• Everything is A-OK!

      23. april 2016, Nepal ⋅ ⛅ 32 °C

      As we know the past week and a half hasn't been great for those who tend to worry, we just wanted to drop a line and say things are going great on the trail! It's no walk in the park but we finish each day's hike by about 1 PM, have a nap until dinner, eat again, and then sleep again until we repeat the next day. We're eating and resting sufficiently which optimizes our enjoyment of the trek. Additionally, Rachel's wounds continue to heal quite well, and there has been no sign of infection!

      We probably won't post again until we're back in Kathmandu, but we'll be sure to provide pictures and more detailed updates then. In the meantime, no need to worry about us. We are doing great!
      Læs mere

    • Trekking Update

      20. april 2016, Nepal ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C

      Good evening! Tonight we are enjoying our last meal in Kathmandu for 12 days: falafel and fries in a fluffy naan roll. At 6:15 AM (in about 10 hours) we leave via a small plane for Lukla. From there, we literally start our trek right from the airport. We walk through town and join the trail there. The trail technically starts in Kathmandu but it adds six days of walking to the trek so was not an option for us at this time.

      If you want a rough itinerary of our plans, check out the detailed itinerary of G Adventures' Everest Base Camp Trek, the tour we were supposed to take. We have to shave off one day so expect to only stay one night in Namche Bazaar instead of two, as long as we feel well enough to do so. We also have altitude sickness pills to aid with optimal enjoyment for the trek. We are meeting our porter in Lukla, and he might have additional recommendations about how to make up the extra day. While we're trekking, our accommodations will be tea houses with other trekkers.

      It is common for trekkers to hire local porters to help carry their bags. We had several porters in Peru as all food, waste, and tents had to be brought in and out of the national park. While it is weird to watch the porters pass us on the trail with all of our bags, especially considering we are both the backpacking-outdoorsy type and are used to carrying our own gear, it's not so bad when you remember the extremely different altitude that these guys have been in their whole lives, which enables them to basically jog up mountains. Our tour company provided the porter for this trip, even though we were unable to join the group as scheduled. Needless to say, its definitely a perk to have a porter!

      We've already heard concerns from some about this trek, so we want to remind you all that we are being extra cautious and extra safe. We believe that our health and safety come first no matter what. There are many trekkers who do this trek without a guide and even without porters. We have already discussed taking it slowly, especially considering the cause for our delay. If we have to take 12 hours to walk something that should have been 6, we're okay with that. We'll be up bright and early every morning, ready to take on the day. Please note that there is only pay internet on the trek and we do not plan to go online at all, unless absolutely necessary. We will turn the phone on periodically to check for emergencies but electricty is also a paid service so this will be infrequent. If we were ever going to say we're off the grid, these next two weeks will be the time. We are scheduled to be back in Kathmandu on May 2 in time for our flight out on May 3. We'll write again then!

      Au revoir!
      Læs mere

    • The reason we're not going to India...

      16. april 2016, Nepal ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

      Don't worry faithful followers! We did not forget our promise to post before leaving for Everest Base Camp. You may have been wondering after our last post mentioned our trek starting this weekend.

      We were scheduled to fly to Lukla this morning to start our trek. However, things again didn't go according to plan. Somewhere in the Gulf of Thailand, Rachel unknowingly contracted an infection that eventually manifested itself in her skin (thankfully it didn't spread to her blood which would've been more serious). It took several weeks before getting bad, but in a matter of 36 hours the infection metaphorically exploded and we realized something was wrong. The good news is with some antibiotics and daily visits to the clinic for cleaning and redressing of the wounds, Rachel's leg will be totally okay (aside from possibly some scarring). The bad news is the doctor would not medically clear her to leave the area due to a lack of appropriate sanitary medical facilities in Lukla or on the trail. Today (Saturday), we got the test results to confirm Rachel is indeed on the right antibiotics. Wahoo! However, the wounds are stilll open, and the infection not gone yet. If things got worse while trekking, Rachel risked being airlifted off the mountain (which is dependent on the weather). Obviously, this was not a time to ignore doctor's orders.

      After much discussion and consideration, we settled on a Plan B. Nick realized that doing the trek without Rachel would not optimize his experience. We found out we could change our flights for a very small amount and still arrive in South Africa at the same time if we skipped our three day layover in Delhi. Within even a day of starting the antibiotics, Rachel's condition had shown improvement. A possible future emerged where maybe Rachel would be well with enough time for us to still do the trek together. So, Plan B is to have Rachel on near bedrest to optimize leg healing while Nick works on preparations for our trek without a guide. We anxiously await the day when the doctor gives her approval and Rachel feels well enough to hike.

      We know many of you have expressed your concern about us taking this particular trek and are probably disheartened to hear we're not doing it as part of a tour anymore. However, upon our arrival in Kathmandu we discovered that most people, especially at this time of the year, do this trek without a guide. We've met several people who just returned and shared just how well populated this trek is right now. Every single person has assured us we'll make friends at the tea houses and end up trekking as a group anyway. Also, please do not worry about Rachel's health: she absolutely will not go if she is not well enough to do so, and though she has pain she is mostly feeling pretty good. We now have four extra days to work with so we're optimistic.

      While we're certainly sad about missing out on Delhi and the Taj Mahal, trekking to Everest Base Camp is one of the big six for the trip, so it's a top priority. Kathmandu is not a bad place to hang out, either. We found a little hostel, Zen Bed and Breakfast, with a great community (and Internet!) where we have been made to feel at home. There hasn't been a lot of photojournalism so to speak since our arrival but we snapped a few shots on the way back from the clinic today (attached below). Pictures cannot really replace the experience of being here though. We are in the Thamel area of Kathmandu, popular with backpackers. It consists of a maze of alleys and "streets" (larger alleys) filed with pedestrians, motorcycles, tiny taxis, and bicycle rickshaws. Almost all of the streets are lined with trekking supply stores, travel companies, small crafts shops, and restaurants. The other areas outside Thamel where we have been (where the clinic is and where the American Embassy is) are not completely different, though the roads are bigger and there are fewer shops. Traffic here has been interesting. The rules for right of way range from whomever is bigger (the taxi), to whomever is faster (motorcycles), to whomever honks the most, to whomever just forces their way into the space, to...? It's unclear exactly how the roads work here. However, we haven't seen any vehicle accidents or pedestrians get injured. We continue to be shocked at the tiny spaces the taxis can maneuver though. The most impressive yet was when two taxis passed each other in the opposite directions with a parked motorcycle on one side and an electric pole infringing on the other. Keep in mind, most of Thamel consists of roads that are narrower than most pedestrian malls in the United States.

      While Kathmandu is not exactly the most exciting place, we are happy to be spending more time here. Our co-residents gather on the roof every night to socialize and in the living room every morning to plan lunch and other activities for the day. Sometimes our host (Drupa) shares his dal bhat dinner (traditional Nepali meal) with us. We are close to everything via some twisting alleys, but the busy-ness of the main roads is far enough away that it isn't loud outside our windows. Of all the places we have been, it's definitely not the worst one in which to be stuck a little longer.

      Send healthy vibes our way as we try again to do this Base Camp trek. We promise to write again before we leave!
      Læs mere

    • Khaosan Road: Our Last Day in SE Asia

      11. april 2016, Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 36 °C

      Hi everyone! We're coming to you today from our hostel just north of the Khaosan Road in Bangkok, which, for the uninitiated, is known as the "center of the backpacking universe." This area is filled with everything budget travelers could ever want, including a variety of guesthouses, cheap restaurants with good local and western food, bars that serve alcohol in literal buckets for just a few bucks, live music, street markets, a gratuitous number of massage and tattoo parlors, nail salons, people selling fried insects on a stick (yes, really), about 54 different 7-11s, and every manner of transportation you can imagine (well, except for a subway).

      The Khaosan Road area of Bangkok became a popular tourist destination starting in the 1960s, when it was the location of choice for American servicemen looking for a little R&R in between tours in Vietnam. It's continued that unique flavor to this day, and is one of the only areas in Bangkok where you'll find families, backpackers, moneyed tourists and locals all hanging out in the same place. We had stayed in a different area of the city during our first visit, but we knew we wanted to see this area and so decided to stay here upon our return.

      Since we last posted, we enjoyed a few more days in Cambodia, sampling the local cuisine, making several awesome new friends at our hostel (shoutouts to Ashley Elaine Conor Adam Alex Tori Keal & Cass) and spending more time exploring the temple complexes around Angkor Wat (including watching the sunrise from Phnom Bakheng; thanks for the tip, Auntie M!). Unfortunately, Nick came down with some form of food-borne stomach infection and missed the last temple visit, though we did finally get to dig into those traveler's antibiotics we bought. I'm amazed it took this long, frankly.

      Another 8-hour bus ride brought us back to Bangkok on Sunday, and we leave bright and early Tuesday morning for Nepal!!! We'll check in with y'all once more before we start our trek, and then you likely won't be hearing from us for a couple weeks. Pictures coming soon!
      Læs mere

    • Angkor Wat

      5. april 2016, Cambodja ⋅ ☀️ 35 °C

      Hello everyone!

      Today we had the joy of seeing Angkor Wat as well as two lesser temples (Ta Prohm and Banteay Kdai). We originally intended to also explore Angkor Thom, but we decided to leave that for day 2 of the ruins after we spent twice as long as expected at Angkor Wat, our first stop of the day.

      For anyone who can make it out to Siem Reap, the ruins here are truly amazing. We were both blown away time and again as we turned corners and climbed to new heights. It's hard to put into words how amazing these places are. We also rode through Angkor Thom in a tuk tuk and it looked so cool! We wanted to make sure we had enough time and energy to truly explore that area, thus we made the aforementioned decision to postpone it for another day.

      Angkor Wat is huge! And very well preserved/reconstructed. We were able to see tons of bas-relief art as well as climb to the third level of the ruins, which were several stories tall. Rachel's aunt Miriam is an expert on this area so we don't want to misquote any facts about Angkor Wat. Needless to say, you should visit if you ever have the opportunity, and, if you're interested, do some reading online to learn more. We can't stress how amazing Angkor Archaeological Park is and how glad we are to have a whole week to explore the area.

      Ta Prohm was also especially interesting. At this site there has been some significant reconstruction work done in certain areas, but not to the level that Angkor Wat has been worked on. Thus, there were many unique views of trees growing out of or on top of ruins, as well as a loosely guided path that allowed for what felt like exploration within a mostly untouched wilderness. Of course there were many other tourists present, but part of the fun of this area is feeling like you are the first adventurer to rediscover these amazing landscapes.

      Coming up the rest of the week: massage day, sunrise at the ruins, Angkor Thom, sunset at a yet to be determined location, other ruins, and a potential day trip to a nearby lake with significant biodiversity.
      Læs mere

    • Angthong Marine Park Boat Tour

      29. marts 2016, Thailand ⋅ 🌬 31 °C

      Today we decided to join a boat tour in the marine park near Koh Samui. It has been an overall enjoyable adventure, though the customer service aspect is a little lacking from what we're used to. It's not that the people aren't nice, it's more that there is a free-for-all approach to it. We really haven't had any bad experiences on our whole trip, including today; however, it is interesting to see the different ways that countries approach their tourism industry and to think about how that mirrors each country's culture at large.

      Today's tour included a hike to the emerald lagoon, a sea kayak experience, and some beach side swimming. The intent was to snorkel on the beach, but the waves are much too strong (sandy bottom) to be able to see anything. We've included some pictures from today below. We also had a traditional Thai lunch on the boat and enjoyed getting to know some fellow travelers from Vancouver, France, and the exotic locale of San Diego, California. We haven't met many Americans so it was nice to chat with them. Plus they gave us some tips for our next big part of the trip: the hike to Everest base camp. They just finished theirs up a week ago and loved it!

      We are getting our fair share of adventure since we last wrote. The overnight bus was another unique experience (including a midnight dinner on the side of the highway of rice poured out of a tea kettle). Yesterday we rented a motorbike and Nick drove us flawlessly around most of the island. We saw elephants, swam in a waterfall, met an Aussie ex-pat who had some very interesting stories to share, and ended at Rock Bar, a bar and restaurant of tiki platforms literally built around shoreside boulders. It was a great setting to watch the sunset and close out our first day on the island.

      Tomorrow we are scheduled for an all-day scuba trip. Fingers crossed the water isn't too choppy for us to go out!
      Læs mere

    • We're alive (In case you were wondering)

      27. marts 2016, Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

      Greetings followers! Or, Sawadeekah from Bangkok!

      We have been in Bangkok for the last few days, taking it easy and exploring around our neighborhood. We were at an airbnb in Sukhumvit and mostly explored the night markets up and down the main road here. We found a great neighborhood restaurant with awesome pad thai and yellow curry, just at the end of our street. We ventured out to observe some of the "typical" nightlife of Bangkok. And we hung out at the pool. It has been incredibly hot though so we haven't been too motivated to do much walking during the day. We are looking forward to checking out the royal palace grounds and some temples when we get back to Bangkok in a couple weeks though. For now, though, we are awaiting yet another overnight bus to head to the southern island of Koh Samui. We'll be there until April 2 and, after looking at more pictures from there online, we are both super pumped. It looks like the island has a bit of everything (trekking, scuba, and beach napping, to name a few of our favorites) so we'll have plenty to do to keep ourselves busy there. Don't worry, we stocked up on sunscreen and aloe already!

      Depending on Internet connectivity, we'll try to send some pictures from another island paradise. Hope all is going well for our friends and family stateside!

      Note: The first two posts from Tioman Island have been updated with pictures!
      Læs mere

    • The banality of the travel day

      21. marts 2016, Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

      One of my favorite maxims is that time - not money, nor oil, nor water - is in fact our most valuable resource. That theory is put to the test on days like today; Rachel and I are on our way back to Singapore from our island getaway on Tioman, but the return trip isn't quite as straightforward as it was on the way out. We awoke in darkness at 5:30 this morning, needing to catch a 6:30 AM ferry back to the mainland. However, due to some incongruity in the bus/ferry schedules, we were presented with the prospect of a nine-hour wait between the ferry arriving and the bus leaving. We've spent the intervening moments alternating between sleeping under the fans in the ferry terminal (no A/C or Internet here), reading and listening to books, eating pre-packaged Nestlé ice cream, and trying to figure out the best way to use bathrooms that have no locking doors and no toilet seats. The idea of a lengthy global honeymoon definitely seems glamorous, but it does push your limits of tolerance for boredom, comfort, and cleanliness now and then. Sometimes, I suppose, there are in fact things more valuable than time. -NAP

      Update: On top of the above, our bus is going to be anywhere from 2-4 hours late, because some of the passengers must have missed the ferry they were supposed to be on and we are waiting for the next ferry to arrive for an indeterminate amount of time. Serenity now, my friends.
      Læs mere

    • PADI Open Water Certified!

      19. marts 2016, Malaysia ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

      Surprise! We did decide to do something interesting and exciting while on Tioman Island. We took a SCUBA course and are now certified to do open water dives up to 18 meters deep! We just finished up our five day course this morning with a team dive and then got to do an extra fun dive at another site (as there had been some logistical problems earlier in the week). Included are pictures of us with our instructor James, as well as an imperfect selfie of our six person dive class (from left to right: Nick, Rachel, Ace, Lester, Hasiq, and Franz). Though the class felt kind of large at times, we had a great group of guys with whom to learn and get to know. We also made some friends the first night at a beach bar (Neshay, Pable, and Eva) and spent many subsequent evenings with them (when we got out of dive class early enough!). Everyone we've met on the island has been nice, with friendly locals and low-maintenance other tourists.

      So, we've spent most of the week in the water or in the classroom. With a couple 10-12 hour course days, there isn't much else to report. However, we've seen a TON of aquatic life. The bay on which this town sits is excellent for driving, snorkeling, and instruction. On most days, we had great visibility underwater and could see 8-10 meters away. Aside from many varieties of coral, anemones, sea cucumbers, and as-yet-unidentified tropical fish, there were definitely some sightings we want to share on here. We saw bat fish, two types of sea turtles, two types of sea snakes, a porcupine fish, a map puffer fish, a school of barracuda, parrot fish, titan triggers (really large and colorful), and blue spot rays. Once we got the hang of diving, it was super cool. We both really enjoy it, though after five days of it we are ready for a short break. We'll spend this afternoon and all day tomorrow relaxing on the beach (and maybe do a quick snorkel in front of our chalet where there is another reef for us to explore). We are both really excited about the new doors this course has opened for us, and we're already planning our next dive in a couple weeks!
      Læs mere

    • Paradise

      14. marts 2016, Malaysia ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

      We know we've only been here about 5 hours, but we already love Tioman. We swam in pewter blue water, dined and drank with our feet in the sand while watching the sunset over the water, made some new friends (from Pakistan and Spain), and are generally loving the island life.

      Wildlife update: A long-tailed macaque (monkey) sauntered up to our front yard earlier to eat a fallen coconut. Came within two feet of people. Later, we saw another spend about 5 minutes trying to pry open a closed plastic trashcan, at which the monkey was eventually successful. Restaurant owners here (which are all open-air) have told us the monkeys enjoy sneaking into the kitchens and absconding with full plates of food just prepared for meals. Smart little guys :) Also, we have made several feline friends already, including one orange tiger cat who likes to keep watch over the beach from our front porch.
      Læs mere

    Få din egen rejseprofil

    Gratis

    QR code

    FindPenguins til iOSFindPenguins til Android