This Cambodia trip was the most unexpected and unplanned trip I have ever been on. Although I had intended to travel there, I never anticipated it would happen so quickly because my 14-day visa-free had expired, and I had to leave Thailand urgently to avoid paying fines. This blog will follow my chaotic trip from Bangkok to Phnom Penh, along with some advice and tricks. I was informed that I could not extend my visa anymore, only a night before I would leave for Cambodia. So, I checked all possible […]

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After a nearly 13 hour car + van ride from Georgetown in Guyana which began at 4am and included a 4 hour border crossing (slow ferry a big part of this), I arrived in Paramaribo in the late afternoon. Exhausted after eating only an energy bar I found tucked away in my backpack given to me weeks ago by Jacki Ueng I checked into the Guesthouse Zin & Grand Cafe. For only $23/night it included a private room with AC and use of their pool. I soon hooked up with […]

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As I stepped into the Range Rover under the dusty skies of Banjul in the early AM I was greeted by the familiar sounds of Don Williams. Fortunately he is my favorite singer so I was able to easily absorb about 6 hours of one of his cd’s cycling through the same songs over what ultimately would turn into a 10.5 hour adventure before we reached our final destination in northern Guinea Bissau. Our journey involved several border crossing – going from The Gambia to Senegal to Guinea Bissau. Over […]

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I left Chopan Alta, Kyrgyzstan at 8am this morning and arrived in Almaty, Kazakhstan at nearly 6pm. If there wasn’t a mountain range between these two points, a line of site drive would probably be a few hours at most – but the route around these mountains through the main border crossing is much longer. Kazakhstan recently opened the border as visa free for citizens of the USA as well as select other countries on a trial basis and supposedly for just a 10 day stay. I was a bit […]

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Upon cresting a Tian Shan Mountain pass at 3200 meters above Song Kul Lake we were treated with spectacular views of a valley far below and towering mountains in the distance. The scenery reminded me of parts of Southern California – especially around Bakersfield or around Death Valley. We hiked for several hours, ultimately reaching a small village in the valley. Looking back at the tall mountains it was impressive to see the great distance we had covered on foot in a relatively short amount of time. Small streams ran […]

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My visa within Thailand was expiring in 2 days. Time to make another run for the border. Usually we are off in another country at some point during our time in Thailand so this is not an issue. But this year we just stayed domestic. Poipet on the Cambodia border is the closest border crossing to our village so we headed out that way. We reached this dusty chaotic border town in 2 hours. As is always the case we were met with enterprising men who offer to escort you […]

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Separated from his student tour group in East Berlin, a much younger John M. Edwards gets seriously lost and says, “Ich bin ein Berliner!” (I am a doughnut!), but, er, for exactly how long? It’s a race against time to find “Chuck” and bust through the border crossing before the “Iron Curtain” closes. . . . For numerology fans, both the first Mayflower landing at Plymouth Rock and the dramatic fall of the Berlin Wall fell on my birthday: November 9: The first, a demarcation for a finish line of […]

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Adam first reached out to us a few weeks ago in anticipation of the release of his second book, “One Life Lived”. This story is an interesting one – detailing his unique adventures, cultural immersions and introspection about a year round the world trip. Adam’s first book was about how he randomly moved to a city in the USA by pulling a name out of a hat – arriving with $25, a sleeping bag and the clothes on his back. The challenge was to work and see if he could […]

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Two of the most popular destinations in south-east Asia are Siem Reap and Bangkok. Siem Reap is the nearest city to Angkor Wat, the largest religious complex in the world, and Bangkok is famous for cheap flights, booze and finger-licking good food. Their geographical proximity make the route Bangkok – Siem Reap well-trodden by travellers from around the world on their way around SE Asia. There are several ways to get from one city to another, on the way crossing the Thai – Cambodian border. The prices, length and comfort […]

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We arrived in Kosi Bay after about 10 hours of at times stressful driving – from near the Lesotho Border in the Free State of South Africa. We arrived here in the dark of night and promptly made a beeline for the beach on the sandy roads in our 2wd Honda Jaz- looking for lodging – big mistake. There were no lights – and signs indicating hotels located just down the road were misleading as we later found out we were many kilometers from the beach. Passing no cars and […]

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I’m learning to read his jaw. Sometimes I lose the language in his translations, but his jaw telegraphs the unspeakable. But, tonight, I can’t see it. We’re facing each other, squaring off in the shadows over outdoor vanilla sundaes laced with crisp kiwis and strawberries, arguing about whether I should accompany him to pick up his food rations from the United Nations. The UN had suspended food giveaways, and he finally has an appointment to pick up four months of food for his family. “This could cause you problems,” I […]

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When you’re high in the Andes, you can’t help but be attuned to the scenery. Breathtaking, snow-capped peaks surround you, water rushes over falls as it hurries down the valleys, lakes brim with emerald water, and the world seems to spin just a little bit slower. Crossing through the Patagonia from Argentina into Chile is one of the best ways to explore the landscape and gives you a glimpse of the spectacular expanse that comprises the eastern edge of the Pacific’s great rim of fire. The crossings between Argentina and […]

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The bus ride from Lusaka, Zambia to Harare, Zimbabwe lasted four hours longer than it should have (total trip was nearly 12 hours). We spent four hours at the border crossing, where everyone’s belongings were examined, less for security and more to squeeze as much money as possible from undeclared goods. Baboons outnumbered travellers at the crossing and, having mastered the art of swiping food from unaware passengers, they seemed to want to be near the humans most afraid of them (ie. me). We started our first day in Zimbabwe […]

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Iguazu Waterfalls are among the most amazing waterfalls on the planet. Do not underestimate the time you need here – allow at least 1/2 day for the Brazilian side and at minimum a full day for the Argentina side. These falls are spread between the Brazil and Argentina border and extend up the Rio Iguacu several miles. The only similar waterfalls in comparison are Victoria Falls on the Zambezi River between Zambia and Zimbabwe. The massive Victoria Falls are more or less oriented in a straight line while the Iguacu […]

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Bus – The bus station is located about 15 to 20 minutes from the Plaza del Armas (the center of town). As with most bus stations, train terminals or airports be careful of your bags and belongings. These are typically high crime areas. We met a fellow traveler who was hanging around at the bus station when she was approached by a local – he pretended to ask her directions and she put her bag down to help him and when she looked back down, he and his partner who […]

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