spent two weeks in Cuenca, but it could’ve just as easily been two months. The center of Ecuador’s third largest city, listed a UNESCO World Heritage Site, feels small and safe like a pueblo, yet offers a much wider variety of dining and nightlife options. Architecturally, it looks like Cartagena was transplanted into the mountains. [...]
Traveling the South Pacific can be done on a budget. I couchsurfed two nights on Tahiti, and paid $20/night for three more nights on the nearby island of Moorea. But food was expensive — dining in restaurants was more than I could bear, and a 6-pack of domestic beer cost $15 so I didn’t do [...]
Trans Siberian Railway from Chris Winch. My journey from Moscow – Ulan Bator – Beijing through the dirty windows of the Trans Siberian. Interesting stuff that i can remember: 00:11 – Berezensky Station 01:18 – Raincloud over the Babara Steppe 02:40 – Lake Baikal 04:07 – Bridge over the Selenga River 05:39 – Wild horses [...]
Editor’s Note: I’m excited to welcome back Suzanne Nance as a regular contributor. She previously wrote a guest post on preparation tips for climbing at high altitudes based on her experience climbing the tallest mountains on each of the 7 continents. et Out Doors. Now! Fall is in full bloom. Cold nights, warm days, and summer rains have [...]
first learned of the wild, roaming deer of Nara Park from a blog post by Stephanie at Twenty-Something Travel. Eventually I found my way to Japan earlier this year, and visited Nara Park myself, as it’s an easy day trip from Kyoto. According to local folklore, deer from this area were considered sacred due to [...]
arrived in Montanita on a Saturday afternoon, the busiest day of the week in the little surf and hippie hangout on Ecuador’s Pacific coast. The streets were filled with a mix of vacationing Ecuadorians, dreadlocked South American hippies, and surfers from around the world. My friend Kevin likened Montanita to a “backpacker vortex” because it [...]
ating cuy was high on my to-do list in Ecuador, despite having a guinea pig named Patches as a pet when I was a kid. After all, having dogs as pets didn’t stop me from trying that meal in Cambodia. On the main street in Banos, there are two cuy restaurants adjacent the Mercado (market). These [...]
1. Indonesia - Nasi Padang Due to the vast spread out archipelago of Indoneisa, it’s almost impossible to label a real national dish for the entire country. I’ve just gone ahead and mentioned a normal everyday meal of Nasi Padang that consists of a plate of rice topped with a choice of dishes. When I was [...]