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| Dear Marieta, After spending two weeks in Belize working, I headed off to Australia to attend the Australian Open of Surfing as a guest of Destination New South Wales. As someone who never saw salt water until he was 21, I knew absolutely nothing about surfing. It was a very educational experience learning about the sport, the culture and I even got to try my hand at surfing on Bondi Beach! In addition to the surf related events, I also was able to explore Sydney in a way I never had before. I've been to Sydney several times, but I never got far beyond the central business district. This trip I was able to explore some of the beaches and neighborhoods that I hadn't visited before. After Sydney I was able to visit a place that I had been wanting to visit for a long time: Lord Howe Island! If you haven't heard of Lord Howe, it is a small island and UNESCO World Heritage Site located about 500 miles off the coast of Sydney. In addition to being one of the most beautiful islands in the the world, it is also home to 300 residents and there is a limit of only 400 tourists which can be on the island at one time. In fact, it is so laid back that they have never turned on mobile phone service for the island! I am also pleased to announce that I will have a weekly travel photo appearing on the Today Show website! For those of you outside of the United States, the Today Show is the most popular morning TV in America. I'll be in Texas for the rest of February before heading off to San Francisco and Las Vegas in March. If you will be in either of those cities and would like to meet up, please drop me a line. Until next time, Keep traveling! Gary
New at the Website
All I Really Need to Know I Learned From Traveling Around the World
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| With all due respect to Robert Fulghum, you can learn a lot more traveling than you can in kindergarten. Here are some of the things I learned from traveling around the world for five years. [Read more...] |
Photo Essay: South Africa
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| In 2010 I had the pleasure of visiting South Africa as a guest of South Africa tourism. I visited the remote Kimberly region in the North West Province, Cape Town and areas around Johannesburg. I was able to do and see many incredible things including: a live capture on a game farm, get in the water with Great White Sharks, see African Elephants, ride the Blue Train, and take my first hot air balloon trip... [Read more...] |
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Why I Am Not One Lucky Bastard
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| One common thread I've noticed when people interact with me is that they will often refer to me as being "lucky."
"You are so lucky to be able to travel that much!"
"You are so lucky to have visited Fiji!"
"You are so lucky to have gone to the Rugby World Cup!"
With my latest trip to Antarctica the "lucky" cries have grown even louder. I understand that no one intends to be disrespectful when they say I'm lucky, but I want to make it clear that luck has nothing to do with it. [Read more...] |
Photo Essay: Switzerland
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| Prior to setting out in 2007, I explored the world on the maps of Risk and Axis and Allies. Via dice rolling and troop movements, I was able to explore most of the world, but there was also one place I couldn't go: Switzerland. It was a big greyed out area on the map where I could never move my plastic units.
[Read more...] |
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Daily Travel Photos
Feb. 19, 2012
 Australia
| Feb. 18, 2012
 Hawaii
| Feb. 17, 2012
 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| Feb. 16, 2012
 Nova Scotia
| Feb. 15, 2012
 Micronesia
| Feb. 14, 2012
 Weimar, Germany
| Feb. 13, 2012
 Australia
| Feb. 12, 2012
 Hong Kong
| Feb. 11, 2012
 Glasgow, Scotland
| Feb. 10, 2012
 Yukon, Canada
| Feb. 9, 2012
Hawaii
| Feb. 8, 2012
Isle of Man
| Feb. 7, 2012  Edinburgh, Scotland | Feb. 6, 2012  Scotland | Feb. 5, 2012  New Zealand |
This Week in Travel: Episode 107
This week's news:
Picks of the week:
- Gary - BlackRapid Camera Strap
- Chris - Ngorongoro Crater
- Jen - UsingMiles.com, simon-says blog
[Hear it now...]
World Heritage Site of the Week
UNESCO World Heritage Site #20: Seokguram Grotto and Bulguksa Temple
From the World Heritage Inscription: "Established in the 8th century on the slopes of Mount T'oham, the Seokguram Grotto contains a monumental statue of the Buddha looking at the sea in the bhumisparsha mudra position. With the surrounding portrayals of gods, Bodhisattvas and disciples, all realistically and delicately sculpted in high and low relief, it is considered a masterpiece of Buddhist art in the Far East. The Temple of Bulguksa (built in 774) and the Seokguram Grotto form a religious architectural complex of exceptional significance."
Located a short distance out of Geyongju, the Seokguram Grotto and Bulguksa Temple are two completely different sites put under the same World Heritage banner. The Seokguram Grotto was a real disappointment. It is much more difficult to get to, sitting on the top of a mountain, up a winding road. You have to walk about 10-15 min to get there, and when you do get there, it is a tiny alcove where you can't take photos, and the Buddha is walled off in glass.
The Bulguksa Temple, however, is the most impressive thing in the Gyeongju area. It was the best preserved temple I visited in South Korea, and is a rather large complex. The photo is the front of the Bulguksa Temple. Both the temple and the shrine can be visited from Gyeongju on a half-day trip via taxi or organized tour.
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