by Calvin Sun | Dec 26, 2012 | December 2012: Eastern Europe, How Did You Do That?, Serendipitous!, Ukraine
Panorama of Potemkin Steps (click to enlarge) The Potemkin Steps just got served. And then there were 5… …reunited with 10 more at none other than the famous Potemkin Steps. At a first impression, Odessa combines a snapshot of former Soviet...
by Calvin Sun | Apr 19, 2012 | April 2012: Iran, Blitzkrieg!!!, How Did You Do That?, How's the weather?, Public Transportation, Serendipitous!, Switzerland, The Nightlife, Walking Tours, Way Way Off the Beaten Path, What Dreams May Come
One of the last moments of the trip After 5 hours in Frankfurt, we landed in Geneva, Switzerland where we had a whopping 20 hours to kill. Our options were: Stay in Geneva, meet a friend, and rest up before heading back home Head to Berne, meet a friend, and...
by Calvin Sun | Apr 14, 2012 | April 2012: Iran, How Did You Do That?, Iran, Rules Are Meant To Be Broken, Serendipitous!, Way Way Off the Beaten Path
As Americans, you’re not allowed to wander around Iran alone. You’re supposed to be guarded by an MFA-approved tour agency at all times following a strict itinerary. But that was not the case today. In true Monsooning fashion, we decided to skirt...
by Calvin Sun | Mar 19, 2012 | April 2012: Iran, Getting that VISA, How Did You Do That?, Iran, Pre-travel Preparations
Iranian Visa for the American: Get yours today! What does it take to get into Iran as an United States national? Apparently a bit more effort than what it took to get into North Korea. Unlike North Korea for which visas must be applied way ahead of time,...
by Calvin Sun | Jan 1, 2012 | December 2011: Spain, Gibraltar, Morocco, Portugal, Fit for Foodies, How Did You Do That?, Morocco, What Dreams May Come
Yiru like heads. We ended up fixing our mistake and putting ourselves back on track. From Kenitra, we got on the 6:35am train heading to Fez, and got off 2 hours later at 8:30am. Fez train station That was when Lonely Planet fails us again. It said that...
by Calvin Sun | Dec 31, 2011 | Blitzkrieg!!!, Border Crossing, December 2011: Spain, Gibraltar, Morocco, Portugal, How Did You Do That?, Lessons Learned, Morocco, Spain
A few minutes after crossing back in and out of Gibraltar, we took a relatively cheap (2.15 euros) 30min bus ride from La Linea de Concepcion (Spain’s border town by Gibraltar) to the Spanish port town of Algeciras. There’s really nothing much to...
by Calvin Sun | Dec 29, 2011 | December 2011: Spain, Gibraltar, Morocco, Portugal, Gibraltar, How Did You Do That?, Spain
Gibraltar. It’s a symbol of arbitrary lines. A country within a country. The U.K. owned Gibraltar lies in a small sliver of southern Spain where for a moment, you can hop over to a different country and back by simply walking over some line...
by Calvin Sun | Dec 29, 2011 | Blitzkrieg!!!, Border Crossing, December 2011: Spain, Gibraltar, Morocco, Portugal, Gibraltar, How Did You Do That?
The challenge: 6 cities and 3 countries in 20 hours. Leave Sevilla in the morning, arrive at the La Linea/Gibraltar border by 12pm, spend 3-4 hours in Gibraltar, take a bus to Algeciras, catch the 6pm ferry to Tangiers, Morocco, catch the 9pm overnight train to Fez....
by Calvin Sun | Dec 27, 2011 | Blitzkrieg!!!, December 2011: Spain, Gibraltar, Morocco, Portugal, Fail, How Did You Do That?, Spain, What Dreams May Come
Pulled off seeing the two greats back to back today: Alhambra: A grand fortress built in the 9th century, later converted to a palace complex in the 13th century. It changed hands from Arabic to Christian dominance during its history and its detailed...
by Calvin Sun | Dec 25, 2011 | December 2011: Spain, Gibraltar, Morocco, Portugal, How Did You Do That?, Lessons Learned, Spain
The original plan: get to Madrid from Barcelona on an affordable overnight bus, saving one night’s cash on our hostel (they’re relatively more expensive here: ~$15-$20 USD a night!). Unfortunately, I learned the hard way (in other words, almost at the last...
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