danielmilford

"Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, feed him for a lifetime." i am not fully sure how to describe the events that took place yesterday.. i only wish i had my camera.. the day started as most days in kathmandu seem to slightly bored of the place, strolling around the streets iv walked many times during my short stay, when, semi-expectantly i see a man iv spoken to on several occasions, Raksh, a local shoe shine who frequents the thamel area in search of shoes to shine and people to speak english with.. i met Rakesh on my first full day in nepal, at that stage i did not understand the nepali people, it caught me by surprise that when i declined a shoeshine, he asked if ... read more

the concept of a place so swimming with rock climbers and climbing culture that you can turn up on your own and the next day be climbing with some really cool people is a new one to me, however it was very welcomed! after two months of pure site seeing, i was pretty burned out.. i guess people, human history and culture arent really my strong points when it comes to staying focused.. again when you are doing one thing every day (climbing rocks) there aren't that many different ways to write about it.. i did however meet some excellent people during my stay, and learnt from, enjoyed the company of, and laughed with some of the most generous, helpful and fun loving travelers i have met to date.. definitely very happy with my time spent ... read more

As soon as you cross the boarder into Cambodia, you instantly notice that this is a very poor country.. i definitely feel for the people here.. they are doing it tough! however, in stark contrast to Vietnam, the people here seem genuinely happy, welcoming and want to share their stories and culture with travelers.. Cambodia, perhaps not wanting to rely on its own unstable monetary system, has made unusual dependence on the use of the US dollar.. you go to an ATM and it will dispense you US dollars.. very quickly you learn that 1USDollar is the smallest US currency, below that, the RIEL (Cambodian currency) is used.. an example would be, to pay for a meal that cost $2.50 you would hand over 2dollars and 2000riel.. i seem to forever have this massive fat wad ... read more

On flying into the smaller city of hai phong to the north of vietnam, from ho chi minh city we were met at the airport once gain by the expected swarm of dodgy, pushy taxi drivers all willing to try anything to take advantage of an unsuspecting foreigner stepping over and on each other to get you in their taxi, dodgy meters that count too fast, refusing to use a meter, demanding extra fees at the end of the trip.. the fun and games of leaving the airport.. after a bouncy, hair raising bus ride and a good nights sleep it was time to set off to the dock in search of a boat to take us for an overnight cruise on harlong bay.. on entering the "tourist information centre" we were approached by a tall ... read more

..test entry.. Still planning and packing.. lots off stuff to do still in the 4weeks till lift off..... read more