http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/SeeingTheWorld/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from SeeingTheWorld en-us Thu, 31 Dec 2009 13:40:03 +0000 Thu, 31 Dec 2009 13:40:03 +0000 On February 3rd Dad and I flew the entire width of North Africa departing from Cairo and touching down in Casablanca Morocco. To say that Morocco is an upgrade from Egypt would be a gross understatement. Smoothly paved highways led us from the airport into the heart of Casa and further onward to the doorstep of our hotel. From our window we could see the Atlantic Ocean and the unbelievably bea http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Morocco/Marrakech-Tensift-El-Haouz/Marrakech/blog-244217.html First impressions and hasty generalizations often lead a person to form misguided opinions with regards to a country and its people. As has been the case with so many people I have met throughout my travels people I meet are often shocked that I donrsquot fit their general stereotype of the ldquoaverage Americanrdquo. My usually response to such comments is that I happen to be 1 of nearly http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Lower-Egypt/Cairo/blog-242349.html Imagine Cancun Mexicohellip.replace the smiling Mexicans with often rude occasionally polite and always devious Egyptianshellip.and what you get is Sharm El Sheikh. Sharm is located at the southern tip of the Sinai Peninsula and is the convergent point for the Gulf of Suez and the Gulf of Aqaba. Bonus points for nearly allyearround sunshine extra bonus points for bargain rates at fancy http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Egypt/Upper-Egypt/blog-241486.html Our exodus from Petra was followed by a short taxi ride to the entrance of the Wadi Rum desert. Officially declared a ldquoNational Protected Areardquo by the Royal Jordanian government in 1997 Wadi Rum offers fantastic landscapes littletono tourists and interesting adventure activities that only a desert can dish out. We started our journey in a beatup old Toyota Land Cruiser and buzz http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Jordan/South/Wadi-Rum/blog-239290.html Landing in Jordan after a 7hour flight over a large portion of the Middle East was a bit of shock. I had such a lovely familyhome situation going on in India that it left tears in my eyes when I left. I literally left a piece of my heart there but lucky for me Irsquoll be going back in a few weeks to reunite with what Irsquove left behind. On our second day in the first Arab country that http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Jordan/South/Petra/blog-237713.html Okayhellipso Irsquove been a bit of letdown since my last blog in November. After my adventurefilled tour through the Himalayas I pretty much put the brakes on traveling for a while. So much walking so many new stories so many new photos left me a bit exhausted from constantly tending to my precious little travel blog. I returned to India after Bhutan moved into my friend Angadrsquos http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Jordan/North/Amman/blog-237712.html Two days after arriving in the beautifully isolated and majestic Buddhist Kingdom of Bhutan I set out on what would be my final Himalayan trekking adventure of 2007. What I didnrsquot know when I started the 14day Laya Ghasa Hot Springs trek was that it would turn out to be most challenging and difficult journey of all. Not difficult in terms of the distance we covered passes crossed or http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Bhutan/Thimphu/blog-215467.html After making my way back from Pokhara to Kathamndu the next few days were filled with general laziness and a plethora of relaxation. I attempted to gain back some of my lostweight by eating 3 to 4 meals a day napping in between and enjoying whatever HBO had an offer by way of mindless entertainment. On the 19th I was unfortunately woken up at the ungodly hour of 445am to board my short fligh http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Nepal/Lukla/blog-209646.html A knock at the door....gradually one eye opens and then the other. Slowly I slide one arm out of the blissful warmth and comfort of my sleeping bag. Ohh the eyes need adjusting. I squint and look at my watch 512am. Ohh man that's early. The knock comes again. In that confusing dimension between being asleep and awake a momentary stroke of genius enters my mind black coffee binplease http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Nepal/Gorak-Shep/blog-207474.html I arrived in Kathmandu Nepal after a quick and easy flight from Delhi. I spent two days in the city wandering its narrow streets watching Maoist supporters protest for their dubious reasons and personally investigating the delicious Nepali food at local restaurants. After my two days expired I was taken by taxi along with my guide and Sherpa to the village of Besisahar roughly 6 hours west http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Nepal/Annapurna/blog-200635.html It would be safe to say that I have reached a high point in my trip both literally and figuratively. It's certainly no secret that the Ladakh region of North India is a trekking paradise. Having so many routes to choose from one falls victim to the tyranny of choice in planning upcoming adventures. I've been in Ladakh slightly less than one month spending 16 of those days out in the wilder http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/India/Jammu-and-Kashmir/Leh/blog-192956.html So I haven't been so vigilant in updating the blog recently. I finished my volunteer teaching work in Mcleod Ganj about 10 days ago. Teaching the Tibetan refugees and the Buddhist monks English was perhaps the most enjoyable and memorable experience of trip thus far. Most of the students had no English experience or knowledge whatsoever so I started half the classes with learning the alphabet. http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/India/Jammu-and-Kashmir/Leh/blog-190459.html I guess I mentioned at the end of my last blag that I would give you gusy some sort of fashion show. Well sorry to disappoint I doubt anyone really cared. As much fun as it was getting tons of custom fit clothes made I thought it would be a bit lame to post a dozen photos of me dressed up in different attire. I may have been a weebit overexcited about visiting Hoi An when I last updated the http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Central-Highlands/Da-Lat/blog-146088.html After traveling nearly 5 months most of it alone on April 14th I was finally graced with a serious dose of familiarity. Dad had arrived. After flying nearly 20 hours from San Francisco to Hong Kong and then Hong Kong to Saigon Dad had made it to Vietnam. After settling into our room we briefly meandered around the city and called it an early night. There was a lot planned for the next few day http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Mekong-River-Delta/blog-149645.html Time has really been flying by in Vietnam. This bustling country with the second fastest growing economy of Asia is certainly a contrast from the laid back relaxing atmosphere I experienced in Laos. Vietnam has been a welcome change and with unique culture and social characteristics apart from the partially homogeneous nature of Thailand Laos and Cambodia. Over a thousand years of Chinese in http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Central-Highlands/blog-143379.html Final Farewell to VietnamAs I write this blog it's been exactly 2 months since I entered the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. It's hard to believe that time has moved by so quickly and in some ways I'm sad to leave. One month on my own and one month with Dad a nice blend of comfort companionship and adventure. I feel insanely lucky to have had the chance to spend a whole month traveling the cou http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Red-River-Delta/Hanoi/blog-157916.html After nearly 7 months of constant movement and travel I have finally found a temporary settlement. For the next 6 weeks I will be residing in a small town called Mcleod Ganj up here in North India. When His Holiness the 14th Dali Lama fled Tibet after the Chinese invasionoccupation in 1959 Mcleod Ganj is where he made is home. In the surrounding area of Dharmsala and within Mcleod Ganj is an http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/India/Himachal-Pradesh/Mcleod-Ganj/blog-167288.html I knew the moment I arrived in Manali that I would enjoy my time here. Set in a large valley with snowcapped mountain ranges running adjacent to the town the scenery around Manali is stunning. When compared to the 110 temperatures of Delhi the weather here is awesome. Ranging from low 70's in the day at high 40's at night it's a great summer mountain climate. The several valleys and peaks http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/India/Uttar-Pradesh/Agra/blog-162019.html I knew the moment I arrived in Manali that I would enjoy my time here. Set in a large valley with snowcapped mountain ranges running adjacent to the town the scenery around Manali is stunning. When compared to the 110 temperatures of Delhi the weather here is awesome. Ranging from low 70's in the day at high 40's at night it's a great summer mountain climate. The several valleys and peaks http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/India/Himachal-Pradesh/Manali/blog-163769.html My overnight train ride to Sapa was more pleasurable than expected. Then train left a 950pm I was asleep by 1100 and before I realized what happened I woke up in Sapa the next morning. Sapa's elevation is around 5200 feet so I immediately noticed the change in weather. Sapa was a whole lot colder than any place I've been so far. Luckily I picked up some extra warm clothes and socks in Hano http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Sapa/blog-141504.html