After an early start where we tried to sleep in as Long as possible before making a mad dash for breakfast and somehow getting your belongings organized we were shoved into the bus and driven from Africa to Asia (under the suez canal, through alot of desert and through some beautiful mountains) to the coastal town of Dahab, located an hour or so south of the border to Israel (and the crossing to Jordan) on the Red Sea. After enduring the crazy heat along the Nile it was great to see the coast again. After checking into dahab paradise resort I met my new room mate (An Australian by the name of Matt was my old one) who was English chap who served in Iraq named Rob. Both great guys. After a bit of free time ... read more

After a somewhat reluctant allnighter (where there was no alcohol involved) I ventured out onto the streets of London at around 3 am and caught two public buses to heathrow airport. Once I was through security etc I had 2 hours to wait until boarding, perfect time for sleeping right? But no, after my poor form earlier in the week I didn't wanna fall into a deep sleep and miss the flight so I desperately tried to stay awake, but failed. Although I woke up at boarding time I was still a long way from my gate. I moved incredibly swiftly to be the last one to board. On arrival at the airport in Cairo, still have asleep, I sorted out a "visa" for under 10 pounds and moved through customs where I was greeted by ... read more

After an early start in Istanbul on Tuesday I caught a minibus to the city's secondary airport. Arriving at 9:30 for the 2pm flight. We boarded the plane at 8:30pm (yes, 11hours of waiting), arrived at gatwick airport at 10:30 ish and finally got to my hostel at around midnight. We were told during the flight a few of our crew (including the pilot) were ill and they had to fly in another crew from London for the our flight. On the Wednesday, my first day in England, I already knew weeks in advance what I was going to do. I went to the walkabout pub in order to watch the Geelong game from the weekend. It had been a while and I was suffering withdrawal symptoms. During the game and after a few 7 buck ... read more

After a very interesting night I woke up in a hostel bed in Istanbul, I was feeling somewhat tired, i was still unable to put my full weight on my foot and as I had no sense of direction yet I decided to do a tour to get my bearings and savour the energy I did have. I relictantly chose the double decker bus option, but in the end I cherished the relaxing day. Over the next few days I would explore the city and sights more thoroughly and in the evenings I tried my best to avoid the party scene by checking out a couple of movies. But I could only resist for so long. On a couple of nights we ended up on the top floor bar of the hostel enjoying some beers and ... read more

I have to admit that the only reason I was interested in visiting Transylvania was because of the Dracula movies. But Ill have you know that it wasn't because of Dracula, but rather the castles and the mountainous scenery the movies showed. And although it wasn't quite like what I had imagined, I certainly was not disappointed. The train ride through the Carpathian mountains was jaw-dropping; mountains that were over 2500m high, lush forest all around, following a beautiful stream and every now and then a beautiful castle. After arriving in the city of Brasov, I once again followed a backpacker to their hostel (although I have kinda been travelling with the girl (Jacqui) I followed) and it payed off once again. I quickly ditched my bags and went exploring this touristy but beautiful town that ... read more