http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Sean/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Sean en-us Sun, 27 Dec 2009 01:41:20 +0000 Sun, 27 Dec 2009 01:41:20 +0000 Cruising down Rue F.D.R. the tenth such named road Ive seen is my ticket out of Brussels an unusually easy escape from a large city. Two autobahns make Luxembourg a straight shot. My route less so a two day trip took many all the usual bike breakdowns wrong turns stupid ideas. Stranded in St Hubert two flats on one stretch of road I realized my patch glue is sitting in a field in the Ne http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/France/blog-91323.html Aug 5 to Aug 28Flying into Oslo to visit Stine my dearest friend Ive met travelling 16 months ago. I spent nearly three weeks with her rock climbing and hanging out in Krabi Thailand. Over the past year she kept me entertained with funny stories into her daily life via email. My first day there we road our bikes to her local lake for a swim in a beautiful pine surrounded lake with diving board http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Norway/blog-84525.html July 22 to Aug 4Scotland is effortless very gorgeous isolated and few cars on the secondary roads any route you would choose to take is going to be perfect. My time there was so easy and enjoyable there isn't much to write about. The two places I would recommend for a two week long cycle tour would be here and Tuscany. Arriving into Abedeen on the east coast I would cross the highlands meet my http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/United-Kingdom/blog-84521.html July 4 to July 21Stumbling off the ferry from Wales at six am blind with sleep and hunger I fill up on seawater and Irish Brown bread. Tap water so bad and then some of the best bread I've eaten in my life. The ingredients say that half of the bread is made with buttermilk In my 18 days in Ireland I think its safe to say I ate 18 loaves of this bread made in heaven I think. My first stop was Jer http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Ireland/blog-84518.html June 27 to July 4Catching London in good weather gave me a bit of respect for the locals they really take advantage of it. People outside of pubs glasses are allowed in the streets public movie events tried to watch Constant Gardener but it was super echo and lazing in Hyde Park or on cathedral steps. English bitch constantly about weather so it was good to see them outside en mass. Footbal http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/United-Kingdom/blog-79490.html June 17 to June 26The biggest damn pork knee you ever saw two pieces of capsicum and a silver of carrot all the food groups you need. Three days I chased one and missed out bitter disappointment as I had to settle with every other part from a pig. On the advice of Sarah a girl I traveled with in Israel I rode from Salzberg to Cesky Krumlov a perfect Medieval village in the south of the Czech http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Czech-Republic/blog-70147.html June 10 to June 16Singapore is burning. My first night in Munich at the massive Tent and my only chance at a place to sleep crazy enviornment complete with large campfires nightly. We gathered around a semi drunk Singapore man on the guitar a great time chatting football and listing to his very karaoke voice with matching guitar scratch. He would dive into a Bob Dylan song say 'the Hurricane' http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Germany/blog-70146.html June 3 to June 9Riding into Bavaria with lots and lots of rain gave me a quick dose of BMWs in featured commercials f fast not crazy just fast. Except for a guy in a Fiat that gave me a thumbs up as he passed followed by a look of his two huge eyeballs that rotated a full 360 degrees at me that's plain scary.After five minutes riding the entire length of Liechtenstein shamelessly to add http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Austria/blog-69624.html May 25 to June 2After my second day riding the passes through the gorgeous Swiss Alps I settled down for bed at 9pm in the mountains. I carry a sealable plastic box for my food as much as I love the clothes smelling of onion and cheese. I foolishly set it down next to my head after dinner and was asleep in no time. No tent just a drop cloth with the starry night. Around three in the morning I hea http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Switzerland/blog-62940.html Leaving Rome for the hills of Tuscany was exciting some places you tend to hold high expectations for and just know it wont disappoint. You cant complain about the climbing either lest some tour group of silver haired sixty somethings pedal past you with their massive tour van bringing up the rear. I must have been the only cyclist carrying his own gear. That will be me in a few years so I cant http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/Tuscany/Florence/blog-62918.html Until I arrived in Pompeii I was convinced Italian people like to sleep in here I was starting my days at 730 and not a person around for at least an hour. Getting to the admission booth at the ruins and realizing it doesn't open for two hours tells me Ive pretty much lost all concept of time. I cant even think how long Ive been running on the wrong time. Least Ive gotten used to getting up at da http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/Lazio/Rome/blog-57723.html Walking the Stations of the Cross while hearing the Muslim call to prayer stepping out of the Armenian quarter and into the Jewish quarter in a few quick steps so much diversity into such a small area. Settling in and moving slow travelling with six it would be theme that not all of us would make it to our chosen destination. Food seemed to be a reason for it Israel has amazing food it lead m http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Israel/Jerusalem-District/Jerusalem/blog-50384.html I picked the wrong day to be daft. Crossing from Sinai to Israel then into Jordan and trying to catch a buscabhitch to Petra in one day was ambitious it helps to be on your best behaviour coming into Israel. I was little paranoid entering the security area I was packing a knife in my pocket reading the huge weapons declaration sign trying to decide if it was important to declare a Swiss Army http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Jordan/South/Petra/blog-53415.html The Greek people talk with their hands passion waving about I was wandering around the streets of Athens and caught a netted football match. They are worse than the English more shouting and waving than playing. In my first three days here I saw two cab drivers get accosted for stopping in the median several people slam payphones and men sipping coffee presumably to restore the vocal cords b http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Greece/Thessaly/Meteora/blog-53419.html Egypt not going to bore anyone with descriptions of places and artifacts we all grew up seeing I'll bore you with something else. For all the following mock complaining the Pharaonic sights truely amaze with a little luck its possible to visit around the crush of tours be warned though visiting Egypt while not on a packaged tour still feels like a packaged tour. Cattle Car Tourism Ah Egypt http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/blog-48359.html Nepal is full of two things Mountains and misconceptions. Sorry for the people I met traveling in India and who wished to go to Nepal but didn't for reasons read in the news. True everyday I spent in Nepal included reading a newspaper filled with Maoist related violence and killings. Uncomfortable to see bunkers barb wires and all manner of guns slung over the shoulders of young police and army http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Nepal/blog-45241.html In my last journal I mentioned visiting Varanasi but I forgot to post these photos. http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/India/Uttar-Pradesh/Varanasi/blog-45449.html So we are back in the night train feeling proud that we arranged a smooth time table to be sipping a beer by noon on the beach. Overnight train 550 get off the train right at the airport catch flight at 730 ferry over to the island grab a cab easy. Four guys staring at me in that scary kind of way Italian guy in Eurotripin the train for 3 hours got us off to a strange start. We missed o http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/Central-Thailand/Ko-Chang/blog-9431.html Feb 10 to Feb 15Just off the train in Varanasi I'm ducking the rickshaw driver I asked to be let off at St. Thomas church but I guess that meant a guesthouse of his choosing wandering towards the Ganges river when I get engulfed in a mass protest of the Danish Cartoons. Maybe a thousand Muslims blocking out traffic with a lynched Bush effigy and Danish Prime Minister and several signs condem http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/India/Rajasthan/Jodhpur/blog-40387.html Feb 4 to Feb 9Karni Mata Rat temple for us the Indian sideshow something so completely different to Hindus sacred important and auspicious. Drop the shoes be respectful and step inside just remember to scrub those feet at night pigeon and rat poo are everywhere. Its good luck to have a rat run over your feet eat food a rat has partially chewed on and spot a famed white rat. Fascinatin http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/India/Punjab/Amritsar/blog-40386.html