So here we are, getting ready for what will hopefully be an epic trip to East Africa! Although the plan may change, we are planning to explore in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and then do some relaxing in the Seychelles before returning home August 1st. We have gear packed for cities, safaris, climbing one of the Seven Summits, and relaxing on a beach - after many times packing and repacking, we are finally ready to go. We are going to try to post around once per week, dependent on internet availability, so enjoy the ride.... read more

This is going to be a short one due to the frustrations involved in typing on a keyboard with extra letters. In addition I take no responsibility for misspellings or weird letters from here on... So Turkey has been awesome, so different and comfortable. Food is absolutely delicious with virtually no risk of food borne illness and such a rich culture. We have spent 10 days in Turkey in just 2 cities. Istanbul- We arrived after the best flight I have ever taken - Turkish Airlines is great! Public transport to the city center was super cheap and easy, that's always a bonus. What a beautiful place, lovely seaside walks, stunning mosques and plenty of parks. On top of it all, some of the best food to date, döner kebab, caçik, hummus and so on. We ... read more

Hmmmm.... where to start? I guess our first point of entry into Central Asia would be good. Kazakhstan- After 7 days awaiting a visa, an overnight in a border town and 5 hours at immigration, we were granted permission to leave China. Getting into Kazakhstan was easy in comparison, a smile, a salam and a stamp. Another couple of bus rides later and we arrived in Almaty. Oh Almaty, so lovely and gridded and not overcrowded. In between doing silly bureaucratic stuff, such as registering with the local police and obtaining visas for continued travel, we strolled the streets and well manicured parks and ate doner kebab and fries daily. Our first stop in Central Asia was a great one, the people very helpful, the food tasty, the city lay out easy to navigate and the ... read more

In the middle of Ulaanbaatar, after trekking, camel riding, horse riding, and riding around in an old Russian jeep through vast open sweeps of grassland, desert, and mountain valleys for the better part of a month, we find ourselves in an internet cafe with almost fifty locals playing internet games and yelling across the room. Can this be real? Are we really still in Mongolia? Mongolia, the land of nomads, gers, yak meat and mare milk, and apparently a huge population of counterstrike players. So much to say about this wonderful country but without the needed time to write it, I'll sum up our travels by bullet point. What we did: - Jeep trip through the Gobi desert. 8 days, dirt roads, shake, rattle, and roll. I still feel the bumps from the dirt track, but ... read more

I, Andrew, can be such a putz. Camera number two broken. Riding a bike through the rain in some absolutely amazing countryside, I wanted just one more picture, even if my hands were dripping rain while pressing the power button. Fzzz. That aside, China, what an amazing country. Let's start at the beginning... We left Laos with no issue, exit stamp in the passport and a bus ride through no-man's land to China. Waiting behind Alyssa in the immigration line on the Chinese side, I suddenly remembered my first foray into China a few years back (just a flight connection) at which time the immigration officer was convinced the man in my passport picture was not me (I begged and pleaded and was allowed to make my connection). Suddenly, Alyssa was being asked for alternate forms ... read more