http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Overlanders/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Overlanders en-us Wed, 06 Jan 2010 16:53:38 +0000 Wed, 06 Jan 2010 16:53:38 +0000 So it's been a while since we last blogged we last left you in Hungary and since then made our way overland through Romania Serbia Montenegro Albania Greece and Turkey and now find ourselves back in the restful bliss that is Thailand. I'll endeavour to do some back blogs to fill in the missing bits of the trip but for now we wanted to share some pictures of our new homeAfter arriving int http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/blog-333464.html The return to Budapest meant a reentry into the world of modern conveniences flushing toilets and hot showers and gave us a final chance to remove the last lodged bits of mud and dirt from our bodily orifices.Freshly scrubbed clean gleaming skin that mum would be proud of we met up with our paddling mates for a farewell dinner that was cooked in more than one pot and didnrsquot consist of http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Hungary/Central-Hungary/Budapest/blog-313670.html It all started with a suggestion from a friend born back in the days of a cold wet Ireland ... a river trip a sunny seven days paddling in the backwaters of Hungary far removed from the tourist trail just a promise of adventure and a bunch of people not yet friends ... but soon to be. Sounded like our cup of tea so we were in ...There were over 50 of us who joined the adventure from 16 count http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Hungary/blog-312744.html The friendly local Slovenian guy decided to take us under his wing at the bus stop near the Italian border he too was waiting for the elusive white minibus that was supposed to come and whisk us across the border. His English was limited but he tried to communicate with a smile and determination ... and we managed to convey that we were trying to get across the border too and travelling on to http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Slovenia/blog-313671.html Venice was simply amazing and also literally a maze. After getting repeatedly lost in the maze of twists and turns through streets winding along the canals and battling through the thick crowds of tourists in summertime Europe we relented and bought a map hoping that this would be our saving grace. The map proved to be no more than a waste of money so we succumbed to the moment and began to http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/Veneto/Venice/blog-313672.html Our Italian coffee experiences in Florence fell into two categories either the coffee was fantastic ensuring several cups were demolished in one sitting or so appallingly bad that it wasnrsquot even drinkable. Average coffee wasnrsquot present. Herersquos a lesson for you ... a tourist trap that we unwittingly fell into ... A nice little cafe situated on the edge of the square. We tak http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/blog-313673.html Sitting at the bus stop the little old lady wrinkled and shrunken with age smiled a toothless grin and shuffled closer to me. She launched into a speech in rapid Croatian and I unsuccesfully tried to keep up my end of the conversation with appropriate nods and reassuring smiles. Unperturbed by my obvious lack of understanding of her native tongue she dug into her handbag and pulled a weather http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Croatia/blog-305663.html As the ferry cruised into Holyhead in Wales and we caught sight of the sun glistened rolling hills we thought that we had escaped the summer rain for good but by the time our train pulled into London those hopes were dashed as we were once again immersed in thick rain. Our spirits werenrsquot dampened though as the promise of sunny lazy days in Croatia looms ever closer and we were now one s http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/United-Kingdom/England/Greater-London/blog-302320.html Sadly the Irish summer is in full swing the River Liffey brims full and people dart under eaves or scamper under umbrellas to avoid the rain the glorious sunny days of May seem to have taken their leave and so we too decide to join them. Wersquore pumped full off vaccinations armed with a pocketful of malaria tablets and are fit to roam wherever inspiration friends or divine guidance takes http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Ireland/County-Dublin/Dublin/blog-294442.html Legend has it that the the Irish Giant FinMacool was at war with his Scottish counterpart Benandonner and constructed a massive bridge between the islands to fight him. However once Finn got to the other side he discovered that Benandonner was bigger and scarier than hersquod anticipated so he fled home in terror and asked his wife hide him under a blanket. Perplexed Benandonner crossed the c http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/United-Kingdom/Northern-Ireland/blog-284057.html As we biked along the azure coast of Inishmore the largest of the Aran islands off the West Coast of Galway we basked in the sunrsquos warm glow and drank in our idyllic surroundings stone walls interspersed with wildflowers undulating hills grey seals languishing on warm rocks cows lazily grazing in green fields and the clear blue waters of the Atlantic ocean sparkling like a sea of dia http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Ireland/County-Galway/Aran-Islands/blog-274494.html An hour outside of Praque lies the small town of Kutna Hora and therein lies the fascinating Church of Bones Sedlec Ossuary. The church houses the bones of over 40000 departed souls their skeletons having been fashioned into moody sculptures and morbid works of art that adorn the cavernous interior. So the story goes that back in the 11th Century Henry the abbot of Sedlec visited the holy l http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Czech-Republic/blog-243438.html An overnight bus from Vilinius deposited us in Warsaw at 6am. Early morning in Warsaw's international bus station proved to be rather grim there wasn't much activity and the money changers didn't open until 10am so we settled in for the long wait both penniless and starving with our new Irish mate Kevin. After scouring the neighbourhood and surrounds for sign of a money changer or ATM Kev ev http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Poland/blog-196984.html Russia was nothing short of amazing. From the long sandy white beaches of Siberia cards vodka and stories on the great Trans Siberian railway to joining our Russian friends in celebrating the omnipresent daylight of ldquowhite nightsrdquo we had a blast. The Russia we experienced was lively and progressive far removed from the bleak repressive Soviet times that dominate history books. It http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Russia/blog-178849.html Delhi wasn't what we'd expected at all. We'd been told by copious amounts of travellers to avoid Delhi like the plaque almost wihout exception people would launch into a virulent tirade describing all of the city's ills reeling off an impressive list of reasons to steer clear of India's capital. Reading William Darymple's 'City of Djinns' had piqued an interest in seeing the city and we had Chi http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/India/National-Capital-Territory/New-Delhi/blog-140232.html Life and death exist side by side played out on the ghats alongside one of India's most holy rivers. Life is evident everywhere local kids playing a game of cricket holy men covered in ash boat men touting for a fare washing being beaten on the banks of the river and laid out to dry the faithful making offerings of flowers and candles people bathing men sitting around an open fire cooking http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/India/Uttar-Pradesh/Varanasi/blog-142344.html Imagine if you will one Aussie one Kiwi three Polish four Indians a handful of Tibetans five dozen Nepalese some caged pigeons a musical busker eight sacks of rice insane amounts of personal baggage and forty crates of fruit and vegetables all crammed into and on top of a forty seater bus. Welcome to the public buses in Nepal From the Indian border to Pokhara it took nearly twelve h http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Nepal/Pokhara/blog-142717.html Thamel in Kathmandu was the perfect tonic after months on the road a place to recuperate and rejuvenate surrounded by creature comforts. Thamel is the tourist enclave in the middle of Kathmandu akin to Khao San Road in Bangkok. A travellers hub where Western goods and services meet Eastern retailers and reasonable prices a place where everything is possible and almost anything can be procured. http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Nepal/Kathmandu/blog-155250.html Trekking. It's the ultimate in guiltfree chocolate indulgences. You can justify scoffing loads of chocolate by reasoning that it is infact energy and when faced with a steep mountain ascent all that lies between you and a hot shower you need all the help you can get. Help sometimes takes the form of small wrapped parcels of chocolate and peanut joy which can be guiltlessly devoured safe wit http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Nepal/Annapurna/blog-151886.html It all began with the overwhelming desire to go Yak spotting. Having been denied exposure to Yaks on our Annapurna trek this time we were determined not to leave the Himalaya without laying our eyes on the hairy beasts. We reasoned that with yaks being creatures of high altitude temperment they prefer to dwell above 3000m what better place to guarantee a Yak sighting than Everest Base Camp at http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Tibet/Friendship-Highway/blog-155607.html