globaltrekker

Annapurna trail (the short one, missing the West side) I spent my last night in the company of Sonia after meeting the new crew….But everyone was friendly and excited for the trek. We met our guide Krishna and were given a run down on what was going to happen over the next couple of weeks. Our first day was a later start than usual and we didn’t meet up until after 9am. We spent most of the day on a mini bus heading to Bandipur. Now I know I have mentioned Nepalese traffic in previous posts but I really feel like it needs to be revisited…driving in Nepal takes guts, serious guts!! Close calls, strong brakes on steep hills, fast accelerations and confidence that yes I will fit through that smaller than average gap and that ... read more

Sonia wants noted first and foremost before anything else is expressed about the city of Kathmandu or the extraordinary country of Nepal that she is in fact the proud owner of, a rather grubby, woolly incredibly “sexy” (all in the eye of the beholder there!) Mickey Mouse Beanie…good now that is out the way let me tell you about our adventures of Day 1. Sonia arrived several hours earlier than I did and was tasked with scoping out the area…instead she scoped out the back of her eyelids after a serious bout of jet lag…she did get the wifi sorted and turned the TV…and thankfully had a shower…so she did have some achievements before my arrival. Unfortunately it was dark when I arrived so I didn’t get to see Mount Everest but Sonia was able to ... read more

Well you all thought I had thrown a lot of photos at you the last couple of times? Be prepared for a major photo overload!! There is nothing quite like New Orleans during Mardi Gras. Already a city that beats to it's own drum they really let loose during Mardi Gras. The tourists flock to the business district and down town and the locals decorate their houses and balcony's in the official mardi gras colours of green, purple and gold/yellow. Walking up the street you will see dogs wearing tutu's people dressed up as all kind of characters - wigs, glitter and sequins really get a work out!! There are parades through Canal Street every day and it is easy to be overwhelmed with them so it is best to pick the ones you want to ... read more

Sorry for all the photos - just couldn't pick a few it was so amazing!! How to end a holiday of adventure? How to top everything we had done with an achievement and challenge? Well we found the answer…the Tongariro crossing where you walk over an active volcano…because why not! The weather had kicked up and we had 32km winds to contend with but there was no way we weren’t going to make it. So we donned our day packs and hiking boots and set out for our adventure. It started out tame enough but as we climbed higher my thigh started to cramp up – not ideal when faced with 10km of uphill and stairs but I continued on with many stops (thanks for your patience Em!) As we got higher the wind kicked up ... read more

So after an evening out at whale bay (beautiful location – just a pitty we ran into reggae night with a DJ who liked to go into the meaning of each song he was about to play – just play the song already!!) we had another early morning and rushed out to Rotarua for White Water rafting! Yay!! Em was shaking with nerves as it was her first time but we donned another flattering wetsuit and booties and were ready to hit the water. The group going with us were running late so we got to hit the water with just our boat – Mary and I were up the front and Jack our guide enjoyed splashing us with as many waves and waterfalls he could aim at us! Because we were waiting for the other ... read more