutschland und Berlin hinüber as andere Ende der Welt. Hab mich schon gewundert, dass Du so lange nichts mehr eigetragen hast. Deshalb habe ich heute mit besonderem Interesse gelesen, was Du so die letzten Wochen getrieben hast. Tollte Sache. Hört sich echt gut an. Und der asiatische Raum scheint Dir ja echt zu gefallen! Bleibst Du da "hängen"? Manchmal hat es echt den Eindruck. Wünsch Dir noch hyper viel Spaß, schreib weiter so interessante und tolle Sachen und "hat uns auf dem Laufenden". Viele Grüße aus Berlin Oli PS: Die Golf.Koreaner schienen ja wirklich nervig. Hätte mich auch nicht gefallen. |
| 25th April 2009 Carl | Thank you - From: Hiking across the Northern Japan Alps (Japan Alps National Park, Central Honshu, Japan) Hi Ben! Thank you for an inspiring report from your hike in the nortern Japanese alps. I plan to go on a short hike somewere in Japan in September but have not decided were to go yet. Dont know how much time I have got for this but I am considering different options. Are there any places/areas you would recomend. I have some experience from hiking in northern Scandinavia, so I am used to the wet and coold. Do you know were to find god maps and/or guide books covering trails, acomodation etc? Kindly Carl Sanglert Sweden |
| 24th April 2009 Karen | great photos - From: Climbing an active volcano (Berastagi, Sumatra, Indonesia) I love the fish picture... I'm glad my parents aren't reading the bit about the airlines. I arrived finally in Bali after a delay on my connecting flight, late but safe. |
| 23rd April 2009 endah | - From: A tropical island, tsunami evidence and sharia law in Aceh (Pulau Weh & Banda Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia) nice entry,but i wanna rectifying a bit bout ur opinion abt sharia law in Aceh.actually,sharia law in aceh wasn't applicabled after tsunami but it was long long time ago before the existance of Republic indonesia it self. the history said that 1 of the reason for Aceh to joined into republic Indonesia is becoz the privileged given by the government for acehnese to implement sharia law in comprehensive as their living law. and for acehnese,implementation of sharia law in comprehensive is a need.since the Sultan Iskandar Muda period,there was a custom Quote said : Sharia & custom is like a connection between essence and its subjective which can't be separated. from the indonesia government perspective,implementation of Sharia law in comprehensive way it self is like a political bargain and reconsiliation to muffle the rebellion in Aceh did by GAM people :) |
| 22nd April 2009 Kate | Flying Indonesia - From: Climbing an active volcano (Berastagi, Sumatra, Indonesia) Yup... the thought of flying on an indonesian airline makes me feel a little on the queasy side. Interesting fact - my grandfather died when on a commercial airline down in Antartica (type in "mt erubus crash" into wiki - you'll get to read all about it! Not that this should turn you off your change of plans re flying... :) |
| 20th April 2009 KateEighty | Giving Way to Palm Tree Planations - From: Up close with the Orang Utans (Bukit Lawang, Sumatra, Indonesia) Hi Ben, I traveled Malaysia over the weekend and was astonished by the amount of Palm Tree Plantations. I really do have grave fears to Malaysia as a result. It was heartbreaking... I am sorry to hear that Indonesia is suffering a worse fate... |
| 20th April 2009 KateEighty | Interesting... - From: A tropical island, tsunami evidence and sharia law in Aceh (Pulau Weh & Banda Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia) Hey Ben, this is a really interesting entry, as I am considering heading this way as soon as I settle in in Singapore. Do you think traveling the area would have been any different had you have been female? |
| 20th April 2009 Mandy | - From: Up close with the Orang Utans (Bukit Lawang, Sumatra, Indonesia) they are living quite a life there!!! btw, i went back to london and manchester a week ago, and met Fan Yang! exciting catch-up trip! |
| 16th April 2009 endah | - From: Not a great start in Indonesia (Medan, Sumatra, Indonesia) Still recovering from the 25 US$ entry fee (they call it visa on arrival, but no one checks anything)....well,i think it hapend also to a local tourist (indonesian) who wants to visit singapore via batam they called it as "fiskal fee" though the fiskal it self is FREE and eliminated for indonesian who have own tax number.-endah- |
| 14th April 2009 Ann | Hello - From: First 12 months of Living the Dream and going strong - the highlights so far Hey congratulations on your anniversary Ben! Hope you're having a good time in Indonesia |
| 9th April 2009 Aaron | Wow - From: First 12 months of Living the Dream and going strong - the highlights so far Hey Ben! This is Aaron from the first time you went to Hua Shan. Thanks for listing your "greatest hits," as many China highlights were included. I haven't been to many of them and I'll have to make sure to see them for myself. Wow, I can't believe that you've only spent that much money for this amazing trip. It just shows that if you buckle down and save, and make the commitment to go, trips like this are very possible. Keep writing. |
| 8th April 2009 Lucia | Hi Ben - From: First 12 months of Living the Dream and going strong - the highlights so far Hi Ben! Congratulations - 12 months of amazing travels! I have started to read about your travelling experience only recently, but I enjoy it very much. I like not just your stories, but also your writing style :) Your writing is simple and down to earth (which makes your stories easy to read), and very emotive and beautiful in the same time :) I have heard about you for the first time from your friend Jawad, when he was telling me about you and your decision to travel the world :) So good luck, wish you save journeys and lots of amazing experience during your travels and I am looking forward to more interesting entries at the blog. Lucia |
| 7th April 2009 Karen | mmm.. those toilets - From: First 12 months of Living the Dream and going strong - the highlights so far ah, near the place over looking the valley, they were pretty special I seem to recall. best off without a torch in the early hours. wasn't it good fun though? and my legs are finally recovering from that bike ride... enjoying your blog, see you soon. x |
| 7th April 2009 Kate | Great Post - From: First 12 months of Living the Dream and going strong - the highlights so far What an amazing acheivement... to be able to look back at the past 12 months like that. I think many of us agree that you really are "living the dream"! |
| 7th April 2009 Uli | Gruss - From: Start! Trekking the Lycian Way (Turkey) Hey Ben! Ich wünsche Dir sooo viel Spaß draußen in der weiten Welt, genieße es und ich freu mich, von Deinen Erlebnissen zu lesen - bitte bündeln, damit mein Account überläuft und ich ganz bedröppelt über Berlin werde ;-) Grüße mir das Meer und Wasser, wo immer du es siehst! LG, Uli |
| 7th April 2009 Katharina | Bye bye, Ben! - From: Start! Trekking the Lycian Way (Turkey) Ben, ich wuensche Dir alles Gute, unvergessliche Momente und spektakulaere Eindruecke auf Deiner Reise. Bin unfassbar neidisch und super gespannt auf Deine Berichte! Schade, dass ich bei Deinem Abschied hier in Mainz nicht dabei sein konnte, aber ich komme auf jeden Fall zu Deiner Welcome-back-Party :-) Liebe Gruesse Katharina |
| 7th April 2009 ALi | weiter geht's - From: Start! Trekking the Lycian Way (Turkey) Hallo, Herr Beiske, Klasse, dass Sie solch einen guten Start hatten! Das füllt die Battwerien für später und schafft schon mal gute erinnerungen, von denen Sie zehren können, wenn mal nicht so gute erlebnisse dazukommen. Weiterhin alles Gute, ALi |
| 7th April 2009 Dominic | hairstyle - From: Stop-over in Germany - final fare-well (Berlin, Germany) Hi Ben, krasser Haarschnitt, aber echt praktisch für Deine Reise. Viel Spaß! DominicD |
| 7th April 2009 Tobias | Neue Frisur - From: Biggest Old City of Europe (Vilnius, Lithuania) Moin Ben, die neue Frisur bringt auf jeden Fall deine Brille mehr zur Geltung! :o) Take care! Tobias |
| 7th April 2009 Henry | Greetings from Henry - From: Biggest Old City of Europe (Vilnius, Lithuania) dear friend, very good to hear from you and enjoy watching your journey from here. Carmen and I are looking forward to seeing you some day turning up to Sydney. Please take good care yourself. Henry |
| 7th April 2009 Claudia | Baltics - From: The magical Hill of Crosses (Šiauliai, Lithuania) Hi Ben, Super der Reiseblog! Was fuer Plaene hast Du denn noch im Baltikum? Knuth und ich waren da fuer 2 Wochen letztes Jahr im Urlaub und es hat uns wirklich gut gefallen!! Du solltest Dir auf alle Faelle noch versuchen Talinn und die estische Insel Saarema anzuschauen, beides ganz schoene Flecken in den Welt. Und falls Du es irgendwie auf der Route einbinden kannst, der Berg der Kreuze, im Norden von Litauen ist echt ziemlich beeindrueckend..... Viele Gruesse, Claudia |
| 7th April 2009 Katharina | Bye bye, Ben! - From: Second Baltic state, second great capital (Riga, Latvia) Ben, ich wuensche Dir alles Gute, unvergessliche Momente und spektakulaere Eindruecke auf Deiner Reise. Bin unfassbar neidisch und super gespannt auf Deine Berichte! Schade, dass ich bei Deinem Abschied hier in Mainz nicht dabei sein konnte, aber ich komme auf jeden Fall zu Deiner Welcome-back-Party :-) Liebe Gruesse Katharina |
| 7th April 2009 Belinda | PS - From: Unesco everywhere (Tallinn, Estonia) Deine neue Frisur gefällt mir gut. Es macht Dich männlicher! ;-) |
| 7th April 2009 Susanne | Toi, toi, toi! - From: Europe's biggest city revisited (Moscow, Russia) Hi Ben, ich verfolge seit 2 Wochen(leider hat mein Internetanschluss so lang auf sich warten lassen) deine Reise und freu mich immer über Neuigkeiten von dir. Schön, dass du so nette Leute kennengelernt hast und somit noch tiefer in die Kultur des jeweiligen Landes eintauchen kannst. Am schönsten ist die Freude, die du beschreibst und somit zu empfinden scheinst. Ich freu mich für dich, dass du Spaß an der Reise hast. Ich wünsche dir noch viele Erlebnisse, die dich erfüllen und gern an die Tour zurückdenken lassen! Hoffe, du brauchst noch keinen Urlaub, obgleich du ja schon eine Menge Eindrücke gesammelt hast:-) Fühl dich gedrückt und ich bin in Gedanken sehr oft bei dir. Bleib gesund und aufnahmebereit. Viele liebe Grüße aus dem sonnigen Mainz, Susanne |
| 7th April 2009 Martin | St.Petersburg - From: Russia - and what a beautiful city to start with! (St. Petersburg, Russia) Hej Ben, schade, wir haben uns um 1 Woche verpasst - und das bei deiner Weltreise, unlaublich! Ich war vom 30.4. bis 2.5. in St.Petersburg und kann deine Eindrücke nur bestätigen! Also, wünsche dir weiterhin viele schöne Eindrücke und freundlichere Menschen als in Leningrad ;-) P.S. Cooler Haarschnitt ;-) MFG, Martin |
| 7th April 2009 Noeppi | Feiner Schnitt - From: Lots of charm and dealing with bureaucracy (Tomsk, Russia) Hej Ben, da hast Du Dir ja einen feinen neuen Haarschnitt zugelegt. Sieht echt spitze aus! Nette Bilder und interessante berichte, die Du bist jetzt verfasst hast. ich werde Dich auf Deinem Trip begleiten, jedefalls online! Also wünsche Dir auf jeden Fall weiter viel Spass und dass Du weiter nette Erfahrungen machst. Grüße Nöppi |
| 7th April 2009 Stephan | Dein Blog - From: A few relaxing days (Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia) Hallo Ben, wollte dir nur mal mitteilen, daß Dagmar und ich uns über jeden Deiner Blogeinträge freuen. Es ist wirklich klasse, so als wenn wir mit dabei wären. Hoffentlich klappt noch alles mit Deiner Visa-Karte und Deinem Visum für China. Wir wollen doch darüber auch etwas lesen. LG Stephan |
| 7th April 2009 Michael | - From: Ni hao China (Beijing, China) Hey Ben, many greeting from good old germany! Ich verfolge seit Wochen voller Begeisterung und teils mit Entsetzen (Kreditkarte) Deine Tour. Hoffe es geht Dir gut. Das Du viel erlebst können wir ja alle live mitverfolgen. Hier ist alles super. Wir haben grad Portugal das dem EM-Turnier gekickt und sind am feiern. Ansonsten haben Kati & ich auch ein paar Tage frei gehabt und sind 2 1/2 Wochen durch Namibia gereist. Hat uns sehr gut gefallen! Naja- Dein aktuellen Standort kennen wir noch gut aus dem letzten Jahr. Allein der Westbahnhof ist schon ne Show. Wir sind abend mit dem Nachtzug nach Xian gefahren. Na dann! Halt die Ohren steif und grüß die Chinesen von uns! LG aus Keba Michael |
| 7th April 2009 Niels | Auf dem Weg nach Xi'an - From: The Terracotta Army (Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China) Hi Ben, jetzt befindest Du Dich ja auf "meiner" Route durch China ;-) Auf dem Weg von Beijing nach Xi'an unbedingt Ping Yao mitnehmen - die schönste Stadt, die ich auf meiner China Reise gesehen habe. Empfehlung: Harmony Hostel owned by Mr. Lee Gruß Niels |
| 7th April 2009 Dora | contemplating a leave, still working - From: Extending my visa (again) (Shangri-La, Yunnan Province, China) hi, Ben Biesk, this is Dora. It seems a little rude to write to you. Quite by accident, i saw your travel blog, was attracted by your great journey and subscribe it. So when you update your blog entry, i can read it immediately. I can feel how you enjoy your travel each day. I admire you. I'm now at the condition of contemplating move but still working, i hardly enjoy the work now but i have to save money for the travel in my dream. So i'm still contemplating without move. Thank you for your nice blog. I can see the world through your it, and it make my determination to travel stronger and stronger. Hope my travel can start soon. Bon Voyage along the travel. Be happy and healthy along the travel. |
| 7th April 2009 Corina | Neue Wege - From: Of mirror lakes and waterfalls (Jiuzhaigou, Sichuan Province, China) Hallo Ben, wie ich sehe, bist Du schon weit gekommen!Super:-) Auch ich verfolge meinen Traum und habe zum 1.9 den Job gekündigt um mich selbständig zu machen. Vielleicht hast Dus schon erfahren?Schade, dass Du so weit weg bist, sonst hättest Du mir ein paar Tipps zur Kündigung geben können. Falls Du doch mal Zeit hast, schreib doch mal. Ansonsten wünsche ich Dir viele weitere schöne Eindrücke und bis dann mal, Corina |
| 7th April 2009 Niels | Huang Shan - From: From Yellow Dragon to Yellow Mountain (Huang Shan, Anhui Province, China) Hey Ben, i just read your article of huang shan, i get the impreesion you enjoyed it just as much as I did last year. Today I my last day of my 6-week travel through south america. we are leaving from lima tomorrow back to berlin. I had an awesome time here. if you need some information about peru, bolivia, chile and argentina, contact me any time. all the best for your further travels around the world. niels |
| 7th April 2009 Silke | Liebe Grüße aus Mainz - From: Onwards to Vietnam (Nanning, Guangxi Province, China) Lieber Ben, habe eben mal nach längerer Zeit und mit mittlerer Motivation durch das XING geklickt: Und was lese ich? ENDLICH mal was interessantes! Ich finde es großartig, dass Du auf Weltreise bist. Du machst es genau richtig. Ich schaffe es jetzt leider nicht, Deinen Blog zu lesen (muss in die Heia... und morgen wieder früh raus), werde das aber nachholen. Dir wünsche ich eine tolle Zeit, viele interessante Erlebnisse. Genieße es. Vielleicht bis bald - viele liebe Grüße aus Mainz Steffi |
| 7th April 2009 Maggie | Your Hua Shan trip - From: The second most terrifying experience of my life (Hua Shan, Shaanxi Province, China) Hey Ben, I just read your travel blog about your climb up Hua Shan in China. It is totally different from what I expected after reading all the Chinese sites. Must a tourist climb through the chains of death before getting to the top? There is so little information about climbing Hua Shan that I am now contemplating whether or not to abandon the trip all in all. Would you be so kind to provide me with some insights? Accommodation, how to get to the top, etc? Thanks a lot for reading this message from a passerby. Love your writing, Maggie |
| 7th April 2009 Henry | Merr X'Mas - From: A city built on belief (Bago, Southern Myanmar) Dear friend, Wondering where you are now upto. Anyway, Carmen & I wish you, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. All the best, Henry |
| 7th April 2009 Edward | Entering Myanmar - From: Crumbling capital (Yangon, Southern Myanmar) I'm afraid that you have your facts wrong. I entered Myanmar by land border at Ruilli China on July 2nd 2008. I was in the country for 24 days in 10 cities, traveling alone. Please try not to publish inaccurracies here, it only hurts the people of Myanmar, when potential tourists are misled. Would love to talk more with you aboty my exp inyour intrested. see different perspectives newsletter blog. rossi92353@gmail.com please edit the information you published. Thank you Edward |
| 7th April 2009 Edward | Myanmar - From: Birthday and New Year amidst 2500 temples (Bagan, Central Myanmar) Hey Ben, awsume pictures and vid of Bagan. I want to go back. Edward |
| 7th April 2009 Edward | Sorry - From: Thank you for your tourism (Chaungtha Beach, Southern Myanmar) Sorry you had such a bad trip. I had great passage on all my routes through Myanmar. Bus or train or taxi. I found it an amazing completely enjoyable traveling in Myanmar |
| 7th April 2009 Farid | Hello! - From: Thank you for your tourism (Chaungtha Beach, Southern Myanmar) Hi, I was doing some planning for my upcoming travels through Asia when I found your blog post in the Myanmar section on this site. Very cool blog, I enjoyed the posts and pictures and it seems like you've been having an amazing trip so far. I noticed that you began your travels on a similar note as mine (meaning good job, good life... just leaving it all behind). Just out of curiosity, how did you make the decision to do this, and how did you feel about this when the time came to leave? You're almost a year along now, so have you been working at all? Obviously for lifestyle and financial reasons this is a big decision that clearly 99.9% of people wouldn't ever dare to do, so I give you much respect for having done what you did! I hope to do as well soon :) Cheers, Farid |
| 7th April 2009 Wolfgang | Viele Grüße - From: Leave nothing but bubbles (Ko Tao, Thailand) Hey Ben, habe Deinen Eintrag zu Ko Tao gesehen und es wurden Erinnerungen wach. Vor dem Semester in HK habe ich dort auch eine Woche am Strand rumgegammelt.... Weiterhin alles Gute und viel Spaß!! Wolfgang |
| 7th April 2009 Steve | Comments on your travels - From: Kung Hei Fat Choy! (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) Hi Ben I must congratulate you on your travel blog. It is one of the best I have read. I am also addicted to travel. I have just come back from my third trip, in the last twelve months, to Thailand. I like it very much and am trying to learn Thai. Like you I have had a few adventures. I was very interested in your comments on lao and Vietnam. They do confirm what I had gathered from my reading over the last months. I am getting together a rough itinerary for my next trip and was going to include Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. But I think I shall restrict it to Thailand, Laos and Cambodia. If you get back to Thailand you might like to have a look at Khao Sok National Park .(older than the Amazon and with, reportedly, greater bio-diversity)- stay at Art's River View lodge - recommended Also, Mae Sot, on the Burmese border with one of the worlds great road trips south (about 4-6hrs) to very rugged national Park and where some excellent trecking can be organised. All the best and I shall follow your exploits. regards from Western Australia Steve Keeling |
| 7th April 2009 Steve | - From: Kung Hei Fat Choy! (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) Hi Ben I must congratulate you on your travel blog. It is one of the best I have read. I am also addicted to travel. I have just come back from my third trip, in the last twelve months, to Thailand. I like it very much and am trying to learn Thai. Like you I have had a few adventures. I was very interested in your comments on lao and Vietnam. They do confirm what I had gathered from my reading over the last months. I am getting together a rough itinerary for my next trip and was going to include Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. But I think I shall restrict it to Thailand, Laos and Cambodia. If you get back to Thailand you might like to have a look at Khao Sok National Park .(older than the Amazon and with, reportedly, greater bio-diversity)- stay at Art's River View lodge - recommended Also, Mae Sot, on the Burmese border with one of the worlds great road trips south (about 4-6hrs) to very rugged national Park and where some excellent trecking can be organised. All the best and I shall follow your exploits. regards from Western Australia Steve Keeling |
| 7th April 2009 Sadia | Happy Birthday! - From: Birthday and New Year amidst 2500 temples (Bagan, Central Myanmar) Happy Birthday! |
| 7th April 2009 Silke | Grüsse aus dem Norden in den Osten - From: Finding Nemo (Pulau Tioman, Malaysia) Hallo Ben, nun bin ich doch tatsächlich auf deinen Blog gestossen. Und ich werde schon ein bisschen neidisch, wenn ich deine Berichte lese und das schoene Wetter sehe. Seit fast einem Jahr bin ich nicht mehr im Marktbereich, sondern wohne in Kopenhagen. übrigens auch eine schöne Stadt. Wenn ich auf deine Weltkarte sehe, dann warst du wohl noch nie in Dänemark. Du bist hier herzlich willkommen. Bis nächstes Jahr im Februar sind wir auf jeden Fall noch hier. ;-) Gruss aus Kopenhagen Silke |
| 7th April 2009 Alrun | Impressed! - From: Drug junkie look-alike (Melaka, Malaysia) Lieber Ben, habe mir gerade einige deiner Fotoalben angeguckt - großartig!!! Da bekomme ich prompt Lust, selbst wieder loszufliegen, nur leider wird das zumindest in den nächsten paar Jahren etwas schwieriger, denn Jan und ich erwarten zu Ostern Nachwuchs. Auch recht aufregend, wenn auch auf eine andere Art... Wünsche dir / euch noch viele traumhafte und vor allem lustige und skurrile Erlebnisse und gutes, trockenes Wetter. Gruß Alrun |
| 6th April 2009 Henry | Congratulations - From: First 12 months of Living the Dream and going strong - the highlights so far Congratulations for your success in the past 12 months and wish all the best to you for the following days and nights of the journey. Remember this, we are following your every step and watching your every move, we are just behind you. |
| 5th April 2009 Alexis Ramos | great post! - From: First 12 months of Living the Dream and going strong - the highlights so far Hi Ben! I've been lurking here for quite some time. I got to your blog after looking for info on Myanmar. Thanks for sharing your experience there. I can't believe you're traveling some more after a year. Great that you can afford not working for so long. I'm envious haha! Can't wait to see where you're heading next. Have an awesome journey ahead! |
| 24th February 2009 Bill | Why you there - From: From Yellow Dragon to Yellow Mountain (Huang Shan, Anhui Province, China) If you don't like it, why you there. No one is forcing you to be there. So, hope you don't go back because without you, China will still be China. Stay back in your own country and assess it as I'm sure you'll find many problems also. |
| 24th February 2009 Jawad | Your good looks - From: Drug junkie look-alike (Melaka, Malaysia) When I left you you were bad not as bad though, and you forgot to mention your killer feet smell when you take off your sandles! I wonder why poor stingray stinged you :)) so all in all things are turning up all well and bright for you :) Enjoy |
| 21st February 2009 Alanna | :P - From: Drug junkie look-alike (Melaka, Malaysia) Hmm Malay women don't put on headscarf,hoping not to withdraw the attention from the men.I don't know why they wear a headscarf though(I will remember to ask my Muslim friends about it.Look at how ignorant I am even though I live in this Islamic country)In fact many young Malay girls these days don't bother to put on headscarf.So don't be surprised to see young Malay girls with tight mini-skirts with/without headscarf XD |
| 1st February 2009 Samira | knapp verpasst... - From: Leave nothing but bubbles (Ko Tao, Thailand) Hey Ben, wann warste genau auf Ko Tao??? Waren die letzte Woche auf Ko Pagnan!! Hätten uns also fast treffen können. Mann, Mann, hätt ich das gewusst... |
| 23rd January 2009 Svente | AAAARGH - From: Leave nothing but bubbles (Ko Tao, Thailand) Meine Tauchlerninseln... ich will auch :-) Freut mich, dass Du auf diesem kleinen Idyll ein bisschen Nichtstun konntest :-) |
| 8th January 2009 LivingTheDream | The way it is - From: Birthday and New Year amidst 2500 temples (Bagan, Central Myanmar) No, bashing is helping no one. But making other travellers aware of scams going on does help a lot. Of course one can always only focus on the good things and never mention any bad experiences; however, I am writing the stories in my blog exactly as they have happened to me. |
| 3rd January 2009 rossi92353 | From Mandalay to Bagan - From: Birthday and New Year amidst 2500 temples (Bagan, Central Myanmar) Sorry you had a problem with the taxi drivers. That's not my experience in Myanmar. And not the experience of other people I know that have traveled this route. Bashing the country is doing nothing for the people. |
| 30th December 2008 Lutz | Wow - From: Quick stopover in Thailand (Chiang Mai & Bangkok, Northern Thailand) That beart is just awesome!!! |
| 6th December 2008 Waseem | Nice trip - From: Worn out in Vietnam (Hanoi, Vietnam) Hey, I'm teaching in China at the moment, I finish in January and will be travelling overland into vietnam, laos, cambodia and thailand. I came across your blog about your vietnam experience, doesn't sound all too great, any advice you can give me, especially about the border crossing, would be much appreciated. Good luck with the rest of your travels. Waseem |
| 18th November 2008 Jan | - From: Laid back Vientiane (Vientiane, Central Laos) Hey Ben, wish you a great time in Laos. Nice pics! Jan |
| 24th October 2008 I guess I do not dare to do that! | - From: The second most terrifying experience of my life (Hua Shan, Shaanxi Province, China) Wonderful experience! |
| 21st October 2008 Oli | noch mal China? - From: A few steps into North Korean Territory (Joint Security Area, Korea) Hi Ben, ich finde das ja super interessant hier. Hab vieeeeeeeel Spaß weiterhin!! Mich würde no interessieren, warum Du wieder nach China zurück bist? Viele Grüße us Berlin von Deinem ehem. Kollegen Oliver |
| 20th October 2008 solomon | look upon searching for my visa card - From: Misuse of my VISA-card in Russia (Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia) hel ben i have a visa card and i want to check up the money on it. |
| 11th October 2008 good man! | - From: Zaijian, China! (At sea, between China and Japan) You are a good man and a good friend friend of Chinese. |
| 11th October 2008 Do not care. | - From: Let the Games begin! (Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China) To those Chinese girls I do not know what they are looking for, I do not care about them. If ones do not respect themselves, no one respect them. |
| 11th October 2008 In fact, China has the copyright of its new version. | - From: My last day in China (Tianjin, China) http://www.gadling.com/2008/09/02/china-plans-236-mph-rail-link-between-shanghai-and-beijing/ China has developed the train, and has the copyright now. Interesting discussion. |
| 5th October 2008 Frances | - From: Climbing and camping on the top of Japan (Mount Fuji, Japan) I am so proud of you that you can make to Mount Fuji eventually. I envy you!!! |
| 1st October 2008 LivingTheDream | Reverse Engineering - From: My last day in China (Tianjin, China) Wow guys, this entry of mine about the trains sure has sparked some discussion and controversy. To add one final thing in response to Traverlers' comment: You write that the technology initially came from abroad and that after "digesting" it, the Chinese came up with their own version, thus now making it Chinese. That however, does not make the technology "Chinese" at all. This process is commonly called Reverse Engineering. Saying that the technology that one just copied is your own is like saying that a Mozart symphony played by a Chinese orchestra is Chinese music. |
| 1st October 2008 LivingTheDream | 3 months to choose where to rebuild? - From: The road through the earthquake area (Sichuan Province, China) Hey TravelChina, the earthquake was in May and I visited the area in August - and they had not started any work. Seems like a bit of a long time (3 months!) to "choose" what to rebuild and what not... So sorry, but I don`t quite believe that. Are you by any chance part of the 50-cent army, trying to make China look good on blogs? |
| 1st October 2008 LivingTheDream | Bitching...? - From: Zaijian, China! (At sea, between China and Japan) Hey NYT, funny that you consider my honest comments about my experiences in China as "bitching"...I am not judging as you put it but observing - there is a fine difference! |
| 5th September 2008 Mandy | some thing i'd like to say - From: Zaijian, China! (At sea, between China and Japan) maybe facing the straightforward criticism of oneself is brutal and hard to take, especially when the criticised group consisting of 1.3 billion people and one couldn't see the critised points on himself or herself at all. so it's not an easy thing to judge 1.3 billion people, isn't it? ;-) Said by foreign colleagues that i'm not a regular Chinese, i am only saying here a few points from my perspecitive without representing 1.3 billion people. - Friendliness. maybe in Chinese culture, being friendly is very important. it is even more important when it comes to the friends from afar. therefore, i guess maybe Chinese is the most friendly people for foreigners. and this kind of friendliness is all from the bottom of the heart. (that's why "Fuwa" used to be called "Friendliness" and the first performance of OGB 2008 was acient Chinese's way of welcoming friends). maybe there are times that Chinese can't say a word of English when you try to get help from them, but very often you can see the extreme sorry look on their face and their eager to help you out. also, in Chinese culture, if you are treated well and nicely by others, you should show them the same friendliness in return. it is sth we've been told by our parents since we were very little. therefore, it might explains that Chinese people tend to feel hurt, disappointed or even insulted when we hear some criticism from the foreigners we have given friendliness. - about consideration: this is something i really want to speak loud to the outside world. for thousands of years, Chinese have been born in a vast country yet with limited resourse for each. so deep down, we know that we have to fight for more resources for ourselves, otherwise you will be left at the very bottom of the society. e.g., i still remember when i was studying in the university, which is about only 10 years ago, it would be extremely lucky even to GET ON the train during the spring festival season. "getting on the train" here means crawling in the aisle, lying under the seats, or sitting in the sink. because of the huge demand for travelling during peak times, the tickets of twice the seat number were sold for regular trains. so half of them are actually standing tickets. The trains were so crowded that it took at least 30 mins to walk though the whole car. so, i always hold myself not to use the toilet when i was traveling with these trains. at that time, the flights were totally the luxury for really rich people or business person. only few trains travelling over 100km/h on limited number of lines. therefore, i guess it might explain a bit that you can see Chinese often cutting in the queue, or Chinese/asian workers are the most dilligent in the office. meanwhile, i wouldn't say Chinese are not considerate at all. we value "harmony", we always try to save each other's "face" - it is considered a big virtue in Chinese culture. - about all these strange behaviors in foreigners' eyes. like i mentioned earlier, being in nowaday's China, especially the big cities, you couldn't be able to imagine what it was like ten or twenty years ago in China. China has experienced remarkable developments in the last decades and probably it's hard to tell the big difference of Beijing/shanghai with other mega cities around the world. so it would not be surprising that foriegners tend to judge China with the standards of advanced countries. but Ben, as you can see from your trip to western China, esp. rural places, China still belongs to the third country categary and we haven't reached that high. the poor average education level, the big regional differences, the inadequate social welfare system....etc... there are so many things we need and have to do better. However, like i said, China has only been open to the outside world for merely 30 years, and probably the first half of the 30 years was spent dealing with the mess left from the history and figuring out the way ahead. so it is not surprising or us Chinese at all that most Chinese don't speak English and hardly understand the common etiquette. I am not here defending Chinese. instead, I know very well that there are so many things most Chinese need to improve. I can openly discuss these problems with foriegn friends. and in fact, Chinese, at least some Chinese, knows how to improve our country by learning from other advanced countries( we learned the "Fetchism" of LuXun, a famous Chinese litterateur, as early as in elementary school. it is the wisdom that when opening up to the outside world, a country/person need to fetch and learn the good/compatible part while leaving the bad/not compatible part aside.) As i said, China is like a fast growing teenager. there are so many problems and pains at the moment. on one hand, it's a good thing China gets many criticism coz it helps it being on the right track and China really need to learn how to better deal with them; while on the other hand, for advanced western countries, maybe giving China a little bit more time and patience would be even more helping. so i'd like to say to my Chinese fellowmen, it's okay for foreigner to point out our shortcomings, as long as it is true. we also have another idiom, right? " you ze gai zhi, wu ze jia mian" (correct mistakes if you have made any and guard against them if you have not). |
| 5th September 2008 Mandy | some corrections - From: My last day in China (Tianjin, China) well, with all due respect, i'd like to correct a few things: 1. High-speed trains have to run on high-speed lines. "High-speed" actually means the speed of 300km/h and above. (therefore, the current HEXIE 200km/h EMU technically can't be called high-speed trains). in order to achieve this high speed, the trains must run on dedicated passenger lines, without freight trains or trains with lower speed. a.k.a, DPL. 2. the reason why ICE3 only runs at Max.300km/h is not because it can't, but due to many other reasons, e.g. the tracks, and mainly the fact it is unnecessary when it comes to short distance and longer long braking distance caused by higher speed. want to know how far Velaro family trains can reach? search Velaro E Spain in google, and a 404km/h figure will come out. 3. the localization rate you can read from most media is in fact 85%. but for the real story, find and ask a person from the industry. |
| 5th September 2008 Mandy | about CRH3 trains - From: My last day in China (Tianjin, China) as for the localization rate, the common saying on the media is 85%. about the truth, go find some work who are actually from the industry. |
| 3rd September 2008 anonymous | - From: Zaijian, China! (At sea, between China and Japan) Diversity: The west of China seems worlds apart from the rich, slick western coast. It is really is so different that you will not believe that you are still in the same country at times. -------------------------------- Have you ever been to Xinjiang province? It is a anther good place. Deserve to visit it. About 47 ethnic people live there. China is not perfect. Some bad habits need time to be resolved. Thank you! Have a nice trip. |
| 3rd September 2008 Traverlers is right! | - From: My last day in China (Tianjin, China) I think Traverlers is right! |
| 3rd September 2008 Jim | Reflections - From: Zaijian, China! (At sea, between China and Japan) Very observant of you. I agree with what you said and don't take offence with some of the extreme comments by the pinheads. Enjoyed reading your blogs. Have a good adventure in Japan. |
| 2nd September 2008 NYT | It must feel GREAT - From: Zaijian, China! (At sea, between China and Japan) It must feel great to pass your judgment, doesn't it? You received hospitality from ppl living in that country. And when you are done traveling, there you start bitching...how ironic. Well, feel free to keep up your 'civilized' white ppl attitude and 'enjoy' the rest of your bitching 'adventure' |
| 2nd September 2008 LivingTheDream | Offensive comment - From: Let the Games begin! (Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China) Hey, I have allowed this comment despite the offensive language and the racism. Sorry that you are offended by my entry, but that is exactly the way it has happened that night. |
| 2nd September 2008 LivingTheDream | Sandstone - From: Monkey King Commanding Troops (Zhangjiajie, Hunan Province, China) Thanks for putting this right, they are indeed sandstone, and I have changed it in the blog. |
| 2nd September 2008 Traverlers | the train - From: My last day in China (Tianjin, China) The trains and the signaling of the tracks are supplied by Siemens"--this is not true. The Chinese bought high-speed train technologies from Japan, German, France and Canada. The first a couple of trains were manufactured by foreign companies. However, after digesting the technology, they came up with their own versions, which usually has higher speed than original ones and fits China’s existing rail system(high speed trains are not only used on High-Speed Rails, but also China’s existing 70k km regular rails). Although the trains might look like the same as the originals, they are indeed >95% "Made In China". China is still importing some key parts from these countries, but overall they managed to manufacture over 95% of the parts. And by the way, trains running between BJ and TJ are not only CRH3’s (Chinese version of Siemens' Velaro) but also CRH2’s(Japan’s E2), just another indication of China’s ability to absorb and consolidate different technologies. |
| 1st September 2008 Samira | good work! ;-) - From: In search of the Olympic Spirit (Beijing, China) hey Ben, echt super interessanter Bericht - Dank Dir dafür!! |
| 26th August 2008 Henry | Noisy Pollution long-standing - From: From Yellow Dragon to Yellow Mountain (Huang Shan, Anhui Province, China) Hi buddy..now you understand my feeling about the long-standing noisy pollution in China. It was so hard to find a nice and quite place. Even Chinese people have forgotten it. For instance, a friend of my mum astonished that she could hear a bird singing through the phone when mum was chatting with her by an international call from Aussie to China. She envisaged that my mum must be seating in a peaceful place. Mum told her that she was in the room of a block, that is my rent unit. "Can't believe you could hear the bird in the city like yours. I haven't heard a bird sing a decade." said she. About China Daily, perhaps for all State-owned publishers, it is a crying shame, and personally it is a crime. What on earth they have been trying to do is to brain-wash my countrymen. And you should not worry about it too much since Chinese intellectuals always read them with doubt,:) You know, there are many people know the truth in this lonely planet. "Dear is my tutor, dearest is the truth." Carry on your journey and left unhappiness behind. |
| 25th August 2008 max au | nonsense - From: Let the Games begin! (Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China) As a south african chinese i take offence from this idiot traveler blogger ben yid or whatever. too many israelis and fat white chicks over here in China. Also, whats wrong with having a chinese or se asian girlfriend? if the man and woman are happy then its no business of this idiot yid blogger or anyone else I think the yid blogger - article found by mistake researching route from yunnan to sichuan - is an complete arse. the worst kind of new generation bigot. Leave the aussies and kiwis and yarpies and stop tormenting the pals. and clarke?? what a rascist twit of note .... |
| 18th August 2008 clarke | expats around china - From: Let the Games begin! (Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China) I like your comments about the expats around china, I'm forever baffled by how so many of them think they're 'hot shots.' As well as when you see(especially in HK) caucasians with indonesian/thai girls, where the girls don't speak very well of the others' language. It's as if somehow they (caucasians) think they're going un-noticed, when clearly the girls are escorts. |
| 14th August 2008 TravelChina | earthquake relief - From: The road through the earthquake area (Sichuan Province, China) fyi, the reason why they haven't started rebuilding the towns is that the government is choosing new sites to rebuild them. Some severely damaged villages and towns will just be abandoned. Another concern is the frequent aftershock. they just had another 4.5 aftershock last week... |
| 4th August 2008 Dora | Powerful Experience - From: Trekking Tiger Leaping Gorge - virtually alone (Tiger Leaping Gorge, Yunnan Province, China) Hi, Ben, it's truly a powerful and frightening experience. Please take care when you travel alone. Regards |
| 17th July 2008 J | limestone? - From: Monkey King Commanding Troops (Zhangjiajie, Hunan Province, China) I thought those are sandstone formation, not limestone. |
| 14th July 2008 Joerg | happened to me too - From: Misuse of my VISA-card in Russia (Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia) damage so far: about 15,000 USD. They took 1000 Euro every day for 10 days in Ukraine and Poland. Did you get your money back? |
| 10th July 2008 Ellen | good to see you in China! - From: Cruising the mighty Yangtze River through the Three Gorges (Yangtze River, China) hey Ben, heard from Li today about you, was very impressed. Nice that Chris, Li and you met in BJ! have fun in China and take good care.... |
| 24th June 2008 Kitty | The hostel - From: Ni hao China (Beijing, China) I've checked more info about qianmen hostel. Great location for even cheaper prices compared to the one I used to stay. Thanks for mentioning:) |
| 19th June 2008 Henry Y | Do not do it in one time - From: Finishing the Trans Siberian Railway (Beijing, China) Dear friend, do not explore China in one time. Please leave some and go with us. Perhaps, we can show you around much more in detail. Enjoy the Games and please remember that we are watching you. haa... |
| 19th June 2008 Henry Y | Congratulations to your Chinese Visa finally - From: A few relaxing days (Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia) Finally, you got it with such uncomfortable experience. For me, it's a shame as I am a Chinese. However, it is quite understandable that Chinese government has tightened up the application of Chinese Visa for security during Olympic games. I was really worried about it if you were turned away from here, so as my patents did. Here you go, congratulations to you and enjoy the Games in Beijing, Ben. All the best and miss you. |
| 18th June 2008 Jawad | holly shit... - From: Misuse of my VISA-card in Russia (Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia) Seems you got your credit card being copied (fake copy) but dont understand how did they get your pin out of your head (considering you dont drink....) so could be some pretty lady slipped inside of your head and stole your valuables.. :)) really shout if I can be of any help... |
| 17th June 2008 Daniel | to be continued ... - From: Misuse of my VISA-card in Russia (Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia) Ben, I'm very much looking forward hearing more about the VISA topic, preferably with a happy ending. AFP, dpa, sid, Reuters are still lacking coverage of that story. Take care |
| 13th June 2008 Daniel | Shit, but ... - From: Misuse of my VISA-card in Russia (Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia) it's only money! But still, very annoying indeed. Try to see the positive experience of the trip. Of course, this might sound odd, but in a few years time back in Germany you will answer this mishap with a smile. P.S.: And think of all the savings not playing golf this year ;-) |
| 11th June 2008 Roman | chinese visa - From: Arriving in Mongolia (Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia) that is inconvenient indeed ! i'm planning a similar trip and that is why i came across this website. but i guess i will change my mind at the end ! i wish to travel more independently ... "hotel-bookings" and "a valid airline-ticket" as the requirements for chinese visa .. too much hassle :( I wish you good luck ! |
| 6th June 2008 Henry Y | Where r u upto now, Ben? - From: Powerful Lake Baikal and Russian Sushi (Olkhon Island, Russia) Dear friend, We are always keeping sights on your blog and photos. Haven't got any update from your blog, I wonder where you are upto now. All the best Henry |
| 30th May 2008 deleted_69125 | Fotos - From: Powerful Lake Baikal and Russian Sushi (Olkhon Island, Russia) Hej Ben, bei Flikr sind gar keine neuen Fotos? |
| 29th May 2008 Tina | Ich bin sooo neidisch! - From: Russia - and what a beautiful city to start with! (St. Petersburg, Russia) Hallo Ben, es macht sooo ein Spaß Deine Blog-Einträge zu lesen, und jedes Mal bekomme ich so ein Fernweh und frage mich, was ich hier den ganzen Tag im Büro mache! Ich bin froh, dass es Dir so gut geht und hoffe, dass du JEDE Sekunde genießt! Hier geht alles seinen gewohnten Gang und bei Dir passiert jeden Tag etwas neues! Toll! Lass es weiter krachen! tina |
| 26th May 2008 Steve | Great Photos - From: Helping to buy a car (Novosibirsk, Russia) Great to see Novosibirsk, My girlfriend is from there, she has sent me pics of the square where you took your video. I met her here in Pigeon Forge, Tn. last summer, here on student exchange. To bad you didn't have time to stay for the evening, the night life in the town is fantastic. Great club called The Opera. Wish you well on your travels. Steve in Tn. |
| 15th May 2008 Chus | - From: Start on the Trans Siberian Railway! (Moscow, Russia) That sounds thrilling. Enjoy it.. |
| 9th May 2008 Curious | Klaipeda pictures - From: Onto new shores (Klaipeda, Lithuania) Hallo, I recognize the places where you have taken the pictures :) Look at the map. Grown in Klaipeda |
| 7th May 2008 Susanne | ;-) - From: Celebrating VAPPU in style (Helsinki, Finland) quotation: "...the last time that I was in the Euro-money-zone, so now for a long time I will be dealing in (for me) foreign currencies..." ... now you can say "der Rubel rollt" ;-) |
| 3rd May 2008 Jawad | Latvians are not ready for Naked Ben in Sauna... - From: Second Baltic state, second great capital (Riga, Latvia) just reverse what happened to you; I actually walked into a sauna in swimsuit in Germany! and people looked at me like they never seen a man in his shorts :) |
| 30th April 2008 Chus | World Saunda Campionships - From: Unesco everywhere (Tallinn, Estonia) Apparently there is also a World Sauna Championships, where you need to stand up as long as possible in the heat..... |
| 27th April 2008 Katja | Mission on your travel ... - From: Second Baltic state, second great capital (Riga, Latvia) ... publishing a book about the Sauna-going-habits in various countries. I'd write a guest story about Surrey (UK), where people also were swim-suites when going to the sauna and the saunas aren't hot so there was a lady who used the sauna-oven to warm her clothes on it ... |
| 23rd April 2008 Clara Estrems | - From: Biggest Old City of Europe (Vilnius, Lithuania) Hi Ben! I'm Clara. We arrived to Poland on Monday morning, of course very tired. We had very nice dinner and conversation in Vilnius. The most important thing is not the destination, is the way, so continue enjoying it! |
| 22nd April 2008 Chus | - From: The magical Hill of Crosses (Šiauliai, Lithuania) No wonder the Soviets got quite "crossed". |
| 22nd April 2008 Jesus Menendez | Nice try... - From: Biggest Old City of Europe (Vilnius, Lithuania) "I was asked by two girls I went out for dinner with...". Ok Ben, You don't need to fill the gaps of your blog with fiction. I thought this was a travel blog, not the last Harry Potter.... :-) |
| 18th April 2008 LivingTheDream | Hey Hey, I will! - From: Onto new shores (Klaipeda, Lithuania) Ann, dont you worry about that. Hey, still not too late for St. Petersburg, give it a go! |
| 18th April 2008 Ann | Skinhead adventures - From: Onto new shores (Klaipeda, Lithuania) Hey skinhead suits u! Keep us posted on ur adventures. |
| 17th April 2008 Chus | Marco Polo would be proud of you :-) - From: Start! Trekking the Lycian Way (Turkey) Great stuff man. But I would start to be worried if more people comment about your hairstyle. |
| 15th April 2008 Ines | Hey, nice haircut! - From: Start! Trekking the Lycian Way (Turkey) Hey Ben, it seemed as if you had a great start of your big tour! Really great pictures! Good luck for your next stop! Greetings, Ines |
| 15th April 2008 Britta | - From: Start! Trekking the Lycian Way (Turkey) Hej, die Fotos sind ja schön geworden. Ich bin froh, dass deine Kamera wenigstens mit in den Rucksack durfte! Mama hat heute den Untersuchungstermin für ihr Knie! Ich werde dich informieren, wenn ich genaueres weiß! Und: Ich möchte gerne Postkarten, falls du dazu kommst:-) |
| 15th April 2008 sadia | - From: Start! Trekking the Lycian Way (Turkey) Glad to hear u have a great start and an impressive hair style. Take care |
| 14th April 2008 joko | see you next year in berlin!! - From: Stop-over in Germany - final fare-well (Berlin, Germany) hallo ben, es war ein sehr netter abschiedsabend und wir freuen uns schon wieder auf deine „welcome party" in berlin ... pass auf dich auf, melde dich und bis bald in berlin, joko |
| 14th April 2008 Daniel | Dont forget ... - From: Stop-over in Germany - final fare-well (Berlin, Germany) ... a plastic sheath for your passport and a second battery for your camera. By the way - won't you introduce the girls on your sofa to us? |
| 14th April 2008 Daniel | Nice haircut ... - From: Start! Trekking the Lycian Way (Turkey) ... or even better hair shaving ;-) Is that a demonstration of your sympathy for the Tibetan??? |
| 14th April 2008 niels | Beautiful Start! - From: Start! Trekking the Lycian Way (Turkey) What a beautiful start for your round-the-world trip. Looking forward to following your journey online! Good Luck! Niels |
| 14th April 2008 Jens | Was ist denn mit deinen Haaren passiert? - From: Stop-over in Germany - final fare-well (Berlin, Germany) Ich wünsch dir einen guten Start auf deiner großen Reise!!! |
| 11th April 2008 Conny | ? - From: Last Day at Work (Berlin, Germany) Hey Ben! Wieso letzter tag? Ist ja jetzt auch ne Weile her, also wo steckst Du jetzt?? Muss ich neidisch sein??? LG, Conny |
| 17th March 2008 samira | :o) - From: Quit my Job! (Berlin, Germany) schon einmal ein guter Start - hoffe, der Rest wird ein wenig ausführlicher! ;-) wünsche Dir schon jetzt ganz viel Spaß!! freu' mich auf Deine Berichte!! und geh ja für mich mit einer Schildkröte tauchen!! ;-) |
