http://www.travelblog.org/Bloggers/The-Rambling-Wayfarer/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from The Rambling Wayfarer en-us Thu, 31 Dec 2009 19:13:23 +0000 Thu, 31 Dec 2009 19:13:23 +0000 Ireland surprised me with their version of summer and immediately I was sent shopping for socks and warm clothes. There tongue in check humor quickly warmed me over as I passed a door store called Knobs and Knockers. So it is with relaxing thoughts that I nestled into a pub with a pint and a book.I hadn't really thought much about Ireland. I started this trip with the simple idea of chilling http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Ireland/County-Galway/Galway/blog-409087.html 14 days is never enough time to fully grasp anything let alone a country and their lifestyle. Yet I needed something to do besides see old towns and churches and what have you. Granted it has been a lot of fun exploring the places that I have seen. I have run around the charming capital of Zagreb the magnificent old town of Drubovnik hiking along Plitvice's endless waterfalls and even sojourn http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Croatia/Dalmatia/Zadar/blog-406245.html What a difference 48 hours makes. Instead of wandering down dirt roads I am strolling tree shaded cobblestone lanes. There are no mosquito nets draping over my bed. No longer do I have the choice of green or brown Carlsberg but instead a variety of hearty ales brewed nearby. Traditional Malawian music has been replaced with symphonies and concertos. Gone are the how and knife instruments and http://www.travelblog.org/Europe/Hungary/Central-Hungary/Budapest/blog-402316.html When do the other students arriveYou are the only student in the course.So it goes.I enrolled in a two week pottery course along the shores of Lake Malawi. Had hoped it would offer me some interaction with people who could talk about other things besides travel. Instead I was left feeling like Tom Hanks in Castaway. Of course I wasn't stranded on a deserted island and I had a sweet room h http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Malawi/Lake-Malawi/blog-400044.html Waking up to the gravelly tearing rips loud chewing and deep satisfying grunts of a 1.5 ton hippo outside my tent is not the most ideal 4am wakeup call. Yet it appears that this Hippo enjoyed the grass surrounding my tent. Somehow these behemoths are Africa's leading killer of humans every year. Apparently catching a hippo off guard or getting between them and their safety nest in the crocodile http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Zambia/South-Luangwa/blog-395593.html Trying to describe Lusaka Zambia's capital city is difficult. It is a city with a bit of and edge to it in terms of grime but definitely pleasant enough. The guidebooks were quite right that it isn't really designed for tourism which explains why few people stay there. With hardly any museums and a few shopping centers as the highlights I made quick work of Lusaka. Although I truly enjoyed t http://www.travelblog.org/Africa/Zambia/Livingstone/blog-394316.html There is a generic term for the tribes of Jordan. They are called Bedouin. The Bedouin were desert people who understood the struggle of day to day life in the harsh desert climate. Part of their culture is based upon hospitality due to their environment. The Bedouins would welcome strangers passing through into their homes to escape the desert. People were given the best the home had to offe http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Jordan/South/Petra/blog-390292.html Initial alarm went off at the airport as I tried to get the bus into Amman. The taxi drivers outside of baggage claim were waiting to take people to the Israel border. Apparently few people stay in Amman. From the majority of my flight running off to the transfer desk to the taxi drivers shock at the fact that I was going to the capital city to the complete absence of foreigners on the bus ride http://www.travelblog.org/Middle-East/Jordan/North/Amman/blog-389542.html Islands often give the feeling of peace and tranquility. You travel to them to relax read some books grab some sand and sun. I had such visions in my head as I headed to Ko Lanta in Southern Thailand. Careful research led me to this island as it was less prostitute filled than Phuket and more laid back than raving Ko Samui. A little diving some light reading and a lot of sleeping on Khon Kl http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/South-West-Thailand/Ko-Lanta/blog-387253.html Singapore is amazingly good at making a first impression. It is extremely clean and modern in it's skyline transportation and general population. It is alive with activity and people are eager to show it off.The diffusion of culture is rather amazing for such a small nation state. With only 4 million people they have a rather large ethnic diversity. Chinese Malay Indian and British cultures http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Singapore/blog-386037.html Road weary overloaded on mental experiences and looking for a few creature comforts I stumbled into Bangkok. A brief but necessary doctor's visit confirmed what I already knew. Armed with medication but still needing the beautiful white porcelain to assist my battle with a gastrointestinal infection I had to figure out what to do with myself.I decided I would have an AllAmerican day. I hit http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/Central-Thailand/Bangkok/blog-383844.html Is Khon Kaen in ThailandYes.I'll take one ticket to Khon Kaen please.I had more or less remembered seeing that name on the map of Thailand but didn't quite know where it was. I don't plan on being impulsively stupid sometimes it just happens. Maybe it was the heat and the thought of waiting around for another two hours for a bus to Bangkok. Maybe it was the pain in my knee. Maybe I jus http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Thailand/North-East-Thailand/Khon-Kaen/blog-382397.html Vientiane was a winner from the start. Maybe it was departing from a 9 hour bus trip filled with people throwing up all over the place or maybe it was Vientiane itself. It's hard to say.Vientiane is a lazy capital that sits along the Mekong River looking over at Thailand. It is the most laid back capital city I have ever seen. I am starting to figure out that in Laos you need to slow down re http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Laos/West/blog-379835.html A petite Asian woman holding a simple paper sign with my name on it greeted me outside of the airport. Taxis are absent tuktuk drivers are not to be found in fact outside of a couple of other guesthouses picking up their guests no one is here. The lady turns out to be Khoun and she points to the end of the parking lot and tells me that her husband Khoun is in the car waiting to take us back. http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Laos/West/Luang-Prabang/blog-378034.html In an effort to complete my rail journey through Vietnam I boarded one more over night train to Lao Cai. Pulling up three miles from the Chinese border was pretty much as far as I could go. Sapa is a big tourist spot due to it's location in the Tonkinese Alps the village reminds one of a small French chateau. Of course there is no snow but the terraced rice fields are still view worthy. In http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Northwest/Sapa/blog-376677.html Having enough of the city for a bit I decided to some minitrips from Hanoi. The obvious choice was Halong Bay one of the main reasons for choosing Vietnam. Situated in the Gulf of Tonking Halong Bay is an area comprised of nearly 2000 islands. The name Halong Bay means the bay of descending dragons as the rocky outcrops appear to be the spine of a dragon. These islands are uninhabited al http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Red-River-Delta/Halong-Bay/blog-374861.html Continuing an accidental theme I left Hoi An for Hanoi. Ho Chi Minh Hue Hoi An and while I was in Hanoi I made a trip to Ha Long Bay separate entry for the pictures. If you are ever playing a Vietnamese person in Hangman I suggest you start with the letter H.Hanoi is all about the Ho. Ho lived and reigned in Hanoi. They actually have a huge museum dedicated solely to the man and his acc http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/Red-River-Delta/Hanoi/blog-374854.html An old French colonial village painted in all yellow. The faded yellow colonial buildings creates a muted and calm feeling Hoi An is a rather sleepy town on the banks of Thu Bon River. The main downtown section is an endless array of shops. Silk silk and more silk combined with shoes and numerous art galleries. The shops got so out of hand the government actually stepped in and has stopped http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/South-Central-Coast/Hoi-An/blog-372916.html And the day begins. Everyday while traveling you are constantly bombarded by touts selling you everything. The second you step outside of your hotel you are immediately bombarded by drivers. They attempt to draw you in with a hello and a where you go. If you elect to answer them they immediately press in upon you with prices and places they will take you. You start to feel like a pig in http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Vietnam/North-Central-Coast/Hue/blog-371787.html One of the last remaining cultural identities in the world is food. Wherever people may go they always find comfort in the tastes of home. It is a quintessential aspect of travel. To experience a culture is to eat its food. Eating local foods that are close to a culture should provide you with an insight into the tastes and smells of a place. Everything should be fresh and sharp in terms of http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Cambodia/blog-369140.html