You will hear these words every where you go in Fiji as warm and genuine smiles greet you at every turn. We have been to nearly 60 countries during our travels and nowhere on earth seems as happy and genuinely glad to see you as the people of Fiji!

Fiji has 322 islands so planning a vacation there can be very overwhelming. Where to begin?

When we visited Fiji, we knew that we didn’t have the time to experience everything to the fullest and were happy to spend our time exploring the main island Viti Levu.  While there are beautiful secluded beaches and villas on the surrounding islands, the main island is a paradise unto itself and today we are going to share some of our favourite moments during our time in Fiji.

1. Kava Ceremony

When travelling to Fiji you cannot miss taking part in a Kava Ceremony. When visiting any village in Fiji it is customary to present a gift of Yaqona (Kava root) to present to the executive head of the village. It is an elaborate ceremony that takes a little bit of knowledge before taking part.

• The ceremony then begins as the villagers grind up the Kava and strain it through a cloth bag into a large wooden bowl placed in the middle of the room.
• It is then offered to your chief who is the oldest man in your group
• Then the village’s executive head drinks the Kava
• After that it is shared with everyone.
• The men drink first and then the women.

2. Zip Line

3. White Water Rafting

If you have a fear of White Water Rafting, Fiji is the place to do it. The rapids are only class three but the scenery is breathtaking. And I don’t use that phrase very often! The trip with River’s Fiji takes you 26 km down the most picturesque scenery you will ever witness. Waterfalls of all sizes stream down the deep canyons  surrounded by lush jungle. This is yet another eco-friendly tour as Mother Nature is completely undisturbed. The village chiefs had to be asked and many a Kava Ceremony took place to allow this operation to begin. One stipulation was that it would be run by the villages and all guides are local. It is an amazing tour to learn about Fiji from your local guide who grew up in the area and to know that more companies won’t be coming in to turn this paradise into an amusement park. Rafting the Upper Navua River is pristine and hey, the rapids are a lot of fun, they may not be massive, but they are a blast! Read more here! 

4. Hiking to Headhunter Caves

I often think that Gilligan and the castaways ran ashore in Fiji. Fiji after all was the land of the head hunter and Gilligan was marooned on a beautiful paradise island. When visiting Fiji, you can learn a great deal about its history by taking a tour to the Oho Caves. We walked with our guide through the jungle as he told us about his ancestors, the great Navatua Tribe who was the first tribe in the area to give up the practice of head hunting and embrace Christianity. After our tour of the amazing caves, we visited his village where we took part in a Kava Ceremony and chatted with the elders of the Tao Village. It was truly an authentic experience. The villagers and the chief’s were so happy to have us experience their community and we highly recommend this activity when visiting Fiji. It is a newer tour, so make sure to ask specifically for the Oho Caves tour of the Tao Village. 

5. Jet Boat

Jet Boating the Sigatoka river is by far the wildest Jet Boat Experience we’ve ever taken and we’ve done the Niagara Gorge! What we loved was the small boat doing 360′s at lightening fast speeds. What we also liked was the incredible scenery surrounding us and the stories that our guides told us about their history. It was in 1867 that the last Cannibalized human eaten. The Reverend Baker made the grave mistake of taking a comb out of a village chief’s hair and he paid the ultimate penalty. It is amazing to hear the stories that went on along this river’s banks interspersed with heart pounding thrills. They highlight of the tour was stopping at Tuvu Village to take part in a Kava ceremony with the villagers. We sang and dances and ate and drank the afternoon away and have never felt such warm hospitality in our entire lives. Hear more of our experience at Our original post

Happy Fiji

No matter what you decide to do in Fiji, you will love it. The people are so friendly and genuine you heart will be filled with joy and warmth throughout your vacation. The island is a true paradise and we cannot wait to go back one day and hear those two uplifting words again…Bula Vinakka!

30,000 people visit Antarctica each year and we are on a ship with 112 other people. We asked some people what made them come to the South Pole and everyone had a very interesting reason.
It is a boat filled with explorers and thrill seekers, wanderers and adventurers and the energy is high. We are surrounded by people that are interesting and exciting to talk to and wanted to share a couple of stories with you…

This group is as diverse as it gets ages are ranging from 17 to 97. So let’s start with the youngest on the cruise.

Who Goes to Antarctica?

17-year-old Sarah made it to her 7th continent before her 18th birthday. Her dad works for World Vision so she has been traveling all her life experiencing this earth to the fullest and doing it all for a good cause to boot!

97-year-old Marie, from Oregon brought her son and daughter in law to Antarctica. She called them up one day and said; I think we should go on a vacation. I have one more big one in me and I want to go to Antarctica. She has been going out on the hikes, joining in on the lectures and taking part in wet landings with the best of them. Her enthusiasm about life is contagious. . I think it’s time we went on a trip, I have one more in me.

Adrian is a 90-Year-old man who brought his son in law and two grand kids ages 23 and 21 to a great adventure. Why did he want to come to Antarctica at the age of 90? Well it’s his 7th continent of course.

Helene from London and her daughter Ruth have come to Antarctica together. Helene saw the movie Scott of the Antarctica when she was a child. She remembers driving all the way to Toronto to see it and was mesmerized; now 50 years later she is fulfilling her dream.

Father, Daughter team Kelly Ray and Bill from South Dakota had travelled to 6 continents together. When mom said, you might as well do the 7th together, they didn’t hesitate. As mom said, “I’ve seen snow and cold, here in South Dakota, I don’t want to go, you two should go ahead.
Jacqueline and Veronique are traveling South America and decided at the last minute to start in Antarctica. She worked overtime to get here and while she was weighing the pros and cons, her mom said, “you should do it!”

There are others that haven’t made it to all 7 continents. One person is in Antarctica on their first trip outside of North America. While others are avid travelers that just love a good adventure. Troy and Joy of North Dakota are on their 6th continent. Only one more to go but the big one is locked and loaded.

Whatever the reason for coming to Antarctica, you can be sure that it will be your trip of a lifetime. We love the group and the experience and are already feeling sad that it’s only 12 days long.
Bring on 21 days baby, we’ll be back!

Our Antarctica adventure is brought to you by Quark Expeditions

Check out Quark Expeditions for planning your own Antarctic Expedition. Mention ThePlanetD and receive 5% off your booking - 5% can be redeemed on any voyage and is be combinable with any of Quark’s promotions.

Hostel Bookers is running a game of photo tag and were kind enough to include us in their inaugural post. I love going back through photographs that I haven’t looked at recently. Each one tells a story and reminds me of a precious moment in time. Along with my fellow photographer friends, Bears and Beans, The Travel Tart, Traveling Canucks, Landlopers, Canvas of Light, and Virtual Wayfarer, we are kicking off the game and sharing our favourite Seven Super Travel Photos.

Play with us in 5 easy steps

1. Choose 7 of your own photos, one for each of the following categories:

• A photo that…takes my breath away
• A photo that…makes me laugh or smile
• A photo that…makes me dream
• A photo that…makes me think
• A photo that…makes my mouth water
• A photo that…tells a story
• A photo that…I am most proud of (aka my worthy of National Geographic shot)

2. Write a short description for each image.
3. Write somewhere in your blog post: ‘I am taking part in HostelBookers 7 Super Shots‘.
4. Tell us you have participated and tweet the hashtag #7SuperShots
5. Nominate 5 other bloggers by including a link to their blog in your post.

Hostelbookers will be retweeting and sharing the best posts from participating bloggers. Make sure to tag us on twitter with your 7 Photos so that we can tweet it as well!

Take a look at HostelBookers own list of 7 photos that… and see what photo we contributed along with our 6 other partners in crime.

1.       Photo that takes my breath away

Mount Doom and the Tongariro Crossing in New Zealand

It’s known as one of the best one day treks in the world. The Tongariro Crossing on New Zealand’s North Island certainly lives up to the hype. We started our hike early in the morning and the crisp air may have chilled our bones, but the brisk morning made for clear skies and gave the partially frozen dew a glimmering beauty. With Mount Doom looming in the background, I envisioned the Hobbits fighting their way up this epic mountain to return the ring. The colours and the beauty of the Tongariro Crossing took my breath away at every turn.

2.       Photo that makes me laugh/smile

Playing on a Water Buffalo in Myanmar

We were riding bicycles around Inle Lake, Myanmar when we came across these two little cuties. They were keeping watch on their water buffalo and when they saw us motioned us to come over and say hi. They didn’t speak a word of English, we didn’t speak a word of Burmese but they loved posing for Dave’s camera. The boy in the front was the real ham and kept shoving his little brother out of the way. Dave would snap  some photos, he would show them their shot on the screen and they laughed and giggled while motioning him to take another. It makes us smile because that was a very good day and these boys will always remain on our memory for the rest of our lives.

3.       Photo that makes me dream

Sunset in Chobe National Park, Botswana

Chobe National Park has one of the largest concentrations of wildlife in all of Africa.What is unique about a safari here is that you cruise the Chobe river to spot game. Elephants are a plenty in Chobe and we saw many as we rode our bikes along the famed Elephant Highway. But it was during our river cruise that we were truly at peace. As the evening came to an end, this bird spread it’s wings as if saluting sun while saying goodbye to another beautiful day on the continent of Africa.

4.       Photo that makes me think 

Malawi Portrait

We were visiting a project for Plan Canada, the charity we raised money and awareness for as we cycled Africa. The entire village came out to say hello to us and show off their schools, fields, well and medical centre all built with the help of Plan Canada. Today it is a sustainable operation that is independently run by the village itself. As swarms of children followed our every move, this young girl carrying a baby on her back caught my eye. Her calm manner stood out among the energetic group and I wondered what she was thinking about? I wonder what her future will be and where she is today?

5.       Photo that makes my mouth water 

The amazing lobster in Fiji

I don’t take a lot of food photographs, but while we were in Fiji, it seemed that food constantly caught my attention. We were staying at the Pearl Fiji and each night we were treated to a spectacular feast. When we entered the restaurant we enjoyed our welcome drink of Kava, sat down to a meal complete with local entertainment and enjoyed heavenly dished like this lobster. Mmm Mmm Good.

6.       Photo that tells a story

The Three Gorges Dam Project in China

China was a fascinating place to explore. The old is being erased to make for the new and modern 21st century. As we sailed through the Three Gorges, our guides explained how the massive feat of engineering, The Three Gorges Damn project flooded the entire area burying thousand year old villages under the later never to be heard from again. Ancient temples were destroyed and cultural monuments were lost only to be rebuilt and replicated for tourist to view. But there are pockets of China where people still cling to the past and a simple fisherman can be found working on the water. While cruise liners and luxury ships pass, rural families cling to their past and follow the traditions of their ancient ancestors.

7. Photo that I am most proud of (aka my National Geographic photo)

Sunset in Wadi Rum, Jordan

It seemed that every turn in Jordan offered an opportunity to take that “National Geographic Shot” but many have already seen my pictures of Petra. And I am more drawn to my time in Wadi Rum. Taking a camel ride in the middle of the Arabian Desert at sunset is something that I dreamed of doing as a child scouring through my parents National Geographic collection. When I think of the National Geographic of my childhood, I think of photos like this. Photos that give you a glimpse of the way of life in an exotic land.

I nominate:

• Fogg Odyssey
• Johnny vagabond
• Green Global travel
• Wild About Travel
• Aviators and a Camera 

The Garden Leading to Spa

As soon as we arrived we took a deep breath and relaxed. Soft 80′s rock music was playing in the lounge and since it is from our era, we found it very comforting. We had to check out of our hosteria at 10:00 am so we arrived early to Las Hayas. They were friendly and accommodating and while we waited for our room to be prepared, we took advantage of their free wifi (as usual)

But it was off to the spa once we were booked and had our luggage sent to our room. We weren’t going anywhere today, it was hot tubs, steam rooms and saunas for us.

It was strange to head to this luxury spa though and not see a soul around. There was a check in counter, but no receptionist on duty. So instead of turning back, we opened the unlocked door to the reception area, grabbed some towels and turned on the lights. We then turned on the steam room setting the temperature to an unbearable 50? Celsius and turned up the Sauna to “11″

While the rooms warmed, we swam in the bathtub like pool, and hung out in the comfortable whirlpools that we had all to ourselves.

Spending the afternoon moving from one hot room and pool to another tired us out, so before our briefing we went back to our room to have a nap. Ah, life is truly tough on our Antarctica adventure, but we’re taking advantage of everything. Soon we’ll be paddling in the Antarctic Peninsula, jumping into the icy waters for the Polar Plunge and winter camping in sub zero overnight  temperatures on the continent.

We deserve a little Pre Antarctica Pampering. 

Our Antarctica adventure is brought to you by Quark Expeditions

Check out Quark Expeditions for planning your own Antarctic Expedition. Mention ThePlanetD and receive 5% off your booking - 5% can be redeemed on any voyage and is be combinable with any of Quark’s promotions.

Being Afraid of People and Couchsurfing Anyway by Jackie DesForges

I am not a people person. 

This stems more from the fact that I am painfully shy than it does from my being a mean or Scrooge-like person. As a result, I’ve never considered myself the best candidate for couch surfing, and I’ve always preferred hostels as my main option for lodging. Unfortunately I am also a recent graduate with very little money to spend when I’m traveling, which does not translate so well into paying for lodging whenever I go somewhere. My first foray into the world of couch surfing was therefore a reluctant but financially necessary one, and it occurred when I was backpacking through Europe with my boyfriend two summers ago.

Our first couch belonged to my friend Hilliary in Berlin. Hilliary and I knew each other from college but not well; I felt somewhat awkward when I sent her the facebook request asking if we could stay with her, assuming she would think I was trying to use her for her free lodging (which was, honestly, somewhat true at the time). To my surprise I received an extremely enthusiastic response, and she even offered to show us around the city the whole time we were there.

When we arrived, there was no couch anywhere in her tiny apartment, and we realized that she was going to let us have her whole bedroom to ourselves while she stayed at her boyfriend’s place. Her roommate was away for a few days, so we had the whole run of the apartment to ourselves. In the few days we stayed with her, Hilliary and I became genuine friends. She introduced us to her favorite dish, something I still cannot spell or pronounce, and translated a humorous conversation we had with a few bums in the park during an evening picnic. She showed us around, she translated street signs, she and I talked about all the things back home we hadn’t ever realized we had in common. The entire time I had been afraid of feeling like an imposition, but she made me feel like we were old friends catching up after a summer apart. We are still great friends, and I’ll be staying with her again on an upcoming trip later this year.

Berlin

Our time in Berlin was split between her apartment and the mattress of a guy that my boyfriend had previously met through the couchsurfing website a year earlier. He was a musician, a traveler, and a serial couch surfing host, and when we arrived we realized we’d be sharing the house with a few other travelers who were also passing through. Like Hilliary, this host also let us have his bed and room for the night, and I began to wonder if couches were ever actually involved in couch surfing. This house seemed to have an open door policy, and anyone who walked through was immediately welcomed, as though they had been expected to show up at that exact time.

It wasn’t the cleanest or most comfortable house, and certainly not the quietest, but it was one of the most interesting places I’ve ever seen. The walls revealed layer after layer of paint and paper peeling off, covered in certain parts by words in various languages and sketches that were either drawn or scratched by someone who had been there before us. In this place I felt more of a connection with the house than I did with the host; I think that’s an overlooked part of couchsurfing, the relationship you form with the different houses, apartments, walls, and floors that give you shelter when you’re far away from home. The house itself, its smells and colors, can have as much of an effect on your memory of that time as the person living there can.

Budapest

After Berlin, we traveled through a few cities until we made our way into Budapest and into the home of Balazs, a Hungarian musician and architect.  He’s one of those people who doesn’t seem to have a specific age; I placed him between 32 and 40. Most of the time I was distracted by the orange and black striped knee socks he wore for the majority of our stay. Never have I met someone more like a sitcom character. On our second day in Budapest he took us on a daylong bike tour of the city – for free, because he happened to know the woman working the bike rentals. Later that night, we finally got to experience the couch aspect of couch surfing on a very uncomfortable foldout couch bed.

Balazs was tireless. He wanted to show us everything. This enthusiasm for his city and his background in architecture made him an incomparable host – he knew everything about every single building, statue, and park in Budapest, and he wanted us to hear and learn everything we could while we were there. Trying to keep up with him was sometimes exhausting, but I doubt I would have seen as much as I did if I hadn’t stayed with him. He reminded me how much of the world I still want to see and learn about, and how little time there always seems to be to do it. Most of the travel stories that get a laugh out of my audience have to do with Balazs and my time in Budapest.

Before meeting each of these three hosts, I hadn’t expected anyone to be mean or unwelcoming, but I had definitely expected to feel like an imposition. Traveling is nerve-wrecking enough without having to worry about putting anyone out. However, I know that traveling is also about getting out of your comfort zone and pushing your own limits, and I think I’m stubborn enough to keep doing that, to keep meeting people, to keep doing things that I wouldn’t be doing if I was sitting at home reading other people’s travel stories from my own couch. My couch is pretty great, pretty safe, and pretty comfortable, but I know I can’t bring it with me when I go…and really, why would I want to?

Jackie DesForges is a writer from Los Angeles currently living in Chicago. To date she has served as a student ambassador in England and France, a volunteer in Mexico, an art student on the Riviera, and a fledgling travel writer in Edinburgh. Currently she spends her time blogging about travels past and present at http://jackietravels.com and saving her pennies for her next great adventure overseas.
Blog: www.jackietravels.com
Twitter: @jackie_travels
Couchsurfing page: http://www.couchsurfing.org/people/jdpickle/

Inspirational Series 

This is an ongoing series of inspiring stories from intrepid travellers around the world. If you have an experience in travel that changed your life, made you look at the world differently or an amazing moment that you want to share, please contact us for more details and we will email you right back.. You can also read more about submitting an article to this series at Calling All Writers, Share your Inspirational Travel Story

Read More Inspirational Stories

• Inspired by Peru
• Cycling Through Vang Vieng Laos
• I Celebrated my 50th Birthday in Chianti
• Real Men Don’t Cry
• What Happens When You Follow Your Heart
• From Little Englander To Travel Lover 
• Freedom Found
•  The Yoga Retreat That Made Me Quit My Day Job 
• Learning that it’s OK to be a Quitter 
• Zulu Memories in South Africa by Green Global Travel
• What I Would Tell You (If I Had the Words)
•  Charity for the Philippines a Birthday Adventure
• Habitat for Humanity in Alaska
• Inspired at the Summit of Mount Roy 
• Inspirational Travel: Fishing For Friendship 

The Beagle channel was always a haven for sailors who battled the rough seas of the Drake Passage. After crossing this body of water I can see what it is called the roughest seas in the world. It certainly makes you sit up and give the respect deserved to mother nature.

I processed this image as a black and white because I thought the drama that it captures really embodies to the feeling you get when look out towards the passageway that leads to the roughest waters around. Choosing to use B&W for certain images is tough. I think that for me B&W photography captures emotion and drama better than colour. Hopefully I was able to show that here.

So as the storm clouds loom on the horizon imagine yourself getting ready to face waves anywhere up to 20m in height and face your fears on the open ocean. It is enough to scare anyone into becoming a land lubber.

The Port of Ushuaia, Argentina in B & W

Inspired by Peru by Arienne Parzei 

I remember the moment so vividly. I was on the phone with one of my best friends. She had just found out the news that she had been selected to lead a research and development team in Peru for 6 months. It was a big deal for her because it was her first assignment leading a team, and also meant infield experience for her. But little did I know at the time how much my friend’s new assignment would impact me.

After my congratulations I just blurted out, “I’m going to visit you”. She laughed and said, “of course, you have to!” I’m not sure if she thought I was serious, I didn’t either. I actually had to go and check a map to see exactly where it was located in South America, but for about a month after that all I could think about was Peru.

I made that trip a reality in January of 2008. It was full of firsts for me; my first solo trip, my first backpacking trip, and my first time visiting a 3rd world country. There were a lot of new things I had to plan and prepare for. This was going to be a different type of travel, much to the concern of my parents, and even to me truthfully. I decided it would be best that I join a tour for three weeks and then meet up with my friend for the final week of my stay in Peru. I wasn’t exactly going to be alone on the trip, but I was traveling solo.
I researched online for months about all the equipment I would need and general information about solo female travel. I had been awoken to a vast amount of online information that I never knew existed before. I was so inspired and felt more confident knowing that there were others who had done this before and lived to tell the tale.

Our tour itinerary was jam-packed. It would start in Lima, work down to Pisco and the Nazca Lines. We would visit the colonial town of Arequipa, climb the mountains to visit Colca Canyon, and stay overnight with a family in a local village on the highest lake above sea level, Lake Titicaca. We would then head over to Cuzco and hike the famous Inca Trail up to Machu Picchu for 4 days and 3 nights. Our trip would wrap up with a flight into the Amazon, exploring and staying in the rainforest and then finish back in Lima.

I remember waving goodbye to my mother at the airport, tears in both our eyes, with a sparkling new backpack on my back packed with everything I hoped would serve me well for the trip. I was excited and nervous, to say the least.
Nearly 4 years later and looking back on that trip, so many things are still fresh in my memory. I remember the beautiful faces of the children, the rich colours of fabric the women would sell on the side of the road, the horrible taste of coca-leaf tea (which is supposed to help with altitude sickness), the earthy smell of food being cooked, zooming head-first down a sand dune on a snowboard, flying in a tiny prop plane over the Nazca Lines, and the impressive strength and agility of our porters on the Inca Trail.

Hiking the Inca Trail was by far the highlight of the trip. It was grueling and exhilarating all at the same time. The scenery was impressive, and thoughts about the indigenous people doing the same route hundreds of years before danced in my head. It was a magical feeling sleeping in a tent on the mountains and waking up amongst the clouds. But it was even more magical reaching our final destination, Machu Picchu. It was a surreal experience walking amongst the ruins, taking it all in. I couldn’t help but think about how it was discovered in the first place, being surrounded by mountains on all sides. I still remember this eerie spirit, or mystical vibe of civilizations past, that seemed to float through the air. I spent some time just sitting on a rock near the top, soaking in the surroundings. It was a spiritual and humbling moment. I felt so calm and relaxed and inspired all at the same time. I literally could have sat there all day.

I got to see and experience so much in the four weeks I visited Peru, but I walked away with more than just memories and souvenirs. I walked away with more confidence in myself, and the ability to travel to developing countries. I also gained the understanding of the day-to-day life of those living with much less than we’re afforded at home, which put a lot of perspective on the kind of life I was living.
At the end of my trip, I had a clearer idea of what I wanted to accomplish in life and set two major goals for myself. I decided I wanted to live abroad for a period of time and that I wanted to do a major backpacking trip at some point that would last 6-months to a year. It’s now been almost 4 years later and I can say I’ve accomplished both. This past August, my boyfriend and I completed two years living and teaching English in South Korea, and we’re now 3 months into a long-term backpacking trip throughout Southeast Asia.

Traveling is so rewarding and educational for me in many ways. I learn something new about myself every time I travel. But more importantly, it gives me the opportunity to learn first-hand about other cultures and the people who live in them. I can’t imagine the rest of my life without travel in it.

Author Bio:
Arienne Parzei is a Canadian who has been traveling and working abroad since 2009.

Though a videographer by trade, she has now expanded her interests into travel journalism and web design. She lives and travels with her long-term boyfriend Tristan, always looking forward to where the road will take them next. You can follow their adventures at www.seeyousoon.ca,On twitter @seeusoontravel

Inspirational Series 

This is an ongoing series of Inspirational travel. If you have an experience in travel that changed your life, made you look at the world differently or an amazing moment that you want to share, please contact us for more details and we will email you right back.. You can also read more about submitting an article to this series at Calling All Writers, Share your Inspirational Travel Story

Read More Inspirational Stories

• I Celebrated my 50th Birthday in Chianti and Started a New Business
• Real Men Don’t Cry
• How Virtual Tourist Changed our Lives
• Round Trip Ticket, Backpack and Curiosity
• What Happens When You Follow Your Heart
• From Little Englander To Travel Lover 
• Freedom Found
•  The Yoga Retreat That Made Me Quit My Day Job 
• Learning that it’s OK to be a Quitter 
• Zulu Memories in South Africa by Green Global Travel
• What I Would Tell You (If I Had the Words)
•  Charity for the Philippines a Birthday Adventure
• Habitat for Humanity in Alaska
• Inspired at the Summit of Mount Roy 
• Inspirational Travel: Fishing For Friendship 

The sky had that perfect mix of cloud that Dave finds so perfect for HDR. The grey, yet fluffy clouds interspersed with blue skies as the wind blows changing the scenery constantly. It was the perfect time to take advantage of the sky before the next weather front moved in.

So we be braved the cold winds of Beagle Channel to grab photos and videos for our happy blog. We brought warm clothes with us, why didn’t we wear them? Gloves would have been a great idea, but no, all we had were our sweatshirts along with my new Canada Hat and Dave’s Rudy Project touque. That’s the extent of our protection from the Antarctic breeze. We’re Canadian eh! 

Never ones to turn away from a challenge, we kept on taking photos and videos and found the beauty in the chilly Antarctic breeze. We got lost in the work and it was late afternoon by the time we finished exploring.

Time to Eat. 

One problem though, everything closes between 3 and 5 and every restaurant that we entered turned us away in disgust. We found the only cafe open in town and made it in just in time. It filled quickly with other starving travellers and soon there wasn’t a table in the house. The rain came down as we ate our meals and we watched people duck in to look for a table only to leave with their heads down in search of comfort and warmth someplace else.

Here’s Where Panic Set In

It was when I went to pay the bill that I noticed one of my cards was missing. We went to the ATM the day earlier to take out some pesos and somehow my bank card didn’t make it back into my wallet. We searched everywhere and panic set in. 

What if I left it in the ATM? Someone could have cleaned us out! We ran back to the bank to see if anyone may have turned it in, but naturally it was closed. Everything shuts down here between 3 and 5!

We caught a cab back to our hotel to search for it there and to check the Internet to see if any money was missing. Luck was on our side, because all our banking was still in order. If someone had our bank card, they didn’t take any money out.

We still have our OneSimCard that we use to make calls when traveling, so we called our bank in Canada to cancel the card from our iPhone. We didn’t have to find a pay phone to call collect, we just called direct and it cost us about $2. While our hearts were still pounding, we were relieved to find that our mistake didn’t cost us any more than a cab ride and a cheap phone call.

We are normally so much more careful that this. We know better. We’ve even run after other travellers in the past who left their cards in the machine to give them their cards back. We’ve joked about how we pay attention to things and would never be so careless because we are paranoid about everything when it comes to money. And yet it finally happened to us.

It Can Happen So Easily. 

We remember being engrossed in a conversation. We chatted while we were banking and we weren’t paying attention to what we were doing. We think we didn’t finish off the transaction and while talking away, left without our card.

Whatever the case, we learned a valuable lesson and the next time we go to the ATM we are going to concentrate on the task at hand.

We had such an amazing turn out for our inspirational travel series and we have been sitting on many stories for a few months. It is just too slow of a process to put them out only once a week so we decided to post a week of inspiration to excite you and inspire to make a change in your life or just head out for that much needed vacation. Enjoy!

Cycling Through the Countryside in Vang Vieng Laos by Dean Wickham

Vang Vieng in Laos is one of those places that you hear mixed reviews about. Some people have the time of their lives while others can’t wait to get out of there. The general apprehension is that if you’re a twenty year old backpacker wanting to get drunk and go tubing down a river, you’ll love it. If you fit into any other category, you’ll hate the place. I wanted to find out for myself.

The View from my Guest House

I awoke on my first morning in Vang Vieng ready to explore the laid back little town and see what it has to offer. I had no interest in getting sloshed and tubing down a river, so after a hearty breakfast I decided to rent a mountain bike from a small shop on the main street. The bike cost me 30,000 kip ($3.80) for the whole day, and the lady gave me a rough map of what I can go and see in the local area. I decided to head across the river and make my way to Poukham cave, which I had heard was interesting to explore and had a nice swimming hole nearby. I hadn’t ridden a bike for quite some time but I soon got the hang of it again (It’s like riding a bike). As I came to the bridge I paid the 5000 kip ($0.60) toll and rode my bike over the wooden bridge, crossing the beautiful Nam Song River that flows through the town.

Rice fields and limestone karsts

Riding down the dirt, potholed road I soon entered the surrounding countryside, dominated by beautiful green rice fields that stretch across the flat areas of land between the huge limestone karsts that rise up above them. Farmers tended to their fields while chickens scratched in the dirt and cows grazed on the side of the road. I stopped often to take photos and just enjoy the stunning scenery. As I continued along the road I passed through several small villages, with their basic bamboo houses sitting amongst bunches of banana trees and little vegetable gardens. It was a Sunday and all of the local kids were out playing, riding their bikes, swimming in streams and chasing dogs and chickens. Women bathed and did their laundry in the small fresh water streams that came down from the mountains, while other people went about their daily chores, chopping wood and preparing food.

A small village

I decided to stop in at a small swimming hole, as I had built up quite a sweat from the bike ride. Some local kids ran beside me as I made my way down to the stream, and soon joined me for a swim in the lovely cool water. They couldn’t speak a word of English but a simple “Sabai dee” was enough to get a smile out of them. As I rode away they ran beside me to show me how fast they could run, and then waved goodbye with a big smile on their faces.

A house and some kids near the swimming hole

I was fascinated by the peacefulness of the typical life in the Laotian countryside. It was so good to be having a true local experience, away from the hordes of tourists that can take away that something special from a certain place. This was a place where I could be on my own, and truly see what life is about in this amazing country. Here, life is simple, people have very little and yet they are so happy. Here kids don’t need video games and brand named clothes to be happy. All they seem to need is their imagination.

Stopped to have a rest next to a stream

When I got to the entrance of Poukham cave I paid the 10,000 kip ($1.20) entrance fee and crossed the bridge where I parked my bike, before climbing up the steep path and exploring the large, dark cave on my own, an adventure in itself. By this time the heat and humidity of the tropical climate had me drenched in sweat, and I was ready to cool off in the Blue Lagoon, located near the cave where I had parked my bike. The cool fresh water was a lovely blue colour, coming from a small mountain stream, with schools of fresh water fish swimming against the current. Some locals were also enjoying a swim in their local swimming hole, floating around on tyre tubes and enjoying the rope swing, while I just floated in the cool clear water, relaxed and enjoying the natural scenery.

Having a swim with the locals in the Blue Lagoon

Once I was cooled off I began to make my way back to Vang Vieng, stopping for some lunch at a little local restaurant in one of the villages. My huge plate of noodles cost just 10,000 kip ($1.20).

Having a swim with the locals in the Blue Lagoon

I had passed only a handful of other tourists throughout the day in the local area, and overall it was an extremely peaceful and rewarding experience. My whole day out only cost me $6.80. It goes to show, you need to explore a place on your own to really experience what the place has to offer. As I found out about Vang Vieng, there is always more to a place than what you may hear or read. For me, this type of experience is exactly what travel is all about. You can learn so much about life from the local people, even without any words being exchanged. From that moment on I would seek out these kinds of experiences everywhere that I travelled.

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Dean Wickham is an intrepid traveller from Australia with a thirst for adventure. He has travelled extensively in Australia, New Zealand, Italy, Nepal and South East Asia, trekked to Mount Everest Base Camp, climbed through ice caves on glaciers and for his next adventure, plans to climb Mount Kilimanjaro. He is always planning his next trip, and writes about his travels on his travel blog: The Road to Anywhere, where he hopes to inspire other people to travel the world through his stories, destination tips and travel photos. You can follow him on Twitter, or become a fan on Facebook.

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Inspirational Series 

This is an ongoing series of Inspirational travel. If you have an experience in travel that changed your life, made you look at the world differently or an amazing moment that you want to share, please contact us for more details and we will email you right back.. You can also read more about submitting an article to this series at Calling All Writers, Share your Inspirational Travel Story

Read More Inspirational Stories

• Inspired by Peru
• Real Men Don’t Cry
• Round Trip Ticket, Backpack and Curiosity
• What Happens When You Follow Your Heart
• From Little Englander To Travel Lover 
• Freedom Found
•  The Yoga Retreat That Made Me Quit My Day Job 
• Learning that it’s OK to be a Quitter 
• Zulu Memories in South Africa by Green Global Travel
• What I Would Tell You (If I Had the Words)
•  Charity for the Philippines a Birthday Adventure
• Habitat for Humanity in Alaska
• Inspired at the Summit of Mount Roy 
• Inspirational Travel: Fishing For Friendship 

This lone abandoned ship in Beagle Channel caught my eye as it captures the feeling of this wild untamed ocean route. I can imagine the relief sailors much have felt when they entered the harbour of Beagle Channel safe at last from the roughest seas in the world. As we head out for our Antarctica adventure, I can’t help but feel a little nervous about what waters we will be facing. We have all the faith in the world in our ship, the Sea Spirit; Quark Expeditions most luxurious vessel and in the company that is the leader of Polar Expeditions. They have an even more luxurious vessel joining the fleet next year, will you be on it? Contact Quark Expeditions today.

Want to see how our journey across the Drake Passage turns out? Tune in tomorrow to Canada AM at 08:30 EST as we skype with them live from the world’s roughest seas.  

When were traveling through China with Intrepid Travel however, one of the activities that was offered during our time in Yangshuo was to take part in a cooking course, so we thought we’d tag along.

The Day Started at the Market

The market was alive with activity. It was exactly what you would expect from a traditional Chinese market. Rows of stalls were lined up in the giant hall displaying fresh fruits and vegetables. We didn’t recognize a lot of the produce and were content to listen as our guide explained the use of each leaf, root and stem on the table.

We thought that we would be prepared when she asked us if we were willing to walk through the live animal market and ignorantly said that we were fine. In Asia, the people don’t try to hide where their food comes from. It isn’t tucked away in windowless factories and packaged in vacuum packed plastic bags to be displayed on our grocery shelves. They don’t use euphemisms like pork and poultry or beef in lieu of pig, chicken and cow. You see your dinner’s eyes while they are alive and well, it can be very traumatizing.

So if you do a cooking course in China, either be prepared for what you are about to see, or tell your guide that you don’t want to walk through the next room. It is a disturbing sight but it is hypocritical for me to have meat as a part of my diet and judge the people who sell animals for my consumption. I just hope that China works on making animal welfare a priority in the future and from what I understand from all our guides, the younger generation isn’t quite as keen on the practices of their elders.

Back at the School….

The Yangshuo cooking school ended up being a fun afternoon and a great way to find our inner chef. With our emotions melting away, we started off with learning how to make an array of stuffed vegetables. It was also nice to start with a vegetarian dish.

The class moved at a feverish pace. We had a lot of dishes to cook and there was excitement in the air. The woks were sizzling and smoking while we chopped our veggies with our Chinese Cleavers.

Book a Delicious Discovery journey before 29^thFebruary and carve 15% off your Mouth Watering Journey with Intrepid Travel 

Dave was a natural cook, so I took my place behind the video camera to capture him slicing and dicing and swirling and twirling.

We had an array of cooking utensils, pots and pans and bamboo dishes in front of our stations. If it weren’t for our instructor I wouldn’t know where to begin!

We learned how to properly heat a wok and when to toss our fresh vegetables into the sizzling oil.

We learned how to stuff veggies and mince garlic and ginger and we learned how to sear fish in a smoking hot pan.

We learned how to properly chop our veggies too! There is a proper time to cut large chunky pieces and another time to thinly slice the vegetable of choice. It is important to think about how each food item will be prepared for each dish.

We learned about produce from the region and how much spice is just the right amount of spice. You want your food to be filled with flavour. Spice should enhance the dish, not overpower it. However, each person has a different tolerance, so we all tasted our instructors dish after watching the amount of spice she added to decide how much we should put in our own.

Our afternoon feast consisted of beer battered fish to stuffed tomatoes, cashew chicken and seared vegetables, we had a feast and we cooked it from scratch. It was a satisfying experience to steam and stuff our own vegetables and display it all in one delicious array!

We learned a lot about Chinese cooking and gained a new appreciation for their fine cuisine. There is a lot of work and preparation involved in preparing the various dishes that were served at our table each day and this in turn made us enjoy our dinners even more during our tour of China.

It was an amazing way to spend an afternoon. We made such great friends on our Intrepid Travel, Grand China tour and our cooking class helped to bring all of us together quickly. It was still early in our three-week joureny through China when we attended class in Yangshuo and as the saying goes, “Those who cook well together, travel well together!” Ok, there is no such saying but it is a good one, because our group definitely travelled well together after spending an afternoon bonding and eating at the Yangshuo Cooking School.

Intrepid Travel is featuring Delicious Discovery destinations around the world and to celebrate their offering a 10% Discount on one of their featured food experiences. Book Before February 29th to take advantage of this offer.

Visit Intrepid Travel’s Global Foods Digital Brochure to book your culinary journey and quote promo code 6584

Want to the recipe for Yangshuo’s staple dish, Beer Fish or PiJiu Yu

Recipe:

100 grams of fish (firm white with skin on )
2 Tablespoons of peanut oi
Half tomato – chopped
Half Green, half red pepper – sliced
1 tablespoon sliced garlic tops or spring onions
1 tablespoon ginger – sliced
2 cloves garlic- crushed
1 tablespoon of soy sauce
Half Teaspoon of salt
Half a glass of beer.

Heat Wok, Add Oil and Heat. Put fish into wok fish side down, put salt on top of fish. Fry on each side for 3 minutes to make sure the skin is brown. Put all geggies, garlic and ginger on top of fish. Pur on soy sauce and beer, cover for 5 minutes.

Book a Delicious Discovery journey before 29^thFebruary and carve 15% off your Mouth Watering Journey with Intrepid Travel.

We arrived in Ushuaia on a beautiful sunny afternoon at 6:30 pm. The sun goes down late here and as we left our hotel room for dinner, we were surprised to see that it was already 8:30 pm!  The sun was still shining bright over the town.

View from our Hotel Room Window

The weather isn’t as cold as we imagined it to be. We were cozy and warm with our new Roots hoodies and stayed warm as we watched the ships come in on Beagle harbour. We even caught a helicopter flying overhead.

For Roots Clothing and Gear of your own, check out their online shopping.

It was already getting late so we ate at the first place we founds, a very touristy restaurant on the waterfront. It was filled with cruisers from all over the world. We watched ships come in from Antarctica and were excited to think that in 2 short days, we’d be on one of them

Prices aren’t cheap in Ushuaia. 

Ushuaia is an isolated city at the bottom of South America and we assume that a lot of produce has to be shipped in. We are staying at a basic hotel but the cost is $115 per night. We hear that hostels start at about $60 but since we had some leftover Expedia coupons we decided to splurge on a nicer place. We have hot water, wifi internet and breakfast is included at the Hosteria Bella Vista. It’s really only worth about $40 to look at it, but here in Ushuaia, we’re paying $115.

It is 4 km from downtown so we have to take a taxi or grab a bus.

• The bus is frequent and close to our place though and it only costs about 50cents. (2.75 pesos)
• A taxi cost us 22.50 Pesos (about $5.50) – Note: Taxi’s are metered so you don’t have to worry about negotiating.

Dinner was expensive and comparable to Canadian prices. We were famished and impatient so we went to the first restaurant that we saw as we walked along the boardwalk of Beagle Channel. It was filled with tourists and probably overpriced, but it was a treat to look out over the water for the first night of our Antarctica adventure. We thought that the prices were inflated because we went to probably the most touristy restaurant in town, but as we looked at the menus of other places we saw that they all charge about the same amounts.

Dave had a steak with potatoes and mushroom gravy for 90 pesos ($20) and I had a chicken dinner for 55 pesos ($12) Wine is around 70 pesos per bottle.($15)

The Sun Still setting at 10:00 pm

We topped off the night at an Irish Pub (where we drank Argentinian wine instead of beer) and to our surprise travel blogger extraordinaire Gary Arndt came walking in. We knew he was in Antarctica but we didn’t expect him for another day. He had a smooth Drake Passage crossing on the way back so arrived in Ushuaia a day early. Seeing the excitement in his eyes as we looked at his photos from Antarctica made us even more excited to get on the boat. It’s a photographers playground and we can’t wait to share the experience with everyone.

So that’s what we’ve got for our so far. Food, drink and transportation and a night cap with a fellow traveling spirit, swapping stories and gaining excitement for the year ahead. Stay tuned for more micro updates from Antarctica!

Our Antarctica adventure is brought to you by Quark Expeditions

Check out Quark Expeditions for planning your own Antarctic Expedition. Mention ThePlanetD and receive 5% off your booking - 5% can be redeemed on any voyage and is be combinable with any of Quark’s promotions.

I Celebrated my 50th Birthday in Chianti by Christine Cottrell

Determined to celebrate my special birthday in grand style, I scoured books and brochures for the perfect place. Tutti a Tavola, a cooking school and somewhere to stay in a remote part of the Chianti Hills in Tuscany was an easy decision.  A phone call later, our travel plans were under way.

Tutti a Tavola is run by an extraordinary group of Italian women – mammas, they say, who love to cook. Instantly, I felt at home as my celebration started to unfold in a place of unimaginable beauty – where old farmhouses have been lovingly restored to special places for enjoyment and sharing.

With responsibilities and deadlines far away on the other side of the globe, I am easily immersed in the sensual experiences of Tuscan living – the colourful markets, the cooking aromas, the long, luxurious conversations. There are roses to pick, pasta to prepare, neighbours to meet, basil to pluck, risotto to stir, tables to set, tiramisu to construct, linen to lay.  The mysteries of artichokes and zucchini flowers are solved, the best recipe for limoncello debated, the world’s problems solved …..

For two weeks, over the routine of daily life, I learn about the lives of the mammas who love to cook. They have all retired from professional careers – to share the traditions of Tuscan cooking with guests and prepare beautiful, homely places for them to stay.  Their husbands, professionals in past lives too, are tending vineyards and olive groves. There are weeds to pull, vines to tie, trees to prune, grappa to enjoy, fruit to pick, animals to feed, plots to plant.  The weather forecast is discussed, the best way to prune olives debated, the quality of the vintage anticipated …..

Mimma, Franca, Lele and their husbands are now our friends; we visit them and they visit us. Although you can count on your hands the number of times we have connected geographically, strong friendships based on mutual interests have been forged – and through them, I’ve learnt to reconnect with the simple things I instinctively love to do.

I find time to prepare pasta and risotto from scratch, I make a ritual of plucking basil leaves over conversation with a friend, I sometimes lay my table with beautiful linen even when I’m busy, I invite friends and family to share our meals more often, I make an effort to eat what’s in season, I savour the smell of the rosemary and oregano that grow in my garden …..

Most importantly, I have learnt that you can choose to do whatever you want – regardless of what age you are. Mimma, Franca and Lele are women in their seventies who are a true inspiration to anyone who has a 50^th birthday on the horizon. They are testimony to the fact that you can start a new ‘career’ – of doing what you love to do, at any stage of your life.

All it takes is to follow your passion and connect with your inspiration.

At a time when teaching colleagues were talking about retirement, I set out to pursue my interest in writing. And I started a business – perfectespresso.com.au. What was once a little idea has grown into a series of published books and training resources on espresso coffee – using the wealth of skill and knowledge accumulated in over two decades of my career.

My husband and I now travel the globe exhibiting at trade shows, researching coffee trends and connecting with the coffee community on every continent. We visit farms and factories, museums and cafes, sample the finest coffees made by the best baristas and wander the world in search of interesting people and places to write about.

Like the inspirational women who love to cook, my lifestyle has become my work. I am doing what I love to do.  Oh, and ‘tutti a tavola’ is what Italian mammas say when dinner is about to be served – calling ‘everyone to the table’.

You can do this too!

CHRISTINE COTTRELL: author of the Perfect Espresso series
With more than 20 years of experience in teaching and working in the Australian hospitality industry, Christine decided to do something different.Driven by a passion for coffee and a search for the truth about espresso, Christine connects with baristas and coffee enthusiasts around the world – strengthening her skills, knowledge and research – to become the ultimate authority on everything about espresso coffee.
Facebook
Twitter 
LinkedIn 
My BLOG at ChristineCottrell.com

Inspirational Series 

This is an ongoing series of Inspirational travel. If you have an experience in travel that changed your life, made you look at the world differently or an amazing moment that you want to share, please contact us for more details and we will email you right back.. You can also read more about submitting an article to this series at Calling All Writers, Share your Inspirational Travel Story

Read More Inspirational Stories

• Real Men Don’t Cry
• How Virtual Tourist Changed our Lives
• Round Trip Ticket, Backpack and Curiosity
• What Happens When You Follow Your Heart
• From Little Englander To Travel Lover 
• Freedom Found
•  The Yoga Retreat That Made Me Quit My Day Job 
• Learning that it’s OK to be a Quitter 
• Zulu Memories in South Africa by Green Global Travel
• What I Would Tell You (If I Had the Words)
•  Charity for the Philippines a Birthday Adventure
• Habitat for Humanity in Alaska
• Inspired at the Summit of Mount Roy 
• Inspirational Travel: Fishing For Friendship 

The day started out unpredictable as usual. We recall going over our flight itinerary and approving the flights that we wanted. We remember hearing that most people had to change airports in Buenos Aries for their final flight to Ushuaia, but we vividly remember choosing a flight that kept us in Ezeiza International airport.

We were sitting pretty with a manageable 4 hr layover where we didn’t have to change airports.

Things Didn’t Work Out As Planned

When we tried to sign in at the automatic check-in, we were told to see ticket agent. That’s when she told us that they couldn’t check our bags all the way through to our final destination because we had to change airports in Buenos Aires.

“No, no, we aren’t changing airports.” We made sure to choose the flights that kept our connection in the same airport…we are clever travelers don’t you know.

Alas, we clearly aren’t as clever as we thought because upon further inspection of our e-tickets it clearly stated that we had to change airports. So in truth we are a couple of morons who claim to be clever, but really don’t have a clue.

Now we faced a $55 cab ride taking us one hour to the other side of the city.

Things were looking good when we landed. We were 15 minutes early and would have plenty of time to make it across town. That is until the captain announced that the ground crew wasn’t ready for us yet and we’d have to wait on the tarmac for 10-15 minutes.

I dozed off.

I woke up a half hour later to an announcement from the captain stating that they still weren’t ready for us so it would be another 10-15 minutes.

Yikes, we’re cutting it close.

Quick Reference:

Americans: Tourist fee of $140 for 10 year multiple entry.
Australian Citizens: $100 USD for 1 Year multiple Entry.
Canadians: $75 for a single entry or $150 for 5 year multiple entry.

When we finally disembarked, it was a crowded walk to customs as another flight came in at the same time. As luck would have it, Canadian, American and Australian citizens have to pay a fee upon entrance, so as we stood in line with hundreds of South and Central American Tourists, the US, Canucks and Aussies were called out of line.  It’s the only time I’ve ever been happy to pay a reciprocity fee.

There weren’t to many of us, so we made it through the queues quickly.

Long Story Short…

We made it to the Jorge Newbery airport with plenty of time to spare and all my fretting and worrying was for nothing. I just wasn’t sure what would happen if we missed our connection. Would the airline put us on another flight? Since we had to change airports, how could they be sure that we were late because of a tight schedule? we could have been dilly dallying for all they know.

Luckily we never had to find out.  Now we’re sitting pretty in Ushuaia and ready to explore a bit of this southernmost city in the world before we set sail for Antarctica. And we don’t have to change airports on our return flight home. So all is well in the land of Dave and Deb

Tips:

• Try to book a flight that keeps you in the same airport when flying to Ushuaia. This cab thing is stressful and expensive.
• Have some movies loaded up on your iPod for the Aerolineas Argentinas flight. They don’t have an entertainment system.
• The Flight to Ushuaia from Buenos Aires has less luggage allowance than the international flights so take that into account when packing. We were two kilos over but they didn’t charge us. Whew.

Real Men Don’t Cry by Tony James Slater

I was climbing a tree. By itself this was fine – I like climbing trees. If only I hadn’t mentioned this fact to the boss of the animal refuge where I was volunteering… I never would have ended up in this situation.
I was climbing a tree with a bear in it. She grinned down at me from the uppermost branches, looking remarkably cuddly and unthreatening at this distance.
Only she weighed more than I did, had four legs and a mouth full of sharp things, and if she decided to come down she was going to have to do it through me.
Clinging to the smooth bole of the tree with my whole body, shaking just with the effort of holding on, I don’t think I would have offered much resistance.
It was about the hundredth time I had the thought; ‘What the HELL was I doing in Ecuador?”

Bear Up A Skinny Tree

I’d only been there a week.

Volunteering at Santa Martha Animal Rescue Centre had seemed like the perfect way to reinvent myself – until about ten minutes after I got there.
That was around the time I made my first recapture of an escaping animal – a small, snuffly, raccoon-like animal called a coatamundi. I caught the thing easily enough, because it had chosen to escape in the general direction of my feet; he clearly wasn’t the smartest of critters. Cute as hell though, with bright red fur and a ridiculously bendy nose, but about as bright as a beanbag.

 Apparently he escaped every day at some point – but he never made it very far because he was blind.
There were bears here, big cats, monkeys, parrots, and some things I had never seen before and doubted I’d ever see again. (I swear they had at least one live Pikachu). If anything bigger than a bunny rabbit escaped… well, what the hell would I do about it?

The answer: climb a tree.

That’s where the bear had gone, after somehow liberating herself from her high-security enclosure, so that’s where we were now; my boss, standing at the bottom, shouting at me to climb higher; the other volunteers, watching from a safe distance with a mix of dread and curiosity. Somehow we had to get that bear out of that tree – and quickly, before the boss’s men took matters into their own hands.
These Ecuadorians were Real Men. They didn’t do touchy-feely. When I’d suggested sitting at the bottom of the tree with a bowl of fruit, they’d look at me and laughed. And sent for axes.

A Coatamundi!

One way or another this tree would be bear-free by mid morning, and I wanted to be the one to do it. I had my reasons; for starters, I loved that bear. I’d sneakily fed her my jam sandwiches only a few days ago, while we were in her enclosure doing some cleaning. Also, there was the pride thing. By this time I’d worked at the refuge for over a month. Things that had appeared impossible when I first arrived – like cutting down a tree with a rusty machete the size of a bread-knife – were now easy.

My day started with feeding almost a hundred animals, plugging the narrow door to freedom with my vulnerable body whilst ladling out their gooey, fruity breakfast – yet none escaped. Not any more. At least, not during feeding. The point is, I was getting good. I was sure of it – and I could tell the Ecuadorians thought so too. I was slowly building a reputation for being strong, for being useful, and for being fearless… Or possibly stupid, depending on who you asked – but it amounted to the same thing. If I could get that bear out of the tree, all by myself…

It never happened.

After many clever strategies had been tried, we resorted to tying a rope to the tree (which was rather skinny) and pulling on it until the tree bent down to the ground. This was even more difficult than it sounds – seven grown men throwing all their weight into it, sweating, straining, cursing…
But we nearly had her!
Then she ran down, out of the tree, across the ground for a short distance – and up the next tree over.
It was days like this, when I laughed so hard I almost cried, that really made my volunteer experience. By the time I was done I’d been bitten, clawed, shot at and shaved, electrocuted, temporarily blinded, and had spent more time chasing monkeys than most people would consider healthy.
You know what though? I survived. And it was without a doubt the craziest, most incredible, most transformational experience of my life.

Chains I Removed

Not only had I become close to so many amazing animals, I’d also helped rescue them from cruelty. Taken chains from around their necks, nursed them back to health, and then – when the refuge was full almost to bursting – had driven with them clear across the country, to release them all into the Amazon Jungle.
Words can hardly do justice to the mix of emotions roiling through me on that day.

Elation.
Sorrow – it was like saying goodbye to a load of really good friends.
Awe – at the splendor and the majesty of the rainforest and it’s rivers.
And pride – because after all I’d been through, all I’d achieved, the boss had one bit of praise for me; ‘Now you’re a man,’ he said.

Coming from him that really meant something.
It was all I could do to keep from crying.
But of course, Real Men Don’t Cry…

Tony James Slater is the author of ‘That Bear Ate My Pants!’ – a comedy travel book chronicling his misadventures whilst volunteering at an exotic animal refuge in Ecuador. He now splits his time between doing ridiculous things all over the world – often involving animals – and writing about them. He gets hurt quite a lot.

That Bear Ate My Pants! Is available from:
Amazon.com (US): http://amzn.to/thatbearatemypantsus
Amazon.co.uk (UK): http://amzn.to/thatbear

You can get in touch with Tony via his website at Adventure Without End
Or on Facebook: Tony James Slater
Or Twitter: @TonyJamesSlater

Inspirational Series 

This is an ongoing series of Inspirational travel. If you have an experience in travel that changed your life, made you look at the world differently or an amazing moment that you want to share, please contact us for more details and we will email you right back.. You can also read more about submitting an article to this series at Calling All Writers, Share your Inspirational Travel Story

Read More Inspirational Stories

• How Virtual Tourist Changed our Lives
• Round Trip Ticket, Backpack and Curiosity
• What Happens When You Follow Your Heart
• From Little Englander To Travel Lover 
• Freedom Found
•  The Yoga Retreat That Made Me Quit My Day Job 
• Learning that it’s OK to be a Quitter 
• Zulu Memories in South Africa by Green Global Travel
• What I Would Tell You (If I Had the Words)
•  Charity for the Philippines a Birthday Adventure
• Habitat for Humanity in Alaska
• Inspired at the Summit of Mount Roy 
• Inspirational Travel: Fishing For Friendship 

Nothing But a Dream

Bloor Street Roots Canada Staff Helping us Achieve our Dream

We arrived armed with nothing but the clothes on our backs and a dream to look gorgeous. Danielle was waiting patiently for us on the second floor as we charged into the room like a running bull in Pamplona. Oh Yes, we would conquer the racks of clothes and piles of perfectly folded t-shirts.

So Much to Choose From

Shopping with Confidence

We weren’t intimidated by the staff and patrons who were dressed in their fashion forward, trendsetting frocks. We were inspired to look more like them, to model ourselves after their great style and have their expertise rub off on these two traveling slobs stuck in the rutt of wearing micro fiber gear and quick dry garments.

See the World in Style

Feeling Good at Roots

So we embraced our new chapter in ThePlanetD’s Round the World Adventures. We’ll now walk through the airport with our heads held high looking “travel chic” in our new Roots wardrobe. There’s no time like the present to put our new found confidence to the test, we’ll be draped in high quality fabrics from Canada to Antarctica and back again.

Dave and His Swag

With their grand assortment of cozy pullovers and soft hoodies, warm hats and breathable water resistant shells, Roots Canada has prepared us for any situation.

We’re now going to rival Angelina and Brad, George and Stacy and Tom and Katy. Between our Roots clothing and our Rudy Project Sunglasses, we’ll have that “hollywood incognito,” “oh you look so perfect feel” after each and every long haul flight.

Fashion Shoot

We embraced our new found celebrity status (in our heads anyway) and posed for photos all over the store.

We modelled beside the sock display and leaned on the traditional canoe, we postured in front of the classic T’s and strutted along the wall of history.

We worked the room in a way that would make Tyra stand up and take notice.

Celebrity Status

Oh Yes, we’ll be gracing the covers of Travel Vogue and Travel Enquiring Minds Want to Know and we’ll be in the latest, who’s hot?  and Who’s not of travel? We can already predict we’ll be sizzling like a side of Canadian Back Bacon on open fire in the middle of Algonquin Park on a hot summers day. We’ll let you decide if that’s a good thing or not!

• 
• Head over to Roots to join the movement…Look Good With ThePlanetD
• For more on the men’s fashion line, check out Roots Canada’s newest arrivals. 
• Don’t forget about the women’s line, let Roots Canada help you decide What to Wear on Date Night. 
• And of course make sure to follow them on Twitter and Facebook 

Barcelona.

1)   Modernista Madness

Each year millions flock to Barcelona to witness the modernista works of Antoni Gaudí and other famous Catalan architects. The city is dotted with these beautiful fantasy-filled works of Catalan architecture. Parc Güell, Casa Batlló and la Pedrera (amongst many others), are all spectacular examples which will guaranteed to take your breath away.

2)  The beaches

Barcelona is a notorious sun and beach holiday destination. The crystal clear waters and long stretches of white sandy beaches attract millions of sun seekers, as well as water sports enthusiasts, to the city each year. Accompanied by a mild climate (making it possible to go for a dip from April – October), the beaches are without a doubt one of the city’s greatest assets! Tip: Save yourself the hassle of traipsing across the city in the sweltering heat and rent a Barcelona apartment right next to the beach!

3)    FC Barcelona and Camp Nou.

Europe’s biggest football stadium is also home to (arguably!) Europe’s best football team. Whether you’re a football fanatic or you’ve just want to say you’ve ‘been there’, with over 96,000 seats, Camp Nou is roomy enough for everyone! You’ll find hardcore Barça fans happily sat alongside curious spectators. Even if football’s not your ‘thing’, the overwhelming size of the stadium, the buzzing atmosphere of the crowd (who are very keen on football chants and Mexican waves) and of course the striking talent of the Barça boys make for a game you’ll never forget.

Berlin.

1)    The Berlin Wall.

One of the most important remains of 20^th century history still stands marking the East and West Berlin boundaries. Whilst only small sections of the wall have survived, a visit to the wall is still a must-do when in Berlin. One of the longest stretches of the Berlin wall has transformed from a symbol of repression and authority to a giant work of graffiti art. The East Side Gallery consists of works from painters all over the world expressing their hopes for a free future.

2)    The Electric Feel.

Berlin is one of the clubbing capitals of the world. Millions of techno and electro fanatics flock to Berlin to be a part of and enjoy the ‘electric vibe’ of the city. Not surprisingly party goers are spoilt for choice with an enormous array of clubs; among the mix is Berghain, which has been said by many to be one of Europe’s best clubs. Alternatively, for a more laidback vibe you may prefer heading down to the banks of the river Spree where you’ll be bound to find something that suits your tastes. The best way to get a real flavour for the nightlife is to stay in the heart of the city – why not rent a Berlin holiday apartment?

3)  Currywurst.

Germany may not be the first country that springs to mind when you think of top culinary nations. However, currywurst is definitely worth a mention. The unusual combination of sausage and curry sauce is a regional delicacy in Berlin and is extremely popular amongst the locals. There’s even a whole museum dedicated to the dish, complete with an exhibition about the history of currywurst, currywurst games, songs and more! It’s safe to say that Berlin is currywurst crazy.

Photos: 1)    http://www.flickr.com/photos/59160251@N08/6064957078/ 2)    http://www.flickr.com/photos/redharvest13/2859975076/ 3)    http://www.flickr.com/photos/dalbera/6331807677 4)    http://www.flickr.com/photos/toolmantim/5794468880/

Thirty years ago you wouldn’t dare speak English to a Parisian taxi driver. Not only would he ignore you but he’d be pretty aggravated by the whole situation. Yet what was the first thing I encountered in this “Next Paris”? An African driver who was both friendly and fluent in English. 

Shocking me even more, he humbly explained that he actually learned how to speak English from a little language book that he keeps right next to him in his taxi. Knowing just how tough learning a language is, I felt inspired by his eagerness to learn from cultures that are foreign to him.

On this particular day, I was headed to the often overlooked African Market, or the Marché Barbès as it’s called in France. I wanted to experience life as a local, take my time, and really learn about what makes this city so unique. 

I was interested in exploring this particular market because I had a feeling that it just might be the ideal spot to learn about a new and fascinating culture right in my own backyard. 

Arriving early in the morning, the place was already buzzing with life. Bright colored traditional clothes, textiles, spices and fruits common in Northern Africa hit me in every direction. There was a magnetic energy spreading through the market at every turn and this contagious culture immediately resonated with me.

Although I spoke to the vendors in French, many people there actually communicate in Arabic, as that’s the common language in their country. Hearing an unfamiliar language allowed me to better immerse myself in a different culture for a few minutes. 

The Marché Barbès is located in the 18th Arrondissement near le Sacre Coeur. If taking the train, lines 2 or 4 will get you pretty close. Hop off at the Barbès-Rochechouart stop and walk until you hit the market.

Bio: Sonia Gil hosts a weekly original web travel series called Sonia’s Travels with episodes shot in Mexico, Italy, Berlin and Paris. Each trip turns into a series of shows in which Sonia offers a small idea or tip about a place and the people who live there. New Episodes Premiere Every Thursday at 12 noon (9:00 am Pacific).

During the month of January the ice wine festival is going on and Niagara Wineries are open for business. Not only are they open for business, they are running special promotions and events.

We were invited to tag along with Pam of Spunky Girl Monologues and had a fun day tasting wines, eating food and learning about the ice wine process.

Deb, Pam and Dave in Niagara's Wine Region

Photos courtesy of SpunkyGirlMonologues

Thirty Bench Wine Makers

Pam trying to keep up to all the wine they fed us!

Our first stop was Thirty Bench Wine Makers where we did some snow shoeing and wine tasting in the great outdoors. We spent an hour walking through the vineyards overlooking Lake Ontario. It was such a special touch to enjoy a glass of wine outdoors while standing among the grape vines of the winery. We had wine before the walk, wine during the walk and wine after the walk along with a delicious mushroom soup as we sat by the fire. We shared our experience in our post Snowshoeing a Niagara Winery, but we wanted to share our video with you as well today!

Inniskillin Wineries

Our next stop was Inniskillin Winery. It was here that we really learned how to taste ice wine properly and enjoy what foods are the proper pairings for ice wine. Did you know that you shouldn’t have sweet desserts with your ice wine? It actually pairs better with savoury foods. Ice wine is harvested in the dead of winter and it was here that we saw the frozen grapes left hanging on their vines for visitors to have a look at.

We shared our experience at Inniskillin in our post The Niagara Ice Wine Festival, but we put a lot of work into our videos and hav a brand new introduction that we’d love to share with you!

Jackson Triggs Estate

Finally we ended at Jackson Triggs where we had a very mellow night cap. We tasted 3 different cocktails; A heated mulled red wine spiced with cinnamon and mixed with Apple Cider, a Niagara Kir Royal where a Cabernet Fran ice wine is blended with Jackson-Triggs sparkling Wine, and and ice wine martini combining premium vodka with Inniskillin Vidal Icewine.

Mulled Wine at Jackson Triggs

Hilton Niagara

Note: We did not take this aerial photo of the Hilton, but we sure love it!

After all that wine, it was a nice touch to be able to stay over in Niagara Falls at the Hilton Niagara. Attached to the Fallsview Casino, this is the perfect location for overnighting in Niagara Falls. Our room overlooked the Horseshoe Falls and you can actually see both the American and Canadian falls from this hotel which is right in the heart of the action.

Jacuzzi Tub Overlooking the room that is overlooking the Falls.

For offseason specials, check out their website. 

Everything is within walking distance of the Hilton.

You can walk indoors to the Casino and shopping concourse, you can walk to world class dining; my favourite is the Brazilian Steakhouse Copacabana and you can catch premium entertainment at the 1500 seat Niagara Casino Theatre. You feel like you are in a resort when staying at the Hilton. They have several restaurants and unlike many hotels, people actually hang out in the lounges and lobby bars so you don’t feel like a loser sitting alone while you enjoy one of the regions award winning wines.

interior two bedroom suite

We’ve stayed here before and will stay there again. Both times we’ve stayed at the Hilton, we’ve been too busy taking advantage of everything Niagara Falls has to offer that we have yet to swim in their 10,000 square foot pool complete with waterfall and waves. What’s wrong with us? We gotta go back and take advantage of this!

Want some inspiration? Check out the Hilton’s Falls View Web Cam showing Niagara Falls in Real time.

Right now there are amazing off season deals. As people who have frequented Niagara Falls over the years, we can attest that it is an amazing getaway no matter what season.

I have always loved to travel but I have never had the opportunity to travel and explore the way I wanted to. It was the week of my 21st birthday and I decided that I was not going to let my 21st birthday be a celebration where all of my friends would get drunk and pressure me into doing the same but to an absurd level. I have never been fond of my birthdays in general and with my 21st coming up I decided that I would leave the country, but this time, it would be my way.

I packed my backpack and bought a ticket to Mexico and a ticket back. I had no other arrangements or plans, just me, my bag and my curiosity. When the time had finally come for me to hop on that plane, I felt almost numb. I had traveled plenty of times before, but this time, I didn’t have an itinerary, place to stay or people I knew.

Mayan Ruins of Tulum in Mexico

I could feel my heart beating as I sat on the plane waiting to land. My feelings were composed of 10% nervousness, 80% excitement and 10% being fear. I could be wrong though, it may have been 10% excitement, 10% nervousness and 80% fear. Either way, all I knew was that come landing, I would be completely on my own, in a city that I knew very little about, testing myself to see how I would last until my flight back.

It’s strange how I would consider myself more of a shy type of guy in my home town but when I’m traveling I become the exact opposite. It’s like a different part of me takes over, I become the best possible version of myself. My worries leave, my mind is completely clear, I’m smiling, making friends and like a sponge, absorbing information left and right. Traveling is like my drug high in life. I never would have learned this about myself if it wasn’t for traveling but I feel like when I’m in adventure mode, all the excitement and good energy I have, translates to good luck around me.

So the plane lands and I step out into what ends up becoming a huge changing point in my life. I quickly become immersed in the city of Cancun and its people. I befriend the cab driver and learn a few basics of the layout of the city and the most efficient and cost-effective ways to travel about. Next thing you know, I’m getting dropped off and exploring the city on foot for a hostel with a good location near a major bus stop. And aside from almost getting in a fight with a guy who thought I looked at him the wrong way, this becomes the beginning to an amazing experience that I will never forget.

I forgot to mention that when I’m on my own like this I feel like sleep almost becomes unnecessary. I stay up late with the locals and wake up early to get a head start on what the world has to offer. Utilizing the inexpensive bus network to travel throughout the Yucatán I find myself; snorkeling along the shores of Cozumel, sniffing my way to good food and being accused of being an FBI agent in Playa Del Carmen, making sales with Mayan vendors outside of the pyramids of Chichen Itza, relaxing with rock iguanas on the Mayan coastal ruins of Tulum and finally being introduced to local business owners and big names by the son of one of the founders of Cancun himself, Miguel Paz Paredes!

I read a post by Sean Ogle recently about people who make magic happen, referring to people he associates himself with who believe in something, put energy into it, and make something great come out of it. I know I am nowhere near being as successful as they are, yet, but I feel like even so, some pretty crazy stuff happens around me on my travels. It’s the relationships I build and moments like this that have made me who I am today. On these adventures I figure out more of who I am and more of what I want. I feel like after every trip I take, especially the one for my 21st birthday I come out feeling like a more whole person. I realize that in limiting myself to one location, I am in a way limiting myself to one mindset. Traveling has become such a major part of who I am and how I think. I just hope that through my writings, pictures and hopefully at some point, video, I can inspire and open the eyes of many around me.

This is a little bio about me: I’m a big fish in a small pond. I grew up in a town with the population of 2,000 people and was never quite satisfied with the small life. I grew up with a family that pushed me to ask questions and learn. This helped me develop into the curious traveling individual I am today. I’m an inquisitive guy that wants to help everybody I encounter. I find that through my travels I continue to develop into a more well-rounded, knowledgeable individual. Limiting myself to one locale is limiting myself to one mindset.  I believe that as humans we learn best from experience and by golly I’m out to experience all that I can and help people the best I can while doing it.

My website is www.wherespablo.com
My facebook page link is Where’s Paulo
My twitter is @wheresp

Inspirational Series 

This is an ongoing series of inspiring stories from intrepid travellers around the world. If you have an experience in travel that changed your life, made you look at the world differently or an amazing moment that you want to share, please contact us for more details and we will email you right back.. You can also read more about submitting an article to this series at Calling All Writers, Share your Inspirational Travel Story

Read More Inspirational Stories

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• From Little Englander To Travel Lover 
• Freedom Found
•  The Yoga Retreat That Made Me Quit My Day Job 
• Learning that it’s OK to be a Quitter 
• Zulu Memories in South Africa by Green Global Travel
• What I Would Tell You (If I Had the Words)
•  Charity for the Philippines a Birthday Adventure
• Habitat for Humanity in Alaska
• Inspired at the Summit of Mount Roy 
• Inspirational Travel: Fishing For Friendship