End of 'this' Adventure....

After 326 days of travel,

17 countries,
(England, Zimbabwe, Botswana, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, India, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Singapore, Australia, Vanuatu and China)

76,700 Kilometres traveled (and that's traveling 'as the crow flies' not the winding roads),

89 different beds,

and 29 books read,

I have made it back to Canada.

I have met lawyers, doctors, teachers, restaurant managers, founders of laughing clubs, journalists doing secret stories, traveling seniors and photographers. Kevin talked to me about farming in Manitoba and Pontus was my Swedish expert. I met a group of young people from Rwanda that made me feel young and happy; and an amazing Canadian women who left Canada to start a preschool in Ruhengeri, Rwanda.

I've said many times in this blog that its the people you meet along the journey that makes this whole experience memorable. This year I have traveled with Anne from Canada, Kevin and Dominic, also from Canada, Jonathan from Germany, Lukas from Austria, Kate from Australia, Aidan from England, Pontus from Sweden, Ian from Germany, Sonya from Russia, Michiel and Celein from Holland and in northern Vietnam Hannah and Joe from England.

I feel a little bit like I'm accepting an award but there are many people that have opened their homes to me and included me in their lives, families, fed me and gave me free accommodation. Venters in Johannesburg; Walters and Nedfts in Capetown; Rowes in Nelsprit; My Zimbabwe Family; Cathy and family in Rwanda; Rajam and family in India; Tuckers in Singapore; Clisdells and Chidgeys in Australia and finally Lukas and Xin Xin in Beijing.

Highlights and Strange Happenings
• I was a trillionaire in Zimbabwe and still couldn't really buy much
• I got questioned by a Zimbabwe Customs official. I had claimed 'solar panels and welding rods' on my receipts. He wanted to know why a tourist was buying 'solar panels and welding rods', good question really
• A taxi driver in Tanzania wanted me to back him in setting up a toilet paper business
• I looked after a hotel for a short time in Zanzibar while the guy went to prayers at the mosque
• Camped in the middle of the Serengeti National Park surrounded my lions and elephants, sleeping alone in only a tent and NO FENCE
• I went on a 'Free Rose' demonstration in Rwanda and according to the radio they were glad to have "Canada's support"
• Rafted and swam 32 km of the Nile
• Took one trip from Uganda to Rwanda that included a dugout canoe, a taxi, a car with seven people, and two separate motorcycles... all in the same day
• I ordered a 'cheese burger' of a menu in Varanasi, India, expecting a normal cheese burger... silly me... I got two pieces of bread with a piece of deep fried cheese
• On one day in India, I watched kids playing cricket, went to a Bollywood movie shoot, and had chai tea with three Indian Police officers
• Saw some very drunk pigs in Dalat, Vietnam
• Took a taxi in Beijing that broke down, then took another taxi where the driver kept explaining a story to me about a screwdriver, which he kept waving at me, all of this in Chinese
• Hiked nine kilometres of the Great Wall of China

I've posted a few pictures from China on FB:
Here are the links:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=263490&id=763065018&l=06f3f0c3e7
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=263494&id=763065018&l=183d576214

It has been an incredible eleven month trip around this wonder world that we live in, can't wait to do it all again.

Australia and Vanautu Pictures

Here is a link to a some pictures from the past few weeks:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=256327&id=763065018&l=f3a27994e2

Australia and Vanuatu

I can't believe that it has been over three weeks since I've posted here. I feel like I've seen so much of Australia. From Alice Springs I flew back to Sydney via Melbourne. I booked all my own tickets online, not realizing that I had to change airports in Melbourne. I arrived and started looking for the domestic terminal and my gate, only to soon find out that it was across the city. I had to take a bus into Melbourne and then another shuttle to the other airport. Fortunately I had about five hours, it would have been tight if my layover was only two or three hours. I stayed with an amazing couple south of Sydney at a Baptist camp for almost a week. It was a beautiful rural setting and they were so kind to me. From Sydney I headed north to Coff's Harbour. My university friend from Newfoundland lives there. I hadn't seen her for over ten years, so it was great to catch up with her again. I think she enjoyed having someone to talk to about Newfoundland. From Coff's Harbour I took a bus north to Brisbane, I spent just a few days there. It was in Brisbane that I had a very interesting 'interaction' in a hostel that resulted in my changing rooms for the first time in eleven months. The story isn't really for public consumption, you can ask for details... ;-)
From the beginning of my trip I wanted to spend time in Fiji. I went to a travel agent and we talked about the South Pacific Islands and all the options. Fiji was a bit too expensive for me, so the agent suggested Vanuatu, a small island between Australia and Fiji. I'm spending just four nights on a TINY island off the main island. There is a ferry that runs back and forth all day. Its a spectacular place. Yesterday I went on a snorkeling safari. There was a guide pointing out all the different fish and coral. The colours of fish and coral were just brilliant. I met a great Australian couple here and we hung out for most of the day. In the afternoon we went to the main island and went to one of the local villages. The people are so very welcoming. We tried a local drink that smells a bit like dirt, also looks very muddy. Its a non-alcoholic drink made from the the kava root. It does cause a strange sensation though, it makes your mouth and tongue a little numb. Almost like a visit to the dentist. You drink it in one gulp, its not a beverage to sip that's for sure. It tastes awful.
Last night the place I'm staying at had a feast with loads of food and local music and dancing. It really was an amazing day. I could live here on this tiny little island.

I found this information about Kava from a website..
Kava Root (the only part of the plant that is used) is largely employed as a celebratory drink much in the same way that alcohol is used in the West. It helps mark momentous occasions such as weddings, public festivals, political powwows and holidays, and it is even used in ceremonies honoring the dead. Unlike alcohol, kava does not produce or stimulate aggression. It does not condemn the user to a dreaded hangover, unlike alcohol. Alcohol literally kills hundreds of thousands of people a year, and Kava, when properly harvested, has never actually hurt anyone. Kava has even been known to help reduce alcohol consumption!

Many people find other uses for kava, including many medicinal ones. It’s interesting to note that kava has been shown to help ease anxiety, depression as well as producing a restful sleep. It is used by athletes, businessmen and diplomats to help “take the edge off” and focus concentration. Widely prescribed throughout Oceania and Europe to treat hyperactivity in children, it has also been used to aid children who have difficulty sleeping on occasion.

Uluru (Ayer's Rock) Tour

I went to visit Uluru (Ayer's Rock) and King's Canyon this past week. Both of which are absolute marvels. I was with a group called the Rock Tour, there were 17 of us with a guide. I thought in the beginning that it was way too big, but the combination of Germans, Dutch, British, Swede and me the lone Canadian worked out very well. The drive from Alice Springs to King's Canyon - the first stop on our tour - was about 5 hours. On the way we saw a herd of wild camels, they're not native to Australia but were brought here by early settlers and have since thrived in the area. King's canyon was beautiful, we walked for about three hours around different parts of the canyon, had some opportunities to look down into the canyon from the edge. It was pretty freaky. The first night we made camp at a 'bush' camping ground, no toilets - just a bush. We cooked our meal over the fire and it was delicious. We slept in a swag. A swag is an Australian creation, its a canvass bag that zips up with just your face out. It has a small mattress and you put your sleeping bag inside. It was a great way to sleep, with your last sight for the day being the amazing southern night sky.
The next day we drove to Uluru. Uluru is the word that local Aboriginal groups have given Ayer's Rock. We arrived at the Rock at sunset, we set up our rolled up swags in a semi-circle and ate supper while watching the splendor of light setting on Uluru. The changes in colours has the sun set were spectacular. The next morning was an early one, we left our camp site around 5:45am, this time to watch the sunrise on Uluru.... also an amazing sight.
I feel like I experienced the outback in a real authentic way with the sleeping outside, cooking over an open fire and seeing the sun set and rise on this very sacred sight.

Pictures from the Outback

Here is the public Facebook link to some Outback pictures:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=245454&id=763065018&l=d764ef8133

Deep in the Outback

I came to Australia with no plans. I like having the flexibility to decide when Iarrive in a new country. I really intended to go to New Zealand, then I checked out the temperatures for this time of the year. It's COLD there. So, I decided to stay in Australia for my six weeks in the south Pacific. I spent six days in Melbourne, its right in the southern part of Australia, so it was pretty cold there for a few days. I met a guy from Sweden, he suggested going to the outback, Alice Springs and Ayers Rock. I kept thinking... sounds like a plan. So after three long bus rides, each about 12 hours we arrived in Alice Springs. We spent one night in a small town called Cobber Pedy, its a little mining town about 800 from Adelaide and that far again from Alice Springs. Talk about being in the middle of nowhere. I stayed in a hostel that was carved out of stone under ground. Many of the houses in this town are under ground, mostly to get away from the scorching summer temperatures, apparently it gets into the 50's. It was a very unique place. Not much to do but unique nevertheless. We arrived in Alice Springs yesterday. The town is pretty much closed today because of Good Friday. We leave on a three day tour of King's Canyon and Ayers Rock on Sunday. We sleep outside under the stars in 5-10 degrees. BRRR. Should be a lot of fun. Funny thing is I thought Ayer's Rocks was in or very close to Alice Springs, its about a 4-5 hours drive due west. Who knew.

I haven't uploaded many pictures lately, I've been having some trouble with one of my camera chips, I lost all of my pictures from Singapore and Melbourne. I moved onto a new chip. I'll upload some next week of Ayers Rock.

I just finished booking travel tickets home. I arrive in Vancouver on May 27. Hard to believe its time to think about that.

Singapore and Beyond

I just arrived in Melbourne, Australia. I spent the past week in Singapore. I don't know what to say about Singapore. It was very expensive, especially after spending the past few months in India and SE Asia. Singapore itself is a beautiful city, it looks very 'planned' and 'manicured'. I stayed with a friend in the downtown core for the first part of the week. I think Singapore has more malls than any place I have ever been. It certainly would be the dream of a 'shopper'. For me, not so much. I spent the second part of the week with an old university friend from Newfoundland. It was great to meet up again.

I have no idea what is going to happen in the next six weeks. I had first planned to go to New Zealand, but it is very chilly there now and I'm not sure if I want to end my year of traveling in the cold. So I may head north in Australia and find a good beach.