There are two types of travel bloggers, ones that rely more on their words (I’m more in this camp) and those that rely more on their photography skills (not me). I never took any professional photography courses nor do I know how to use 90% of the functions on my simple, point-and-shoot Canon that I bought for $200 4 years ago. That being said, I think my photo game has been stepped up exponentially in the past few months. My photography “prowess” isn’t bettering because I’m some whiz with a $1000 DSLR, but because I’ve learned how to use something…
Post-War Bosnia – A European Gem
I just turned 26 years old, that means I was born in 1987 – quite the year. Gas only cost 89 cents/gallon, Alf was straight killing it and Arnold Schwarzenegger starred in one of his finest movies, Predator. Beyond acid wash jeans and ring pops, there wasn’t much else going on… Fast forward a few years to 1992 and I was happily enjoying eating my boogers in my 3nd grade class when our teacher introduced a new student. “Hello everybody, please welcome Janja, she’s from Yugoslavia”. To be honest, she could have been from anywhere outside of the states and…
Alien and UFO Themed Vacations – Screw the Beach!
Wanna rub elbows with extraterrestrials? Then maybe take a “UFO themed vacation” by visiting a few hotspots around the world where mysterious sightings are frequent! E.T., Chewbacca and the artist formally known as Prince, oh my! Puerto Rico Not only does this Caribbean island at the southern apex of the Bermuda Triangle have conventional UFOs buzzing around, they even have USOs, or Unidentified Submersible Objects, that dive into the ocean! Most of the documented sightings are reported in and around the El Yunque Rainforest which also is home to the mysterious chupacabra, an elusive and enigmatic creature first sighted here.…
Why Croatia Sucks…
Great, now that I sucked you into clicking on this post through my negativism, I’d like to first state that while I did just spend over a week in Croatia, it didn’t really suck, it just wasn’t what I expected. I think my Croatian road trip was a good travel lesson to not come with expectations to a place. Expectations just set you up for disappointment, and I have to admit, I was a bit disappointed with Croatia. Here’s why: 1. Croatia is ridiculously touristy While I didn’t make it to Zagreb, the capital of Croatia, I did in fact…
Ljublubublijana and the lakes of Slovenia – Weirdly Nice
After spending almost a month in Romania (I wasn’t even planning on going there in the first place), I decided to take a little Adriatic adventure with one of my friends, Stefan (the Danish metrosexual viking) who lives in Bucharest. The original plan was to rent a car in Bucharest and drive across Serbia, into Croatia and then down to Montenegro…that didn’t happen. Apparently, people don’t like you to take their rental cars through non-EU countries (i.e. Serbia), so we had to get creative. We searched for the cheapest flight from Bucharest to the Adriatic region and luckily found a…
The Gayest, Non-Gay Experience of My Life: Round 2 – Budapest Bath House
If you haven’t read The Gayest, Non-Gay Experience of My Life: Part 1 – The Turkish Bath House, I suggest you do so before reading this post. After almost two years of intense psycho and physical therapy, finally letting people touch me again, and having as much sex (with women) as humanly possible, I have finally shed the terrible memories of the homo-erotic Turkish Hammam in Istanbul. It was not easy moving on after such an experience, but it had to be done. Fast forward two years, and I’m still traveling, and more than ever in fact. I’m currently in…
Riding Motorcycles in Romania: My 12 Hour Adventure!
When I travel, there are a few things I really enjoy doing because I’m halfway decent at them (who likes doing stuff they suck at?). Mountain biking, riding motorcycles and surfing (ok i’m not that good at surfing yet, but I’m working on it). After being in Romania now for almost a month, I haven’t ridden a hog for a long time, and every time I hear one screaming down the streets of Bucharest, I get nostalgic (and think what a douche bag). I decided to stay in Bucharest for a few weeks because my friend from Denmark headed home for a…
Crazy Shit While Traveling: Dead Guy on Bucharest Metro
It wasn’t even one day after posting about how crazy stuff seems to always happen while traveling that I had another weird experience, this one fits more into the “WTF” category rather than, “Fuck Yea”. I had boarded the metro at the Universitate stop in Bucharest and was just heading south one station to Piati Unirii (ya I know, just one stop, but it’s further than you think). The ride took about 3 minutes, but as we pulled into Piati Unirii, I noticed some red tape on the platform. When the train slowly came to a stop, there were three…
Only While Traveling: Starring in a Romanian Music Video!
Anyone who has traveled can attest to weird/cool/crazy shit happening while on the road. Be it the fact that being somewhere new nurtures an adventurous spirit, or that you just wouldn’t dare go to a Ping Pong show in your native country, traveling opens the doors for new experiences that just aren’t really “possible” back at home. Long term traveling especially will definitely pit you in some situations that will make you go WTF? or hopefully, fuck yea! I had one of those moments last week when I got asked to be in a Romanian music video, yesss. I was…
Route 66 – Towns You Can’t Miss!
Route 66 is one of the world’s most famous road trips, but that doesn’t mean driving is the only important part of the adventure. I think the places you choose to stop at are every bit as crucial as the ground you cover in the car, as these will give you the chance to really get under the skin of Route 66, so to speak. It’s easy just to make a beeline for the big cities like Chicago (where the road starts), but I think there’s a lot to be said for visiting some small towns too. By doing so,…
Video: Star Wars Set or Salt Mine?
Yesterday, I took a nice little day trip from Cluj-Napoca, Romania to the Turda Salt Mine (Salinas Turda in Romania). Who gives a shit about salt and old tunnels? That’s what I thought too, but I was urged by many locals to check it out. Watch the video to see why it was so cool!
Where Babies Come From – Faro, Portugal!
Last month, I started my European trip in Portugal. After enjoying the northern city of Porto for a few days, I needed to get my ass sun kissed a bit. I spent a few days in Lagos (post to come), but I also spent a few days in Faro, the biggest city in the Algarve region, but one that is more full of locals than tourists. While the city has a quaint city center and some good restaurants and bars, I thought the coolest thing were the stork nests precipitously crafted atop churches, buildings and light poles. I guess the locals don’t…
Top Tips for Traveling to Canada!
Canada is a top destination for vacationers, business people, students and immigrants from every region of the globe. In addition to the 35 million visitors who travel to this amazing country each year, around 90,000 international students arrive annually to attend Canadian educational programs, plus another 250,000 foreign nationals are granted a Permanent Resident Visa to Canada yearly. Why are so many people traveling to Canada? The short answer is that Canada is a beautiful, immigrant-friendly country that offers foreign nationals many wonderful activities to enjoy, whether they are vacationing, on a business trip, studying abroad or have been approved…
Beyond the Outback: Brisbane!
If you’re like most people, when you think of Australia you think of shimmery, orange desert sands that look tailor made for a wild dune buggy ride, you think of care-free kangaroos hopping about like they don’t even mind you’re there, and you think of shrimp – on the Barbie, naturally. What you may not realize is that among these unique landscapes and unusual marsupials, this exotic country offers some exciting metropolitan cities. One of this modern, urban centers is none other than, Brisbane. What began as just another city in a penal colony is now a notable Australian tourist…
10 things you didn’t know about Victoria Falls!
Victoria Falls is one of Africa’s most incredible sights. A massive waterfall that falls into a huge chasm in the ground, it is one of the continent’s many impressive things to see and comes complete with a long list of fun facts. For 10 of the best read on: 1. Victoria Falls literally divides two countries. The waterfall lies exactly on the boarder of Zambia and Zimbabwe. To view the Falls face on, the Zimbabwean side provides the perfect place, although whichever side you choose you will always run the risk of getting drenched by the rising spray. 2. Victoria…
Kosice, Slovakia – Eastern Europe, sort of!
Before I accepted the generous press trip offer from the City of Kosice to come visit their little slice of eastern Slovakia, I had virtually no idea it existed. Hell, I was even mixing up Slovakia and Slovenia when I was telling my friends about it. If you have no idea where Slovakia or surely Kosice is located, open up Google Maps. The country is in central Europe, with borders touching Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland and Ukraine. Kosice is the second largest city in the country with a population of around 240,000 people. I’ve traveled the area enough…
Moldy Wines and Good Times in Slovakia!
So after my stint in Portugal, previously pallid skin sun tanned and looking good, I headed to Slovakia for a press trip compliments of the city of Kosice and the Tourism Board of Slovakia. Where the hell is Kosice (pronounced Ko-See-Che ) you ask? I had no idea either, but after a bit of research and help from the tourism board, I learned it was the 2nd biggest city in Slovakia and located in the eastern part of the country. I plan to write more about the city, but I wanted to share one awesome thing in particular that we did,…
Best Spanish Cities on a Budget: Granada!
Back in 2008, I studied abroad in Spain. I wanted to explore Europe a bit, and I thought my best “home base” would be in Barcelona, WRONG. Just my luck, in 2008, the Euro to dollar conversion rate was extremely in our European brethren’s favor as I remember taking cash out from the ATM and seeing the rate being 1.6 USD to Euro at its worst, FML. I blew so much cash in Barcelona that I was basically eating bread and butter from the local super market as much as possible to afford the frequent 13 euro price tag on beers at…
The Atlantic’s Best-Kept Secret – The Azores
Encompassing 9 islands (small islands) in the middle of the Atlantic, The Azores are a pretty remote place. One that most Americans, minus the few in the Greater Boston Area have ever even heard of. Why did I go there? Who knows. Was I impressed? Most definitely. My uncle Eddie is in fact an Azorean, one that left the small island of Santa Maria almost half a century ago. I asked him if he’d ever been back, and he said nope. Hopefully he’ll reconsider after this post. There are only two places you can fly to The Azores from in the US, Boston…
3 Epic Australian Road Trips!
There’s a certain romance about the open road that attracts people from all walks of life. It just feels good to zip through a city with the top or windows down without a care in the world or a particular place to go. Similarly, there is something exotic and romantic about Australia – the landscape, the animals, the culture… the fact that it was founded as a penal colony – many things add to this mystique and what better way to check it out than by hitting the road? If you’re an easy rider type and are looking for scenic…