Starting Out:
Research.
|
Before
you set out anywhere, you would want to do some research. As you are using this site, we
take it that the Internet will be one of your resources.
The Network of Travellers was set up with that
in mind; a group of travellers willing to share advice by e-mail, based on their
experiences in countries that they have travelled to or lived in. Join the Travel Network.
Travel
Notes™ is the ultimate guide to travel on the Web. Country background
information and links to relevant websites, reviewed by editors dedicated to bringing you
the best. More links and tourist information
added daily.
The Literary
Traveller - Some travellers return to write a book, and then there are the
great writers who travel. Reading literary works can always help to prepare you for
another land and culture.
Travel
Guides & books about travel -- Travel guides are a Godsend and a
tremendous amount of research has gone into them. Everyone has their favourites, and we
point you to some of ours.
Back to Selections. |
Who To Go With:
Companions.
|
Not everyone can give up
their jobs and take off around the world, and some people prefer not to travel alone. If you are set on travelling somewhere and have no-one to go with, but would
like some company along the way, then post your plans in the travel companions section.
People's names are a
link to their e-mail, so that potential travel companions can get to know each other and
make their plans with no more input from us.
We like to hear when
things work out, and will even consider publishing or linking to the results of your
travels at Magun's Compass when you return.
Hopefully you will join
the Network of Travellers, on your return, to help others learn from your experiences too.
Back to Selections. |
Easing Into It:
Europe.
|
Two tender teenagers
hitch-hike from Scandinavia to the sunny South of France. An
Introduction -- Around The World In 80 Months.
God bless all those who
try to circle the globe in 80 days, because even after 80 months there is still so much to
see and do. To take the chance and not expect too much, is the spirit of freedom.
To Travel is to Live.
Setting
Sail -- Leaving England.
The large
white vessel waited patiently, as they dipped into their money-belts to produce passports
and rights of passage.
On The Boat
-- Born To Be Alive.
We may be
travelling on the cheap, but there are times when we need to let go and enjoy.
Arrival
in Esbjerg -- Hitching Goes Slow.
Perhaps the
sight of two half-naked foreigners at the roadside, begging for lifts, was considered
offensive, or even repulsive, in civilized Jutland.
From
Kolding -- Hitching Picks Up.
With his
elbow somehow controlling the steering-wheel, the driver opened bottles of beer on the
ashtray and passed them to his guests.
More to Come.
Back to Selections. |
Winter Sun:
Australia &
New Zealand.
|
After doing summers in
Europe, the long flight down under is usually the next option -- the climate in Australia
offers the chance to break away from frosty mornings, and long dark evenings, of the
crueler months back home. Around
Australia -- An Introduction.
Many
youngsters, under 26, can take a whole year out and apply to Australia House for a working
visa. Fewer funds are needed if you can work your way around the continent, and it can be
a good experience to muck in with other nationals.
Walkabout
in Australia -- Travelling Futility.
On the
walk-about, an arrival is not sought, just the sensation of the movement in travel; A
Travelling Futility, as D.H.Lawrence termed it.
Hitching
in Australia -- If You Dare.
Not
everyone chooses to hitch for rides on the world's largest island. Because there is so
much of nothing in between anything, the waits can be long and not without dangers.
Melbourne
to Adelaide -- To Party Street.
Rock music
plays all night, as Rick and Bennie share the driving. Approaching Adelaide, the DJ on the
car radio predicts an afternoon high of 36 degrees Celsius. It is Grand Prix weekend.
North of
Adelaide -- The Real Journey Starts.
There are
some oil paintings in the back of the car that the couple hope to sell around the pubs.
They are not artists; it's just another way to earn a buck.
From Port
Augusta -- Towards The Track.
When you
join the Stuart Highway, it is your last glimpse of the coast for 3,000 kilometres.
To
Coober Pedy -- Almost Dark.
It is soon
apparent that you are not picked up for the company. Once the formalities of introduction
are over, the two men speak to each other in Danish.
The
Aborigine -- In Coober Pedy at Least.
The former
hunter/gatherers are now unkempt and disorientated, in a world that is not theirs to
handle.
More to Come.
Back to Selections. |
Budget Travellers:
Travel in Asia.
|
Asia is a traveller's
favourite, the overland route of what is now Lonely Planet; with a phrasebook in one hand
and chopsticks in the other you can go far for less. Singapore
-- Stop Over For Many.
Adequately
covered in the travel sections of the week-end qualities, and other leisure magazines,
Singapore is a popular stop-over for flights from Europe to Australia.
Thailand
-- Bangkok Oriental City.
The overall
picture is not solely flesh, the girls for sale are mainly concentrated around a few side
streets, but the traffic is everywhere.
Laos
-- Across The Mekong.
From the
streets of Nong Khai, Thailand, steep steps lead down to the river where small boats
regularly took across passengers. You used to pay the ferryman, and look up at the
narrower steps leading to Laos.
Vietnam
-- The Ho Chi Minh Trail.
The modern
Ho Chi Minh Trail starts in Hanoi, and takes in Hue, Hoi An, Nha Trang, Dalat, Saigon, and
all the little should sees in between.
Indian Subcontinent
-- The Indian Experiece.
The senses
are truly aroused in India. The colour of the women's clothes, and the abundance of
jewellery is a photographer's paradise. You will need plenty of film; not just for the Taj Mahal.
Photo
Gallery -- From The Land of Karma.
A small
slide show bringing you various quality images from the land of the karma -- six stunning
shots from The Sacred Cow to the Taj Mahal.
More to Come.
Back to Selections. |
One in a Billion:
China Travel.
|
The long-nosed, hairy
foreigner is all alone and being stared at. Hong Kong
-- The Gateway to China.
The British have gone, and with them the noon-day gun tradition, but Hong
Kong has always been very Chinese, and the best place to get visa's for the People's
Republic.
China
-- First Impressions Of Beijing.
Bicycles flow silently,
like shoals of fish; an intense volume shifting effortlessly, through an even greater
mass.
China in '88
-- Chairman Mao Suits.
Mahjong in the park and
gold teeth smiles. Sadly the Chairman Mao suits are disappearing fast, and gold teeth cost
more today.
More to Come.
Back to Selections. |
South of Miami Beach:
Latin America.
|
A minefield of
opportunists competing for the belongings of the unwary traveller. Central America -- Adventure
for Travellers.
Many travellers enjoy
Central America, it's culture, the climate and the chance to learn Spanish in a wonderful
environment.
This is a six page photo feature on one of Guatemala's
colourful festivals, first published in Traveller Magazine -- all
photographs copyright Michel Guntern.
South America
-- Photo Gallery.
From the markets of
Ecuador to a Bolivian tin miner this small collection of images are put together for your
viewing pleasure.
Peru
-- Land of the Incas.
Ever since Pizarro
tricked the Inca, Atahualpa, into capture, slaughtered him, and looted the City of
Cuzco, this Andean country has become synonymous with robbery.
More to Come.
Back to Selections. |
Markets and Music:
Africa.
|
Life in Africa is on the
streets, everything is bought and sold in the markets. The clothes on the women are light
and colourful, and music from the heart of Africa beats deep in all souls. Africa -- The World's Second largest
Continent.
Africa
comprises 54 nations. I don't claim to have visited them all, or even half of them, but I
have travelled through West Africa, and the Southern part of the continent.
Landing in
Lagos -- On The West Africa Trail.
Lagos may
not be an ideal starting point for a trip to West Africa, but at least the Nigerians speak
English, and to travel West from here gives you the beaches of The Gambia to relax on at
the end of it all.
Being in
Benin -- From Niger + Lake Ganvie.
For many
Europeans on the Trans-Sahara Peugeot run, the road ends in Niger; although return flights
to Europe are generally cheaper from the northern Nigerian town of Kano. Six page photo
feature on Benin; including a visit to Lake Ganvie.
Egyptian
Gallery -- Nothing More, Nothing Less.
A small
slide show bringing you the golden colours from the land of the Nile -- five views from
Ramses II to Karnak.
More to Come.
Back to Selections. |
Soviet Shake Down:
C.I.S. and Cuba.
|
The Soviet Union opens up,
and then it falls apart. From Russia With Love
-- Moscow.
There are romantic
moments in Red Square, not only flag waving commie protestors, and tourists queuing up to
see the preserved face of Lenin.
Samarkand
-- Central Asia.
Independence
in the distant republics has meant a return to religious practices and nationalistic
fervor.
More to Come.
Back to Selections. |
The Fan Scene:
US 94.
|
A fan travels Greyhound to
see a continent, with the excuse of following a major sporting event. Venue -- The United States.
A sporting event can often provide the spark that lights up paper
plans to travel; especially if it is played out across the map, in a selection of venues,
over something like 30 days.
The Planning
-- When To Go Where.
The opening game is in
Chicago, and the next day you have to be in Detroit..... It means an eight-hour night bus,
to get there for a morning kick-off.
Greyhound
-- Getting The Most Out Of It.
A Greyhound
Pass also allows free passage between Toronto and Detroit, and Seattle and Vancouver, so a
taste of Canada is included in the grand tour of US 94.
Montreal
-- French Canada.
The
cosmopolitan town of French-speaking Quebec is a mix of voice, split by a thin line. It is
in the town, but comes across as wider than the Channel itself.
The
Kick-Off -- US 94 Gets Underway.
You are in
an air-conditioned bar, in Downtown Detroit when Germany opens up against Bolivia. There
is a jug of ice cold beer in front of you, as you prepare to see how the American media
will treat the biggest sporting event on Earth.
Pontiac
Silverdrome -- Indoor Football.
The game is
played early to avoid the afternoon heat; Michigan is in a heatwave, and the humidity is
unbearable. The first World Cup soccer match to be played indoors is between the hosts,
and Switzerland.
Washington
-- D.C.
Washington
has something of a reputation as a murder capital, but that should not affect those who
are not part of a street gang, or dealing in crack cocaine.
Daytona
Beach -- Car Culture Gone Crazy.
For $10 you
can drive right on to the sand, and many do; preferring to cruise along the beach rather
than expose out of condition bodies that might appreciate the exercise.
Orlando
-- Party Street.
The two
largest contingents of travelling fans party side by side until the early hours, under the
moustaches of some bewildered police officers. There are some women officers with guns
too, although they have less hair on their upper lip.
Second
Round -- Team USA Qualify.
Once the
qualifying teams have been confirmed, who plays who, and where, can be taken into account,
together with who might play who in the quarter-finals.
More to Come.
Back to Selections. |
Travel Tips:
Useful Endnotes.
|
After travelling there's
always something that you gained from the experiences; good or bad. Travellers' Network -- Advice From
Travellers.
Help us make this the biggest and best Network of Travellers by offering your tips and
advice to others. Share your experiences and make the world a better place. Join the Network.
Mike Guadagno quit his job, sold
his car, put his stuff in storage and took off for the world.
Mike went to Europe, southern Africa,
southeast Asia, Australia & New Zealand. He met great people and had lots of great
experiences. Anyone who wants information on preparing for, or taking a trip like this,
specific places, or sharing your own experiences, send Mike an e-mail.
Send In Your Tips! |
