Guide to UNESCO World Heritage Sites
Hello everyone! It has been 2 years since I started this blog and while that may seem like a lot, time has flown. But 55,000 views and about 180 posts later, I thank each and every one of you readers for sticking around. There are a lot of things I wanted to do on here that I never got around to, and plenty more which I started and ditched because of the extreme time commitment.
One such thing I decided to finish for this anniversary post, so, I present to you, the “Travel Timeline.” Read more
Hello everyone. I have been taking a lax approach to this blog, but I’d rather post nothing than post crap, so I hope you forgive me.
This list is something I have thought a lot about to myself, but didn’t realize how useful it would be to let people know how some every day skills and hobbies could seriously aid you with your travels.
First thing is first, a lot of these are from an economic point of view because let’s face it, if you gotz da cheese, you ain’t need no skillz :).
Anyways, here they go!
When I was little, my dad always wanted me to help him in his attempts to fix the car. He wasn’t particularly good, I think we were just too poor to afford a proper mechanic for basic service. I am also aware that the previous sentence was a comma splice. These days, I wish I hadn’t been to whiny and paid attention. While I can change a tire, jump start a car, and check fluids, my skills kind of tapper off beyond that. If you are good at fixing cars and motorcycles, epic trips like the “Mongol Rally” become far less scary. Read more
The world is full of wonders and while I typically encourage people to broaden their spectrum of destinations and activities, in this post, I would like to do the opposite. There is a growing trend of ‘responsible tourism’ which is an idea I strongly support. Earlier, I posted a list of places or activities that I thought were unethical to animals. Today, the stakes are higher as we are dealing with human beings. These are two places I strongly suggest you DON’T go.
Location: Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Visited: Sept 16, 2014
Site Type: Cultural
Inscribed: 2007
Background and Opinion:
The Sydney Opera House is an iconic structure in Australia marking a deviation from traditional architecture of the 20th century. Many consider it a masterpiece and its setting in Sydney Harbor adds to the ambiance.
It is really hard to hide my disappointment when it comes to this site. I had been looking forward to seeing this building, world heritage or not, for as long as I can remember. From a distance, it looked nice, but the closer we got, the less impressive it was. Read more
I normally don’t review hotels but reliable info on decent places to stay within Myanmar is surprisingly inconsistent and unreliable (read: Lonely Planet blows). Here are the places I stayed along with all the information I remember. Hopefully it will be useful to you.
Take note of the numbers and address as booking online within Myanmar will be a pain given the very limited internet speeds.
Price: ~$24 USD a night
Location: No. 182, 31st St Between 82nd and 83rd Street
Phone: 02-35821, 66548
My Experience: This was a pretty long walk (with luggage) from where the Air Asia bus drops you off, but still manageable. The staff were super awesome and the young guys even taught me where to buy and how to wear a longyi. The breakfast was pretty good too (breakfast is always included in Myanmar) with a choice of eggs in an omelet, scrambled, or over easy. The showers and room were clean, the water was warm, and they had reasonably reliable internet (by Myanmar standards).
Normally, it isn’t easy to rent a scooter as laws in certain places (like Bagan) forbid foreigners from riding them. However, one of the workers let me rent his as long as I brought it back in time for him to go home, which worked out fine for us. We were able to see parts of Mandalay outside of the typical tours, which was awesome. Revisiting certain places off peak hours (such as the large monastery near Ubein Bridge) was worth it. The only con I can think of is that cheaper accommodation is available, but I’d stay here again.