Inspirational People We’ve Met in our Travels.

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One of the things we love the most about travel is meeting new people.  While we could compile a list of a hundred people that we have met that have become great friends and have been an inspiration, we wanted to share with you a few of the special people that have really stood out and touched our hearts during our travels around the world over the years.

1. Mary Louise in Paris, France

We have become great friends through our blog.  Mary Louise has been to India several times and started following us as we traveled through the country.  A wonderful woman that cares about social issues has traveled the world before it was easy.
She has volunteered in some of the most difficult conditions on the planet.  She has climbed the great wall of China with Tenzing Norgay Sherpa, has volunteered with Mother Theresa and spent time helping people on the Gaza strip.
So what does this activist, world traveler, mother and friend do for a living? She is a gorgeous model going strong in Paris, her adopted home of 23 years.
She met us upon our arrival in Paris wearing a black beret and a big smile.  She took great care of us escorting us all the way to our hostel.  We enjoyed listening to her stories about her travels through West Africa, India, Europe and the Middle East while sitting in a café in Paris.  We are happy to have made a new and dear friend in Marie Louise.

2. Hussein in Udaipur, India

He has lived in Udaipur all his life.
Hussein was a chai wallah as a child. He would sell tea to tourists on the ghats (steps leading to water) as they stood overlooking the lake and the beautiful city of Udaipur. He had big dreams and he has fulfilled those dreams. Read more at Building a Dream in Udaipur. While his friends played cricket, he would chip away at a giant rock on his fathers land. Working for 20 years with his own two hands, he has finally seen his vision come to fruition.
Using the materials from the rock that he had chipped away so diligently, he is building his very own hotel on Udaipur’s north shore. It will be open by the end of this year.
He had worked as a manager at guesthouses in the area for 9 years honing his skills and while his new hotel will be more upscale than the places that he has worked in, he has decided to make a few rooms for the budget backpacker.  We spent a week with Hussein. We met his family, we saw his house and we enjoyed New Years Eve fireworks on the roof of his not yet complete hotel. Hussein is a role model to us all. Stick to your dreams and they will come true.

3. Ajith in Hikkaduwa, Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka has had several years of civil war and hardships, but it was here that we met so many giving and friendly people.
There was nobody more inspirational than Ajith our tuk tuk driver.
We became great friends with Ajith and had the privilege to meet his family and enjoy his hospitality. You can read more about him at our post Tuk Tuk Driver Makes a Difference.
It was his charity work that inspired us.  While we were in Sri Lanka we tagged along with Ajith while he donated shoes to poor students in a school in the middle of the jungle.  Ajith is not a rich man. He drives a tuk tuk for a living and his wife works for the government.  He has two children and lives in a modest home on the jungle side of Hikkaduwa.  His does well for a citizen of Sri Lanka, but he has very little to spare. However, what he does have, he gives generously.  He spends his time raising money to buy the shoes, he goes to the school to measure children’s feet and he makes the long drive back and forth to Unawatuna to drop off measurement and pick up shoes from the factory.

When he came with us to a school for the disabled, he had tears in his eyes and spoke of how lucky he and his family are.  We felt lucky meeting Ajith and calling him our friend.

If you are going to Sri Lanka in the Hikkaduwa area email us and we will give you his contact information. You won’t find a better tuk tuk driver in the country.

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4. Abdulla Ahmed in Wadi Halfa, Sudan

When we had an unexpected layover in Wadi Halfa after crossing Lake Nasser from Egypt, we thought that we would be spending our day alone walking through town with nothing to do.  We barely made it around the corner when a man stopped us and invited us to breakfast.  Abdulla Ahmed is a scholar, a teacher and a kind man that shared his stories of his country with us.

He told us how the Aswan Dam dried up his formerly lush and green home town and how people had to flee to other parts of the Sudan to make a living. People are slowly coming back, but this arid land it will never be the same.  As he spoke and talked to us about his country, the food kept on coming and the tea kept on flowing.  His hospitality was touching.  He would not hear of us paying for our breakfast and enjoyed speaking to us and hearing stories from the outside world.  Abdulla is a testament to the people of Sudan. We encountered moments like this on a regular basis.  People that have very little were always willing to share what they have.   They wanted to talk with us and enjoy a conversation.  Out of all the countries that we travelled through in Africa, we never met a people that were as kind and giving as the people of The Sudan.

5. Kul and Mim Das Tamang in Kathmandu, Nepal

It was a year before leaving for Nepal that we became friends with Kul and Mim on facebook.  They were mutual friends with people that we know and being the entrepreneurs that they are, they saw the value of facebook and introduced themselves to travelers and adventure seekers.  We kept in touch with them and when we visited Nepal, we enjoyed a tea with them and a trip to their office.

These two brothers have been working in the trekking industry for decades and have pushed through and persevered through difficult circumstances.  Kathmandu is constantly interrupted with load shedding and it is next to impossible to run a business from the internet when the power keeps going out.  They have a website that they have built, they run a trekking company from a small office just outside of Thamel and they work with charities and NGOs improving the quality of life for people in Nepal.  We are always inspired by people that are struggling themselves, yet find the time to give back to others. Mim works for Nepal Projects bringing health care and school projects to his small village in Nepal.

These two guys have big, friendly smiles and are working hard to build a business. If you are going to Nepal, consider checking out Mim and Kul to be your guides, they are friendly and professional.

Contact them at:

• Amazing Authentic Adventures
• Kul Das Tamang
• Mim Das Tamang

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The Window to the Soul; A Photostory

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Travel photography has many aspects. When Deb and I travel most places are defined in some way or another by the people. Faces always have intrigued me because, as Shakespeare put it, “The eyes are the window to the soul”.

As I took these photo’s I believe that each pair of eyes offers a glimpse into the joys and hardships of each individuals life. It is amazing that with the click of a shutter you can relay such emotion. I hope you enjoy these photo’s as much as I did taking them.

Cigar anyone?

Morning time in Myanmar

The Innocence of a Child, Malawi

A wise gaze from a Peruvian elder.

Ethiopian Shepherd in training.

A stunning Sudanese woman.

Digging for mussels on the rocks of Goa, India.

Taking a smoke break at the market in Myanmar.

Hard at work during the Harvest in Bali.

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Dave and Deb’s Surreal Moments Deserts Around the World

We have done a post before on surreal travel experiences but nothing has compared to our time in India.  India itself is a little surreal and we have experienced some of the strangest moments in our travels.  Not surprisingly, many of those moments happened in the desert. It made us not only think of our time in the Indian desert, but other surreal moments in our travels that happened in deserts around the world.

What are they.

Check this out…Dave and Deb’s Surreal travel moments in the Desert

The grand Desert of Peru

1. Being left in the desert. It was odd. We had a difficult time with our camel safari and guide and after a bit of a tiff, he finally agreed to find us another camel so that we could actually ride them through the Thar desert instead of being led by him walking in front of us.  The surreal part came while we were waiting.  A man walked out from behind a shrub in dress shoes and full suit.   He had come to give us information on our camel. His cell phone rang, our guide and him talked and then the two of them walked off into the sand dunes while we were left behind with two camels and a goat.

2. Watching a major motion picture in the middle of the desert.  The camel man asked us if we would mind if some doctors came to meet us during our safari.  They wanted to have dinner in the desert.  No problem we said.  As soon as the sun went down, a bunch of headlights shone in the distance.  About 40 surgeons and students arrived with wine, whiskey and beer.  They brought along a generator and as we sat around the camp fire being served finger foods on a platter, The 3 Idiots movie started up on a big screen projector.  We had front row seats to India’s hottest movie in history. That night was definitely up there as the most surreal moment in our travels.

A Movie in the Desert, now that's Surreal

3. Walking with the Indian Army on camel back.  We had been on safari for 2 days.  As we turned a corner we saw dozens of troops doing maneurvers in the desert.  They were out practicing their GPS.  These are highly trained soldiers that take part in combat. They are always on high alert with Pakistan and the desert border is a hot spot.  We distracted them so much that they didn’t get any work done.  They walked along side us asking us about Canada, the weather and how we liked India.  One squad kept getting into trouble and had to be reprimanded by their captain.  They ran off into the desert only to be caught by us again a while later.  Eventually, all the troops were together and they took off running followed by their trucks and supplies.  We never saw them again. Very Surreal.

Soldiers during our camel safari, very surreal

4. Almost being left Behind in Vietnam’s Sand Dunes. While traveling through Vietnam, we had to see the famous sand dunes of Mui Ne. For our tour, we were sold on the fact that we could go sand boarding on the dunes. We were excited to give it a try. It turned out that once we got to the dunes they didn’t bring any boards.  When we complained, the guide was so angry that he threatened to leave us behind. That was the time I learned to never accuse someone from Asia of lying.  Luckily an local NGO was on our tour and smoothed things over.  We had to go through an entire ceremony of me apologizing to him in front of the entire group to save face. Finally he agreed to let us back in the jeep and take us home. Whew. Not only a surreal travel moment, but a scary one as well.

5. Having high artillery pointed at us in The Sudan. We were traveling by bicycle through the desert in the Sudan and were escorted by armed guards all the way through.  We didn’t see them often, because our group was so spread out, but once a truck pulled up in front of Dave and I.  2 guys were in the back standing behind truck mounted high caliber machine guns.  These things could take out a plane.  The truck road in front of us and the guys had their guns pointed at us.  They were smiling and waving, but all we could see was the barrel of these guns. We just prayed that their fingers wouldn’t slip.

Many surreal moments cycling Africa

6. A loudspeaker conversation in Egypt. Once again, we were riding our bike through the desert in Egypt.  A patrol man pulled up beside us and started having a conversation with us.  He would speak into his microphone and it came out of the loudspeakers mounted above the truck.  Where are you from? How do you like Egypt? What are your names? He bellowed.  We shouted back the answers between our breaths.  It was a difficult day and we faced headwinds the entire time. The conversation eventually dwindled, but he kept giving us updates every 500 meters.  Only 5 km to camp….4km to camp…4.5 km to camp.  It was surreal.  When we finally got to camp, we shook his hand and thanked him for keeping our spirits up.

Support Trucks in the distance of Sudanese Desert

7. Stern Warning in Peru’s Desert. We didn’t eve know that Peru had a desert until we traveled there.  But it has a giant desert and some of the highest dunes in the world. We were on our way to dune buggy through those giant sand dunes. It was a festive occasion. Suddenly policemen pull up beside us on 3 wheelers.  They have a heated argument with our driver. They yell for awhile and then the police turn to us and tell us that we should not go with them.  Driving in the desert is dangerous and we are risking our safety.  They then leave and we are left with our driver.  He doesn’t speak English and we don’t speak Spanish. Another girl on the tour tells us that some tourist were killed last week in a dune buggy accident.  We want out now, but instead we all get back in and go on our merry way dune buggying through the dunes.  It was a crazy ride, but we made it in one piece.

8. Aborting our Takeoff at Kilimanjaro Airport. O.K., it may not be a proper desert, but it was dry enough that a giant sandstorm came in just as we were in the middle of our take off.  We were barrelling down the runway when the plane started fishtailing.  They brakes came on and we came to a halt.  The next thing we knew a thick dark cloud of sand goes through rocking the plane.  The captain announces that we had to abort the take off due to a sand storm, but everything is fine now. He starts the engines and off we go.  We wonder if it is safe to fly with all that sand in the engine.  We hold our breath the entire way to Zanzibar.

Travel can be filled with hairy situations. Sometimes you just have to go with the flow and embrace the strange, scary and yes, surreal experiences.

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Top 10 Fears about Cycling Through Africa

We were talking the other day about all of the things that we were afraid of before we left for Africa. We had traveled around the world before, but this was something completely different. After all, it was going to be our first time camping in the desert and in the jungle, it was going to be our first time stepping foot on the African soil and it was our first time ever crossing an entire continent on bicycle.  We were in for quite and adventure.

Starting Line of our Cycle Through Africa

It is funny to think of all of the irrational fears that we had before leaving. Well, I should say that I had. Dave tends to go with the flow better than me, but that is not to say he wasn’t curious on how we were going to deal with problems that would arise.

So without further adieu, here are some fears that we had about camping and cycling our way down Africa, what we encountered and how we dealt with them.

On the Road in Egypt

1 – Fear of being chased by wild animals.  This happened to us on more than one occasion. Packs of wild dogs chased us in Egypt and they managed to hold on for quite a while. Luckily, we saw them coming. They hung out in fields and started chasing us as we passed. Normally we had enough momentum going so we could stay one step ahead of them. I don’t know what we would have done if they had chased us on an uphill.

Dave was also chased by baboons.  They ran along with him for a fair amount of time, but once again, he managed to outrun them. It sounds pretty funny to be chased by baboons, but they can be very vicious so it is a good thing Dave was in pretty good shape during that part of the trip. All in all, we came through the trip unscathed.

A Nice Baboon in Ethiopia

2. Peeing in Public. Ok, I was just looking for an excuse to write the word pee on my blog. But this really was a concern. I had heard that in Ethiopia especially that it was very populated and if you had to go, you wouldn’t have a lot of privacy. I was considering carrying a sarong with me so that if I had to squat in public, I would at least be covered up.  However, this never was an issue.  There was plenty of deserted areas to duck behind a tree or a mound of dirt.  I must admit though that in Ethiopia it was very crowded and you didn’t have a lot of time before people came out of the middle of nowhere. So, you just had to do your business quickly.

A Tent for Privacy in Ethiopia

3. Dealing with snakes and insects while doing your business.  Yes, I see a theme…going to the Toilet is always and issue.  We had to get out of our tents in the middle of the night and find a safe place to go.  Surprisingly, I never worried much about it by the time we camped in long grass and bushes. I guess it is because through Egypt and Sudan we started off in Deserts. We became numb to any worries after a month or so, therefore, when I when I went to do my deed, I never worried about it.  I did however make a lot of noise walking so, I am assuming that snakes and other creepy crawlies would have been more afraid of me, than I was of them.

Lot's of Crashes, Luckily we weren't a Part of any

4. Crashing. Traffic can be brutal in cities and on highways and I was pretty concerned about being taken out by a car. It ended up not being the cars we had to worry about, but the tour buses and transports. In Egypt buses would zoom passed us on the highways without a care in the world. They would also drive straight for us from the opposite direction seemingly wanting to run us off of the road. They did a couple of times, but if you kept your head about you, you just simply drove onto the shoulder to wait for them to go by.  There were a few crashes on the trip, one person broke their collarbone, one had a concussion, there were several stitches, but Dave and I were lucky with the fact that we didn’t have any major falls.  The only one that took me out of commission for 10 days was a minor scratch from a silly little fall that ended up getting infected.

My Knee Infection Slowly Healing

5- Surprisingly infection was never on our list, but it is a very real fear now. Several people caught serious staff infections and cellulitus. We were riding in the rainy season in Tanzania and Malawi, so even mosquito bites were causing severe problems. But that was not a fear of ours until we were in the middle of Africa.  A word to the wise.  If you are in Africa during the wet season and you have a cut that doesn’t even seem like it should matter, Don’t ignore it.  Clean it and disinfect it, anything can become infected in a matter of 24 hours.

An Elephant in Chobe National Park, Luckily not in our Camp

6. Having Wild Animals surround our camps. We were camping right through the heart of Chobe National Park in Botswana and in forests in Ethiopia, but we never had a problem at night. We didn’t have electric fences or armed guards, we were just a little traveling community of campers pulling off at the side of roads or in clearings.  We saw signs like a elephant dung all over the place, so we knew that a herd of elephants had passed through, but we never had the occasion of anything entering our camp.  Oh except for Hyena’s surrounding us in Ethiopia, but they kept their distance. Just don’t wander off with your shovel to do your business too far in the middle of the night.

Relaxing at the Crater Lake with Usual Crowd of Children

7. Rocks being thrown at us in Ethiopia. This is a very real fear and it is well known that Ethiopian children like to throw rocks at cyclists.  You can read all about it at my post at Brave New Traveler.

Our Bikes at Sunset

8. Contaminated Water. We were going to be riding through very dry and remote countries. We really haven’t ever had to worry about water before, you can buy bottled water nearly everywhere. Well, not in Sudan.  Our trucks would stop and fill up at wells in towns and then purify our supply with tablets.  Well, when drinking your water this way for 4 months you are bound to have a parasite or two sneak through and I had 3 different kinds accompany me back to Canada. I swear I still haven’t recovered.

Water stops in Sudan

9. Bandits. We have all heard about robberies and muggings and when you are cycling all alone for 120km each day, you would think that you would be pretty vulnerable.  I especially cycled alone more than a lot of people. I was racing, but I wasn’t fast enough to keep up with the men’s peloton and I didn’t want to hang back with the expedition riders, so I was alone with no one in sight for hours on end.  Only once did I worry a little about being robbed and that was when I was exhausted on a day in Ethiopia.  I had a group of teenagers walking along with me harassing me, slapping me and grabbing at my things.  One huge yell at them though and they left me alone.  I also managed to find some extra energy to get back on my bike and ride up that epic hill that I much rather would have walked.

10. Living in Filth and Sweat. I sweat a lot, I mean buckets and after a workout, the first thing I need is a shower. Otherwise I become itchy and my skin stings and I am just generally uncomfortable.  I burn easily too and whenever I am at the beach, sand stings my skin if I have gotten too much sun.

That is one Dirty Dave

In Sudan and Ethiopia, we were sun burnt and hot. Sand would stick to our skin mixed with sweat and we went for up to 6 days without access to water. We had enough water in the trucks to drink and cook with and that was it.  The rest of the time we were on water rations and were not allowed to use it to bathe or clean.  It was unbelievable, but I became used to being dirty. My skin toughened up and I didn’t even care that I couldn’t shower. If we had any water leftover in our water bottles at the end of the day, we were allowed to dump that over our heads, and that was really all that we needed.  When we had days off, we would shower once, but if we had a second day off we would say, “why bother, I just showered yesterday!”

So after our adventures in Africa, we feel that we will be able to handle anything that the world can throw at us during our next travel. Or at least we are ready to face our fears head on.

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Toronto’s Garbage Strike, A Reminder of our Global Plastic Problem

In Toronto we have banned plastic bags. It is now the law. Stores cannot give you a plastic bag to carry your goods home. If you need one, you have to pay 5 cents per bag. Most people now do their shopping with eco-friendly reusable shopping bags. When shopping, merchants have to ask you if you want a bag. If you do, there is a fee. All stores have this law. No exceptions. It is a step in the right direction.

We are also going through a garbage strike and parks and parking lots are being used as temporary dumps. It is very unsightly and embarrassing and really shows how much waste the human race makes.

It got me to thinking about our time in Cambodia. One thing that we noticed while there was how much garbage and plastic was everywhere. Downtown at the waterfront of Phnom Penh, the grounds of the Royal Palace are impeccable, but walk to the river and look over its banks and you will see garbage everywhere. Make your way off of a main street and you will see plastic bags strewn all over the streets.

Plastic, the worst invention to hit our planet is taking its toll on the world. While once people used to pack their takeaway in banana leaves, they now toss them in a plastic bag. They drink out of plastic bags with a straw and when they are done, they throw it over the ledge into the water.

When we were in Sudan, thorn trees were covered with plastic bags. These urban tumbleweeds would blow in the wind and get caught in the trees.  They were covered to the point that it looked like a spring bloom, only with garbage. I remember riding along the Nile River and all I could think was how awful that garbage is everywhere, that people just throw their trash on the ground and keep walking.  but what other choice do they have. There aren’t garbage can’s or trash pickup?

sudan plastic bags in trees

While plastic has made lives easier it has certainly caused severe environmental damage.  What an evil invention.

I recently read in the Phnom Penh Post that most students didn’t realize that plastic wasn’t biodegradable and had a long term effect on the environment.

We shouldn’t think that we are all high and mighty here in Canada. The West isn’t any better, we are just better at hiding it. But now in the middle of a garbage strike, we can see exactly how much waste we produce. Just because it is being hidden in dumps, doesn’t mean that there isn’t a serious problem.

Last year, America spent 15 billion dollars on bottled water. How many plastic bottles is that? We don’t need to drink bottled water in North America, all of our water is potable and studies have shown that bottled water isn’t even regulated and that you can’t be sure what you are drinking. And yet, we keep drinking out of plastic bottles.

In Toronto, we are trying to fix the problem a little bit at a time. Most offices have banned bottled water and people are cutting down; making a point to drink out of the tap. I see people carrying around refillable bottles and my work at Corus Entertainment has even stopped supplying disposable coffee cups. I am sure that most other places have done the same.

It’s not going to fix everything, goods are still packaged in plastic, people still drink from straws and while many people are refusing to drink bottled water, many people are still of the mindset that it is somehow better for you. But with baby steps change can happen, let’s hope that change will happen soon before it is too late.

Let us know. What steps has your city made to start fighting the environmental problems that the world is facing?

To check out more on the bottled water and privatization of water click here

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Inspiration Through the Eyes of Two Travelers

Recently we were invited to write a post for Velvet Escape regarding people that have inspired us on our travels. We have another post coming out today at CheapOair about our time in Bali, and it brought back memories of our instructor Ronald who was also an inspiration.

It was a topic that really made me think about all of the people that I have met on the road and how I have taken so much for granted while I am at home. In an earlier post this week, I touched on the subject, and now, in honor of our post appearing at VelvetEscape and at cheapOair’s blog today, I have been thinking again about the people that have inspired me.

Hard Roads in Ethiopia

Africa was one of our toughest travels to date. We cycled through some of the most brutal conditions the world could throw at us for 120 days.  We would cycle through the desert for 6 days in a row without showering, without cold water and without a comfortable soft bed. We cycled through some of the poorest countries in the world and since we were riding for a charity, we had the opportunity to visit developmental projects to see the work that is being done to help.  We also witnessed first hand the hardships that many people face and the want and need to make a better life.

Upon my return home, I was amazed with the little things.  When I opened my fully stocked refrigerator to to make a meal I thought of the people that I met that don’t even have a refrigerator. As I rinsed my fresh vegetables under my cold running water, I thought about the people of Ethiopia and Malawi that have to walk for kilometres on end to fetch water from the local well; the only source of fresh clean water around.  I think of the people that work in the backbreaking heat tending their crops and the people that can’t just go to the corner store because they don’t feel like cooking dinner this evening.

I can’t deny that I have guilt.  I am not special, I was just born in a rich country given everything that I could need from the day I was born.  I am not a rich person, but living in Canada, you do not have to be rich, to live a rich life.

Dave and I often discuss this idea. Who “up there” decides who will be born in luxury and who will be born in poverty.  When we were in Cambodia, we had a hard time accepting ourselves and felt guilty for being who we are.  The world is not a fair place and travel opens our eyes to it on a very real and deep level.

I am not saying that all people that we meet on our travels suffer.  Many are happy and healthier than people here. We have ended up meeting truly inspiring people through our travels and here are some of the  moments that have touched us the most while we have been on the road.

An artist works at his craft funded through Microfinance

1. In Cairo’s poorest neighborhood Plan Canada took us to see what was being done to help. The people of the inner city were so proud to show us the progress they have made. We visited a micro-finance shop. Talented craftsmen showed us their businesses that they built from the ground up and were now making a living carving beautiful pieces of art and furniture. They had big plans and I am sure that they will fulfill all of their goals.

Gate to Cambodia

2. In Cambodia, we stopped in Kampot and taught English for an evening. The teacher was so proud of his accomplishment. A local villager, he earned 2 dollars for the evening and asked us if we could help him because some of his pronunciations were not good because English was his second language. All we did was help people pronounce words properly, he did all of the teaching, but it was a moving experience.  The pride that everyone felt that evening was unshakable. The students were proud to show off their grasp of the English Language, the Teacher was proud of his important job that was making a difference and their joy and determination rubbed off of us as we felt a certain pride in being able to help in our own small way.

Tea at Inle Lake

3. At Inle lake in Myanmar, we met an extraordinary girl. She invited us into her house and showed us photographs of her mother as as we sipped tea with her grandmother. We talked the afternoon away and she asked for nothing in return.  We were just two people walking along the canal that she happened to want to talk to and our hearts were lifted as we listened to the hardships of her life, but also the dreams that she has and what she has accomplished already.

A quiet moment in Wadi Halfa

4. Wadi Halfa Sudan- we weren’t supposed to be here.  We were simply supposed to get off the ferry from Egypt and move on the next day. But as luck would have it, our support truck was stuck at customs and we had to spend another day in this dried up town on the edge of lake Nassar. It was the next morning when we were walking through the streets that a man invited us to have breakfast with him.  He fed us a hearty meal and kept the sweet tea coming.  As we ate he talked to us of the town. How it was once lush and green and beautiful, but when the Egyptians built the Aswan Dam, they cut off all of the water coming in from the Nile and people ended up moving away.  He was a retired professor in Khartoum and had now moved home to rebuild his life here in Wadi Halfa, people are slowly coming back, but there is a long way to go.  When we tried to pay for our breakfast, he waved us off and that was the first of many experiences in Sudan where people have so little to give, and yet they give so much without a thought.

Dave with students in Malawi

5. Malawi- One of the poorest nations in Africa made famous by Madonna of late. We had the chance to visit a school.  We were greeted with music and singing and smiling faces. This school was a success story in a land that needs so much and the community was so proud to show us their accomplishments.  Their was a well, a soy bean field a playground and several buildings for classrooms.  Teachers and students came out on their day off to give us a tour and talk to us about what was going on.  Children from the village have gone on to university, recieved scholarships and jobs.  Children are monitored for malnourishment and they are not only taught lessons in school, they are taught how to tend the soy bean field and take care of crops. I saw pure joy in the faces of everyone and the success of the community could be felt in the energy all around us.

Check out this wonderful series that has had incredible contributors and we are honored to be included alongside such great writers as journeywoman, MyFolieaDeux and WildJunket, SoloTraveler, Travelogged and AfricaFreak

And find out about travel destinations from other great guest bloggers at CheapOair.

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Favorite Food From Traveling the World, So Far

Jen Laceda of My Folie A Deux takes amazing pictures of her travels.  It is her food photographs that not only made very hungry, but also got me thinking about what were some of our favorite meals while we were traveling.

One of the best things about traveling is food. Dave and I seem to plan our days around our meals.  We wake up in the morning and while we are eating our breakfast, we discuss what we are going to have and where we are going to go for dinner.  We love food. Food makes us happy. And when we discover new and delicious food around the world, well, we are in heaven.

We thought that we would share some of our favorite dishes from some of the countries that we have visited.  There hasn’t been many things that we are not willing to try. We have eaten bugs in Cambodia, Snake in Vietnam and Springbock in Malawi.  We have had mystery meat in Sudan and many times we try dishes when we have no idea what we are eating.  We love sampling foods of the world though, it is rare that we try a dish that we cannot stomach. It certainly makes traveling more enjoyable that is for sure.

Ethiopia ……Spicey meat and veggie stews served atop Injera. A type of flatbread made with fermented flour. You rip off a piece of bread and scoop up the stew with your hands.  I just love eating with my hands.  There is something about diving in to your food and grabbing a handful of hearty meats and vegetables.  Meals are just so much more fun when you eat with your hands.  And Wat stews with injera are heavenly delicious.

Authentic Cuisine in Addis Ababa

Peru….. Ceviche – It really doesn’t sound like it would be the best dish on earth, but this fresh fish meal marinated in citrus juice is delicious. Here is my first taste of Ceviche while in Peru.

In South Africa we just couldn’t eat enough. We had finally finished cycling from Cairo to Cape Town and we needed to make up for months of eating on the road. It was in the wine region in Franschoek that we splurged on a meal at one of the country’s top ten restaurants.  I never thought that I would like Ox Tail, but the chef made it taste so good.  We had an OxTail Pate rolled in Filo Pastry with a perfectly cooked steak piled high on fresh greens and wild mushrooms. Elegant and delicious.

Winery in Franscheok

Oxtail with foam gravy

Laap in Laos – A spicy meat meat salad made with lime juice, mint and chillies. This was our first meal that we ate when we got off of the bus from Vietnam to Vientiane. After 24 hours on a bus, it was pure heaven.

Swiss Fondue, Raclette, Cheese Platters….- Cheese, Cheese and More cheese. We just love cheese. In Switzerland it was everywhere and we took advantage of eating their delectable cheeses every chance we had.

Cheese Fondue, Switzerland

Bali and Sudanese CoffeeAfrica is the birthplace of coffee and it was the best place in the world to drink it. Every chance we had we would stop for a roadside coffee.

Our Barrista, Making us Fresh Roadside Coffee

Africa may have been the birthplace of coffee, but Bali certainly knew how to perfect it. We loved their coffee so much that we took several bags home with us.  It was so sad when we drank our last cup. We need to find a way to get a shipment to Canada.

Egypt - an Authentic Bedouin Meal in Egypt. Sure it was served on plastic containers, but it was delicious and what a way to eat it in the middle of the desert in a Bedouin camp.  Our guides cooked over an open flame, served us plenty of sweet tea and cooked up great red stews and meats, potatoes, rice and pita bread. Yummy

Our Guide cooking over open flame

So there you have it, Our favorite foods of the world so far. Sure we have other favorites out there. Thai Green curry is one of my favorite dishes on earth. I can eat Sushi every day and I love Vietnamese Pho. A savory duck roasted in France and Schnitzel while in Germany are a must and quesadillas and tortillas are a must in Central America. But foods  listes above seem to stand out in our memories as not only great meals, but fun situations and unique experiences.

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