http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/Seed-Girl/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Seed Girl en-us Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:17:40 +0000 Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:17:40 +0000 I think Brooke and I have completely squeezed the most out of Jordan. I'm back in Cairo exhausted after sleeping approximately 8 hours in the last 3 nights. Too much to see only possible by starting at sunrise every day. Gladly. It's been an incredible destination and more sandy sojurns are definitely on the cards. The open space of the landscape sunsets late cave nights out with locals and the h http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/blog-452330.html Hands down Petra was THE best ancient city I have EVER seen. It pretty much shat on Macchu Picchu Ephesus Pompeii every Egyptian monument and the underground cities of Cappadocia. It's an incredibly well preserved 2000 year old mega city in which over 20000 people once lived. They lived in a city carved out of the same candy striped multicoloured rock we hiked through at Dana NAture Reserve. http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Jordan/South/Petra/blog-452329.html A different rythm and pace has settled over the last piece of my journey. No longer part of a group but travelling solo with my buddy Brooke means a fresh perspective. Independence suits both of us We are similar in the sense of knowing exactly how and what we want to experience. Remote nature village life and culture with some history for good measure. As soon as Brooke met me in Cairo we ha http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Jordan/West/Dead-Sea/blog-452327.html With only one day to spare for the town of Alexandria both Kate and I agreed history could take a side step for the all important tour of the taste bud la Gastronomique Tour da force was the obvious choice. Drawing a long walking loop from the train station along the coastline and back we chose prudently. Of each circled on the map establishment we had to either eat drink smoke or inhale somet http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Mediterranean/Alexandria/blog-452326.html Mt Sinai has absolutley scratched my Mountain high itch After leaving Cairo we endured a very bumpy 7 hour journey East to the Asian part of Egypt Sinai. An incredibly dry lanscape with high granite peaks flowed past our first glimpse of the azure Red Sea. Named the Red Sea because apparently at night the granite cliffs reflect and turn the sea a reddish colour. So here I am on the coastline of http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Red-Sea/blog-452323.html After the past few days felucca bound I feel like an absolute crusty slug Could it be possible to be more rested and fed Basically the small traditional sailing boat is one gigantic floating bed. A bed for eight people with ample room to starfish. Delicious endless time to read and just fall asleep with no restrictions is ALL we have done. Lying back and listening to the Nile lap the boat is http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Upper-Egypt/Aswan/blog-452322.html I have been literally floating through a blissful desert space. The ocean of sand is so open it has cleansed my mind completely. After leaving Cairo and the hustle behind we travelled further into a new found chilledness. The Jeep transporting us with miles into a stress free zone. After much sighing and gazing across the vastness the Black Desert turned to White. A fairy like fantasy beyong my http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Western-Desert/Dakhla-Oasis/blog-452321.html It's not every day you wake up and think 'I'm off to visit the Pyramids today'. But how cool is that So with much excitement and years of preconception we headed to the the last remaining ancient wonder for a good look around.I have learn't that expectation can get you into all kinds of trouble. And the pyramids at Giza are pretty surreal for want of a bigger superlative. They are massive they a http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Lower-Egypt/Giza/blog-452319.html Talk about hit the sand smiling After a better than normal flight enduring a chronic nose clearing man seated next to me from Singapore I was pleasantly greeted by a jovial and rather rotund Wajit. Flying in over the vast desert a study in beige unfolded below. Quickly I was whisked through to the central city of early sunrise morning and my buzz started to build. My limited Arabic learnt affe http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Lower-Egypt/Cairo/blog-452318.html Everyone loves a tiger. Especially tigers you can pat in person and hand feed. Itrsquos been debated A LOT. Itrsquos been written about A LOT. I had to find out if the Thai Buddhist Temple near Bangkok really was a nature experience or a shonky hideaway profiting from animal incarceration.I would love to say that it is all incense and jungle with one happy and majestic tiger lounging atop an http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/Central-Thailand/Bangkok/blog-368524.html We where delayed from Cherbourg in France two days as the rough seas where too dangerous. That should have warned me enough of the nightmare to come and told me to get off the damned ferry and head to Ireland via England. No such luck finally we set off and I found my little cabin. Half an hour from shore I woke to huge crashing bangs extreme thrashing and the ferry bouncing all over the ocean http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Ireland/blog-284287.html Everything is a little dirtier and more lived in washing on the balconies overhanging the streets people seem more alive and a little crazier food I love to eat and really good smells. Spain is quite a reality change after weeks in Scandinavia and the Alps. Southern Europe suits my soul expressive hand waving and warmer weather. It feels like a great mixture of Southern Italy and Greece. Barce http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Spain/blog-281620.html There is still a sense of the struggle of man to control the beast that is nature as I travel across miles of untouched open spaces. Futile attempts at order are everywhere as you can feel the hands of the icy winter hovering. It is still quite wild and unexplored terrain in some parts f Scandinavia and the silence can be almost deafening. It has been 0 degrees with snow and the vast distances be http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Finland/blog-281313.html As I crossed the train bridge that connects Denmark with Sweden and headed North to Stockholm the landscape changed drastically. The long bridge that stretches for 5 minutes of the journey incredible in itself was surrounded by a vast steely grey ocean. Lit up occasionally with shimmering patches where the sun managed to break free from the clouds.The landscape seems controlled so symmetrically http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Sweden/Stockholm-County/Stockholm/blog-281309.html After a three week whirlwind tour of Italy I'm heading to Austria where apparently the hills are alive with the sound of musicItaly has been beautiful. After hooking up with an English couple met months ago in Turkey we saw how much the Tower of Pisa really leans gorgeous little towns like Luca and SIenna and now I'm in Venice. The numerous canals of Venice are truly romantic but the gondola ri http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Austria/blog-280962.html I am typing madly next to the Trevi fountain listening to Pavarotti and sitting next to a priest in black typing emails. Very strange. Obviously I am in Italy safe and sound in beautiful Roma. After over two months in Greece it's still a culture shock. Conversation is a little trying as I'm still in Hellenic mode and the Grand Prix is on so all eyes seem to be on the boxMy Italian is EXTREMELY http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Italy/blog-280607.html Its official Peruvians are absolute maniac drivers. This covers various kinds of transport such as trucks buses motorickshaws boats and today the plane pilot has confirmed my theory once again.I nearly vomited in a small plane today as our pilot gave us spiralling rapid views over the dry desert as we tried to see the Nasca lines. We saw them very cool designs supposedly created but not co http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Peru/Lima/Lima/blog-273368.html Made it to Quito in Ecuador in one piece. After almost two days travelling like a zombie in the plane lots of unpredicted delays and two extra plane changes I am in South America. What a spin out after so much pretrip anticipationI arrived about 10 hours ago about 1am local time to a crazy packed airport found my sweet little transfer dude and jumped in the car. Everything really sunk in final http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Ecuador/North/Quito/blog-273379.html Where to start on what I have just seen.....just came back late last night from Galapagos Islands and it really was more incredible than I imagined.Rude shock though going from living alone in Brissy to a dodgy boat of 14 Aussie women and two old men I thought there was only going to be 7 of us. Quite a big adjustment for me and considering how mellow and isolated Galapagos is I needed to get a http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Ecuador/North/La-Y-de-la-Laguna/blog-273378.html Hi gorgeous ones this is going to be the most gushing mad email because I am out of control high today. So my disclaimer is sickening over exaggerated happines guff is about to follow so please be warnedHad the best day of my holiday today even though there were no animals. I wasn't part of the group at all and instead found two very cool Aussies who are living in Adelaide. Eric and Janet are http://www.travelblog.org/South-America/Ecuador/North/Quito/blog-273376.html