 VictorT - VictorT | All Comments |
Comments | |
| 19th October 2008 sultan | great man great job, - From: Hunza - Now that's paradise hi man nice web side and full of information about hunza thanks. you did a great job . and so nice pictures . thanks take care, by |
| 15th October 2008 steve | interesting - From: Get me out of here. NOW Interesting journal without being niced up too much. Honest feelings. Sincere and blunt. I like it. |
| 2nd October 2008 gorea | enjoyed reading ur blog - From: "Take care of my friend" i was laughing hard about some of your comments regarding the places you went to and the people you met from the philippines.. i envy you coz i am a filipino but i've never been to palawan.. hayzzz.. but i will... thumbs up for your nice blog about us( well in general) |
| 13th August 2008 Engr. Farman Karim | Hunza-the real paradise on the planet - From: Hunza - Now that's paradise The magnificant pics have been captured from mind blowing locations, really the place paradise on earth. Excellent job. |
| 18th June 2008 Mell | - From: The land of Dracula Those pictures of the Bran castle bring back memories. I was in it in July 1989. The interior is looking a lot more comfortable then when I was there. I spent my night in Brasov sleeping in my tent around 200 M from the castle with wolves howling around me all night. :D Mel |
| 20th May 2008 liaqat | - From: Hunza - Now that's paradise hi di is liaqat from old hunza inn.................conguratulating u on ur effort to bring forth the real beauty of hunza....thanks..........best of luck for ur next adventutres toures... |
| 14th April 2008 zartash | hi - From: Hunza - Now that's paradise very nice blog.. two pictures are not loading please upload them again.. |
| 14th April 2008 zartash | hello - From: Rakaposhi base camp i've been to northern areas twice but the way you presented it is really amazing.. |
| 29th November 2007 iulia | - From: The land of Dracula Hi Victor! I'm a Romanian, someone send me to this page and I was very excited to read your trip journal. I'm glad you had a good time here, it's a shame you couldn't visit the monasteries in Moldavia. They're exceptional, especially the Vornonet one (the one with that unique blue colour). And also Sibiu, it's a city in Transylvania and this year it was elected as the capital of Europe. Don't know what happened with the sarmalute with mamaliga you tasted, because they're supposed to be delicious! And with cream on top! Yumm! :p The Bran Castle belonged to Vlad Tepes (also called Vlad Dracul, meaning Vlad the devil, from who the whole Dracula story began). During his reign (around 1450) he imposed those cruel punishments, that's how he got the name. But he was a prince with a deep sense of justice. ;) And he is so needed these days because of the problems we have with the gypsies. :p Not all people here want to leave for the US. It's true that many think of that, but also many young people want to stay here and make a difference. Including me! :D There are still many things to be done for this country. Hope your article will make many people plan a trip to Romania! You won't be sorry! ;) All the best to you all! iulia |
| 4th July 2007 Azhar | Good Observations - From: Darkness, brain curries and guns. It is an excellent entry. Detailed and very interesting to read. I am from Peshawar, so it was very interesting to see the perspective of a foreigner about my city. |
| 24th May 2007 Tim S. | Great read!!! - From: Chilling hardcore in Dahab Just read through most of your adventures, starting in europe...very informative and interesting...looking forward to your next one though it has been six months or so since the last one...can't wait for the next entry |
| 18th May 2007 RIZWAN QADIR | HI - From: Hunza - Now that's paradise MY NAME IS RIZWAN QADIR. LIVING IN PAKISTAN AND HAVE SEEN HUNZA VALLEY BUT IN UR TRSVEL BLOG I DID ENJOY VERY MUCH. MY CONTACT NUMBER IS +92-302-8152757 |
| 18th May 2007 RIZWAN QADIR | GOOD JOB - From: Hunza - Now that's paradise HI HOW R U IAM WELL AND WISH U TO BE SAME I HOPE THIS MALE WILL FIND U IN GOOD HEALTH.UR COLLECTIONS IS VERY GOOD I LIKE IT HAVE A VERY GOOD JOB THANKS FROR U |
| 15th May 2007 Andrew | Funny - From: Shock and fear in Tirana Hi. What an interesting story. Ive read several stories of foreigners who have visited Albania but if I had to chose, yours is in the top 5 list. So funny. Im sorry u had to have those two experiences though, and Im glad u enjoyed the rest... hopefully if u ever decide to visit it again in the future, the place will have more to offer to foreigners, especially regarding information, transport and accomodation. |
| 8th May 2007 SilviaZho | - From: Dali I just finished my 7-day trip in Yunnan and remembered this blog. I did read this but it was too different from what I saw. It looks very peaceful in your picture. But in my eyes, Dali looks like a huge plaza, noisy and too many people. Terrible~~ But Lijiang and Shangrila are really beautiful. And I also went to Deqin, moved by the gigantic jokul. It's holy. |
| 13th April 2007 Emil | Cool article but stupid jokes - From: Sofia Hey Victor, I've absolutely no idea where else in the world you have been - you may have mentioned this somewhere on your blog site but I did not bother checking this up - but I am gonna say one thing to you, very seriously: Don't mess up with Bulgarian history and don't say it is boring, my brother! Somehow Canadian history does not really strike me as a good benchmark... Alright? Now, maybe to a sophisticated backpacker like you a history of 13 centuries may mean nothing, but to most intelligent people out there, that is quite a feat! And if you think it is boring to just invade that territory and then be under Turkish occupation for 500 years, just go read some books and watch some movies to find out more about that. But, wait a minute - I forgot - your favorite pastime while on your first night in a new city is to watch "Eurotrip" - that tells me a lot... So, anyway, I think you have made some nice pictures, and it is nice that you ate spaghetti and enjoyed the big 2.5 litre beer. So I am happy you were on the overall happy from your trip. I don't care if you'll keep this post or delete it (I'll probably never come back to this site anyway; I just happened to come across it as I was looking for some other information on Sofia). Enjoy your future trips! (I think you should also go to Khazakhstan, I am sure you'll have plenty to say in Borat-style lingo after that). Emil |
| 3rd April 2007 Punit | Must mind your words before typing in - From: "Surely the gods must live here, this is no place for men" I am sure you are not that educated enough to comment on any activity. You must mind your language before writing in about any area of any country. Read you blog self and trace couple of comments must to be changed. |
| 13th March 2007 Kate | Cheers! - From: Bosnia: coffee, beer and war Just wanted to say how informative your Sarajevo entry is. I'm off there next month and this had made me even more enthusiatic and informed on the place. Excellent and good luck with your travels :-) |
| 13th February 2007 Meat | - From: "Americans good! Bill Clinton good man!" ! JE ! JA |
| 9th February 2007 multicultural | - From: Get me out of here. NOW come on face it, you've got some issues with everything China and Chinese. deal with it. |
| 6th February 2007 tane | St. BLAISE'S CHURCH - From: Dubrovnik The first picture titled "Cathedral" is, in fact, St. Blaise's church. You cannot have two cathedrals in one town. The "cathedral 2" is the real cathedral. By the way, a few days ago (Feb 3) was St. Blaise's feast. St. Blaise is the patron saint of Dubrovnik, and his feast has been celebrated for over 1040 years now. |
| 21st January 2007 Iulia | Romania! - From: The land of Dracula Hey Vic! I'm happy to hear that you liked Romania, too bad we didn't synchronize our trips so I could show you some other nice places in Romania..and make you tast REAL 'mamaliga" cuz the one you tasted, definitely wasn't the good one! Sending you kisses ;) |
| 20th January 2007 jhon | hi - From: Kashgar and the road to Pakistan you are great sosjean2006@yahoo.com.cn |
| 16th January 2007 Gen | iiiich! - From: Fungi or Phallus? The debate rages on. The only thing for sure is that if I was a giant, I'd watch carefully where I sit around here. Ma nouvelle destination! Je ne savais vraiment pas qu'il y avait une autre vallée des pénis que celle du parc Maisonneuve ; ). Que d'émotions! Pour ce qui est de la raison des sols rouges et blancs alternés, c'est surement un changement important de climat. Le rouge provient souvent du fer et des déserts et le blanc du CaCO3 et des océans... Ce qui semble très pertinent vu l'emplacement du site. Les océanographes aussi peuvent répondre ; ). |
| 12th January 2007 Kim Vandystadt | Ephesus - From: Ephesus, Pamukkale and Konya Salut Victor! Je suis contente d'avoir eu de tes nouvelles! :) Me semble que ça faisait un bout de temps. Je ne peux m'empêcher de faire un commentaire sur tes photos d'Ephesus! Ça m'a fait tout drôle de les voir car je dois dire qu'elles sont pas mal identiques aux miennes! (à part pour celle où tu es monté tout là-haut et passé par-dessus des barbelés... moi je me suis contenté de la carte postale! lol) Lors de mon voyage en Grèce et mon court arrêt en Turquie je dois dire que le site de la ville d'Éphèse est le plus beau site archéologique que j'ai vu. J'en ai été bien impressionné. C'est facile de s'imaginer à quel point la ville devait être majestueuse. Sur ce, bon restant de voyage et je ne peux attendre de voir tes photos et lire tes commentaires sur l'Égypte! :) Prends soin de toi! Kim xox |
| 11th January 2007 manon beaudry | quelle belle aventure - From: East meet West Allo Victor! parmi ses voeux de bonne année, ta mère m'a fait part de ton périple...wow!! je viens de visiter ton blog (en diagonale mais j'y reviendrai de plus près bientôt car tout me semble si intéressant...et que dire des magnifiques photos!!!) et je voulais juste te dire à quel point tu avais eu une belle et grande idée. profite bien de chaque moment! Manon (tsé l'amie de Denise qui est orthophoniste à Joliette et qui t'a, il y a longtemps, refilé des trucs de Montignac...) |
| 10th January 2007 Helene V | Bonne annee - From: East meet West Coucou victor, ca faisait longtemps que je n'ai pas visite ton blog, j'arrive pas a croire que tu sois deja en Europe!! j'adore tes photos!! Amuse toi bien en Europe et prends bien soin de toi. Fais moi signe quand tu reviens a MTL. A bientot. |
| 6th January 2007 Barry | Excellent! - From: Bosnia: coffee, beer and war I was just there (sarajevo) in June 2006.... your pics brought back all the great memories that I stil have of Bosnia. |
| 4th January 2007 VictorT | - From: Belgrade I know I didn't give Belgrade the chance it deserved. I was in a bad mood when I got there and didn't feel like going out. I can't give every place I visit enough time to do them justice. I definately bit more than I could chew in Europe because there's so many interesting places in such a small area. I should've seen less places and stay longer in each. It just felt like a crime to go from Prishtina to Sarajevo (which I had planned to see years ago) while missing Kotor and Dubrovnik or to go from Sarajevo to Bucharest and miss Belgrade. But that's what I should've done and then come another year and do Serbia/Montenegro/Croatia when I had more time. Live and learn. The women I've seen walking around sure made going clubbing a more interesting option than almost every other city I've been in but I didn't feel like it this day. I need to go back in summer one day. |
| 4th January 2007 marko | belgrade?? - From: Belgrade well, too bad.. seems you missed out Belgrade almost completely. Not even visited it's major sights, not to say about feeling the vibe.. whatever.. wish you all best on your journeys. marko |
| 3rd January 2007 Kim Vandystadt | Wild Swans - From: The land of Dracula Salut Victor! Je ne peux m'empêcher de faire un commentaire sur Wild Swans. Je l'ai lu moi aussi il y a quelques mois et je dois dire que c'est le meilleur livre que j'ai jamais lu. C'est incroyable les émotions qu'il fait ressentir. Bon bien sur ce, bon voyage et j'ai bien hâte que tu sois rendu en Égypte...j'ai vraiment hâte de voir tes photos et tes impressions de là-bas! Prends soin de toi! Kim :) |
| 3rd January 2007 njtry | russian? - From: Belgrade just that church is not russian ;-) and you missed the best part of belgrade life - didn`t really meet anyone and didnt go out... maybe thats why it is boring entry... |
| 27th December 2006 Brandon | are you alive? - From: Bosnia: coffee, beer and war Hey Victor, I assume by the fact you have approved people's comments that you are still alive but it has been over a month since an update on your exciting adventures. Way to keep the readers in suspense! Can you believe how long you have been gone already- since that bus ride to vancouver! wow! Hope all is well man! And as Kim said it- I hope you had a Merry Christmas and wish you a very happy New Year- filled with many more adventures. |
| 22nd December 2006 Kim Vandystadt | Joyeuses Fêtes - From: Bosnia: coffee, beer and war Salut Victor! Wow quelle aventure tu vis! C'est complètement incroyable de lire tous tes blogs... j'en suis déboussolée à chaque fois! hehe Je voulais te souhaiter un Joyeux Noël même si tu es à l'autre bout du monde. Prends soin de toi et reviens-nous en une pièce! ;) Kim |
| 17th December 2006 Melanie | A map isn't enough! - From: Near Death Experience on Holy Tibetan Mountain Reading your story was like deja vu. I also went to Yading this summer, stayed in that crappy tent lodge, and attempted the trek around Mt. Chenresig. Like you, I also got lost and had to retrace my steps the next day. At the lodge, we found out that two German girls who had met in Daocheng were lost in the park. They were stupid - and went out without a map, light, or proper clothes. As an experienced wilderness backpacker, I brought the map and trail description from chinabackpackers.com, bought warm clothes in Daocheng, a compass, and plenty of food. I set off with 3 others from the Tent Lodge, and it was a spectacular hike to Milk Lake. But, as we got to the top of the first Col, we saw a wall of clouds approaching. Sarah and I decided to stop there for lunch, and the Isreali couple promised they'd wait up for us down the trail. Sarah and I descended from the Col and walked past a lake, according to the trail description. Beautiful - emerald green lake, glaciers, and so many flowers. There were so many azelas that the mountainside looked purple. It was still cloudy, though, so we couldn't see the mountain. According to the trail notes, we should have passed the lake in an hour, but it took nearly two. We started to get a bit nervous when we came to a river ford - the notes hadn't mentioned that. Unfortunately, the Isrealis had the compass with them. But, in the distance, we saw a "group of huts" that was in the notes. Just then, a wall of fog moved in on us, and we could barely see 3 meters in front of us. We headed in the direction of the huts, through boggy, shitty land. We found one man at the huts, who invited us to sit inside. It was about 4pm, and we knew that we had to make a quick decision whether to try to make it to the monestary or to stay put. The Isrealis would surely worry about us. But, we figured that it was better to come out alive, and opted to stay in the hut. The stone hut was no Tibetan house - it was hardly large enough to stand, had a dirt floor, and a fireplace in the middle. But it was dry, and the weather was getting worse. The yak herders didn't speak Chinese, and I began to pat myself on the back for bringing a Tibetan phrasebook... until I realized that they spoke a different dialect of Tibetan and couldn't read. Bummer. We spent the night staring at one another and showing them our headlamps, sharing food, and showing them our headlamps. Sarah and I slept together on a narrow yak mat on the floor and two yak herders slept together on a mat on the other side of the fire (very Brokeback Mountain). Twice I woke when mice jumped from my head to the rice sacks beside me. Like you, we decided to retrace our steps the next day. We shook our heads when we realized our mistake the day before: we had missed a right turn at the top of the 1st Col, and had been going in the wrong direction all day after lunch. We later learned that if we had kept walking, we would've reached the road back to Daocheng. But, we were off our map. We were supposed to meet our driver at the entrance at noon. Although we hiked faster than I've ever hiked without stops, we didn't get to the entrance until 3pm. The Isrealis had apparently waited for us, then left when they were mistakenly told that Sarah and I had already left for Daocheng (it was apparently the lost German girls, who had somehow found their way out). Luckily, I had the driver's mobile #, and was able to let them know we were OK. It was a teary reunion. We were exhausted and filthy, but happy to be alive. We found out that the Isrealis also had a hard time finding the monestary in the bad weather, and did everything in their power to try to arrange a rescue. Moral of the story: The map in Chinabackpackers.com is not sufficient. After the 1st Col, there are no signs, and the trail isn't always obvious. Yak trails can easily get you off track. You need a good topo map, and I don't know that one exists. You'd think that they could give you a map for your $10 entrance fee, but apparently they don't care if people die. Even in good weather, the 2nd day is long and very strenuous. Bring camping gear if you have it, though it won't be fun hauling it up the mountains. Without gear, you need a guide. But, it's worth it! It's truly one of the most beautiful places I've seen. TLG doesn't even come close. And go to Tagong. For more, email me: roberts.m.r@gmail.com |
| 16th December 2006 Marina | hi - From: Bosnia: coffee, beer and war Hey Victor, It sounds like you are having an awesome time. I've read quite a few of your entries and really your journey sounds amazing. I can't believe that you've seen all these amazing places and experienced all these new things! Anyways, I was remembering some of the good times TA'ing last year... Seems like so long ago... Take care! Marina |
| 11th December 2006 Sivia | HI~~cat - From: World's youngest country! I see the cat, its really really really cute! I like it! and it makes me couldn't help writing something. No matter what happened, I like this blog, and I will always follow it. :) Good luck! |
| 9th December 2006 marko | .. - From: "Americans good! Bill Clinton good man!" interesting blog entry. I could only add few things to it.. Prizren's citadel is actually what's left from 14th century Serbian one. Prizren used to be the capital of 14th century Serbian Empire (although Serbs had only two emperors, and empire lasted for no more than 29 years). Huge mosk in Prizren (the biggest one, with the tallest minaret) is actually built from the stone of the fortress. Destruction around the fortress is caused by repeated albanian attacks on that neighborhood, since 1997 when first cases were recorded. You guess why - it was settled with serbian population. Name of that neighborhood is St.Panteleymon. I watched some documentary about it, 3 years ago, and there used to be only 1 serb inhabitant in Prizren at that time (2003), and recently, there was another documentary about the same man, whose home got burned a year ago. Too bad you couldn't get into Ljevishka church in Prizren, it is also UNESCO listed for it's exceptionaly frescoes (some say, world's best preserved orthodox fresco works, as they happened to be covered with plaster until 1950ties!). However, I believe they are totaly destroyed after 1999. One more thing. Happenings of 1999 can not be that easy explained , although you pretty excellent presented&explained Kosovo's ethnic past! It is important to mention 1994 and first appearance of KLA (Kosovo Liberation Army), whose name sounds good, but they had their guerilla war against Serb-anything in Kosovo. Not that police didn't respond (responses were pretty brutal as serb-controled police was better equiped and armed, sure) but whole thing isn't so black-white, with Serbs attacking albanians for pulling them out from Kosovo. Disasterously not true, as albanian KLA had been daily organizing attacks on Serbs and non-loyal Albanians, as well burning and sacking villages, like serb-controled police was answering. In my opinion, Serbia had been 'bad' player in the region after B&H conflicts. Also, Serbia had dictatorship. If Serbia was in better position in international circles, Kosovo's problems could be recognized as they are in, say it, northern Spain, or Corsica, or whereever... The truth is , big players (global powers) play with such small states and nations, so in this case, Albanians were presented as victims.. I'm not saying they're not. But common people always suffers the most. Profit goes to global powers, politicians and war-dogs, who are on every side. etc etc marko |
| 9th December 2006 marko | world's youngest country - From: World's youngest country! heh, greetings to you, man. nice travel journals anyway. without any bad intention, just letting you know that Montenegro is actually one of world's oldest countries, but got no time right now to explain how and why :) And I'm not montenegrin anyway ;) have a nice time man. keep writing. marko |
| 6th December 2006 MaggyPaggy | hello! - From: Last days in the Philippines and parting thoughts hi there, just wanted to say i came across your blog and enjoyed reading it! sorry that your last day was a negative experience, but at least you got to enjoy your other days in the PI. i've gone there numerous times as i'm filipina by blood. i showed your entries re: baguio and sagada and bontoc to my mom and we reminisced about our time spent there. especially that crazy drive along the cliff's edge! thanks for sharing your experiences! happy and safe travels! |
| 5th December 2006 Edam | Banaue Etc - From: "Americans good! Bill Clinton good man!" Hi Victor, thanks for the tips on the Northern Philippines. We have just booked our overnight bus for Banaue and are really looking forward to some mountain times. Even if we are a little scared of the Irish like weather (heard rumours of 10 celsius!). Hope you are getting on well in the Balkans. Are you going to Slovenia? Out of the places I have been to in Eastern/Central Europe it is by far my favourite. Although a little more expensive than the other countries. EdAm |
| 5th December 2006 Hu | WHAT? - From: Chaotic Delhi How in the fuck you know that beggar was low caste and the guy walking past was brahmin. Motherfucker. Fuck you. Maybe you need to first worry about the "HOMELESS" like you say in your fucking country. |
| 4th December 2006 Inspirado | What, no tongues? - From: Shock and fear in Tirana Hi Victor, greetings from Auckland, New Zealand. I've just read your entertaining blog and can't believe you turned down the chance to snog a local! I get the feeling he wouldn't have been my type either though ;-) I'm glad you're still alive and having a good trip! All the best, Jude & Glynn |
| 3rd December 2006 Adriana | AAAHHH!! - From: Shock and fear in Tirana Vic- I LOVE the paint job they've done on the buildings too, it's very happy looking.. I gotta say though- Your trucker experience is hilarious!!(from this point of view of course) I'm glad you made it out there ok though-cause then I wouldn't be laughing. Keep your wits up there!!! |
| 16th November 2006 Leo | - From: Get me out of here. NOW Statue in Hotan The man of right is the Maozhedong,chairman of china . |
| 12th November 2006 Adriana | - From: Shimla I don't know how you stood the vomiting!! I would have been in hell-you're a trooper Vincent!!! |
| 10th November 2006 Genevieve by the sea | Débile! - From: "Surely the gods must live here, this is no place for men" Vraiment trop jolies les photos. Bravo! |
| 10th November 2006 Francoise Therrien | Bravo - From: Manali allo Victor, Kévin m'a parlé de ce que tu faisais et je suis tres contente pour toi mais je dois dire que tu es bien loin du 6è rang n'est ce pas. J'ai presque tout lu tes reportages et je suis émerveillée par ce que tu fais. Ne lache pas et j'ai hâte de lire ton prochain journal. Bye et bonne route. En passant tes photos sont superbes. Francoise de St-Gab. |
| 6th November 2006 Deliwala | what next - From: Manali ends too abruptly - what happened next... |
| 6th November 2006 Sylvie et Michel | Elle a tout dit ce qu'on voulait dire - From: Manali Salut Vic! Ydola a tout dit ses recommandations de grand-moûman, Alors je ne te répéterai pas les miennes, c'est la même chose. Ici on parle juste de tes photos de Kamasutra (?) pis on a hate de voir ça. Qui sais, y a peut-etre des positions qu'on ne connait pas ha ha ha (quoi que à notre âge...l'expérience )! Marie-Eve a un chum. Samuel magasine toujours... Hey, il se peut que Samuel aille en Tunisie au mois de mai-juin prochain dans le cadre d'un stage internationnal. Ils iront dans le désert pour offrir des soins aux nomades.Marie-Eve ira en France vers le 23-24 juin 2007(échange) et Michel et Moi nous irons au Mexique en mars et même Ydola ira peut-etre faire une croisière dans les Caraïbes en Février 2007. Et ta famille qui partira pour l'Égypte en janvier...Ça fait pas mal de monde qui se promèneront en 2007 ! Sur ce, je t'embrasse fort. XXXX Bye Je t'aime. Sylvie et Michel |
