Recently I realized that since my plan when I retire is to travel more, I really should start getting rid of the clutter in my home. In the past year or so, I've easily gotten rid of approximately 2 filing cabinets full of paper/photos/books, etc as well as a ton of other non-paper stuff. The …
Continue reading Digitize your life; travel more – how to deal with paper
Unique Adventures: Waitomo (Why-toe-moe) Caves Tube in a cave with glow-worms As I've mentioned before, I love caves, and take many opportunities to see them. In New Zealand, there is a particularly rare cave experience. It is called Black Water Rafting, but what it is is tubing in the dark in a cave, jumping off …
My recent flight to Asia was 15 hours, and I had ended up in the middle seat. I guess that was the price I paid for getting that flight for around $500. Despite that, I did get a decent night's sleep on the way. Here's how. Note: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying …
Continue reading Plane travel: Sleeping on planes? Yes, even in the middle seat
Last night I kept waking up thinking of things I needed to do before leaving today. I told my Alexa to give me reminders in the morning. Note to self: enunciation is important. I don't know what North Pole is, so it didn't get done (or packed, whatever the case may be).
One thing I would like to do in the not too distant future is to see the Aurora Borealis. Some of the best places to see the Northern Lights, with some major(ish) cities you can see them from: Russia, Mongolia, etc Greenland Alaska (Fairbanks) Norway Sweden Finland Scotland Iceland (Reykyavik) Canada (Yellow Knife or …
When you are on a trip, sometimes there are funny mistakes around you. Earlier this year I went on a Caribbean cruise, and as we read the daily papers, we were sometimes entertained by mistakes that had been made. Here are a couple: And of course, there are always translation fails to …
Panama is very colorful. From the molas (above) to the houses below, everything is a riot of color. Whether bright colors or pastel hues, the love of color is evident throughout the country. Even some trash cans get in on the fun. And some buses.
Packing in carry-on and coming home with less than when you started (or so you can take treasures home), is my favorite way of traveling. When I travel I often leave clothes and other items behind me when I leave. They can be either thrown away or intentionally left for people there. Either way, it …
Continue reading Travel packing: Leaving clothing/supplies behind when you travel
Cabins on cruise ships are notoriously small and have very little storage, among other deficiencies. Here are a few cheap things that will help you maximize what you can do and make sharing such a small space less annoying Note: as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Number 1: Magnetic Hooks The …
Continue reading 6 uncommon things you probably want to bring on your next cruise
Aussie Mailboxes - creative recycling at it's finest This is a somewhat common style of mailbox on Kangaroo Island. While I saw many unusual mailboxes throughout rural Australia, I've got to say the ones I saw on Kangaroo Island were the most creative. Tasmania had some really fun ones too. Many, like this one, …
A few things about China that may be helpful for others. VPN A VPN is essential if you want to use Google products at all (or Facebook, or nearly anything you are used to using). Use of the VPN was also required to get access to pay my insurance bill while I was away, which …
There are so many chances to see animals on Kangaroo Island. First, there are Kangaroos and Wallabies just out and about in the town at night. You can see them hopping across lawns at dusk. If you are using a rental car, you aren't allowed to drive at night because it is so likely that …
Updated: As I [originally wrote] this post, I'm on the high-speed train from Xi'an to Beijing. What is most striking about this trip is not only the speed (up to at least 309 km/h, that I've noticed - they have a continuously updating scroll so you can check it) but also that there are tons …
When arriving in Xi'an at the train station or airport, most people head right out to see the terracotta warriors. Make sure to research how to get there from the station before arriving, as I did, so you know where you are going so you don't wander around trying to find someone else who knows …
12 sided stone in Cuzco - the most sides of any known stone in the area. This is at Machu Picchu and is called "the perfect wall" Some arrangements have been given names, like: Finally, this is the smallest stone found so far. Soon it will be a small hole in the wall from …
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