DMZ Tour Part 7: Camp Bonifas, The JSA and Crazy Golf

After lunch somewhere in the DMZ, we changed buses, and our new bus was heading to Camp Bonifas and into the JSA – Joint Security Area. Don’t worry if all these acronyms and constant place names confuse you, they sure as hell confused the life out of me, and even after research I’m still baffled Read more about DMZ Tour Part 7: Camp Bonifas, The JSA and Crazy Golf[…]

north korean food kaesong

DMZ Tour Part 6: Lunch in the DMZ

Lunch in the DMZ was next up on the agenda. We ate at a tiny wee roadside restaurant near Imjingak, just south of the actual North Korea border. The countryside was immense and on Christmas Eve, a land covered in snow gave a dreamlike impression. Something that I longed for in childhood. The restaurant. The Read more about DMZ Tour Part 6: Lunch in the DMZ[…]

Don't Stop Living in Colchani Bolivia

Salar De Uyuni – Part 3 – Colchani: Salt Extracting Town

After the impressive “train cemetery” (Cementario des Trens), the next stop on the Salar de Uyuni tour was at Colchani. It’s a very tiny village of only a few streets and a few low buildings, but it’s significant… For SALT!! Yes, here, in Colchani on the edge of the Salar De Uyuni salt plains is Read more about Salar De Uyuni – Part 3 – Colchani: Salt Extracting Town[…]

tlokweng border

Backpacking in South Africa: Pretoria to Tlokweng Via Groot Marico

A mid-day sun was shyly beaming through the clouds as I left the city of Pretoria behind. I arrived at Pretoria’s Main Railway Station by taxi for about 40 Rand from my hostel in Sunnyside. From Pretoria I had booked myself a cross-border bus the night before all the way to Gaborone, Botswana. It was Read more about Backpacking in South Africa: Pretoria to Tlokweng Via Groot Marico[…]

Salar De Uyuni – Part 2 – Cementario Des Trens – Train Graveyard *

After leaving the dusty city of Uyuni behind, we were off on our adventure. There was no set itinerary so this really added to the surprises ahead. The first of which saw us arrive at one of the world’s most remote train lines…and an un-used one at that…standing on the track there was no chance Read more about Salar De Uyuni – Part 2 – Cementario Des Trens – Train Graveyard *[…]

Salar De Uyuni – Part 1 – …Uyuni Begins! *

The Salar de Uyuni tour was something I hotly anticipated to be special as it had been bigged up and recommended by almost everyone I knew who had been on it. There are a few different tour options for it, including day tours and week tours. But when I was in La Paz I calculated Read more about Salar De Uyuni – Part 1 – …Uyuni Begins! *[…]

Caracas To The Caribbean – 7 Years Too Late…

In 2004 I flirted with the idea of visiting the Caribbean, with my childhood friend Michael McClelland. The reason being, we were mad Northern Ireland fans and Northern Ireland organised a 2 week tour of the tropical islands as a warm up for the 2006 World Cup qualifiers. However, the tour was confirmed in 2003, Read more about Caracas To The Caribbean – 7 Years Too Late…[…]

Backpacking in Australia: Touring Woodford Island

Apparently Woodford Island in New South Wales is the largest lake island in the world. No idea how to prove or verify this, and I reckon there will be plenty more in northern Canada and Antarctica, but let’s roll with it. Since one of the residents in nearby Maclean claimed it to be… So what Read more about Backpacking in Australia: Touring Woodford Island[…]