Vietnam! A word for an American that summons images of soldiers in the jungle fighting and bleeding for a cause and reason only known to them. The idea of a communist government that spread fear among our parents and grandparents. The very word Vietnam makes a war pop into your head and not a country. Welcome to the new Vietnam. A place trying to develop into a modern country and trying to forget the war that made it a household name. A country that is full of friendly people that are trying to make a living for there family. A place [View Full Entry]

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Bargaining in China for Souvenirs is an art form. First, you must pick a table on the street or in a market because if you go to a fancy store they have too much over head cost and will not bargain with you. Second, you must approach the item you want with care. You must not show interest in the item as that is a weekness the seller will exploit. You must pick the item up in a way as not to show interest but you still just want to know the price. Now comes the serious part when you ask [View Full Entry]

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We arrived in Xi'an after a sixteen hour overnight train. Arriving in the train station we were greeted by the massive Stone Wall that surrounds the city. The city has grown past the ancient wall but the wall still plays a big part in the city life. The reason that Xi'an is famous is because a farmer discovered the Terracota Warriors nearby in 1974 and the town has become a mecca for those seeking out the Terracota Warriors. The city is very modern and you can see the evidence of new buildings being built everywhere. After settling in we headed to [View Full Entry]

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I left Beijing via night train to Shanghai. The thirteen hour trip was to be done on a hard sleeper train. The train car consisted of a long open hallway with rooms with no doors. Each room consisted of six bunkbeds with three on each side of the room. For foreigners this is a cheap and comfortable way to travel but for Chinese this is an expensive way to travel by sleeper car. Slipping into bed with a chinese man two feet away it was an unusual experience but was much more comfortable then sitting up in a seat. Arriving in [View Full Entry]

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Heading out of Beijing my group went to a less touristy section of the Great Wall to explore the ancient Chinese creation. Arriving at this section of the Great Wall to find that it is situated on the ridge of a mountain pass. There was two options to get to the wall was either a hour long hike to the wall up a mountain or take a nice cable car right to the wall for about five U.S. dollars. After much though I easily chose the cable car to save my energy for the Great Wall. Once standing on the Great [View Full Entry]

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I arrived to Beijing, China on June 11th after a long and tiring flight. Before the passengers could leave the plane every person on board the plane had to have their temperature taken in case they had the swine flu. If any passenger had a fever they and three rows in front and three rows behind would be put in Quarantine for seven days. Luckily nobody on the plane had a fever which caused the passengers to cheer and we were allowed to leave the plane, go through customs, and enter Beijing, China. I started my first day of sight seeing [View Full Entry]

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I am writing this Blog from good ol' San Antonio. After Iguacu Falls our group headed by bus for 24 hours to the city of Paraty while passing through Sao Paulo. Paraty was a nice little beach town in Brazil where you can go to Trinidad beach or head to the natural water rock slides. I decided to go to the rock water slides and headed over by local bus to the area. It was free to enter the area and it was mostly locals there. The area consisted of slippery smooth rocks with water following over them so they made [View Full Entry]

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Heading to the border which at Iguaçu Falls there is three such as Brasil, Argentina, and Paraguay. We left Brasil and got a day stamp in our passports to the Argentina side of Iguaçu Falls. The Argentina side of the Park is bigger and has more walking paths along the falls. The stop after a quick little train ride is the path that will lead you to the top of the Devil´s Throat. The power of the water falls are incredible as you stand on top. Then we headed by boat along the river and stopped before getting on the boat [View Full Entry]

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I left Bonito, Brasil by twelve hour bus to arrive at the city of Foz de Iguaçu. We head out to see the Iguaçu Falls on the Brazillian side. The falls have two side one is on the Brazillian side and the other is on the Argentina side. I decided to take the helicopter ride to get a birds eye view of the falls. The pilot took off and we soared through the air for fifthteen minutes while watching the spectacular Iguaçu Falls from above. From the air the falls look great but actually small. Then we headed by van to [View Full Entry]

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I arrivied in Bonito, Brasil and decided to go snorkling in the Rio de Prata. Here are some pictures from snorkling in the Rio de Prata. The crazy thing is after a truck ride you have to hike in your wetsuit for 45 minutes through the jungle to get to the entry point of the Rio de Prata. We spent about two hours snorkling down the river which was like snorkling in an aquarium. It was unbelievable that there was so much colorful fish life in a fresh water river. If you find yourself in Bonito, Brasil then head over and [View Full Entry]

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