Experiences

Australia always fascinated me.

Early in life I had two dream trips and Oz was one of them. I’m not sure if it was the culture, the accents, beaches full of good looking women, Paul Hogan, or just the promise to go on the piss for a few weeks and chill with a koala for once, but finally, I had arrived in Oceana.

I started in New Zealand, solely on the recommendation of friends and found that Auckland was a really interesting city with plenty to do.

As a foreigner who decided to show up without doing any research whatsoever, I found a great restaurant/bar scene, plenty of shopping, a museum full of Māori history and artifacts, a volcano, and a beautiful nearby island full of vineyards.

I jumped on my plane bound for Queenstown after 45 minutes of unconsciousness from a heavy night of after hours drinking with some bartenders I befriended a few hours before.

Upon our descent, the weather didn’t permit our landing and I found myself on a detour to Christchurch and later on a bus back to my original destination.

The 7 hour bus trip was awe inspiring.

Having to repress my desire to vomit profusely, was not.

After arriving in Queenstown, I checked into my hostel, ate the complimentary pea soup and debated to drink again or go to sleep…

Subject my liver to further abuse, heard.

I can sleep when I get home, right?

Judge me if you will, but this night set the course for my entire experience in Queenstown.

Good company makes any amazing experience better and this is where I met two of my favorite people in my adventures, Dorotka and Mary.

We bungee jumped the Nevis together, ate Fergburger, and unwillingly met an Italian kid who gave a kiwi a dead fish hand shake which almost started a brawl. Good times.

Queenstown is home to a booming adventure sport scene for those who enjoy a thrill. The majestic mountains and glacier fed lakes are a scenery that could intrigue the greatest outdoor enthusiast.

My time in New Zealand was brief. Shorter than I wished it had been. The islands are breathtaking, the people were great to me, and the food was delicious, and drinking with the New Eland Warriorsbut it was time to move on to the next stop.

I spent my first 4 days in Australia in Melbourne.

Home to the Melbourne Cricket Ground, I immediately headed to watch an Aussie rules football match. I knew nothing about the sport, but made friends at the bar who helped me along with the rules.

Melbourne is an upbeat city with plenty of graffiti style murals and a top class restaurant scene that will fulfill any foodies dreams.

Plenty of day trips are possible from Melbourne to nearby locations like Great Ocean Road, Bells Beach and Phillip Island if you get tired of the hustle of the city.

After a few days in Melbourne I decided it was time to carry on and headed to Brisbane for a few days.

I didn’t get much accomplished since most of the 2 days are an alcoholic blur.

Hey, these things happen.

This is with the exception of an afternoon around the town and a day trip to the Gold Coast. At least I found a Mos Burger, a fast food joint I tried in Japan.

Everyone loves a tasty piece of nostalgia.

I boarded my flight in the usual state and wedged myself between the 2 Herculean figures in seats A and C . They not only took the arm rests, but most of my seat as well.

Bastards, no wonder I drink so much when I travel, it’s broken seats, crying babies, and these assholes.

We were headed for Sydney, and I couldn’t get there fast enough.

My week in Sydney was my favorite time in Australia and well worth the shit flight.

From watching Madame Butterfly in the Opera house, climbing the Sydney harbor bridge, drinking in the rocks, or hanging out in Bondi and Manley beach, Sydney proved to be very entertaining.

I loved both countries, but wish I could have spent more than 1 week in New Zealand. All in all my trip was a success and my time came to and end.

Time to go home and start planning again.

The land of the rising sun.

I had waited my whole life to visit Japan. I dreamed of the culture, the food, the landscapes. Everything.

Video games, movies and martial arts were my only early exposure to their culture, but something told me that I loved this place before I ever stepped off of the plane.

I was right.

As I arrived at Narita, I was terrified, alone and absolutely clueless. The language barrier was immediately obvious and I was lost as soon as I landed.

As I asked what felt like every stranger in sight if they speak English, eventually a nice woman told me she knew where I was going and that Asakusa was two stops after hers.

I followed her like a puppy until she got off the train. The doors closed, we smiled and waved goodbye and the overwhelming feeling returned.

I was on my own.

Tokyo is a sensory overload for any first time visitor. I wandered the streets in awe, utterly confused, curious and eating everything in sight.

Not much, but this sums up my first few days pretty well.

The sushi, ramen shops and Japanese pubs should be an obvious must see. I also found Mos Burger to be a pleasant surprise if you want to try a Japanese fast food joint.

After drinking most of the night in Roppongi, I woke up at 6 AM immensely hungover and headed for Fuji Kawaguchiko with my roommate Kat on an astounding 2 hours of sleep.

She spent the bus ride rather amused at my state of impairment and tried to convince me to climb Mt. Fuji with her. I persistently declined, insisting that I had indeed come to see Fuji, just not the top of it.

Her resolve was unwavering, she won.

We decided we would climb overnight with our new friends Eric and Vanessa and summit for the sunrise. I already committed to the hike in jeans and sneakers, with little sleep and a hangover, so why not, right..?

After Fuji, I parted ways with everyone and made my way to Kyoto.

 

Some of my favorite sights were the Golden Pavilion, Fushimi Inari Taisha and the many gardens and walkways the city has to offer.

For relaxation, I also recommend taking the train to Kurama Onsen if you are curious to check out a traditional style Japanese bath.

After Kyoto, I hopped on the Shinkansen to Hiroshima and in 2 hours time I arrived, hungover again and slightly ready to go.

I didn’t find my time in Hiroshima to be as eventful it proved to be a more relaxed pace than the other cities I had visited. I walked around the city for 2 days exploring its bars and historical sights.

From here, I took a day trip to Itsukushima, also known as Miyajima.

Miyajima is a mysteriously beautiful island, with delicious black bean maple cookies, savory grilled oysters, thousands of stone statues and the famous floating torii gate.

From there, I completed my trip by returning to Tokyo for my last 3 days, exploring the Ueno Zoo and shopping district, clubbing in Shibuya and taking another look at the Asakusa streets.

Tokyo is much easier to navigate once you have a better understanding of PASSMO and how the culture in general.

While Japan is still the greatest culture shock I have had as a solo traveler, it remains my favorite trip to this day.

I consider a landmark event to be something life changing. Something you can never do anywhere else and most definitely worth seeing.

The cost on these events is usually about the same as a days budget or more. However, it will cost a great deal more to fly back, book another room, pay for food, entertainment,etc.

Here’s a few of my landmark events:

-Climbing all night to Mt. Fuji’s summit to watch the sunrise.

-Bungee jumping the Nevis in Queenstown, New Zealand.

-Madame Butterfly in the Sydney Opera House

-AFL quarterfinal in Melbourne, Australia.

-A show at Moulin Rouge

-Visit the Shaolin Temple

-Experiencing Angkor Wat

-Touring the tunnels of Cu Chi in Vietnam

-Riding a camel into the Sahara desert to camp under the stars.

This is one of the few times where I advocate using a credit card if I don’t already have the money saved.

I always prefer to pay things off and not hold debt. So as somebody who thinks of money as potential opportunity and not just fun tickets. I assure you that you will still feel more guilty for the things you didn’t do then the experiences you chose to pay for.

One of the most common questions I get asked by friends and associates is that of the risks of food poisoning and how to prevent it.

Experiencing street food and the local fair can be a life changing experience, for better or worse. If you keep your wits about you and do a bit of research hopefully your adventures can lead to the former more so than the latter.

Though it is a definite concern when abroad, the fear of food borne illness persists regardless of where you are in the world, so be brave and live life.

In culinary school, an instructor of mine was quoted saying “If you wouldn’t serve it to your mother don’t sell it”. I have learned to apply the same rules when it comes to purchasing food abroad as well.

If you choose to eat meat in a country where the standards of service aren’t typically to your liking, opt for dishes that cook for long periods of time and meats that are cooked throughout.

Observation of the quality of equipment and the temperature regulation (if present at all) of food service items can also help prevent a potential travel disaster.

Some of the best local spots can appear the least appealing, but offer amazing rewards.

So use your better judgement and if you are still weary, beware of equipment that doesn’t have temperature regulation and nearby flies.

If you are very concerned when eating out, here is a list of symptoms of food poisoning don’t over plan your schedule so you can leave a few days to recuperate if need be. If you don’t like the quality of the meat, go vegetarian.

At times if I’m wandering around and find a place I would never try at home but is full of locals, I’ll throw caution to the wind and give it a go.

These experiences have not only allowed me to eat some of the best meals of my life, they help teach and reinforce many life lessons. You know, books and covers and stuff of that nature.

Culture is comprised of the arts and intellectual achievements of a civilization. Thus, food is included.

So be adventurous, that’s the purpose of travel anyways, right?