One of the little details that’s important when travelling to Africa is the shots. Unfortunately, the kind that come with needles. And you need a lot of them. My first round of vaccinations included yellow fever, typhoid, and cholera. I got the cholera vaccine at the Boots pharmacy here in London. It requires two doses, […]
Continue ReadingPlanning Tools
I have a toolbox of my favourite planning tools when working out an itinerary. I’ve had people ask me in the past what websites I use, so I thought I’d write about some of them. None of these places are paying me. Airlines Kayak.com – For years, I’ve been a Kayak devotee. It’s great for […]
Continue ReadingThe Trip of a Lifetime
The Pyramids at Meroe, from Wikipedia On May 4, I’ll embark on the trip of a lifetime: Cairo to Cape Town overland. I’ve been plotting and planning this trip for probably two years now, and it feels good to finally make concrete steps towards making the journey. Here’s an outline of the first leg of […]
Continue ReadingBoth of My Passports
Today a courier arrived with my second passport. I now have two entirely valid passports! The State Department takes a dim view of people with two passports, and their official policy is to only issue one at a time per person. However, there are two exceptions: Exception #1: You’re going to an Arab country…and you’ve […]
Continue Reading9 Rules for the Tube
The London Underground, better known as the Tube, is the world’s oldest underground railway. Back in 1863, they started running steam locomotives through these underground tunnels. It wasn’t until 1890 that a line using electric trains was built. I’m sure those sooty tunnels were good for the lungs. This isn’t the world’s first, and probably […]
Continue ReadingWhat’s in a Name?
Back in November after the Lord Mayor’s Show, I wrote this post clumsily explaining the difference between “London” and “The City of London.” I recently came across a series of videos that does a much better job than I can of explaining the history and difference between the two names. In addition, the same Youtube […]
Continue ReadingWhen it’s ok to have McDonalds
Usually I’m opposed to eating American fast food while I’m traveling. Why eat something that’s virtually the same as in the US? In Croatia, I learned differently. I went to McDonalds and ordered a “Bacon Rosti”, which seems to be quite popular. It consists of a hamburger with hash browns, bacon, and mayo on a […]
Continue ReadingCroatia
The train journey from Ljubljana to Zagreb took two and a half hours, mostly through Slovenian territory. The sunset was spectacular that evening. My through-the-window photo doesn’t do it justice. That evening I had dinner with a friend I met in Ljubljana and a few others. They invited me to come with them to the […]
Continue ReadingSlovenia
When a friend asked to pick a favorite country from this trip, I was torn between Estonia and Slovenia. After further reflection, I think Slovenia is my favorite. There’s no world-famous attractions there – just the way I like it – and the crowds are consequently small, especially in winter. Nevertheless, it’s as beautiful as […]
Continue ReadingHungary
IThe first thing I did in Budapest was go running. The city is spectacularly beautiful at night, with all the buildings, bridges, and monuments along the river lit up. I think it’s almost as pretty as London. The next morning was a good day to explore the city. We walked past the market, which has […]
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