Chapter 1

Welcome to Chapter 1 of our journey!
This chapter marks our journey along the Silk Road. We will be traveling overland 🚂🚌🛥️ (without airplanes❌ ✈️) from Toronto 🇨🇦 to Hong Kong🇭🇰! Read more

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Trip start
December 6, 2023
Chapter 1 World Vagabonding
Day 1: World Vagabonding starts here!
December 6, 2023 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 0 °C
Starting our World Vagabonding trip here with our two backpacks in Guelph, Ontario on a local bus to the Guelph Central Station! 🚌🚂
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Day 1: Guelph Central Station
December 6, 2023 in Canada ⋅ ☁️ 0 °C
After the local bus #8 ride, we transferred at the Guelph Central Station for the Go Train heading to Toronto Union Station 🚉
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Day 1: Toronto Union Station
December 6, 2023 in Canada ⋅ ⛅ -1 °C
Arrived at Toronto Union Station 🚉 after a 1.5 hours train ride from Guelph. Gotta wait here for another 4.5 hours to get on to the over-night Flix bus to New York 🇺🇸 :) Border Check at mid-night, then we will be in 🇺🇸🇺🇸Read more
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Day 2: US Border at Niagara Falls
December 7, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ -1 °C
Welcome to the USA 🇺🇸 Crossing the border at Niagara Falls in the midnight. Security check was smooth, only took less than 30 mins for the whole bus to cross. Lucky that we do need need to take our large luggage with us for the security check. 8 more hours to go until we reach New York City!Read more
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Day 2: Statue of Liberty
December 7, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 2 °C
Absolutely stunning 🤩 Finally got to visit the Statue of Liberty 🗽 in person. We first went to Bowling Green Subway Station and took a boat from the park there. The $24.8 ticket was value-for-money.
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Day 2: Ellis Island
December 7, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 4 °C
Ellis Island was the busiest immigration inspection and processing station in the past! The museum on the Island has a lot of information for you to learn how immigration inspection on the Island in the past. ✅ However, we were a bit tired after the long overnight bus ride and a long walk today, we just had a short visit there. The ticket to the Statue of Liberty includes the access to the Ellis Island!Read more
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Day 2: Brooklyn Bridge
December 7, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☁️ 4 °C
Being one of the famous UNESCO World Heritage, it was overly crowded. It was still good to have a short walk on the bridge, but definitely have to find the right time to come to avoid the crowd.
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Day 3: Getting On Queen Mary 2
December 8, 2023 in the United States ⋅ ☀️ 10 °C
Our final stop at New York 🇺🇸 to get on the Queen Mary 2 🛳 heading to Southampton 🇬🇧
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Day 3-10: On the Queen Mary 2
Dec 8–15, 2023, North Atlantic Ocean ⋅ 🌬 6 °C
Crossing the Atlantic Ocean on the Queen Mary 2. A little bits and pieces of our 8-day cruise ship journey heading to Southampton 🇬🇧 We lost one hour every day at noon to catch up with the UK 🇬🇧 clock 🤣Read more
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Day 10: Arriving at Southampton 🇬🇧
December 15, 2023 in England ⋅ ☁️ 4 °C
After 7 nights on the Queen Mary 2, it’s time to touch the land! Arriving at the Mayflower Cruise Terminal of Southampton 🇬🇧
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Day 10: Southampton short tour around
December 15, 2023 in England ⋅ ☁️ 6 °C
A very short touring around the old town of Southampton 🇬🇧 before getting on the Great Western Railway (GWR) train to Bristol 🇬🇧
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Day 10: Southampton Central Station
December 15, 2023 in England ⋅ ☁️ 8 °C
It’s time to to take our first train ride in UK from the Southampton Central Station. Bristol UK is our next stop!
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Day 11: Tour around Bristol
December 16, 2023 in England ⋅ ☁️ 10 °C
Clifton Suspension Bridge @ Bristol 🇬🇧 built in 1864. £1 for vehicle to cross, but free for pedestrians and bikes. We were told that a hot ballon festival will be held here every summer.
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Day 11: Bristol Temple Meads Station
December 16, 2023 in England ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C
One of the more historic sites, a beautiful train station, Bristol Temple Meads Station! It is related to the London Paddington Station, with UNESCO world heritage background.
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Day 14: Tour around Birmingham
December 19, 2023 in England ⋅ ☁️ 8 °C
Our very first Christmas Market in Europe @ Birmingham! Even though the city suffered from bankruptcy, it is still pretty developed. We walked around New Street Station, Moor Street Station, the Christmas Market and the famous library of Birmingham (absolutely worth a visit)Read more
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Day 16: Wall Roman Site
December 21, 2023 in England ⋅ 🌬 12 °C
Wall sits on Watling Street, and ancient trackway paved and extended by the Romans, which connects Wall Roman Site to Wroxeter Roman City. We saw the remains of the Roman settlement of Letocetum. It is owned by English Heritage.Read more
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Day 16: Trent and Mersey Canal
December 21, 2023 in England ⋅ 🌬 11 °C
The Trent and Mersey Canal is 150km long and is a narrow canal. The narrow locks and bridges are big enough for a single narrowboat 7 feet wide by 72 feet long. We walked a part of the Canal and also came across a manual controlled bridge🤣Read more
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Day 18: Iron Bridge
December 23, 2023 in England ⋅ 🌬 10 °C
Iron Bridge! Another UNESO World Heritage site! It was built in 1779 and with Iron! Yes, Iron could hold that weight. We also walked around the Ironbridge small town. It was a lovely walk. Thanks the weather for co-operating 💛Read more
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Day 22: Leaving Sutton Coldfield
December 27, 2023 in England ⋅ 🌧 10 °C
After 9 nights staying with our friend in Sutton Coldfield, near Birmingham area, we were about to head out to London! It is nice to see the train running again as they have been stopped (so did we haha) for Christmas 🎄Read more
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Day 22: Passing through Birmingham again
December 27, 2023 in England ⋅ 🌧 11 °C
It’s Birmingham New Street Station again! We were catching the Megabus from Birmingham to London Victoria Coach Station. The Bull at the station got very active when it saw us in the morning this time🤣 Bye bye the Bull 👋🏻Read more
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Day 22: London Victoria Station
December 27, 2023 in England ⋅ 🌧 12 °C
The 3-hour Megabus Ride took us from Birmingham to London Victoria Coach Station. We then walked to the Victoria underground station and took the District Line to make our way to Wimbledon, where we stayed there for a few nights.Read more
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Day 22: Arriving at Wimbledon
December 27, 2023 in England ⋅ 🌧 12 °C
Wimbledon is a place at the edge of the city of London. It is the end of the District Line. It could be easily accessed by Tube (underground) and National Rail. 30 mins by tube to London City Center, not too bad!Read more
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Day 23: Kews Royal Botanic Garden
December 28, 2023 in England ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C
Our first visiting spot in London! We first took the train to Richmond station, then walk to here. This Royal Botanic Garden is huge! Today was tough because of the weather 🌧☀️🌧☀️ So we got wet, dry, wet, dry as well. It didn’t help when we had to carry our laundry with us for the visit as the weather is so humid that it was so difficult to dry the clothes in the UK. Therefore, instead of doing laundry at our friend’s place, we decided to find a laundromat. But, laundromat is not that common in the UK apparently. Lucky that there was one next to the Garden, so we decided to bring our laundry with us to the Garden 🤣

The Garden has a few green houses to visit. The most impressive one is the 2-storey green house at next to the Victoria Gate Entrance. We have never seen such a giant green house before. It was also one of the more ancient green house, which a lot of the modern ones followed its architectural design. (Like the tiny green house in the University of Guelph, it had similar design as this one). Despite the weather and weight, we actually had a lot of fun just walking around the area.

After visiting this place, we went off to do our laundry 🧺 after that, we went to the Kews Garden underground station to take the Tube back to Wimbledon😉Read more
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Day 24: London Waterloo Station
December 29, 2023 in England ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C
Our plan was to walk around Downtown London today. We got the 2For1 National Rail ticket promotion to purchase the Westminster Abbey tickets. However, to fulfill the offer, you have to go to London by train (instead of tube). So we took the train to the nearest train station, Waterloo Station. It was one of the biggest transport hubs in London. We are shocked to see that it has 24 train platforms 😮 probably one of the most giant train stations that we have ever seen!Read more
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Day 24: Westminster Abbey
December 29, 2023 in England
Westminster Abbey! Today first started with disappointment, then turned out to be a lucky day! The adventure started with Westminster Abbey. Since we would like to use the 2For1 promotion offered by the National Rail, we could only get the tickets on-site. However, we saw a sign saying ‘unfortunately, all tickets are sold out today’. Chris was brave enough to ask the staff about the offer. The staff just let us in. We discovered that the 2For1 promotion was an express entry. We didn’t even have to queue up with other people who had online reservation! We could get in to the Abbey within 5 minutes. So thankful that Chris has asked the staff and we didn’t waste our day.

This was my second (Chris’s first) visit to the Abbey. It is a royal church still offering services for all. It has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British monarchs and burial site for different English, Scottish and British monarchs.

Ticket price is a bit steep, £29 per person. With the 2For1 offer, we paid £29 for two of us. We spent a few hours inside with the self-guided tour. Such a nice UNESCO World Heritage to visit!Read more
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