Ramblings of the travelling nature

I don't normally do this, but I thought this year has been pretty eventful both in terms of what has happened over the year and personal growth plus I'm starting to really get into this whole reflection thing.

So more for myself, I decided to write down just what happened over the year 2009; the big personal hitters I guess for every month and thought I might as well share it with you lot...why not!!

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January

Location: New Zealand

• On the boat........exciting stuff (not really!). What a crappy New Years Eve!
  

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February

Location: New Zealand

• On the boat........same old shit; more cash in the bank account.
  

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March

Location: New Zealand

• On the boat........not long now; one more month till departure :D
  

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April

Location: Australia, United Kingdom
Blog: "The story so far...."

• Debts all paid (woo hoo!), cashed saved, quite job and time to spend it.

• Back home very briefly for the first time since I left with a stop off in Sydney before jetting back to London to start another trip.
  

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May

Location: Sweden, Norway, Finland
Blog: "Questions, Questions, Questions......"

• A terrifically turbulent month which I was not prepared for at all and really caught me by surprise and left me feeling very lost mentally and questioning everything that I was doing and had doe or was about to do.
  Confusing stuff!
  

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June

Location: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus
Blog: "The forgotten Neighbour"

• Wanting to dive into the world of travel writing I find the perfect topic to write about and start finding interested publishing outlets. Start putting pen to paper and make for a timely diversion on that nagging personal front.

• Still in a state of confusion I shelve all future travel plans and start contemplating a whole life change...180°.
  Studying, another working holiday somewhere, heading home everything was on the table.

• My desire to want to share my experiences with the world grows, but how to do it?
  

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July

Location: Poland, Hungary, Croatia, Slovenia
Blog: "The idea of spontaneity" & "Marking The Event"

• 4th article draft - still not happy with the text. Is proving I not more difficult than I thought!

• I've got it. I will bring upon the world the idea of spontaneous travel by way of a documentary. Shit how do you even make a doco?
  The hunt for a cameraman begins.

• Birthday held, another year done, tattoo inked.
  

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August

Location: Moldova, Ukraine
Blog: "Sitting by the seaside; on the seashore" & "Shall we take a trip?" & "Organization of a Backpacker"

• Article submitted. Fingers crossed! Bigger projects cooking now.

• Cameraman found. Location locked in....
  Stressing starts as it dawns what I am about to embark on and what I have just put my life saving into. No turning back now!
  

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September

Location: Georgia
Blog: "The Crown Adorning the Caucasus"

• I can't believe it happening. We are making a documentary.
  The cameraman arrives and reality sets in that I have to be the front man of the whole thing, the one that makes it or breaks it in the end...a person who has try to avoid being in front of the camera his whole life.
  Filming goes extremely well and am absolutely delighted with the shots produced; not so much with my performance.

• Fall deeply in love with Georgia after spending an entire month traversing around this amazing country.
  I vow to return.
  

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October

Location: Armenia, Azerbaijan
Blog: "Printed in the Pages Forever"

• Find a Ukrainian film director and editor to edit the first edition of the series "Drop Me Off Here"

• I'm published! Who would have thought ... they loved the article and was published in the in-flight magazine 'Baltic Outlook'.
  Not only a nice surprise but a timely cash injection.

• Two dreams start to merge together. The dream of starting a hostel and the dream of returning to Georgia...
  

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November

Location: Iran, Iraq
Blog: "The land of "No Problem" " & "Shortcut Through the Forbidden Zone"

• The day arrived that the challenge I set month back in my state of confusion; "The challenge to be challenged"was about to become reality, it was time to enter Iran.
  Don't know what all the fuss was about; too easy and amazingly rewarding. SO much so Iraq entered the itinerary.

• The hostel idea starts gaining weight and unpredicted interest as after throwing out a few 'feelers' get extremely positive feedback. A project to develop in the New Year.
  

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December

Location: Turkey, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand

• Facing some serious budget and financial issues the flight to SE Asia couldn't have some any sooner.
  With a new passport in hand it was time for some serious relaxation and to turn my mind off after an exhausting and rewarding year.
  
• Think I have reached some kind of Zen place as for the first time in recent memory I am not thinking about anything! Ooooo what a awesome feeling :D
  

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Photo Galleries from 2009

Australia / New Zealand
Scandinavia / Eastern Europe / Southern Caucasus
Laos / Cambodia / Thailand


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A 'Word Cloud' generated from all of this years blog posts. Pretty cool!

When the year of 2009 started I made a pact to myself to try and share my experiences with more people and to give them no just an insight into some of my happenings but also to provoke motivation so people have the energy to actually making a start at something.

One of the ways I decided I could share my experiences was to pick up my writing game and try my hand at travel writing.
Months went by, and with a bit of a rocky start to the whole trip my very own motivation was lacking, of course you can write about any topic or destination if you really want to but I needed to find that inspirational place; the place that was still a bit mysterious but also create passion within myself to share it with everyone else.

It was in June of this year that I found such a place, a place that I knew straight away that this was it; the one! the one I had to share and so the unfamiliar process of writing an article, not a blog but an actual article that I would hope to be published started.
3 months later I had it, ready to submit! After countless re-writes and hours of self deliberation on every word I submitted it to Baltic Outlook Magazine who I had contacted a few months before with a proposal and got a reply that this was a story they might be interested in, not a guarantee of it been published.
Baltic Outlook Magazine is the in-flight magazine for Baltic Air which is a European Airline based in Riga, Latvia flying to destinations all over Europe and Western/Central Asia and as the article was located in Tallinn made for the perfect opportunity.

I only found out a few weeks ago that the article actually got publish when I check my bank account and say a rather nice sum of money sitting there. So the article has already been and gone, was in the October 2009 issue which is a bit strange for me as the subject the article is talking about isn't even open to June but never the less I am stocked to be in print and that people could be actually reading it.... if it just makes one person sit and think I am happy.

Well I hope you enjoy it!
The whole lot has been unchanged from what I submitted which I'm very happy with and they even used the photographs I shot, except of course that spectacular helicopter shot!
I should say a big thank you to Melanie who did the final spelling and grammar check and corrected my countless mistakes and also Rodregio for touching up with photographs.

The links are below.....

Click to View or Click to Download (1.4 MB)
'A Walk Through Undiscovered Tallinn' Article

Click to View or Click to Download (18.4 MB)
Full 'October 2009' Magazine Edition

There are some divisions in Iraq that most would not have heard of, one in particular is so strong that it has given rise the the region of the 'Other Iraq'.
Think Iraq and your mind is automatically swamped with thoughts of war, destruction, America, human loss, Saddam and countless other horrific images; there is no question that most of Iraq is absolutely devastated and for many many decades to come as the fierce war battles on. There is however an area which has escaped the bloodshed, Iraq Kurdistan... the 'Other Iraq' and so when I heard the news the borders were open I couldn't help but take a journey through.

It's a bitter and complicated issue, one not easy to explain.
The Kurdish people have been fighting for there land since the 15th century when then Kurdistan was shared out among neighbouring countries and have been fighting hard especially with Turkey in more recent times for there lands return. The original Kurdish borders stretch across moder day Syria, Turkey, Iraq and Iran and over a period of time they were left with nothing in the modern day world. That was until around the 1970's when after heavy fighting with the Iraq government and a deal with the Soviets brought the possibility of a new region. This was then concreted during the Gulf War after the Americans imposed a no-fly zone over the region and even more when the Saddam government fell in 2003. The effects of all this not only finally gave the Kurdish people a slice of there original land but also spared the region from the rain of violence tearing through the rest of the country (Arab Iraq) in the recent conflicts.
Although recognised by the new Iraq government and its autonomy by the international community and the UN, it's still not official a new country but its all too easy to see that the steps have been laid and the Kurdish Regional Government is well on its way to getting full autonomy.

Originally planning to exit Iran via Turkey a new plan was hatched to take a shortcut, a shortcut which one can only be apprehensive about as no matter what new name you give the place... it's still Iraq! which is currently sitting high and mighty on top of the most dangerous countries in the world.
A shortcut to Turkey or a shortcut to hell; there was only one way to find out.
The first surprise was the landscape, for a country that's meant to be flat this couldn't be further from the truth up north as the road to the capital, Arbil; was flanked by tremendous gorges and amazing beauty as we hair-pinned out way along the 5 hour journey for the Iranian border post and through countless check-points.
Not having a clue what to expect in Arbil, a waste land or a oasis; I was pleasantly surprised as home to 1 million+ people it would rival any neighbouring countries main hub in terms of infrastructure and services.

Kurdistan for me was a novelty, a chance to see for myself a tiny slice of Iraq. I didn't so much enjoy it but now my eyes are all the more wider.

A roundabout in Arbil to three of the most dangerous cities in the world!

Mysterious lands are hard to come by these days; Mysterious not by the fact that they haven't being explored but for the fact they are misunderstood and the public perception is so misguided or rather misdirected that just mentioning the name provokes self-created images which are often distorted and rarely positive. Iran is one such land.

With the Persian Gulf and Caspian Sea's rich waters flowing in the north and south respectively, Iran sits at a pretty uncomfortable place on the world map. Flanked by the Middle East (of which Iran is technically not a part of) and their past bitter enemies Iraq to the west and Central Asia with problematic Afghanistan and Pakistan to the east; Iran certainly has some interesting neighbours and for the last 30 or so years has had a struggling and increasingly demising image problem with the 'West'. A brief Iranian history lesson reveals that once America and Iran were allies until of course the coup with CIA involvement brought an abrupt end to all of that and ever since has become a very frosty relationship indeed. My view om American politics has never being positive and I guess I seem them as puppeteering bullies who pull the strings in there favour and get there big 'buddies' to join in; if they don't want to they will start to take there once friends 'lunch money'. There are so many instances of this happening and of course the current one of nuclear proliferation. It does strike me as strange how they can all be talking it and demanding it yet the idea of starting with themselves hasn't even come to the table and I see no reason for Iran to even slightly trust any word or idea that is being brought forward as both themselves and other countries have been backstabbed countless time, add to that the US isn't even giving Iran there 'agreement' that they will not attack Iran if it abandons its nuclear program; whereas this 'agreement' has being given to North Korea.
I think we they should be looking at the much more serious issue of Israel and Iran which seems to be going unnoticed but an issue that is only getting worse and with Israel possibly having a nuclear weapon already why isn't anyone looking at this? perhaps the fact that the two have been rather friendly of late and have become 'allies'.
I guess its the same thing of fighting al Qaeda in Afghanistan and turning a blind eye to the out of control problems in Somalia where there hasn't been an official government for nearly 20 years and now a safe haven and breading ground for extremists, many of whom have fled from Afghanistan.
It's all about public perception and political agendas.

This all of course is one side of the coin, the side which most people see and know of; the government front. Flip it over and you'll discover the other side; the people - Iranians, some of the most truly friendly and sincere people in the world.
Spending two and a half weeks here really opened my eyes to Iranian culture and its people as like most others my eyes were closed and only knew what was feed to me in the news. Starting from Azerbaijan I moved across to the east before returning to Tehran and down through the central desert to the town of Shiraz before making a bee-line to the exit in the north west. I tried to get a diverse experience as possible with such a short amount of time that I had.
The experiences I had in Iran are some of which I will still be talking about in years to come and definitely not forgetting in a hurry. The hospitality expressed from Iranian's is very unique and something I have never encountered before, something which makes you skeptical when first experienced until you realise just how sincere they really are. What makes Iranian hospitality very different for me is there curiosity and boldness; unlike many other nations that I have visited where the locals will happily stare and track you down the street at the mere sight of a foreigners, Iranians will do no such thing which for me is a massive sign of respect. Instead they will approach you to ask all there curious questions and not just the young men either; old, young, men and women it doesn't matter - if they have a question they want to know the answer. The latter of which, women; was a bit of a surprise as being an Islamic Republic I was under the impression that women weren't allowed to talk to men of whom they were not related or connected to, part of which is correct but as long as there is no sexual intent its not forbidden.
Most young Iranians can speak comprehensible English as many have aspirations to leave the country to further there university studies and with this not only there questions can be asked but mine as well, giving a real insight into the new and upcoming generation of Iran. Many of these do not agree with Ahmadinejad's stubbornness to the west as its becoming damaging to the image or Iranians, while the Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is much unliked by most Iranians, but all are fiercely proud of where they come from.
The questions come thick and fast from both sides and there were so many instances of being in the bus with the seat beside me being switched constantly as so everyone could quench there curiosity. This did become annoying after a while but there offerings of food, drink, sweet and insight made up for it! The bus trip usually ended up with an invite to be picked up from the terminal and taken to a feast where the meeting of relatives, friends and partners ensued.

I don't think I will ever forget the guys from Esfahan, such a great couple of days; so much so I wanted to go back before I left. From the Hookah seasons to the car breakdown, the city tour, meeting the family and riding around with 5 of us on the back of the motorbike. Just brilliant!
The one phrase that I will tie to Iran forever as through the first English question they're ever taught, "No Problem?' ... No problem at all!

Check out the pics here >>>
http://redmonkey.smugmug.com/Backpacking-Jaunts/Scandinavia-Europe-Caucasus/Iran-Kurdistan-Iraq-2009/

Few countaries need an introducton, but like its neighbours has been in the media spotlight for all the wrong reasons for the last few years; so it was time to discover just what this country was all about.

Georgia (not the girl, not the US state; but the country) is nestled in a part of the world that most don't really know about and until last year most hadn't head of, so much so that I didn't even know where it was until the girls in Belarus couldn't stop raving about it, so looking for a challenge I jetted off to Tbilisi the capital in search of what this place really was. It was also the staging point for the filming of the documentary pilot; 'Drop Me Off Here' which we are currently producing.
In 2008 Georgia and the international community were shocked and surprised when the big neighbour Russia launched an attach on the country smaller then the size of Switzerland and already split with two autonomous regions. Russia managed to seize a notable chunk of the mid-north aster fierce fighting with the Georgian army that even managed to reach the outskirts of Tbilisi.

Today there is little sight of what happened not even a year ago. Of course the area sized by the Russians (South Ossetia) is a no go zone but the rest of the country is ripe for the exploring.
Georgia is famous the world over for two things. There wine and there hospitality; both of which are in abundance. The hospitality that Georgians show to strangers is rightly shown in the 'Mother of Georgia' statue standing tall above the hills of Tbilisi, she holds a sword in one hand and carvet of wine in the other. Georgians believe that if they meet a stranger they must help them out in whatever way they possibly can, whilst on the other hand they are fiercely proud and will fight there enemies till the end.

The hospitality we encountered was just so unbelievable and never ending with the experiences uncountable. One instance we were just sitting in a small cafe having some lunch when the table of guys next to ours offered to buy us a bottle of vodka, of course we accepted (there's no way you can't!) and before we knew it they had got one of there fathers to bring his taxi and drive up up to a monastery in the hills. On arriving we were introduced to the regional vicar who then invited us to some of his home brewed wine and warn fresh made bread. That not being enough it was then off to a restaurant where over 2 hours the drinking, eating and singing didn't stop until everyone was rightly exhausted. There was just to many instances of this kind of thing and many if not all revolving around good food and home made alcohol.

The hospitality alone didn't just impress me. Georgia like so many countries in the region was once under Soviet control and like many of these countries shook its Soviet shackles around the same time; but here they are taking it one step further that the rest of the group (minus Estonia).
Georgia is trying very hard to bring back what makes them Georgians, this can especially be seen in Tbilisi where the change is unbelievable and happening so fast you wouldn't even think this was once Soviet land. Of course change takes time and starts from the center, in this case Tbilisi; and not without its problems either. The mentality of the people here and the widely diverse landscapes from the snow caped mountains to the warm sands of the black sea and onto the southern semi-desert; Georgia is definitely on the right track and well on its way to becoming a new tourist destination. I know when people ask me the question, "What's your favourite country?" I have a new answer...... "Georgia!"

Check out the pics here >>>
http://redmonkey.smugmug.com/Backpacking-Jaunts/Scandinavia-Europe-Caucasus/Georgia-2009/

Over the last few month I have been asked on a growing number of occasions "What's in the bag man?"
So I am going to share with you how I do it and what the hell I have been carting around on my back for the last few years.

WHAT"S IN IT!

Backpack

I have to say the backpack I have has been so good to me and perfect for what I need. Some said before I left to get a cheap and nasty one but when you look at how these things work if one buckle or strap breaks you screwed until it can be fixed.
I've got an Osprey Crescent backpack with a 75 litre capacity. Some say that a bit big but no matter how much I put in it I can't seem to fit more than 20kg which is a crucial number when you want to avoid excess baggage costs with a growing number of airlines. The size is just right too. Not too big to squeeze onto crowded public transport or fit into small buses or luggage lockers.

- Top Compartment

• Harmonica - Still yet to master or even play this instrument
  
• Additional Straps - For attaching item to the outside of pack
  
• Collected tickets and memorabilia + coin collection
  
• Hidden compartment containing passport / insurance photocopies & US$200 cash in small notes
  

- Main Compartment

• Compact sleeping bag
  
• Quick drying towel
  
• 2 x Stuff bags for clothes
  #1 - Couple pairs socks & underwear + 5 T-Shirts
  #2 - Shorts, jeans and a pair of pants + board shorts (swimming shorts)
  
• 2 person tent
  
• Hat
  
• Winter Kit (Dark Green bag standing next to the backpack in the pic above)
  - One really warm jacket, One not so warm jacket, gloves & a beanie (woolen hat)
  
• Toiletry Bag
  - Toothbrush, toothpaste, moisturizer, deodorant, shampoo, body wash, sunscreen,
  shaving stuff, hair gel, tweezers & nail clippers
  
• Medical Bag
  - Load of medication from heartburn to diarrhea stoppers and starters + bandages,
  hypodermic needles, gauze pads, iodine etc. & condoms
  

- Bottom Compartment

• Trekking shoes
  
• Thongs/Flip-Flops/Jandals
  
• 'Dressy' shoes
  
• Sleeping kit with eye patch, neck pillow & soft ear plugs
  
• Medical book - For how to use all the medication above
  
• Backpack bag - Fits entire backpack in & fully lockable
  
• Stuff Sack 1 - Yellow
  - Mini calculator, bottle opener, torch, sunglasses strap, mobile phone,
  GPS unit (used for mapping & GeoCaching http://geocaching.com), universal power adaptor & Buff head-wear
  
• Stuff Sack 2 - Blue
  - Sleeping sheet, universal bath plug, clothes line, pack of cards, multi-tool, spare SD memory card,
  steel wire & padlocks, battery charger and 4 x long life batteries, custom molded ear plugs
  

Daypack

• Sunglasses
  
• Cigarettes & lighter
  
• USB stick
  
• Digital Camera
  
• Tissues
  
• Document wallet
  
• Music 'pod'
  - iPod Nano, headphones, USB power adapter & cable + stereo jack cable
  

CONNECTION WITH THE WORLD

Well of course there is email, what person from my surrounding generations doesn't have an email address they can access anywhere in the world. My personal one isn't the most professional (or related to my talents!) but it is memorable, so when meeting people for just a minute amount of time you can drop the address in the conversation and chances are you'll hear from them again.
Then there are the 4 main websites I use to communicate and share my experiences through.
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/Jason.W.S - This site has really changed the way I can stay in contact with people and also see what everyone else is up to when I don't have so much time to send individual emails.
Travellerspoint http://www.travellerspoint.com/member_profile.cfm?user=RedMonkey - Besides the blog it has a fantastic mapping feature which I keep regularly updated so not only others can see where I have been but for me to be able to pinpoint a specific date and know where I was.
CouchSurfing http://www.couchsurfing.org/redmonkey - Have been quite active on here recently and it provides both places to sleep and access to people everywhere who you can pick there brains for local knowledge and ideas.
SmugMug http://redmonkey.smugmug.com - Online photo storage at its best. Love it!

Then of course there is Skype which is a fantastic idea, but trying to find computers that are fast enough or have the equipment to make a call can be a challenge.

Online privacy is also a big issue there days with potential employers, embassies and who knows who else trying to search for dirt on you, which is why I use the alias of 'RedMonkey' to keep those unwanted eyes away from my online presence.

MY ONLINE COMPUTER

Not travelling with a laptop is seem by some as a crime in this digital world and if I was to add up the amount of money I have spent in Internet cafes I might just change that decision. I have no need for a laptop while I'm on the move as everything is already online and readily accessible. Gone are the days of having to delete emails as your inbox is bursting with messages and so is full of information, files, photos, contacts etc. I use a service called Box http://www.box.net which is basically a online hard drive you can arrange just like on a normal computer plus give access rights to whoever you like to view and edit. Here lives all sorts of files from resumes, job applications, scanned images, insurance and passport documents, random writings and anything that's worth keeping.
Another service which I just love is MP3Locker http://www.mp3tunes.com and as the names suggests it has all my music from my laptop online and synced up, allowing me to play and download anywhere in the world my music library just as if my laptop was in front of me.

MONEY MATTERS

Every traveller has a different way they deal with there money. Here is mine and I love it because it works so well for me and have yet to get into a real sticky situation of not been able to access my funds....unless of course there are none actually there!
In the age of Internet any bank that want to do serious business has some kind of Internet banking which makes it all too easy to keep a track of everything from transferring money to making domestic and international payments.
I travel with two credit cards, not because I'm greedy for cash but for the simple fact that I only have one on me at a time, so if I get mugged; no worries just dig out the other and where off again. The other and probably more important reason is that one is a MasterCard and the other a Visa as despite what there marketing would have you believe, either or are not accepted everywhere and with some countries only accepting Visa and vice verse.
Another method I have been using this year is that of a pre-paid credit card which is basically the same as a normal one except you load it with funds yourself and can't spend over that amount. Around every month I will load it with my monthly budget and use this card for all my spending, so when the ATM doesn't want to give me any cash I know I have maxed out on the budget and its time to hit the bread and water! The other advantage is that as it has no credit limit if someone was to steal this card and access it or 'double swipe' it the only money they can get is what you have put on there. In other words not so much compared to some of the credit limits banks are giving out these days.
On top of all of this I have some investment in shares and this acts as my 'emergency fund'. So if everything goes tits up I can just sell out and cash up giving me instant fund for a flight home or somewhere safe after being transferred the funds through a service such as Western Union. Plus while its waiting to be used it's hopefully making money on itself!

That's pretty much how my life is sorted out and with the daily onslaughts of bus timetables, visa applications, exchange rates, local customs, languages, currency and jumping through hoops of bureaucracy once and a while it certainly keeps me on my toes and seems to be working alright.

My Backpack, My Life, Our World