Buongiorno Milano! The train ride north to Milan was pretty swish, much better than a London to Birmingham train ride. I had a nice seat in clean and airy carriage and arrival into Milan’s huge Centrale station on time. According to my hostel directions, I can catch a number 90 bus straight there, after choosing a random exit from the station I walked around the whole of the edge and there was no bus stops of any kind. Maybe the Arsenal scarf around my neck was stopping the blood to my brain, but not too much. I go down onto the [View Full Entry]

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Getting up at 3.30 am for a 4am taxi ride to the airport is pretty hard for some. Good job I was at work from 7pm the night before. I really didn’t do any work, too tired. I spent most of my sleeping time Friday afternoon running around sorting things out for my week away in Italy. My taxi driver was boasting that he was pretty awake (good job) and I fell asleep in the passenger seat as soon as we did a junction of the M1. I woke up just as he was driving up to the ramp for Terminal [View Full Entry]

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After finally getting better and getting back into MK mode I decide to move on. To the USA! Boston is my first stop of my hopefully countrywide tour. The start of america for me and the start for America too. I flew out of Heathrow in the afternoon and arrived in Boston's Logan airport in the early evening. There are more union jack's here than stars and stripes, are you sure the plane didn't turn around halfway across the Atlantic? The flags are for helping the US in their war on terror, how nice! Getting into the US now requires a [View Full Entry]

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Well, This shocked me and even more so shocked my parents and friends. "I got some news" I told my Dad on the phone from Kathmandu. Thinking that I was getting married or on in a prison cell for going too far on a rickshaw driver I told him I will be home the day after tomorrow. To get home I had to fly out of Nepal to Delhi. Just for one more experience of an Indian airport. My flight was the only one delayed, they wouldn't let me into the boarding area because I was too early and no seats [View Full Entry]

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Across the border, visa paid for now a shared taxi to Kathmandu. I got to my meeting point for my taxi. "It can't go because there is not enough customers" says the travel agent, just as I was giving Nepal a clean slate to work with its pushed up to India levels! I have some choice words with the guy and he arranges me a taxi on my own. I'm too tired and pissed off to thank him. The trip by car to Kathmandu takes 5-6 hours. Most of this was in complete darkness due to the Gorakapur train arriving late [View Full Entry]

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My train arrived 2 hours late at Agra station at around 10pm, plenty of lost tourists wondering if it will ever turn up. It eventually turns up, causing a panic for everyone. Must get on! Everyone is on but its not going anywhere for another hour. Eventually it pulls away and I get a sleep in. I wake up around 8am. Just as the train arrives at Lucknow station, not even halfway! The train was supposed to arrive at Varanasi Junction at 9, nothing else to do but sleep. Up at 12 and we are still miles away. How can this [View Full Entry]

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My sleeper to Agra was cold, but a little more spacious than my first sleeper in India. I had a weird man in my compartment that was on about the importance of getting married early. Oops, sorry! The train trotted into Agra’s main station in the mid morning, I tried to book a train to Varanasi the same night, no good. Will have to stay here for one night. Outside was the usual bollocks of rickshaws and touts. I try to walk on by blanking every one of them. On my walk towards town another 20 or so peddled alongside me [View Full Entry]

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The 7:10 Shatabdi Express was my train to Amritsar, it wasn't very fast but there was plenty of food and drink included so that was nice. We arrived in Amritsar about 30 minutes late. Plenty of Rickshaw-wallah's waiting for me at the platform, footbridge, ticket office, car park and main road. How can you say "Alright then" to these wankers? It's very cheap but why should you need to bother when legs do a good enough job? Walking to the Hotel I noticed that 9 out of 10 shops and businesses here were called Singh something as all Sikhs have the [View Full Entry]

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Bangalore airport was a red tape nightmare, just getting in required a security guard escort. As I was flying with no frills Indian airline Spicejet, I didn't have a ticket. Me, my passport, 2 backpacks and a real urge to leave Bangalore as soon as possible wasn't enough! Eventually in my big bag was scanned and checked in. Time for a high caffeine breakfast. More bureaucracy trying to get in the boarding area. EVERYTHING in my hand luggage was taken out, nothing. "Can you put it all back in my bag please" was my request, no reply. I left it all [View Full Entry]

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After waiting a hour for the sleeper bus to turn up even though I knew it was only 15 minutes away when I left the beach at Palolem it turns up. I had a cramped mattress next to India's tallest Chevy Chase lookalike. So room was minimal, not very nice if you are not as touchy feely as Indians. Best thing to do was to stare out the window and listen to S Club 7 to cheer things up… We got to Bangalore around 9am, so a 14 hour coach ride, a new pabloq record! A quick walk to the train [View Full Entry]

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