seadubtraveler

So the trip is almost over, and unfortunately, I have been out of touch for the last 8 days or so, so instead of trying to put it all into one blog, I am going to break down where I left off last time up until Chugchilan, which was 4 days ago, and then I will do a different entry for Cotopaxi. I feel like so much has happened since the last time I blogged from Cuenca, so I will try my best to put the good details in here, and then in the next entry I´ll give a full detail of the climb. So we left Cuenca last Monday and flew back into Quito for one night to chill before a long bus day. The flight was quick and easy, offering incredible views of Volcan ... read more

Okay, so here is the condensed version of the last 5 days down here... We left Charlotte on Friday at about noon and connected in Atlanta where we had a 3 hour layover before continuing on to Quito. Peter, my dad, and I decided to hit up the Duty Free store so we could have something to sip on in the airport, but were dismayed to find that they did not give us our bottles right there, but rather delivered them to the gate. Well, about 3 hours into the flight, after we had rung the bell about 4 times to no avail, we knew we were not getting any service, so we decided to go ahead and crack the bottle. Big mistake. Let´s just say that Peter and I got a little carried away. We ... read more

So it has been about a week or so since I got on this thing, I figured it was about time to sit down and do some summarizing. After the last entry, we took a crazy series of buses and taxis from the Cameron Highlands of Malaysia up through the border crossing into southern thailand with hopes of making it to a beach. We ended up getting in to Thailand around midnight, and stayed in the worst hotel room I've ever payed for in the small town of Hat Yai. Hat yai is absolutely missable. I won't waste any more space going in to detail about it, let's just say I was not a fan. The next day we woke up and took a 5 1/2 hour bus over to the city of Krabi, basically the ... read more

So, it has been about a week since the last time I was able to sit down and write one of these things. My plan was to go to Kuala Lumpur(KL), see the city for a night or so, then catch a flight up to southern Thailand. As it usually happens when traveling, the plan got thrown out the window. Erin and I hopped a 7 hour train from Singapore up to KL on Sunday, which was a great way to get a real feel for the countryside, and see how typical rural malaysian towns operate. I was surprised to see the stark contrast between lush jungle and palm plantation nearly the entire way. The jungles of malaysia are being torn down at a rapid pace and being clear-cutted to make way for palm plantations. ... read more

So finally back again on this thing, it has been nearly a year since I have been on the travel trail, so happy to be back. I am currently on a 6 week trip through southeast asia, this will be the first of many entries. Thanks to all who read and comment, questions and criticism are always welcome. If you got this mistakenly or no longer wish to read my ramblings, simply click " unsubscribe" at the bottom.... So 3 days ago, me and my friend Erin got on a flight in Denver, CO to minneapolis, where we had a 3 hour layover, then a flight delay, before getting on a 12 1/2 hour flight to Tokyo. Due to the delay, we only had 5 minutes in Tokyo-barely enough time to clear security and literally sprint ... read more

Since my adventure getting to Isla de Ometepe, I have been all over the place on the south Nicaraguan coast, hanging with a group of other surfers, going from spot to spot. I met a super cool guy from NC, he graduated from UNC and I was sporting my tarheel shirt, so naturally we started hanging out. I took a ferry across the lake with a friend from London and a true, flesh in bone gypsie. I always joke about gypsies and laugh about how they steal everything, but in actuality, I had never really hung out with one. We left the London guy at the port and shared a cab with a couple from Spain over to the port of San Juan del Sur. We got a room at a cheap little hostel and went ... read more

I got on the bus in San Jose last Wednesday at 7:15 in the morning, not really having any idea as to what I was in for. I had this bad feeling that it was going to be a free for all at the border, then chaos trying to get to the island...and for the most part, I was right. The border crossing from Costa Rica into Nicaragua at Penas Blancas is an absolute circus show. I have never been bombarded by salesman like that in my life. Aging women begging me to buy pictures of ¨el presidente¨and middle aged men with literally thousands of dollars in their hands offering me money changes. That is the Nicaraguan equivalent of a bank teller- a guy walking around with a fanny pack shaking money at you. Not to ... read more

The hostel has once again changed all over again. There is only 1 person from the original crew when I got in last Monday. New groups come and slowly the whole place becomes new again. It is the best place to be, in my opinion; though I will love to be home and have my own space, it is so great to meet so many new people every day. This week down here is by far the biggest holiday for the whole year, Semana Santa. The ticos take their Easter celebrating very seriously and head to the beach immediately for a few days away from the daily grind in San Jose. Town is completely filled to the brim, every place is full, and there are gypsies camping on the beach. You always have to make sure ... read more

Long day on Monday getting from San Jose to Mal Pais. Missed the early morning transfer, so I had to wait until the 3:30, which I knew would be getting me in super late. The bus was completely brand new, it still had plastic on the seats, with AC and TVs(this never happens in costa rica). I was stoked to say the least, but luck was not on my side. We made it an hour out of the city before the bus broke down on the side of the highway. A couple of gypsies came and tried various procedures, then somehow it magically just started again. We barely made the ferry from P town to Paquera, then it was another 2 hours on the bus to Mal Pais. I met a bunch of people on the ... read more

Prett wild last couple of weeks, I have been all over, up and down both coastlines and back, travelling with a few different people. My friend Megan came down, and we travelled all over, from the Carribean in Puerto Viejo, then up and down the Pacific coast. After the last entry in Quepos, her and I kicked it in Manuel Antonio for one more day. We hung out on the beach during the day, then rented a sea kayak and went way out to a few small rock islands near sunset, definitely one of the coolest views I have ever seen. After going out in Manuel Antonio that night, we got up early the next day and caught a bus back up to San Jose. It was nice to be back and get a hot shower ... read more