The Wanderings of busman7

Time is slowly passing down to 53 days & finally have had a couple days of summer but Canada has completely lost it’s appeal for me & can’t wait to leave.

Not much going on was hoping the Chinese summer camp would give me a few days work with my small bus but as of last week it was still on hold due to the swine flu “pandemic” (bunch of idiots at WHO).

Passport back, 18 extra photos for visa’s in hand so some time in the  couple weeks have go into the big smoke with the applications for the ones I need to get before leaving (the services charge outrageous fees) India, Mongolia & Russia with a stop at Mountain Equipment while in town to pick up fall weather gear & a collapsible hiking staff.

When I tried to book the 3 day camp in Greenland found trip was sold out for my time frame but was able to book a couple short tours to substitute. As the Greenland camp being sold out I immediately booked the Nepal trek from Kathmandu to Lhasa guess the rule is see some thing you want book it now as it might not be available later.

August should pass fairly quickly as there will be a trip the Carlisle Pennsylvania Truck  Show Aug 7-9 for more Scout parts & possibly on to Springfield Ohio to Super Scout if I can’t find everything in Carlisle. Then on Aug 13 Stompin’ Tom is preforming at the Scotiabank Place in Ottawa which I can’t miss. Seven days later it’s a nght at an airport hotel for an early morning flight the scenic route to Iceland via Montreal + NYC & the adventure continues!

06:08  domingo 14 juin  2009

Under a shade tree where birds, he so liked to dine on, roost at night & sing in the morning, in the hedgerow of a laneway between two hayfields where squirrels, chipmunks & rabbits he so loved to hunt scamper during their daily rounds, his earthly remains can rest in the peace he so richly deserves. In this place I just laid to rest Señor Gato, my best friend of the last 10 years.

His life was too short but lived to the fullest. It’s a long way from being abandoned in  Bowmanville alley as a small kitten to a farm near Woodville with the good years spent being boss of the bus shop in Pontypool.

Rescued from a cold alley in January 2000 by one of my drivers who along with another decided I needed a companion in the new shop I was building. So the two of them shared raising him in his first months. Once the shop was up he was delivered to the country where he wasn’t impressed the fist couple days but soon revelled in his newfound freedom. It was soon evident that to have any peace I needed to install cat doors between the office, shop, upstairs apartment & the outside.

For eight years a typical day would start around 3 in the morning with a hunt (unless it was too cold in winter) followed at 5am summer 4am winter (he didn’t do DST) by  walking over me then sticking a cold nose in my face. During the day between naps it was necessary to check out every vehicle in the shop & have a short nap in each but when shop was noisy a nap in a bus outside would suffice between hunts. Of course when anybody came into the office it was imperative to come in & try to get on their lap & the dirtier his feet were the better. Finally in the evening it was a short nap on my lap, one last hunt of the day & stretch out on the bed.

There was the time the neighbour’s dogs attacked him & he spent the night at the vet’s ($500), the odd time he would get locked in the rental unit or a bus for the night & a few times I went on a trip (which he didn’t like) but other than that we spent eight good years together every day. Saw the company grow to it’s maximum size & then the final year of downsizing. He stood by me when during the downsizing an employee I had befriended abandoned me at a time I really need a friend.

However the last year he was not a happy camper as he didn’t like the move to the farm at all, never went out during the day & only a couple minutes at night so he didn’t have to use the litter box. Then during my 6 month trip he stayed in the walkout basement of the farm house where he did service as resident mouser but grew fatter due to lack of exercise, not only in the winter but the previous summer as well. Gave me the cold shoulder for a couple days after I returned then returned to being his pain in the butt self.

Not sure what happened as when the vet checked him out last year when giving him his $100 rabies shot he was pronounced fit (a bit over weight) but OK to travel south. He showed no signs of sickness & had a good appetite, was even outside with me for while when I was reading beside the motor home. When I came back in he was on the floor where he had tried to jump up on his favourite chair but didn’t make it, must have been a heart attack. At least he didn’t suffer.

During the night I dreamed he crawled out of the bag he was in shook himself & was OK. This I interpret as his spirit leaving his body & he is now in cat heaven

So long Decker you will always be remembered.

Had to modify the title as was getting a lot of spam from travel agents LOL

Although planning an RTW must be done personally with hours of research there comes a point when a good travel agent can be of immense help in pulling it all together & arranging the tourist visas that need to be acquired before leaving. “Wings & Waves” in Lindsay is one such agency + they can supply RBC insurance.

Last week we pretty much got it together with the rail portion in Scandinavia & Russia. The major concern was doing all the travel I wanted & still arrive in Kathmandu in time for the last trek to Lhasa on Oct 24.

I was also advised to book the flights found on different sites ASAP as prices were better than the agent had on his booking site. This was good advise as when on returning home to book them I found that “Flight Network” which 2 weeks previously showed 4 flights from Toronto to Iceland on Aug 21 at a very good price now only had 2. When trying  to book the one I wanted on Lan it wouldn’t go through. Upon calling was informed the flight was full but there was 2 seats left on another one with 2 stops, it was either book that one or wait another week for the good price again so it is now booked.

It appears with the economy the way it is when you find a good price for your destination book it before it disappears.

Also found that my super cheap price from Nuuk to Copenhagen doubled when all the taxes & surcharges were added in but still not a bad price.

All is pretty well set now for the first months only have to wait until 45 days to buy the Russian tickets. On good thing is that the Scandinavian rail pass I am using is good for 5 days travel in 2 months so I can use it in Denmark upon arrival from Greenland on my way to Amsterdam.

Schedule is a bit tighter than I like with not much room for spur of the moment changes until Tibet but will make up for that in SE Asia. Just hope that the fact my first flight is on Air Canada (did I mention that I hate that airline) doesn’t jinx the whole trip.

This is the plan Aug 21 AC to Montreal, AA to New York City, Iceland Air to Iceland   YYZ-YUL-JFK-KEF  then my original itinerary to Oslo.

Sept 14  tour Oslo

”     15  train t Stockholm                                 7 1/2 hrs

”     16  tour Stockholm

”      17-18   train via Lapland to Helsinki       26 1/2 hrs

“      19  train to St Petersburg                          7 1/4 hrs

”      20-21  tour St Petersburg  midnight train to Moscow  8 hrs

”       22-27  Trans Mongolian to Ulan-Bator  102 hrs

”       28  tour Ulan-Bator

”       29  Trans-Mongolian return to Ulan-Ude    17 hrs

“       30-Oct 3  Trans-Siberian  to Vladivostok     64 1/2 hrs

Oct 4  Vladivostok

”       5-7  Ferry to Fushiki Japan

”       8  train to Tokyo

”       9-12  tour Japan

”        13  NRT-DEL  on JAL   8 hrs

”        14-23  tour Delhi, Taj Mahal etc & make my way to Kathmandu

”         24-31  trek Kathmandu - Lhasa

Nov 1   Wing it for 5-6 months China & SE Asia

Have pretty much decided on my plan to make my way to London for the first flight of my RTW ticket.

Again I must thank the guys at BootsnAll for their invaluable help especially Hydro & whalewatcher, both responded quickly with excellent info. Also BootsnAll Adventure travel section has been a big help on a couple tours that are a good bargain.

http://www.seat61.com also had great info on train travel + the only good link I found for a trek from Kathmandu Nepal to Lhasa Tibet.

Having lived in Quebec back in the day when we had real winter weather & worked in Northern Alberta, if you have never lain in a snow bank at –40 changing a U-joint in your KW (you broke it you fix it, had to love those Henuset Bros. LOL) you are not a truck driver. Never mind chaining up your tandems along with one wheel on your steering axle + one on the trailer. Then throw in a couple winter trips to Hay River NWT & Ft Nelson BC looking for work, I figure might as well see the rest of the North Country.

Figure Iceland, Greenland, Lapland, Siberia this fall followed by Alaska next June should do it then never any where below freezing ever again.

New start date will be Aug 21 as that’s the first date of lower air fares to Iceland where will have 5 days to see a bit of that country http://www.re.is before moving on to Nuuk Greenland for a day to take a whale watching tour then it’s off to Ilulissat for a 3 day camping trip before returning to the capitol then heading off to Copenhagen on Sept 3.

Sept 4 – 12 make my way (train, bus, ferry?) from Copenhagen thru Amsterdam to Birmingham area to meet a couple online friends before catching my flight to Oslo on the 13th. May seem like a kind of strange way to do it but to keep with One World rules for the cheapest RTW + the $287.30 CAD price of the Nuuk to Copenhagen flight just couldn’t resist it.

Why do a simple YYZ-LHR flight when you can do the following?

YYZ-JFK-KEF-GOH-JSU-SFJ-JAV-GOH-SFJ-CPH

stupid holidays that change dates yearly.

Had planned on taking in the Scout Nationals in Springfield Ohio again this year & picking up the last of the parts needed for my Scout & the paint but with the Labour-day holiday being late this year the Nationals end on the day of my first flight so NO Nationals this year.

Oh well might be a blessing in disguise as now have 3 weeks to play with to get to London as low season fares start the end of Aug & Nationals will still be there next year (with this economy maybe).

Revised plan is fly Toronto to Reykjavik Iceland tour around a bit then over to Nuun Greenland for a bit then there is a great priced flight to Copenhagen from where I can make my way by rail back to London via the Netherlands, Belgium & Luxembourg (that were giving me itinerary problems anyway).

As Greenland is a tad expensive to travel in due to the lack of roads & first hand info sparse, if anyone has any must see’s there I would appreciate hearing from you.

 That goes for the whole trip. Hugh has already given me his views on things to see & do around Germany like the trip along the Rhine that I hadn’t thought of & should be a reasonable price,which is the kind of info that’s helpful as guide books are only a starting point.

I have an RTW ticket in my hand with a start date 4 months from today Sept 13, 2009 first flight departing London’s Heathrow 08:00 on BA 762 to Oslo. That date is set in stone but all onward flights open jaw just have to be back in London in 12 months.

Anyone interested in an RTW don’t even waste your time going to a travel agent because as mine said “it’s not worth it” meaning too time consuming for the compensation. Solution do it yourself by starting at the Flyer Talk forum; http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/global-airline-alliances-391

It’s going to take a bit of work & time just to figure out what they are talking about as they use airport codes & terminology but unlike most forums the information is valid & th forum hassle factor nil & in the end you will have a tailor made itinerary with the satisfaction of having done it yourself, it will take time & won’t be easy but then nothing worthwhile in life ever is.

I used the One World alliance & the Explorer 4 continent package because it fit the trip I wanted the best & AA (my favorite airline) is in that alliance while AC (which I hate) is in Sky Team. Some swear by Star Treks but for my itinerary they were a $1000 more than OW.

http://www.oneworld.com

 I also found booking through AA was cheapest as was originating the flight in London with the added bonus that Canadians (only) can pay for the ticket at the AA counter at Pearson in Canadian funds. If doing so (for an out of country point of origin) be prepared for a long wait (took me 3 1/2 hrs) as the computer software won’t print the tickets & the agent had to hand write them. Hey it works & I now have tickets for 4 months away at the price I like otherwise would have had to wait until I arrived in London to pay the price at that time.

LHR-OSL//NRT-DEL//SIN-PER//MEL-AKL-SYD-HNL-LAX//SEA-ORD-YYZ-LHR

My itinerary, dates changeable free, destinations changeable but with a healthy fee, is;     1) make my way to London by Sept 13, possibly via Iceland & Greenland

2) London to Oslo then a 5 day Scanrail pass taking me to St Petersburg via Lapland

3) a couple days in St Petersburg then onto Moscow & The Trans-Siberian to Vladavostock with stops at Lake Baikal & a detour to Ulan Bator (travel agent presently working on this so subject to slight changes) nonstop train 7 days

4) Ferry to Japan with a couple day lay over (Japan expensive) then flight to Delhi 9 1/2 hrs, visit Taj Mahal then train to Kathmandu (have absolutely no interest in touring India so see Taj & make tracks for Nepal

5) Once in Kathmandu arrange for overland tour via Everest to Lhasa (web sites not accurate & weather unknown so make arrangements on site)

6) Here we start the follow the wind section, have no time frame for anything except finish up Beijing area & Great Wall & head for the warm weather ASAP, have contacts at 4 different schools in China for things to see in area. side-trips to Korea & Philippines planed & make way mainly by rail through Hong Kong, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia & Thailand (Siam) making sure to visit Angkor Wat, Hell Fire Pass & of course The Bridge over the River Kwai. Since the unconventional is the norm & I will be just next door a flight (can’t enter by land) to Myanmar (Burma) is a must, besides a traveler I met in Panama assured me it’s great & they really need the tourist dollars due to the scare propaganda of the Western media

7) Next will make my way to Bali & wherever in Indonesia I hear is worth seeing then back to Singapore for the flight to Perth Australia where will get an Australian rail pass or ticket whichever is cheaper to Alice Springs then there is a 30 day “Rock & Reef” tour at a reasonable price that takes in Ayers Rock up to Darwin across to Cairns the Barrier Reef & down to Sydney where I will make my way over to Melbourne hopefully a trip to Tasmania. Then over to Auckland New Zealand for a week or so depending on reports from fellow travelers even possibly Fifi.

Back to Sydney for flight to Honolulu for a day or two then Los Angeles up to Seattle some how & either find cheap flight to Anchorage & cruise down the inside passage or cruise both ways. Have to take a side trip to Vancouver/Victoria to visit relatives. I will now have accomplished one goal, visited all 50 US states.

9) Back to Toronto for whatever-time is left until Sept & the end of my 12 months

10) Once back in London knowing what is left in my budget (if anything) I will proceed with a rail tour of the UK, Central Europe a stop in Vienna is a must on to Istanbul, Syria, Jordan, Israel a 21 day tour of Egypt over to Athens, Rome then rail through Southern France, Spain onto my finish in Marrakesh & back to where ever how ever.

Of course there is still all of South America & Easter Island but can do all that from home base in Antigua Guatemala once I have driven my restored Scout there via the 2450 mile “Will Rogers Highway” US Route 66  from Lake Shore Drive in Chicago IL  to ALT US 101 in Santa Monica CA.

http://www.disordered.org/travel/US/AZ/Vette.jpg

http://www.theroadwanderer.net/route66.htm

Back in Canada 9 days now & feels like I am putting time in purgatory until the next adventure!

The trip back was fairly smooth, caught the 07:30 water taxi back to Belize City then a cab for the 1/2 hr ride to the airport for the exorbitant price of $25.00 US. then another 1/2 hr wait for the check-in personnel to finish a meeting, could have caught the 08:30 taxi, oh well check-in was smooth then pay the $35.00 US departure tax, why do they bother having their own money when they want everything in US? guess bills with the Queens picture aren’t worth much anywhere.

Good flight, about 95% full, with AA as always, regular flight so lots of legroom, don’t know how I ever stood those cattle-car charters, free pop & juice $6.00 for beer yikes!! Do to good ole “homeland security” upon landing in Miami had to collect luggage even though it was checked through but don’t have to take it through customs just take it a couple hundred ft & give it back to AA DUH!! Found the Spanish influence again in Miami as 95% of staff at airport were from that community so one last taste.

Then Immigration, now on the travel forums there is always questions about a Canadian entering the US with a Cuban stamp on your passport & all kinds of speculation & uninformed answers. Now I landed in Miami  6 months after leaving Ft Lauderdale with stamps for Mexico, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama a couple each for Belize, Guatemala + one for Cuba, Immigration man went straight to the Cuba one & wanted to know if I had cigars or anything when I answered no he asked me to confirm nothing not even coffee, he then put his Homeland Security stamp right beside the Cuban on & wished me a good trip home, NO problem at all!

A 4 hr layover in Miami then another good flight the rest of the way on a full plane, again free pop & juice, snacks & wraps for sale $6 for chip & cheese or $10 for an unappetizing wrap, then marathon walk to Immigration at Pearson where no problems for a change & was even asked how the trip was & where I got my fancy colored carry on, don’t know how he slipped through the screening process for that job LOL. Then after 3 changes as to which carousel the luggage was coming on got it & through customs unchecked & out into the cold to await my ride who had parked off property to save parking fees.

Evidently 6 months in Latin America is enough to make to make one suffer culture shock as for me Canada is lacking so much that has become important that my 4+ months here will be an endurance test rather a time to enjoy as I am home sick for Antigua already, even if the rainy season is starting.

As mentioned in a previous post my packing list was 99% on & everything worked as advertised & expected. The 1% basically was a couple too many pair of socks for the tropics but won’t change as will be in cooler climate at the start of RTW, plug adapters were never used in CA & forgot my shake flash light however happened on a pen with a light in the top while in Antigua in Nov, it was really handy & lasted the rest of the trip with battery just about finished when I lost it on the ocean trip on the river boat. Only things different for RTW will be replace pen lite, purchase a collapsible walking stick for times like the 4 hr jungle hike at Tikal & take the pure wool hoody light jacket I bought in the Indigenous craft section of the Antigua market just before I left.

To sum up trip was successful beyond my wildest dreams, still have much to see in CA but will return to reside in Guatemala so plenty of time to explore more. Also learned my travel style is hostel & guest house so can plan & budget RTW with more accuracy.

Any questions I will be happy to answer just ask on blog or pm on bootsnall or ask on facebook hey I’m not hard to find & stay tuned for trivia throughout the summer & shall post my proposed RTW itinerary shortly.

Thanks for the interest

busman7 aka Dave en Espsñol David as Dave is hard for Spanish speakers to pronounce

It can’t be 6 months already?

 Darn it is!

One thing I forgot to include in a prior post is there no shortage of wealth in the Rio Dulce area, there are more vessels in that area, from all over the world, that are worth more than most people’s dream homes would cost. Most owned by grey haired couples but more than a few by a grey haired guy with a young Latino at his side & some of them with small children.

All in all a nice day here on Caye Caulker despite a short shower around noon & a bit overcast to lessen the noonday heat which was HOT, HOT yesterday, another place I liked & on return is still a favorite, different from Antigua & wouldn’t want to live here full time but a great getaway place. If money were no object then a place here & another in Antigua would fit the bill nicely. While all The Pacific coast is nice and especially in El Salvador there’s something about the Caribbean that’s lacking elsewhere.

Getting my last taste of Caribbean & Latin food, jerk chicken with rice 7 beans accompanied by potato salad at a small take-out with a couple outside tables that is frequented by locals & SPICEY we’re talking FIRE here baby LOL. Last night snapper in a coconut sauce, rice, coleslaw & free rum drink included. Then breaky of tortilla’s, eggs, ham, beans, salsa & fried plantain with fresh pineapple juice only problem after the great coffee in both Cuba & Guatemala it sucks big time here. Lunch at The Lazy Lizard at the split curry shrimp with congri & mashed potatoes (es Belize can’t figure out if they’re English or Central American LOL). Going to have a major problem adjusting to Blah Canadian  food as I know the days of good congri are done & no “frijoles negra”, what ever shall I do????

Another problem is that while there are a few native Spanish speakers from elsewhere here on the whole you get kind of strange looks when ordering in Spanish, darn people speak English here & it’s a culture shock!! This afternoon I replied no por favor one of the few street sellers & got a funny look, guess most old white dudes don’t answer in Spanish but just seemed natural to me, Yep English Canada  is going to be culture shock for sure!

Getting time to pack for the last time & head out for a last dinner, think will go back to “The Tropical Paradise” resort restaurant good food & Spanisn spoken, group of French speakers from Canada in there last night & one of the group ordered in Spanish as their English was negligible. Then one last tropical breakfast at the little place on the way to the dock that opens at 06:00

Edit, Rum Punch; Edit, Rum Punch; Edit edit: OK just back from cena at “The Tropical Paradise” where there was a free Rum Punch with the specials which tonight was BBQ chose the Shrimp-Ka-Bob which was to die for served with good ole rice & black beans with cole slaw followed by cherry-cheesecake helado whoops Belize now so that would be ice cream LOL & then a few more Rum Punche’s. so that’s the clincher, live in or near Antigua & holiday on Caye Caulker about $100 Us away, accommodation from $8 back-packer UP. Sorry Cuba but even Baracoa can’t hold a candle to the Caye + no body, nuca presona asked for (demanded) money!!

So trip is almost over except for the crying & some censored words &  it’s the 07:30 water taxi to the city in the morning, land taxi to the airport on to Miami & a 5 hr lay over until end up back at Pearson at 23:30. Going to be a loooong day!

Bueno busman go beddy-bye now, Buenos noches.

WOW what a day sure glad I decided to end my quest this way & ain’t NO way in hell you will catch me living in Crapanada again, only maybe short very short visits.

Trip down the river was great, Guatemala for such a small country has many different areas from the Pacific coast through the highlands & jungle around Tikal & Rio Dulce. On the collectivo lancha, basically a small bus on the water there were 12 if us 11 20 something travelers & myself going on to Punta Gorda so we were able to arrange with  the captain of the lancha we were on to take us on saving a wasted night in Livingston.

Now any one that is faint of heart should pass on the 1 1/2 hr trip across the open Caribbean in a river boat & if you do, do NOT sit on the windward side & for sure not in the back just in front of the driver, this I know as of course that’s where I sat & had a bath from the swells coming in even with the tarp on that side. Pero (but) if you have a sense of adventure & don’t mind a boat ride that’s rougher than an Antigua tuk-tuk, Go for it better than any water-park ride!!!

Taxi driver that took me to the hotel, hadn’t checked LP for hotels here & was ready for a non salt water shower so resorted to the time tested tell taxi driver what you want in hotel & price & you got it baby, is taking his daughter into Belize City in the morning so made a deal to take me to for a good price. Saves a 7-8 hr chicken bus ride & will guarantee I get there in time to catch water taxi to Caye Caulker so can spend last 2 nights there as first water taxi Wed morn will get me back in time to catch plane for Miami & won’t have to stay in Belize City.

From the looks of this area & talking to the bar tender here it’s OK so have to revise my NO on Belize to a good for the southern part which was kind of the reason for traveling this way any how. Not surprising really as Belize stole this part from Guatemala anyway!!

Onward to Caye Caulker & more boat rides but bigger ones LOL

ps When you next find yourself here stop in at the Burkut good people great atmosphere, food, Wi-Fi & prices just behind The St Charles Inn

Hola well I managed to force myself on the shuttle this morning so am on the way back to Ontario. Had a couple of a farewell drinks with the neighbours last evening & killed the last of the HC7.

The shuttle goes to the airport first & then dropped me at the Litegua bus terminal about an hour trip, Guate City does it a bit different as each company has it’s own terminal. was 2 others on shuttle & they couldn’t say boo in Spanish so it was kind of  enjoyable showing off & having a bit of simple conversation with the driver on the way, all those Spanish lessons weren’t in vain but still a long way to go.

Arrived at the bus about 15 min before it left so buy the time checked bags & went through security check it was time to leave, big sign in front of bus No Arma (leave your guns at home son ) & just over 5 hrs to Rio Dulce, had to make a bit of a detour as came across another bus with mechanical problems & took it’s passengers about 4 kms out of the way.

Was warned that the town wasn’t much only about 4 blocks long so wasn’t surprised. Best way I can describe it is 60’s Old Orchard Beach Maine without the beach, the older Quebecers on here will know what I mean. Took a walk up town & only did 2 of the 4 blocks it’s only reason fir being is to service the yachters that come in from the Caribbean at Livingston & follow the river to the lake that I can’t remember the name of, uust another tacky tourist town LOL. Pero (but) sure beats getting on the plane in Guate City & some interesting country on the way.

My ex-pat friends & Lonely Planet both recommended Bruno’s, well the ex-pats only recommended the restaurant & another expensive hotel on an island but as it’s only a short walk from the bus station & the lancha for Livingston leaves from it’s dock in the morning this is the place for me even though hotel rooms are full & had to go the dorm route but it’s only a 6 bed dorm so that’s cool, finish the trip the way I started. Besides it’s nice here on the wharf, river on one side & swimming pool on the other.

Tonight chill at Bruno’s, Tomorrow off to Livingston.