http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/ en-us llewtravel@yahoo.ca Sun, 30 Jul 2006 22:44:54 -0500 http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/archives/017423.shtml Well you're in luck! As of this writing (July 30, 2006) I'm just about to head out on another extended period of travel. I'll be spending the first year or so in New Zealand and then perhaps spending another year... http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/archives/015362.shtml My trip from Delft to Schiphol Airport was about as eventful an airport run as I had in my entire trip. I woke early, early in the morning and wrote a quick thank you note for Eric and Diane before... http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/archives/014973.shtml I can't believe this is my final entry! It's probably going to be a pretty short one too, because A. I didn't make notes for this portion of the trip, B. My memories of this weekend are pretty hazy and... http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/archives/014290.shtml I arrived in Istanbul tired on a dreary grey morning. And while this made my first day there a bit blah, the remainder of my stay was anything but. The bus from Gallipoli arrived at 05:30 and despite the fact... http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/archives/013657.shtml With more known Greek ruins than Greece and more Roman ruins than Italy, it’s unsurprising that Turkey’s Aegean coast is a history buff’s dream come true. And the region’s history isn’t all just ancient, having played host to significant events... http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/archives/013612.shtml Despite the very comfortable Turkish night bus, the trip from Ankara to Cappadocia wasn't everything I'd dreamt of in the rest department, mostly because I arrived in the town of Neveshehir at 05:45 after a 0:00 departure. Upon arriving I... http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/archives/013024.shtml I'd had some difficult with my flight to Istanbul on the Bruxelles end, and unfortunately it didn't end there. The flight touched down not at Istanbul's main, Ataturk airport, but at Sabhia Gocken, a different one some 50km east of... http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/archives/012950.shtml I'll begin by apologizing for the title. But I just couldn't resist. When we last left our heroes, they were standing on the platform at Delft station waiting for a train that would take them in the direction of Maastricht.... http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/archives/012922.shtml Just in case you're wondering, the title of this entry comes from the invitation to my friends Eric and Diane's wedding, which was the prime reason for my stop in Holland. My longest air trip since crossing the Pacific in... http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/archives/012788.shtml My return to India snapped me right back into the differences between that country and Pakistan. I had to bargain for several minutes for the rickshaw ride back to the bus stop, and fend off several taxi drivers at the... http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/archives/011689.shtml Chitral was similar to Gilgit in that they were both the regional centres for large, remote areas of northern Pakistan. That was more or less where the similarities ended, however. Gilgit, occupying a spot on the well maintained Karakoram Highway,... http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/archives/011679.shtml I was happy to be back in Gilgit, and especially happy to be back at the Madina Guesthouse, whose staff and owner made the otherwise pleasant-but-boring town a great place to be. My first order of business was to sort... http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/archives/011634.shtml Passu is the farthest north I got in Pakistan, sitting barely 100km from the Khunjerab Pass and the border with China. It's a quiet little town, but has started to see some tourism activity in recent years due to the... http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/archives/011586.shtml The title of this entry is perhaps a bit misleading. It would probably be fairer to say that Baltistan, in Pakistan's northeast corner is the TRUE heart of the Karakoram, since it contains four of the five 8000m peaks in... http://blogs.BootsnAll.com/llew/archives/011484.shtml The Karakoram Highway was constructed in a ten year period from 1969 to 1979. It links Pakistan with western China and is one of the true engineering marvels of the world. The KKH (as it is commonly known) covers some...