Or: Why Iranian money is the most confusing currency I've ever had to deal with ( Read more... )

( By the Favour of Ahura-Mazda! )

Climbing Temple IV, looking out across Tikal and seeing the other temples poking out from the surrounding jungle, it's hard to envision what this place must have looked like when it was an active city, or to recognise that this isn't primeval jungle but a post-apocalyptic landscape.


( Read more... )

Or, how I almost accidentally became an international currency smuggler.

In today's pre-travel annoyances: I learned that Sri Lanka does not permit you to take more than 5000 Rupees into the country (About $US 30). That is... substantially less than I was planning on taking.

This does raise the obvious question of why the local currency exchange ( Read more... )

I met Lek!!!

'Lek' Chailert is a Thai conservationist who runs the wonderful, wonderful Elephant Nature Park outside Chiang Mai, and also founded the Save Elephant Foundation. She's spent most of her life caring for elephants - her park is home to almost forty elephants, mostly elderly and rescued from exploitation and cruelty. She also looks after ( Read more... )

Be aware: One cannot escape Christmas in Cambodia. Anyone seeking a respite from the endless wave of carols, trees and Santa hats is advised to look further afield, as it seems all of Asia has now fallen.

Uploaded the better pictures from Africa to imgur, if you're interested, difficult as it was to cut down several hundred elephant pictures to a representative handful.

- Swakopmund and Surroundings

Odd little town; still firmly German in character and language. Streets and buildings named after Bismark or Kaiser Wilhelm are side-to-side with ( Read more... )

I'd like to thank whoever it was at Qantas who decided to add Alien to their list of in-flight movies. Because, really, when stuck on a plane for 10+ hours, nothing's more relaxing than claustrophobic horror...

Huh. My flight to Namibia is flight number 1701.

I've got a good feeling about this holiday. :)

You know, it's not that I want to spend more time at airport checkpoints, but I do think it defeats the point of searching my bag if you're just going to take my word for it regarding what's in the boxes in there.

“Nope, nothing suspicious here, just a bunch of opaque containers. Next!”