Matt Y

From Brazilia we took an overnight bus to Cuiaba hoping to organise a tour into the Pantanal. The Pantanal is a huge wetland area - the biggest wetlands in the world. Its rich in wildlife particularly birds. For about 4 months of the year the land is flooded. This has preserved the area from too much human settlement. The long distance buses are excellent (they need to be with a country this big). Comfy seats that recline right back, toilets, air con and frequent stops for meals. The food that we have met so far is interesting even the bus stops have “per kilo” buffets where you load your plate up then have it weighed at the till. There is always a good selection to chose from with salads, vegetable dishes as well as plenty of ... read more

Having been back in the UK for a few weeks now its all feeling very normal. Most things are sort of the same as they were a couple of years ago but there are a few changes: • Some of the high street shops are using fatter mannequins (and people in general are looking bigger having got used to the smaller stature Asians), • 20 pound notes are different, • Petrol costs loads! (but in comparison to wages its still less than in the Philippines), Two things that I have been a bit disappointed by are a lack of choice in the international section in Tesco and rubbish customer service from the garage that is doing the MOT for the mini. (But it does now have a MOT and the mini is back on the road!) ... read more

Kazakhstan got the shortest visit of my trip, despite being a huge country. It serves as more of a gateway to other places than a destination in itself. for me it was the place to collect my visa for Uzbekistan and is also the departure point for the last country on this trip - the strange and foreign UK! Arriving in Almaty I wasn't quite sure what to expect, a taste of the USSR, little change from western China? In the event it is a very European feeling city, wide streets filled with posh cars. People dress well to stroll past cafes and top end brand name shops. At least in the centre of the city it looks - rich. Step outside the city and its back to donkey carts and dust. The source of the ... read more

This is a "half way through China" blog. It marks the part of my trip where I change from being a tourist to being a traveler. Expect tails of heroic buss journeys, desert and dust storms in the next instalment. The first part of my trip through China has been a bit of a tourist fest. I started in Shanghai (the Bund) then moved on to Beijing (Forbidden city, great wall, summer palace, Tienanmen Sq) and after that Xian (Terracotta warriors). All very very impressive places to visit. Many of the great sights in China have been created by emperors lavishing the countries wealth on themselves so it seems fitting that the sights now provide a flow of tourist dollars. I should say tourist Yuan as the majority of tourists seem to be from within China. ... read more

It’s a sad but happy moment. Leaving the Philippines and VSO and going on to the next adventure. In Lanuza I have been busily packing all my things ready for shipping to the UK so that I can travel light - after all a 8foot surfboard would have been right out of place as I travel through Urumqi in western China its the city that is farthest from any ocean! To make the packing boxes and crates I got a tree cut up which was good fun. The chainsaw operator was crazy, bare feet, no protective gear and a 70cc saw! With my colleagues from work I made an exit presentation what went well, achievements, what needs more work that sort of thing. Then some very touching speeches and finally a good lunch with kinilaw (raw ... read more