The border crossing from Mexico to Guatemala was quite unique and went surprisingly smooth. In Mexico, I visited the small immigration office in Frontera Corozal where I was asked to pay M$100 for a re-entry visa to Mexico. Then I walked down to the Usumacinta river which forms the border between Mexico and Guatemala. I joined some fellow backpackers for the 20 minute boat ride to the Guatemalan side. Once I had disembarked on a muddy riverbank I went through immigration (I was asked to pay a US$5 immigration fee) and waited for the inland bus to take me to the [View Full Entry]

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Without having seen the Sistine Chapel one can form no appreciable idea of what one man is capable of achieving Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 1787 The Vatican City is the world's smallest state by both population (less than 1,000) and area. It is one of only three sovereign city-state worldwide and located within the city of Rome. For the best approach to the Vatican walk across the beautiful Ponte Sant'Angelo to Castel Sant' Angelo, then turn left into Via della Concillazione which takes you straight to St. P [View Full Entry]

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Rome's history spans over two and half thousand years, starting as a small Italian village to the centre of a vast empire to the capital of today's Italy. Rome was founded as a small village sometime in the 8th century BC surrounding Palatine Hill. The small settlement developed into the capital of the Roman Kingdom before becoming the seat of the Roman Republic at around 500 BC, and then the centre of the Roman Empire from 27 BC. For almost 1,000 years, Rome was the largest, wealthiest and most powerful city in the Western World with dominance over most of Europe. [View Full Entry]

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No doubt about it, Mosi-oa-Tunya (meaning "The Smoke That Thunders") - but more commonly known as Victoria Falls - is one of the most amazing sights in the world. Just a few kilometres outside the town of Livingstone, the Victoria Falls are twice as tall as Niagara Falls, and several times longer. The falls are some 1,700m wide which makes them the largest curtain of water in the world. The thundering water and the towering column of spray are an awesome experience, especially from the air. Livingstone Livingstone is the closest town to Victoria Falls. A rather dusty Zambian town [View Full Entry]

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Although Sossusvlei is one of Namibia's premier tourist destinations it is rather difficult to get there. There is no public transport which means to either join an expensive guided tour or rent your own car. I did the latter and took the quickest route from Windhoek: south on the B1 to Rehoboth (80km on tarred road), then west on various C-roads through the Namib Naukluft Park to Sesriem (230km on gravel road) where I stayed the night. Although the scenery was starkly beautiful, the five-hour drive was rather tiring. I would recommend to bring an exact map as the signposting is [View Full Entry]

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Cape Town Cape Town is one of the most popular destinations in South Africa. It boasts stunning beaches, an abundance of daytime activities and a number of cultural and natural gems, with the most famous being Table Mountain. The Castle of Good Hope is a good starting point for first-time visitors to Cape Town. It is the oldest surviving building and provides visitors with details on the Cape Town's interesting history. A visit to Long Street should not be missed. And long it certainly is: the one-way street stretches [View Full Entry]

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The Isle of Man is located in the Irish Sea at the geographical centre of the British Isles. It is not a part of the European Union and not even a part of the United Kingdom but a self-governing Crown dependency. The island is approximately 50km long and between 13 km and 24 km wide. Some 80,000 people live on the Isle of Man. For centuries, the Island's symbol has been its ancient triskelion: three bent legs, each with a spur, joined at the thigh. The three legs relate directly to the island's motto: Quocunque Jeceris Stabit, traditionally translated from Latin [View Full Entry]

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Singapore The smallest nation in south-east Asia, Singapore is an island country located at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula. Less than 140km north of the equator, Singapore's climate tropical rainforest climate has no distinctive seasons. Singapore is a lively, multi-ethnic city-state where east amalgamates with the west and tradition merges with modernity. The population of all of Singapore is just under 5 million - or about two thirds of Greater London. Though Singapore is highly cosmopolitan and diverse, ethnic Chinese form the majority of the population. English is th [View Full Entry]

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Paris Both long daylight and a lot of sun made the 2008 summer solstice an ideal opportunity to explore one world's most beautiful cities: Paris. I stayed for three days which was barely long enough to see the main sights only. Although a bit pricey St. Christopher's Hostel was in fact one of the best hostels I've ever stayed at (dormitory B&B for EUR 35). Plus, it is located near the Gare de l'Est which is convenient if you arrive there by train as I did. On the first day I got up early, had my free breakfast and headed to [View Full Entry]

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Over the Atlas mountains I left Marrakesh airport on one of the frequent airport shuttle buses that connect the airport with the city (20dh). I got out at the central bus station and was lucky enough to catch a bus towards Ouarzazate (80dh) straight away. The 5 hour bus ride across the High Atlas was impressive - it never got boring due to the ever-changing landscape with its barren mountains, wild rivers, small villages, high passes and snow-capped peaks. Some 30km before we reached Ouarzazate I asked the bus driver to drop me off at the turn-off to the village of [View Full Entry]

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