After a 10 hour boat ride from Santa Rosa to Iquitos and an hour flight from Iquitos to Lima, a city that (almost) never rains. What they have instead are mists (called “la garua”) that blankets the city every morning. The roofs are flat and it...
Surprisingly, when I googled, I found very little information on the interweb about this topic and had to explore my options a bit all over town. A few of the local guides/travel agencies offered to make a tour out of this at the cost of...
Some time ago in the 1960’s when there were no wildlife restrictions, a Greek man brought a load of squirrel monkeys to an island he owned. Without predators on the island, the monkeys thrived and La Isla de los Micos (Monkey Island) was born. Today,...
The heat loving German bartender in Buga raved about this town, Leticia, and the Amazon. He gave hope and a way out for the travelers stranded a few towns from the border of Colombia due to protests and road blocks. I never considered Leticia. It...
I saved the museums till the very last day because I was waiting for a rainy day (never did happen, can’t complain!) Instead towards the end of my stay in Bogota, I had two muse-see museums, Botero Museum and the Gold Museum, and one collateral....
La Monserrate is a mountain in Bogota. Sitting at 3,152 metres (10,341 ft) above sea level, it overlooks the entire city. The people of Bogota believe, if a dating couple visits Monserrate, the relationship will be cursed and will not last (personally, I think that’s a brilliant...
On day 3/4, I switched from the hostel ($14/night) to another reservation from Airbnb ($25/night), a bedroom in an apartment building on the eleventh floor. The view of the city from the apartment was gorgeous. The apartment is only 30 minutes from the hostel but...
At the end of the bike trip, Gerri from Texas, one of the participants of the tour, saw a flyer for a cooking class on the shop’s door. And that is how day two happened. In the morning, I hop on the Transmilenio and jump...
Bogota, the capital and largest city of Colombia, is situated 8661 ft (2640 metres) above sea level. The climate in Bogota is consistent throughout the year (around 60-70 °F during the day and 40-60 °F at night.) The water is also drinkable straight out of the faucet....
The city is spelled Cartagena but it’s pronounced Car-ta-hen-na. My inconsistent pronunciation in pretty much everything Spanish gives me away not only as a foreigner but one that’s so prude I can’t get my g-j-h straight. Day 1 The flight to Bogota and transfer to...
What vaccines for which country? The Center for Disease Control and Prevention has the full list of recommended vaccines for each country. Insurance My insurance (Cigna PPO) covered routine and preventive vaccines (Hepatits A/B, TDAP, flu, MMR, polio, etc). It did not cover yellow fever...
After I told some family and friends about my plan to take a career break and travel for a while, I got amusing responses followed by questions thrown at me La Tomatina style. Here are a few that caught me off guard: No you cannot...
A friend told me he learned how to wipe with his hand after staying in South East Asia for eight months, I had nothing but respect. In a grossed out way but still, respect. Then this came along to give me a fighting chance during my...
I ordered one for my upcoming trip ($35 from 6pm.com). Reversible clothes save space plus tops that are 2 layers thick appears more streamlined. The material was also key, this dress is made of 60% Modal, 40% Organic Cotton, which means it will dry quickly and retains some breathability...
It’s a waterproof jacket, sleeping bag, and tent all in one. It looks rather fitting on men but might be bulky on women. Anyone got their hands on one of these? Site: Jakpak.com Price: $199 This is a discovery not a review.
When I came upon the Xip3, I was ubber excited. The combinations are all things I will use. unfortunately they’re all sold out when I checked. Site: xip3.com Price: $75-$95 Product description: Water repellent, fast drying shell made with Schoeller’s 3XDRY® repels moisture and is highly...
Tips: Be mentally prepared. The cost of living in Switzerland is way above the average, and we live in one of the most expensive cities in the US (Washington DC metro area). I was not prepared when I saw that a McD’s meal is a whopping...
Driving back one night and saw constant lightnings on the horizon. No rain and didn’t feel humid. Happen to have my camera and tripod with me so I thought, why the hell not. Music: The Small Print by The String Quartet Tribute to Muse
The fabric markets in Shanghai can house hundreds of mom and pop booths, this translates to hundreds of potential tailors for you. Which one should you choose? How do you spot a good tailor? I spent two days interviewing tailors from booth to booth, here...
Due to limited time, a friend and I booked a trip to Tibet through a travel agency in Shanghai. We had to book our own transportation in and out of Chengdu and the agency takes care of the rest. For me the altitude sickness didn’t kick in...
Here it goes…it’s not necessarily the “traditional Shanghainese” because it is restaurant food after all, but delicious and authentic nonetheless!
Compare to other provinces in China, Shanghai’s traditional dishes distinguish itself by the delicate and time intensive process of food preparation. Often times the cooking begins early afternoon for dinner. Here’s what I got to try at my aunt’s house:
Part 2 of 2 – Longsheng After a three days stay in Yangshuo I hopped on a bus and head towards Longsheng. I heard they have the most well known rice terraces in that region and the women of the villages are often seen washing their life-long...
Part 1 – Yangshuo First stop in Guilin is Yangshuo. Before we get into any more details, there is one thing and one thing everyone must try in Guilin: Guilin Vermicelli. Like Pho is to Vietnam and Pad Thai is to Thailand, Guilin Vermicelli is regional...
An attempt to hit the peak of the most well-known mountain in China…HuangShan. Let me start with a brief summary of how the three of us decided to go. During dinner Thursday night at a Japanese BBQ restaurant I asked if anyone wants to go...