Posts from the ‘Uncategorized’ category

Possibly the dullest Saturday yet

While I’ve had a few ho-hum Saturdays since starting a predecessor blog in 2013, I think today will go down as the dullest yet. As noted…

We’ll See

Some of you have probably learned from Facebook that I am now officially retired. I was planning to work through the end of March but when…

First World Problem #193

A few days before Christmas I picked up some Mennonite maple fudge at a farmer’s market. I even managed to get it home and into the fridge for…

I Have a Confession to Make!

I have a confession to make. (Deep breath.) Okay, here goes; I, John Michael Hamilton, am a compulsive list-maker. There, I said it. Whew! Not only…

Let the planning begin

If you happened to stumble onto this blog, great! If you received an email notification it’s because you had previously signed up for email updates…

Saturday #184: Finally an update!

In my family, you know that Christmas is just around the corner when you open the mailbox to find an envelope containing the annual holiday letter…

Saturday #143: What’s in a number?

Regular readers will know that I have been planning to walk the Via de la Plata which follows the old Roman Road from Seville to Granja…

Saturday #142: Paris with Dijon on the side

Let’s get one thing straight right here and now: I haven’t owned a TV as long as Apple TV has been on the market so that…

The Orient Express: Leg 7, Munich to Paris

9:32. Before I even got out of the lobby at Wombat’s Hostel in Munich I had received an email asking for a review. I gave them…

The Orient Express: Leg 6, Budapest to Munich

08:02. I’m sitting in the lounge area at Flow, the excellent Budapest hostel that has been my home for the last four nights. With one exception,…

A selection of photos from my first round-the-world trip. Click on any image to enlarge and read captions.

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Istanbul, Turkey

Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India

Homestay near Tsenker, Mongolia

“More heat please,” said no one ever in Bangalore, India

Las Vegas, Nevada

Beijing, China

I took a little trip down memory lane with a trip a restaurant that I frequented in the early 1980s. After 30+ years the steaks are just as tough and the salad bar doesn’t seem quite as appealing.

This is what the road looked like for days at a time in rural areas of Mongolia. Okay, most everywhere on the Mongolian Steppe would be considered “rural” but break down on this particular stretch and you’ll be stuck for a few days. And that we were!

I met this guy outside a shop in Sheki, Georgia. He was awfully proud of his mint condition car. I can’t tell if it’s a Lada or something similar but it was indeed pristine.

Chicken fingers, anyone? – Agra, India

‎⁨Xi’an⁩, ⁨Shaanxi⁩, ⁨China⁩

This store in Istanbul sold a selection of handbags fashioned from (mostly) Saskatchewan seed bags.

My Algerian hostel mate Bilal begged me to shoot photos of him at a high end mall in Istanbul. In a moment of weakness I reluctantly agreed and then played paparazzi for a day. It was horrible. And if you believe that one…

Agra, India

Amboy, California

Pride in Phuket, Thailand

Kathmandu, Nepal

The Thar Desert, Rajasthan, India

Great Ocean Road, Australia

Near ‎⁨Övörkhangai⁩, ⁨Mongolia⁩. Okay, not really “near” but that was the closest settlement when we were stuck for the 27th time. (And I’m only slightly exaggerating on that 27th part.)

I ran into this local gy with a Canadian sweatshirt while hiking near Annapurna Eco-village outside Astam, Nepal. We were not able to communicate very well but nevertheless he did happily pose for photos.

Dry Bridge Market in Tbilisi, Georgia

Local sardines on sale in Lisbon, Portugal

Flying over the Nazca Lines in Peru

Near Pokhara, Nepal

Hanoi, Vietnam

Gannan, Gansu, China

SingMandai Estate, Singaporeapore

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Bunk Hostel, Istanbul, Turkey (C$26.14)

Burning Man, Black Rock City, Nevada

Upwards of 100 bodies are cremated every day at Manikarnika Ghat in Varanasi, India. The burning continues 24-7.

I asked this girl’s mother if I could take a photo of her daughter in her pretty and I would assume handmade dress. Mom said yes but at the last second the girl put her hands to her face and giggled. She didn’t appear to be upset but it was probably the first time a stranger had pointed a phone at her. – Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India

Tongariro Alpine Crossing, Tongariro National Park, New Zealand

Beijing, China

Kashgar, China

Famous Farm, Nuwakot, Nepal (C$20.00)

Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India

Midnight eel fishing at Kohutapu Lodge, Lake Aniwhenua, New Zealand

Route Map

Kathmandu, Nepal

Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada

I didn’t get the name of this popular street food in Pushkar but I had it several times (okay, several times per week) and no matter how bad the joint looked, I enjoyed it every time and was never seriously sick. Is it possible to kill bacteria with spices?

Apparently the caffeine had yet to kick in for our friend in the back. – Buenos Aires, Argentina

Fazenda San Francisco, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil

Most afternoons I had a refreshing Caipirinha, Brazil’s National Drink, from the terrace of my hostel in Rio de Janeiro.

License plates on display (sale?) in Kathmandu, Nepal

Bia Hoi (fresh beer) is made daily and sold in open air stalls all over Hanoi and other cities in northern Vietnam. I don’t think I ever paid more than 35 cents per glass and I’m sure I was VASTLY over-charged. This kid even laughed in my face as he took my money.

Livestock Market, Kashgar, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China

Tashkent, Uzbekistan

World renowned auctioneer Cookie Lockhart was one of the instructors at the World Wide College of Auctioneering which I attended in Denver, Colorado.

Livestock Market, Kashgar, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China

Christmas dinner with friends in Potts Point, Sydney, Australia

Near Pokhara, Nepal

Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan

Herding yak near Tsenker, Mongolia

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Jhunjhunun, Indira Nagar, India

Fried oysters at Newton Circus, Singapore

Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India

Kathmandu, Nepal

Bonito, Brazil

Burning Man, Nevada

Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India

I made a special effort to do something fun each Saturday so naturally I had thoughts of a photo op inside this store when I came across it on a Friday afternoon. Unfortunately I forgot to return the next day and I had a ticket out of town early on Sunday morning so I never did get back. Maybe next time!

Perhaps the best Eggs Benedict I’ve ever had was at the Markham Cafe in Kathmandu, Nepal. Instead of an English muffin they used a potato pancake that was crunchy outside and the consistency of cream mashed potatoes inside.

Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada

I found this belt buckle at a flea market in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. It may be accurate in the Mongolian language but to my eyes it has three typos in six words. As souvenirs go, I think it was well worth the approximately 25 cents that I paid.

San Fermin Festival in Pamplona, Spain

We had just parked the truck near this abandoned log building and were getting a fire started when a horseman rode up and eyed us from about 100 feet away. Neil, the Dutch driver of our truck asked Bayara, our Mongolian guide, to tell the man that we would soon have a pot of stew on the fire and that he was not only welcome to stay for dinner but that he could also camp here if he wished. Bayara said a few words to the guy in Mongolian and they both laughed heartily. Only after a bit of nudging would Bayara tell us what they had found so funny. The horseman had pointed to the low mountain range in the distance and indicated that he owned the land all the way to those mountains and to the mountain range beyond that as well. We, he added, were most welcome to stay with HIM for the night.

Tongariro Alpine Crossing, Tongariro National Park, New Zealand

Near Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

Finisterre, Galicia, Spain

Tongariro Alpine Crossing, Tongariro National Park, New Zealand

San Fermin Festival, Pamplona, Spain

Biking the ‘Death Road’ near La Paz, Bolivia with Swiss friends Marcel and Stefanie.

Shihongshi Grottoes, Yan’an, China

‎⁨Varanasi⁩, ⁨Uttar Pradesh⁩, ⁨India⁩

I had some pretty good meals in China, a few that were absolutely disgusting, and then this one which was probably the best of the 2+ months. Now if only I could remember where it was. Unfortunately the meta data has been stripped and I cannot locate the original photo in my timeline.

Hostel Old Plovdiv was voted Best Hostel in Bulgaria by Hostelworld.com for 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019 and 2020.

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Schloss Thun / Thun Castle, where on of my Stauffer ancestors was imprisoned, Thun, Switzerland

Yucca Valley, California

This dinner consisted of lamb and root vegetables that had been layered with hot rocks in a metal cream can that was sealed and heated over over an open fire. An hour later we had the Mongolian version of Instapot. It was fall-off-the-bone good.

Tsenker, Mongolia

I watched as upwards of 30 people were shoe-horned into this 12-passenger (?) van near the Naran Tuul (Black Market) in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.

Kok-boru (goat polo) in Kyrgyzstan

Samarkand, Uzbekistan

Raglan Surf School (Hostel), New Zealand (C$26.29)

Beijing, China

Ballestas Islands, Pisco, Peru

Pride in Madrid, Spain

Dinosaur Provincial Park, Alberta, Canada

Gannan, Gansu, China

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Chitwan National Park, Nepal

Istanbul, Turkey

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

‎⁨Sofia⁩, ⁨Bulgaria⁩

Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Huacachina, Peru

‎⁨Burgos⁩, ⁨Castile and León⁩, ⁨Spain⁩

I spent Easter with friends Marcel and Stefanie in Baden-Aargau, Switzerland. And when in Switzerland for Easter you simply MUST have chocolate!

Near Puno, Peru

The Thar Desert on the border between India and Pakistan

When I asked this sportswear vendor in Beijing if he had any Toronto Maple Leafs jerseys he rattled off more names of Leafs veterans than I could come up with on a second’s notice. “Keon, Sittler, Salming, Mahovlich, Sundin… what you want?” When I finally said that I would “look at” a Sundin jersey, he disappeared into the back for about five minutes. When he returned the name and numbers on this jersey were still warm so I suspect he just whipped it up. I couldn’t resist the $20 tag even though I didn’t want to lug a hockey jersey around with me for another two years. (It was wrapped around a laptop that I shipped back to Canada a few weeks later.)

10 in a tuk-tuk at Xi’an, China

Turpan, China

Samarkand, Uzbekistan

Local kids, including one wearing a Toronto Maple Leafs shirt, prior to the annual ‘Hockey Night in Beijing’ game featuring squads from the Canadian and Finnish embassies. The boy in the red had a much better shot than I ever had.

FYI: I did not pay these kids for the photo and I most certainly did not supply them with cigarettes.

Kathmandu, Nepal

It was sunny and warm by day but very chilly at night as we slept on large communal beds (slabs of stone, really) that were heated from below by hot coals that boys delivered every hour or so throughout the night. – Ancient cave dwellings in the village of Lijiashan, Shanxi Province, China

Ice cold Chinggis beer and juicy all beef sliders in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Typical Mongolian fare? Hell no. A welcome relief after a month of mutton stew and noodles? Oh, yeah.

I made a new friend while we waited for a large tow truck about 100 km outside Ashgabat, Turkmenistan

Lisbon, Portugal

Huacachina, Peru

Biking the ‘Death Road’ near La Paz, Bolivia

Burning Man, Nevada

After completing the Camino de Santiago, I carried on to Cape Finisterre in Galicia (Spain)

When you don’t have access to glassware you simply take alternating swigs of orange juice and vodka straight from the bottle. Of course the locals would skip the OJ. I’m not there yet.

Vancouver, BC, Canada

Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India

Karni Mata Temple, Deshnoke, Rajasthan, India

Livestock Market, Kashgar, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China

Valparaiso, Chile

I was more than a little skeptical when told that a half-day boat tour to the Ballestas Islands off the coast of Paracas, Peru would cost about US$10. Everyone that I was travelling with decided to go so I reluctantly joined in. What are we going to see for 10 bucks, I moaned. As it turned out the islands are home to 1500 species of marine birds and a large number of sea lions. I’m not sure how ethical it is, but the boat took us within a few feet of the sea lions and they didn’t seem to mind as we snapped photos. I can see why the Ballestas Islands are often called “The Poor Man’s Galapagos.” It was a magical day.

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Bangkok, Thailand

I was invited invited to lunch at this home in Kathmandu, Nepal after having this girl’s sister sew a flag on my daypack. Had an offer of marriage been made I suspect it may have been accepted.

Jalal-Abad, Kyrgyzstan

Hornillos del Camino, Spain

Here’s a map showing the most common stages of the Camino Frances which connects St-Jean-Pied-de-Port in France and the ultimate end-point for all Caminos, Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, Spain.

Santiago de Compostela, Spain

Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India

‎⁨Xi’an⁩, ⁨Shaanxi⁩, ⁨China⁩

Sensing that something was wrong, the waiter at this Goa (India) beach bar approached and asked how I liked the clubhouse sandwich. I said that it was very nice but that I could find no trace of the chicken that was mentioned on the chalkboard menu. He smiled and said quite emphatically, “Oh, THERE is chicken, good sir,” as he pointed to the fried egg.

Some of the others in my group headed to a more remote section of the Wall but since there were no other tourists at our hotel, I opted to hike up the mountain that was just across the road. Within an hour I was on the wall and for most of the next five hours I had the place all to myself, except for some butterflies and amazing songbirds. At times I heard voices in the distance but I only saw four people before it started to get dark. Two were locals and two were German tourists who appeared to be lost but too stubborn to ask for help. This unique experience – having the wall to myself, not the lost Germans – was only possible because we had driven about 300 km out of Beijing – far beyond the parking lots filled with tour buses and pushy souvenir vendors.

This wasn’t one of the better hostels on the Camino de Santiago but as a “donativo” the price was whatever you could pay and the breakfast featured toast, homemade jam and really good café con leche which made up for the noisy and odiferous dorm.

Bishnoi Village, Rajasthan, India

Yurt camp near Tsenker, Mongolia

Easter Island, Chile

Duncan, a Kiwi who was one of two Dragoman drivers on my Silk Road adventure, was looking forward to a roast chicken dinner until he learned that he had to pick out a live chicken and the woman in the shop would chop its head off and pluck it right then and there.

Lisbon Destination Hostel, Lisbon, Portugal

Orkhon Valley, Mongolia

Friends Grant & Randall in Sydney, Australia

Naryn Province, Kyrgyzstan

#bunk Hostel, Istanbul, Turkey

This store in Istanbul sold a selection of handbags fashioned from (mostly) Saskatchewan seed bags.

Chao Hostel, Bangkok, Thailand (C$22.72)

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Blue Duck Station, Owhango, New Zealand (C$28.16)

My sister, brother-in-law and myself had a very nice meal at Madame Ngoc’s Com Nieu Restaurant on our last night in Hanoi. But to be honest, this place is nothing like its previous incarnation that was featured a decade earlier on one of Anthony Bourdain’s shows. Quite simply, they’ve sold out! As Olive Garden is to Italian cooking, Com Nieu is to Vietnamese food.

Sherpas will be sherpas. – Kathmandu, Nepal

No Photos! – Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Naryn, Kyrgyzstan

Christmas dinner at the home of friends Randall and Freddy in Sydney, Australia.

Huacachina, Peru

Kathmandu, Nepal

Camino de Santiago, Spain

Celebrating Pride in Sydney, Australia

Lunch at the home of a fashion designer and seamstress who I met in Kathmandu, Nepal

Traditional Kyrgyz hunters train golden eagles to track down and kill prey. Rabbits, foxes and even animals as large as wolves are no match for the highly intelligent and lethal eagle.

Istanbul, Turkey

Kyrgyzstan

Peru

Municipal workers collecting trash in Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Naryn Province, Kyrgyzstan

No Regrets. Not a one! – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Beijing, China

Tongariro Alpine Crossing, Tongariro National Park, New Zealand

Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria

Some of the municipal hostels on the Camino de Santiago were better than others. This one in Portomarin would rank pretty low due to its sheer size.

Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Early morning lineup at the Tim Horton’s Drive-Thru in Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Livestock Market in Kashgar, China

Low Rider – Beijing, China

Near Pokhara, Nepal

My Algerian hostel mate Bilal practicallybegged me to shoot photos of him at a high-end mall in Istanbul. After much arm twisting I reluctantly agreed and played paparazzi for a day. And if you believe that one…

Kathmandu, Nepal

Near Pokhara, Nepal

Delhi, India

Livestock Market, Kashgar, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China

I can’t remember what this was called or where exactly it was taken but probably at a roadside truck stop in western China. To be honest, it looks pretty good compared to some of the absolutely vile slop that long distance truckers eat at those bare bones truck stops.

Packing tents into the truck after a night of camping on the Silk Road

Crossing the Caspian Sea on the freighter Bestekar Qara Qarayev. Some people can handle their vodka and some cannot.

Piranha fishing on the Miranda River in Brazil’s Southern Pantanal

Samarkand, Uzbekistan

Ica, Peru

Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India

Attempting to repair a bent sand mat in rural Mongolia.

We enjoyed an excellent homestay in Arslanbob, Jalal-Abad, Kyrgyzstan

Buenos Aires, Argentina

Easter Island, Chile

Here’s a typical restaurant lunch in rural Mongolia where it may be the only thing on the menu. Okay, there rarely is a menu. To be honest I was always pretty happy with what I was served as it was fresh and hot. The lone vegetarian on our truck wasn’t as enamoured with Mongolian fare. A lot of Lays chips were consumed over those 30 days.

Time Out Market, Lisbon, Portugal

One of my few complaints with Dragoman was that we had very little time to explore the market in Mörön, Mongolia. Most of the people on the truck were happy to pick up our groceries for the next few days and move on while I could have spent a whole day wandering around and people watching.

A typical vista along the Camino de Santiago near ‎⁨Villafranca del Bierzo⁩, ⁨Castile and León⁩, ⁨Spain⁩

Yes, I tried it. I had a big plate of well done meat (could easily have been low grade beef) and a side of crunchy green beans in a sauce that had some serious zing. – Beijing, China

Adelaide, Australia (C$33.10)

I have no idea how anyone’s cable or internet works or gets repaired in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Typical 8 lane highway in Mongolia

A selection of goose barnacles and assorted shellfish that made for a great lunch in Lisbon, Portugal

‎⁨Castrojeriz⁩, ⁨Castile and León⁩, ⁨Spain⁩

This popular snack of dried and spiced lentils and nuts is served in a cone formed from used newspaper. – Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Rangitata Rafting Base, New Zealand

I was underwhelmed by the Taj Mahal. Perhaps I was just having a bad day. I will return some day and see if I experience the magic that most visitors talk about for weeks afterward.

Turpan, China

Celebrating Pride in Sydney, Australia

I know I have a rather large nose but I defy anyone to eat this “toad-in-the-hole” clubhouse sandwich without getting yolk on their snout. – Madrid, Spain

Signagi, Georgia

Departing Toronto’s Union Station on Via Rail’s ‘The Canadian’

Rio de Janeiro (C$19.86)

San Francisco, California

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Riding in the rood seats of a Dragoman Overland truck in ‎⁨Shanxi⁩, ⁨China⁩. L-R: Yours truly (Canada); Jason (China); Mark (Australia), Heather (Australia).

‎⁨Turpan⁩, ⁨Xinjiang⁩, ⁨China⁩

Horseback riding with fellow Dragoman traveller Berger (from Belgium) and local kids in Kyrgyzstan

Cacao ceremony in Goa, India

Enough cash to pay for lunch for four in hyper-inflationary Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Chitwan National Park, Nepal

No pussy jokes, please. – Buenos Aires, Argentina

Fritz Stettler, Eggiwil, Switzerland

Santiago de Compostela, Spain

Bayara, our incredible Mongolian guide, asked me to come hunt for something about a mile from where we were camped. When I asked what we were looking for he just said, “you’ll know when you see it.” After about 30 minutes we came across this eagle that the local farmer had shot because it was killing his baby lambs. Bayara cut off one talon for himself and one for me and I wear it around my neck to this day.

We camped on the shore of Lake Karakul in China’s Kizilsu Kirgiz Autonomous Prefecture and awoke to the sound of camels parading past our yurt. In the distance are the snow-covered peaks of Muztagh Ata (7,546 m), Kongur Tagh (7,649 m) and Kongur Tiube (7,530 m).

Lake Taupo, New Zealand

‎⁨Phnom Penh⁩, ⁨Cambodia⁩

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

The best shrimp fritters in Hanoi, Vietnam

Khiva, Uzbekistan

Finisterre, Galicia, Spain

Fazenda San Francisco, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil

Lisbon, Portugal

A farm worker near Miranda, Mato Grosso, Brazil

I spent a fun afternoon wandering around this huge architectural salvage yard in Mumbai. Most of it was destined for export.

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Trip Adviser notes that Hotel Aroma overlooks a tranquil lake on the outskirts of beautiful Pushkar. They did not mention the inspiration for Hotel Aroma’s enticing name. I can tell you it ain’t lotus petals.

Beijing, China

I have since been told by people who would know that this is WAY too much Vegemite for one piece of toast. I can’t imagine that it would have been any better with just a bit less “turpentine jam” but perhaps it’s an acquired taste.

Luz Hostel, Bangkok, Thailand (C$15.79)

Kathmandu, Nepal

My nephew’s photo studio in Moose Jaw, SK

Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria

Luz Hostel, Bangkok, Thailand (C$15.79)

Celebrating Pride with the locals in Phuket, Thailand

Near Lima, Peru

Near Carbon, Alberta, Canada

Fellow Dragoman traveller Katherine Konner of the US outside our shared yurt at Ögii Nuur (Lake), Mongolia.

Near Pokhara, Nepal

Day #2 on the Camino de Santiago, just outside Roncesvalles, Spain

Jinshanling is a section of the Great Wall of China located in the mountainous area in Luanping County, Chengde, Hebei Province, 125 km northeast of Beijing. – Wikipedia

The Camino de Santiago (the Way of St. James) ends in Santiago de Compostela, and in my case with a swing of the botafumeiro during a Pilgrim’s Mass in the Santiago Cathedral.

Sillustani, Peru

Jaipur, Rajasthan, India

Black Swan Hostel, Seville, Spain (C$21.31)

Easter Island, Chile

Fort Macleod, Alberta, Canada

Istanbul, Turkey

Cross-country train travel is very popular with Mennonite and Amish folk from far and wide. I got to know this family from Pennsylvania and after I opened an app on my phone we were able to establish some common ancestry through the Burkholder line.

Mount Wutai, Shanxi, China

Tbilisi, Georgia

Should I have been concerned when I was assigned Locker #13 while skydiving at Lake Taupo, New Zealand?

Dry Bridge Market in Tbilisi, Georgia

Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Mandai Estate, Singapore

Near Jiayuguan, Gansu, China

Near Pokhara, Nepal

San Francisco, California

Tongariro Alpine Crossing, Tongariro National Park, New Zealand

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

This woman and her family are the caretakers of the 15th century Tash-Rabat caravanserai in Kyrgyzstan. We were a little late in arriving but before long they had a five course lunch on the table. We finished eating around 4:30 pm and some of us went for a two hour trail ride. When we returned around 6:30 a five course dinner was being served. Accommodations were a little rough but hospitality in Kyrgyzstan was absolutely first rate!

Emperor Qinshihuang’s Mausoleum (The Terracotta Army), Xi’an, Shaanxi, China

Bern, Switzerland

Vientiane, Laos

A view from the window of my first hotel in New Delhi, India.

Burning Man, Nevada

My nephew Andy heard about the pizza in Auckland so he joined me for a 5-day North Island roadtrip.

Camping adjacent to the Great Wall in Gansu Province, China

Chao Hostel, Bangkok, Thailand (C$22.72)

We had a friendly but awkward conversation. The guy in red had no idea what it said on his shirt and thought I was saying Kannada (a language in southern India) when I asked if he had relatives in Toronto or Vancouver, Canada.

Lunch in Lisbon, Portugal

‎⁨Övörkhangai⁩, ⁨Mongolia⁩

Mandai Estate, Singapore

‎⁨Turpan⁩, ⁨Xinjiang⁩, ⁨China⁩

Last day of the Camino after arriving in Santiago de Compostela, Spain

New Delhi, India

‎⁨Turpan⁩, ⁨Xinjiang⁩, ⁨China⁩

Not having had a bagel in months, I was pretty happy to come across something called ‘girde naan’ while wandering around the livestock market in Kashgar, a city China’s far western Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. They were fresh out of a wood-fired oven and most people were dunking them in bowls of steaming mutton broth. While not quite as good as a fresh Montreal bagel, they were much better than similar carb-overloads that I found on the streets of Istanbul. I’d give them a 7 out of 10.

Although this meal was pretty good, nobody goes to Mongolia for the cuisine.

Bonito, Brazil

Finisterre, Galicia, Spain

Mid-morning of Day #1 on the Camino de Santiago near ‎⁨Lasse⁩, ⁨Aquitaine⁩, ⁨France⁩.

#bunk Hostel, Istanbul, Turkey

With my fellow Dragoman overlanders in Madhya Pradesh, India

When I was 11 years old my sister game me my first album – Donnnie Osmond’s Alone Together. This vendor at the Dry Bridge Market in Tbilisi, Georgia had a copy.

Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria

Queenstown, New Zealand

‎⁨Jodhpur⁩, ⁨Rajasthan⁩, ⁨India⁩

‎⁨Cizur⁩, ⁨Navarre⁩, ⁨Spain⁩

Ranch hands at Fazenda San Francisco, a 14,800 hectare (36,556 acre) working farm and eco tourism business in the basin of the Paraguay River in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil

I splurged and stayed two nights in this well appointed Parador in Santo Domingo de la Calzada, Spain (C$128.64)

Two guides from Barracuda Biking with who we did Bolivia’s infamous ‘Death Road’.

Stuck again, near ‎⁨Övörkhangai⁩, ⁨Mongolia⁩. We must be fairly close to civilization as this friendly dog watched from a distance. I can only imagine what he was thinking.

BBQ duck bills on the street in Bangkok, Thailand

The post office in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India was temporarily closed due to a sit-in.

This store in Istanbul sold a selection of handbags fashioned from (mostly) Saskatchewan seed bags.

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

A selection of goose barnacles and assorted shellfish that made for a great lunch in Lisbon, Portugal

Beijing, China

When Alexander the Great conquered Samarkand, Uzbekistan in 329 BC he is said to have remarked: “All I have heard about the beauty of this city is true, it is just much more beautiful in reality.”‎⁨ Tour guides wouldn’t make this stuff up, would they?

Bukhara, Uzbekistan

Lisbon, Portugal

The Thar Desert, India

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Veliko Tarnovo, Bulgaria

More, New Zealand

For those who complain that everything in Canada is made in Asia, check out this store in Hanoi. I was riding on the back of a scooter and couldn’t stop so I have no idea what they were selling.

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

There were no tourists, no English speaking locals and no wifi or cell service in this bar in Lahic, Azerbaijan so I just sat back and people-watched for about two hours. It was glorious!

I love how the cows of India are seemingly oblivious to the action that swirls around them. – Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India

Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Christmas dinner at the home of friends Randall and Freddy in Sydney, Australia.

My nephew Andy and his twin boys at Buffalo Pound Lake, 30 km north of Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan

Kyrgyzstan

Raglan Surf School (Hostel), ‎⁨Waikato⁩, ⁨New Zealand⁩

This was as close as I came to wading through a rushing torrent of a river while walking the Camino de Santiago (Camino Frances) in Spain. I’d rather be dry than a hero.

While lining up for the ATM and hoping it doesn’t run out of cash, it is apparently considered good luck to rub the head of a bald tourist. – Jaisalmer, Rajashtan, India

Agra, India

Seville, Spain

Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Easter Island, Chile

I’m a little paranoid that taxi drivers will take me far out of my way in a strange city so it was a pleasant surprise when this Istanbul cabbie said that he’d turn off the meter for an hour if I wanted to go to his home in the suburbs to pick up his wife and bring her back into the old part of the city for a doctor’s appointment. Having only been mugged by two taxi drivers in South America I said what the hell, let’s do it. I good faith was rewarded with a free tour of Istanbul and a running commentary the whole way. His wife even filled my pockets with hard candy before dropping me off at the door of my hostel.

It wasn’t the most convenient key to carry around with you all day but it was definitely the most unique.

Chao Hostel, Bangkok, Thailand (C$22.72)

A large and probably hungry dog (dragging a broken chain) eyes the entrance to a food stall in Bandipur, Nepal.

Paracus, Peru

Bunc Hostel, Singapore (C$32.05)

Lake Khovsgol, Mongolia

⁨Xinjiang⁩, ⁨China⁩

I was a long way from the hotels located outside the old walled city of Khiva, Uzbekistan so this friendly local offered me a ride. I’m neither inherently afraid of strangers or walking long distances but I figured this would be a good opportunity to chat with a local so I got in. As it turned out he didn’t speak much English and I don’t speak Uzbek or Khorezmcha so he drove and we listened to Uzbek electronic/dance music on what appeared to be a newly installed stereo. I suspect the car and stereo was his pride and joy and and opportunity to show it off may have been the reason he offered me a ride.

‎⁨Gannan⁩, ⁨Gansu⁩, ⁨China⁩

San Francisco, California

Datong, China

My dinner companions in the dining car somewhere between Saskatoon and Vancouver

Hockey Night in Beijing

Lisbon, Portugal

⁨Xinjiang⁩, ⁨China⁩

I often wear the necklace I made from an eagle claw while we were camped with a local family in ‎⁨Arkhangai⁩ Province, ⁨Mongolia⁩.

Cave dwellings at Lijiashan, Shanxi, China

Bishnoi Village, Rajasthan, India

Celebrating Pride in Sydney, Australia

Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India

Blue Duck Station, near Whanganui National Park, New Zealand

Cappadocia, Turkey

Discovery Hostel, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (C$19.86)

I don’t think this roasted nut vendor in Pushkar, India was even vaguely aware that had he been born somewhere other than rural India he’d likely be working a runway in Paris or Milan right now.

‎⁨Hanoi⁩, ⁨Thành Phố Hà Nội⁩, ⁨Vietnam⁩

Hockey Night in Beijing with Guy Saint-Jacques, Canada’s Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China

Camping adjacent to the Great Wall in Gansu Province, China

Cusco, Peru

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Burning Man, Nevada

Baku, Azerbaijan

Kathmandu, Nepal

Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Siamaze Hostel, Bangkok, Thailand (C$13.29)

And if sand mats don’t provide enough traction, you roam the countryside for stones and see if that will work. It did, after about 3 hours of “road building.”

Kathmandu, Nepal

Chitwan National Park, Nepal

I didn’t take this photo but it was forwarded to me by a camp mate and I believe she did take it. – Burning Man, Nevada

Departing Toronto’s Union Station on Via Rail’s ‘The Canadian’

Kathmandu, Nepal

Hanoi, Vietnam

San Fermin Festival, Pamplona, Spain

Burning Man, Nevada

Hengshan (Hanging) Monastery, near Datong, Shanxi, China

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

While eating alone at this BBQ duck restaurant in Beijing, I spotted this kid standing a few feet from my table. At first I wasn’t sure what he was doing but then noticed a man seated about 10 tables away with a camera and very large lens sitting on his table. The lens seemed to be perfectly lined up with the kid – and me – so I smiled and motioned for him to come over. He was indeed trying to get a photo of his kid with the large bald man. We posed for many, many photos before I had him snap one for me on my phone. It was the highlight of my visit to that restaurant because “duck bones” are pretty horrible. More on that in another post.

Some fellow travellers on the Green Tortoise “hippy bus” as we travelled through California, Nevada and Utah.

Discovery Hostel, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (C$19.86)

Hanoi, Vietnam

Choeung Ek Genocidal Center, Cambodia

Cacao ceremony in Goa, India

Istanbul, Turkey

Tongariro Apine Crossing, Tongariro National Park, New Zealand

The Darvaza Gas Crater, Turkmenistan

Huacachina, Peru

A freshly caught piranha is fed to a hungry caiman on the Rio Miranda river in Brazil.

Motorized vehicles are prohibited on the playa at Burning Man unless they meet strict guidelines imposed by the DMV (Department of Mutant Vehicles).

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Fisherman’s Wharf, San Francisco, California

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Ballestas Islands, Peru

Dry Bridge Market, Tbilisi, Georgia. I was surprised that some of the items were dirt cheap – like original folk art paintings for $10 – yet three 1930s era toy trucks (similar to Tonka toys) were priced at US$150 each. These guys knew exactly what they were sitting on.

Finisterre (or Fisterra), Galicia, Spain

A day at the races in Buenos Aires, Argentina with some travellers from Ottawa, Canada.

Kathmandu, Nepal

Giapo Designer Ice Cream – Auckland, New Zealand

Udaipur, Rajashtan, India

The Old Inn, Bandipur, Nepal

My campmates Joe Bowman and Mary Riddell were married at Burning Man in 2016. It was the least traditional but also one of the most special ceremonies I’ve witnessed.

I wasn’t sure if I was being sized up as a potential customer, mugging victim or Facebook friend while waiting for a companion who had gone to get ice cream in this Baku park. If these two were like most Azerbaijanis that I met, they were likely harmless and simply wanted to ask where I was from and how much I had paid for my Nike Airs or iPhone, etc.

Cows laze on the banks of the Ganges in Varanasi, India

Mumbai, India

Tbilisi, Georgia

Kathmandu, Nepal

Tongariro Alpine Crossing, New Zealand

Hostel Inn, Puerto Iguazu, Argentina (C$16.00)

The Ganga Aarti ceremony takes place every night at dusk at the Dasaswamedh Ghat, near Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi, India.

Llama Love – Urubamba Province, Peru

Burning Man, Nevada

I had washed these jeans in the hotel sink a few hours earlier and they were still wet when it was time to head to the airport so I simply hung them off the side of the tuk tuk and in 40C weather they were dry before we had gone 10 blocks.

Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Even young monks have the latest iPhones at Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Burning Man, Nevada

Near Barons, Alberta, Canada

Playing a friendly game of Kok Boru (AKA ‘Goat Polo’) near Issyk-Kul, Mongolia. (Full disclosure: I simply sat one one player’s horse and hoisted the sheep/goat in the air for a photo op. It takes incredible skill to ride these horses and pick a goat carcass off the ground while dangling with one foot in a stirrup. Maybe next time I’m in Kyrgyzstan.)

Song Kol, Kyrgyzstan

San Francisco, California, USA

‎⁨Estella⁩, ⁨Navarre⁩, ⁨Spain⁩

Note the fake iPhone logo on the older boy’s shirt. – Tashkent, Uzbekistan

Easter Island, Chile

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Trabzon, Turkey

Kok-boru (goat polo) in Kyrgyzstan

La Paz, Bolivia

All aboard the Dragoman Overland truck as we roll across the Mongolian-Manchurian steppe on Day #20. With no chance of coming into contact with overhead wires, 8 people were able to ride in the roof seats (4 in front, 4 in back) for hours at a time. That was a pretty good upper body workout as you had to constantly brace yourself as the truck bounced over the uneven ground.

Once Again Hostel, Bangkok, Thailand (C$22.00) including a free cappuccino at check-in.

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Tsenker, Mongolia

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Calgary Stampede, Calgary, Alberta

It’s easy to see why Jaisalmer is known as “The Golden City.” – Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India

With 61 covered streets and over 4,000 shops, Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar is one of the largest and oldest markets in the world.

Hanoi, Vietnam

Signagi, Georgia

Rush hour traffic in rural Argentina as viewed from a Dragoman Overland truck. (Full disclosure: The meta data has been stripped from this photo and it may have been taken in Brazil.)

Lima, Peru

Lake Taupo, New Zealand

I don’t know if I believe it but our local guide told us these kids were clutching new toys as they headed to a special religious service, after which they would be circumcised. I suspect it will take more than a cheap plastic toy to get those kids into a suit the next time.

‘Bridge to Heaven’, Gansu, China

‎⁨Sarria⁩, ⁨Galicia⁩, ⁨Spain⁩ (Camino Frances)

After taking this photo on the streets of Jodhpur, I was invited into the kitchen to meet the rest of the family. There were three if not four generations living in about 300 square feet. I only managed to take a few photos but many photos of me and the grandkids were snapped by their parents. Apparently it’s not every day that a big, bald white guy comes strolling down that street. – Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India

Brimpaen, Victoria, Australia

Our local guide arranged for me to pay about $5 to have lunch with this family in Khiva, Uzbekistan. The oldest boy and girl spoke some English and were curious about my iPhone. Mom remained in the kitchen the whole time which wasn’t surprising as she did manage to turn out about six courses in 45 minutes.

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

When a foreign traveller checks into a hotel in a certain country whose name rhymes with Fooze-Mekistan he is required to sign a whack of papers, agree not to photograph military installations or the power grid, and to stay on the hotel grounds after a certain hour. We knew that much well in advance but only after we gathered in the hotel lobby were we tipped off to the fact that secret service agents may be assigned to tail us. Within two minutes of checking in we noticed about eight of these clones in K-Mart suits just moping around the lobby, pretending to talk on their flip phones, and at one time reading a newspaper… upside down. These two were assigned to track my friends James and Kirk and the guy sitting just behind me was apparently my man. James Bond he was not. To be honest I was a little miffed to learn that I had been assigned to an agent who wore heavy iron braces on his legs and who walked with the assistance of metal-tipped crutches that could be heard a quarter mile away.

‘Sunday Roast’ pizza at my hostel in Auckland, New Zealand featured peas, zucchini, roast lamb and liberal dollops of mint jelly. I’d give it a 9 out of 10.

Near Pokhara, Nepal

‎⁨Rioja Alta Golf Club⁩, ⁨Cirueña⁩, ⁨Rioja⁩, ⁨Spain⁩

Hengshan Hanging Monastery near Datong, Shanxi Province, China

Udaipur, Rajasthan, India

In case you’re wondering, this was not good. We lost all our diesel when a sand mat punctured a tank. It took a few days to get the tank repaired and back on the road (or what passes for a road in most of Mongolia).

Hostel Old Plovdiv was voted Best Hostel in Bulgaria by Hostelworld.com for 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019 and 2020.

St Christopher’s Inn (Hostel), Paris, France

Livestock Market, Kashgar, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China

Hari was the entrepreneurial “fixer” who hung around my hotel in Pushkar during the annual camel fair. There wasn’t a thing he couldn’t track down… for a price. One American guest asked the manager if he knew of a local shop that stocked instant oatmeal. The manager, having lived in the UK for a while, replied that he knew what this was but that it would not be found outside Delhi or Mumbai and even there it would be scarce. Hari overheard this conversation and accepted the challenge. The next morning there were six varieties of Quaker Oatmeal displayed in a pyramid at the front desk and available for about 50 cents per serving. The staff didn’t know where Hari had found it but they said it took him an exceptionally long time – over an hour!

The panorama car on ‘The Canadian’ as we travelled through the Rocky Mountains

‎⁨Xi’an⁩, ⁨Shaanxi⁩, ⁨China⁩

When you’re up to the axles in mud on the Mongolian Steppe you get out the sand mats for traction.

Turkmenistan to Azerbaijan

Trabzon, Turkey

‎⁨Ho Chi Minh City⁩, ⁨Vietnam⁩

Near Nuwakot, Nepal

O Cebreiro, Galicia, Spain

KFC stands for ‘King of Chicken’ in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

Bikaner, India

My ‘Stray’ bus mates in New Zealand.

This was just enough cash to pay for lunch for four people at a cafe in hyper-inflationary Uzbekistan. When we crossed into the country I exchanged six low denomination Kyrgyzstan notes for a shoebox full of high denomination Uzbek notes. That shoebox full of cash lasted me seven days even though many of my expenses (hotels, etc.) had been pre-paid.

Machu Picchu is a 15th-century Inca citadel located near Aguas Calientes, Peru.

Biking the ‘Death Road’ near La Paz, Bolivia

Jalol was without a doubt the best local guide that I encountered in almost three years of travel. There wasn’t a question about his native Uzbekistan that he couldn’t answer with a smile.

Kathmandu, Nepal

As the bindings on these snowboards were completely shot, we used them as toboggans and went down the sand dune head first. – Huacachina, Peru

Kathmandu, Nepal

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Everyone wants a selfie. – Heavenly Lake of Tianshan, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China

Near Tsenker, Mongolia

Finisterre, Galicia, Spain

Buenos Aires, Argentina

‎⁨Rioja Alta Golf Club⁩, ⁨Cirueña⁩, ⁨Rioja⁩, ⁨Spain⁩

Mumbai, India

Kathmandu, Nepal

It’s not hard to tell what dogs think of these mobile sterilization clinics in Delhi, India.

Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Produce dealers in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India

Enjoying a Pisco Sour onboard Inca Rail, Peru

Near Pokhara, Nepal

Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India

Brimpaen, Victoria, Australia

I asked the guy who was navigating this dugout canoe in Nepal’s Chitwan National Park why the passengers had to wear life vests and he apparently did not. He pointed to the shore and what I assumed were three rather large logs. “See those are alligators?” he said. “If we capsize you’ll be bobbing around in the water and I’ll be swimming like hell.”

Lahic, Georgia

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

Fazenda San Francisco, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil

‎⁨Cirueña⁩, ⁨Rioja⁩, ⁨Spain⁩

Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Ogii Nuur (Lake), Mongolia

This is the route that I followed on two Dragoman trucks as I circled Mongolia and then traveled the length of the Silk Road from Beijing to Istanbul. All in it was 121 days in a large aluminum box on wheels and I loved every minute of it!

Piranha fishing on the Miranda River in Brazil’s Southern Pantanal

Put to work in Astam, Nepal

Breakfast #1 on Via Rail’s ‘The Canadian’ between Toronto and Vancouver

Pamplona, Spain

Song Köl Lake, Naryn, Kyrgyzstan

Streetlights are almost nonexistent even though Thamel is the main commercial and tourist neighbourhood in Kathmandu, Nepal.

Southern Pantanal, Brazil