Tag Archives: Anthropology

Adventures of a 'Gypsea', East African Adventure, Videos

Hakuna Matata: Zanzibar

April 21, 2024 TravelGypSea Leave a comment

An early morning shuttle took us to the Airport where we hopped onto a larger prop plane, headed to Zanzibar. The seatback magazine recipe for a shrimp dish kept me entertained while my seat mate took photos from their window seat.

I had packed my camera and lenses in my day pack, nestled at my feet and was able to get a couple photos with the help of my seat mate, and looked out over mainland Africa one last time before the attendant gave me my mango juice and cashews. (Definitely felt like a step up from tomato juice and peanuts.)

Our arrival into Stonetown, my group descended the staircase and crossed the tarmac into the terminal. My bag came off the carousel when rounding the conveyor corner, landing with a loud THUD. I counted my lucky stars that I transfer my lenses to my small pack for flights.

Outside the airport we joined up with another GAdventures group that had just finished climbing Kilimanjaro, and bypassed the safari segment that the crew who continued with me had done. Our trip had departed a few good people, and gained a few more. By the end of the trip I counted up that I had made 20 new acquaintances from 7 countries, and from the US from 4 other states. Talking with my guides, they both said that one of the reasons they love their jobs is the very different people they get to meet from all over, and getting to show people their little corner of the world.

Our next guide for this portion of the trip, Kombi, loaded us up into a bus and headed into the city to our first nights accomodation: The Spice Palace. To get to our hotel, the bus cannot make it down any streets in the main city. The narrow streets being from long before car transportation was a consideration in building plans. We loaded all of our bags onto a wooden cart, making a towering mound of all the luggage. A smaller older gentleman who approached and loaded it began to pull it down the alleys. We follow, stopping at the stairs at the front of our hotel, each of us claiming our bag and beginning the check in process.

After dropping bags in our rooms, there our group gathered and made our way to lunch at a nice little place near the beach, The Silk Route. The first thing we noticed was how friendly the stray cats were to tourists. No doubt having their share of seafood from the tourists who take pity on the creatures. To that end, Its safe to say that Zanzibar probably doesn’t have a rodent problem.

After lunch we went to the historic slave market museum. Stonetown had been the major slave trade port for Arab controlled East Africa. on the historic grounds they had the ‘whipping tree’ which had been cut down, and over its place a church was built, a circle on the floor where the tree used to stand. The displays in the museum showing the evolution of the slave market, and the original holding cells for the slaves before they were loaded onto ships. It was a somber experience, but one I am glad gets visited and people learn this history.

We took a walking tour of the town after, learning about the ties of stone town to Queens’ Freddie Mercury, the town even hosting the Freddie Mercury Museum. A group of kids down at the sea wall were filming jumping into the bay with poster boards reading ” Welcome to Zanzibar!”, shouting ‘HAKUNA MATATA!’ and ‘WAKANDA FOREVER!’ We continued down the narrow ally ways, where doors are adorned with large spikes. The reason? People who moved into these areas were from India and would have spikes on the door to keep elephants from barging in. When they moved to this city, with streets far too narrow for elephants to ever pose a risk, the style of door came along anyway.

Back at the hotel, I joined the Canadians and the Aussies for a drink at the rooftop bar. The resident stray coming up when I notice he was underdeveloped and was missing an eye. My own cat at home being massive and named Sully after the Monsters Inc character, I felt it was only fitting to nickname this little guy Mike Wazowski.

That night we all ventured off for the night markets, which was a bustling scene of food vendors and people. Our guide recommended certain foods we could try if we were feeling adventurous, but warned against others as it’s ‘laid out’ a few westerners.

Finishing up at the Freddie Mercury Bar, we dined and drank and listened to some wonderful local live music before making our way back to our hotel.

Next Time: Visiting a Spice Plantation, given the royal treatment, and getting visiting my first resort.

Videos, Adventures of a 'Gypsea', East African Adventure

Back to Humans: Planeterra Project and Arusha Day Tour

March 30, 2024 TravelGypSea Leave a comment

We left Ngorongoro early morning, the night having been warmer than I anticipated (having prepared to be cold). I had brought body warmers, large versions of hand warmers you use for skiing, and having had warmer nights in the Serengeti, I had a couple that I was able to use that night.

We took a break on our long drive back to Arusha at a small Masai village that is the the current site of the ongoing Planeterra Project.

One of the reasons I really like traveling with GAdventures is that they try to leave the places they (and their groups) visit better than they found it. One of these is their ripple score (how much of the funds from your tour goes back into the local community), and another is Planeterra, their foundation to make the world a bit better.

The Planeterra Clean Stove the women who are primary caretakers of their family and need a job are trained as engineers for in-home stove and chimney construction. In Masai communities, women are primarily tasked with the cooking, and it is all done over open flame inside the mud hut structure homes. Because of this, women usually have lung related illness from the lack of ventilation and ongoing exposure to smoke. With the construction of the stove with chimney, smoke is funneled outside keeping the living areas of their homes with better air quality.

The first home that we got to see had a traditional stove, with open flame cooking. The air was so thick it had a texture. The next house had 3 women actively building a chimney. The hand made bricks being layered and mortared into place by hand. The ladies working in an assembly line, the stove being put together quickly. The last house that we got to tour had a completed stove and was impressively efficient.

These ladies were so gracious to let our group see this project in action in their homes. We learned that as of our tour the clean stove project had successfully completed 3000 stoves across Masai villages through Tanzania.

That night we got back to our Arusha accommodation, where some of our party opted for laundry service, (warning, it takes a while) while I opted to had wash my few things in the bathroom sink. I highly recommend detergent sheets cut down to fit in an tin mint container. Depending on how gnarly your clothes get, you can always add more sheets. I had to use a few, as everything from my convertible pants to my undies were caked in the dust of the Serengeti.

The next morning I had the opportunity to do a tour of the city of Arusha, do a hike to a waterfall, and see some local markets. Those who know me know that I live for sunsets and waterfalls. Of course I was going on the tour!

On the tour we stopped at another Art co-op where I was able to practice my haggling on my gifts for everyone back home. Once everything was wrapped up to bring home, I noticed that I was the last one in the shop of my group. I duck outside where our ride awaited for going to the waterfall.

We drove outside of town, to a residence were we parked the car and our guide, John, knew the people who’s property the waterfall was on. As a working farm, different local crops were labeled in Swahili as we worked our way down the slicked dirt paths to what I would loosely call a grotto. The waterfall pouring into a small pool with an area of ground cover that we explored. John then told me that in the summer rains the waterfall is much larger, and the pool from the grotto takes up the area that we were standing.

Many pictures later and we make our way back to the car. We went to a small local restaurant for lunch, and then made our way to the market.

Remember to ask people before you take their photo. Before I left the US I wrote down translations for the basic questions, but I found “can I take your picture” to be a really refreshing question for many people. Also, I found that I was more interested in taking photos of the scenes, and would hold up my camera over my head and click the shutter. (This is what I call pulling a ‘Zach’ after an amazing photographer I know who can do this and have complete art work every time he does it.)

I also put my gopro on my shoulder and walked through the markets, where no one person was the subject, making a really cool insight of what the local markets look like.

Next Time: We fly to Stonetown, Zanzibar, meet new friends, eat amazing seafood, and a few more adventures!

Adventures of a 'Gypsea', East African Adventure

Lions and Leopards and Giraffe, Oh My!

January 7, 2024 TravelGypSea Leave a comment

Hey Everyone! Sorry for the delayed post! (You’ll understand by the 3rd paragraph.) I will have an aditional post soon.

Leaving Mto Wa Mbu we drove past lake manyara National Park and stopped at an overlook of the lake and valley below. The steep slopes of the mountains, homing Lake Manyara’s tree climbing lions, make the beautiful greenery feel sinister. Photos were taken, hagglers dodged, and back into the safari vehicle to continue our adventure.

We stopped for a pit stop at a large art market, where we could keep our haggling skills tuned, and I completed most of my Christmas shopping. I would like to take the opportunity to give a shout out to one of our comrades, Doug, who I found in amongst the wooden carved hippopotamuses. I comment on his good find, and the musical-rolodex talent that he is, asks me if I ever heard the Christmas song “I want a Hippopotamus for Christmas”?

This is one of my FAVOURITE songs… I remember being a kid hanging out with my grandmother in Florida and she gave me a bright green hippo stuffed animal, taught me that song (she loved Sherley Temple… and Giraffes, more on that later.)

We break into song there in the middle of the store. He had got his wife a hippopotamus for Christmas, which I find so stinkin’ sweet. (Of course putting this into a post I am going to wait to put this on the blog until AFTER Christmas.)

We load back up into the safari vehicles (a few souvenirs and charismas presents heavier) and continue through to Ngorongoro Conservation area. At the large gateway to the area we stop to confirm our tour add on of the hot air balloon over the Serengeti. Then we set off into the wilderness. Fun Tip: the Tinga Tinga art style is characteristic of East Africa/Tanzania. You can get a small painting and they will take them off the frames for you and roll them up so that they can be transported home.

The dry season. The bumpy roads during the dry season….. This is where I HIGHLY recommend using a mask/buff because of how dusty it got inside the car. One of my carmates was recovering from a cough, and I’m sure that the dust didn’t help at all. I had a buff on my face, one over my camera and lens, built into my sun shirt, there was a lot of dust protection and it still made an issue.

Me in my fishing shirt that has SPF and a built in Buff

As someone who gets car sick, this was the worst trip to forget Dramamine or ginger pills. but I did, so I want to give another MASSIVE shout out to all the car buddies, for allowing us carsick people to sit further up. I promise for future travel companions, I have learned my lesson and have an emergency stash already in my travel case.

We pass Maasai villages with tall wooden fences to keep out the animals higher up the food chain. Dry short grass in all directions seemed desolate. Hamdami, our guide, told us that during the wet season that the area is known for the great migration with thousands of animals, especially wildebeest, and the lions would come to hunt.

Up the crater bank through fog and vines that made me think we were transporting to another world. If Pandorans walked out of the brush, and we were transported to the floating mountains from Avatar, I wouldn’t have been surprised. At the top of the crater we stop for a quick photo op at the overlook. We would be traveling into the crater and camping along the rim a few days later. We traveled down the oposite side, back into the plains.

This is the area that gives the Serengeti its meaning of “the endless plain”, there is a quick reststop that has everything that an anthropology nerd like myself would want. The monument in the front supports 2 GIANT early hominid skulls. The area made famous in the anthropology world when Mary and Louis Leaky discovered Homo halibus, showing that our earliest anscestors were in the area, and by the Laetoli Footprints which proved bipedalism (that we walk upright). Other notable finds include Zinjanthropus boisei, aka Austrolopithicus boisei. From the monument you can see in the distance the Mary Leaky museum. The museum hosts current archaeological excavation and research, and has a replica of the laitoli footprints which are 3.7 million years old. They had to be reburied to help preserve them, hints why they have a replica. We weren’t able to stop at the museum, but its definitely on my list for next time.

This monument area also has the main gate for the Serengeti and national park sign. We were officially in the Serengeti!

The miles of dust-blown washboard road into the vast wilderness with little life habitating the landscape, and the occational wildabeast skull that had been drug around by the animals at night, remind me that here I am bottom of the food chain. Our guide reminded us that this open plane of dry grasses was lush and teeming with life during the rainy season, beign a peak place on the ‘Great Migration’. Thousands of wildabeast travel through, grazing and dropping calves as they go.

Once in the park we stopped at the rest station/shop/picnic area for lunch. The walkway from the parkinglot of safari vehicles looked much like you would see in most of the national parks around the US. Well kept, nice landscaping with flowers beside the paths to the picnic area. The small hiking path with yellow cation tape that told passers by to ‘Keep out’ in multiple languages seemed no different than a the park tennants doing maitnance behind the building for the bathroom. I stood at the caution tape and tried to see what people were gawking at as they passed. Thats when our guide points up the path to the top of a rock, only about 30 feet (10m) away. I would have missed the Lion if it wasn’t that the rock was… well… Fluffy. And to seperate the hundreds of tourists from the apex preditor – a caution tape. Mental Note: REALLY pay attention to signs. They are NOT a suggestion.

By the end of the fist day in the Serengeti we had seen 4 of the ‘Big 5’. This is aparently rare for the serengeti, especially in the dry season. The Lion were plentiful, and even lounging in one of the trees with a whole mess of cubs. The one at the picnic area was the most surprising though.

A Black Rino walked away from us some distance away. At this point we asked our drivers about the Rino that only has 2 of its species left. Those are the Northern White Rino, are under full-time armmed guard, and by definition extinct since the last two are female. Needless to say, they dont get tourists out to visit them in an effort to protect their location from pochers. The Black Rino is not too much better off with only 6,000 left.

The Elephant we didnt see as much until we were deep into the serengeti. There were yearlings out wondering about and keeping up with mum as they walked determined to some unknown location.

Water Buffalo were a little more elusive, and a heard had walked passed us on our way out of the Ngorongoro Crater area.

4 of the 5, all that was missing was the leopard.

The Big 5 was a rating system that was created by hunters as the 5 most deadly that were more likely to kill you than you to kill them. Our guides being more into conservation told us about some other “5’s”; the Ugly 5 – Hyena, Warthog, Vulture, Wildabeast, and Marabou Stork. Thats when Valance, our driver, and we decided to start coming up with a ‘pretty 5’; The DikDik, Geraffe, Hippo, Zebra, Crowned Crane… Of course these five kept changing throughout the trip since there are a LOT of cute animals in the Serengeti.

The first day we also got lucky enough to see A cheetah with its 2 cubs practically posing for us!

Once we hit a certain point in the serengeti, the sun was dropping low and we had to get to camp. Valance picked up some speed, and we watched as the sun kissed the horizon turning the sky a firey pink that looked like something out of Lion King.

Our Crew had been cooking an AMAZING dinner, and our mess hall at the camp had wire fencing over the windows, It also had some decent space from the camp cook area, the bathrooms and the tent area, miking almost a square, with the cars pulling in between the tents and the bathrooms.

After dinner and some journaling it was time for bed before the big Balloon Ride the next morning with Serengeti Balloon Safaris. I grabbed my headlight and shined it around before venturing in any direction before leaving the safety of a building or my tent. If you see eyes and they are yellow, ehhh could be dangerous, if they are red… THEY ARE Dangerous. Remember this for next time…

Next time…

Wakign up early to a puddle of lions on the way to the hot air balloon, Complete the “Big 5” and my bathroom adventure where I saw eyes.

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Where the Wild Things Roam: Lake Manyara

October 15, 2023 TravelGypSea 1 Comment

The morning started with the sense of adventure. All my camping gear that had been in my check on was redistributed on, in and around my backpack, a blue rain cover providing a small amount of protection from the dust we were told we would be encountering on the way.

Checking out of the Outpost Lodge, our group convened in the small parking lot where two pop-top safari vehicles waited. Our drivers Valance and George greeted us and helped us load up. We split into two groups and made a quick supply run.

The local grocery had everything we could need for road-trip snacks and we loaded up with water. We were going to be camping and not able to access a lot of water for 5 days, and I figured that my own water amount was about 2 liters a day, and grabbed 3 – 2 liter jugs. My estimate was generous, and I didn’t get into the 3rd jug, but in 20/20 hindsight and a background in search and rescue, I appreciated having it to offer if anyone needed a water bottle refill towards the end of the trip.

Pro Tip: a week or so before traveling try to gauge how much water you drink normally, and then look at how much you drink the first couple days in East Africa. After being there a couple days you should get a good idea of how much water you will need to plan on.

Before setting off from the store, one of my travel companions tried the ATM to get some cash before leaving the city. The ATM ate her card. A few minutes of calling the 1-800 numbers in the states and the assistance of Hamdami in calling the bank of the ATM, and it was worked out that she would be able to pick up her card when we return to Arusha after the safari part of the trip.

In the village of Mto Wa Mbu we visited a local art co-op, filled with a few artistic styles, and a banana plantation. Here we were treated to a lovely local meal with a diverse spread of flavours and options.

The first day of the trip we went right to Lake Manyara National Park. The entrance way was mesmerising, instantly cueing the Jurrasic Park Theme to come to mind. A magnificent archway supporting two waterfalls.

Just outside Mto Wa Mbu is Lake Manyara. Home of tree climbing lions. Though we didn’t see lions on this portion of safari, we did get an amazing experience with some of the elephants, who walked right up to, and around, our Safari vehicles.

The myriad of wildlife of the park was a fantastic kickoff to inland Tanzania. The baboons, water buffalo, and a particularly angry Zebra who had it out for a specific group of impala, gave the area a vibrant personality that, when looking back, was so unique. Neither Serengeti nor Ngorongoro Crater, yet somehow still with a sense of familiarity between the two.

While we would be traveling through the park, our supply car would beat us to the campsite and begin setup and cooking. By the time we roll in, dusty and shaken by the bouncy dirt roads, we had a little down time to freshen up and meet at the mess area for dinner.

The Twiga Campsite is a lush, secure, campground within Mto Wa Mbu. Our tents, definitely larger than some of the other groups, were spacious and we could even stand up in them. Not quite ‘glamping’, but to my outdoor experience, not ‘roughing it’ either. I would say this was a very accommodating camping experience for anyone who hasn’t been camping before, or wants the camping trip style, but the tents already set up for them ‘vacation style’. A cold shower and frequent power outages that hit the small camps added to the sense of adventure.

The camp dinners were delicious 3 course meals. Shout out to Saranne, whose birthday it was and the camp crew came out singing a birthday song, equipped with cake, unphased by the power cutting part way through their melody. Power came back, celebrations continued, and it was a wonderful night at the campground.

Before bed I spent some time in the mess area charging my camera gear and batteries. My Nikon D7000 and D500 take the same kind of battery, so having just a couple extra made it easy to switch out. I highly recommend a multi port USB charger for the safari cars, and a usb charger for all electronics, including camera batteries.

The quiet of the camp in the evening and in the early morning was magical. Brushing my teeth I would stop, wide-eyed, realizing the far off sounds of lions roaring and hyenas chattering. This… the sounds, the feeling, of being surrounded by wild. This is what I came for.

Next time….

We journey deeper into the heart of Tanzania, passing through the Ngorongoro Crater conservation area and into Serengeti National Park.

If your interested in seeing some of the posts from one of my guides? Valence has an instagram! his adventures can be followed at @vah_ley_tz

Adventures of a 'Gypsea', Mother-Daughter Adventure

Time Traveling in Denmark: Ribe

August 19, 2016 TravelGypSea Leave a comment

Ribe is a virtually untouched historical city that has maintained its character over the last century. Boasted as Denmark’s oldest town, Ribe (said as “Reeb”) has nightly Watchman tours that leave from the charming inn/restaurant, Weiss Stue.

The old town hall doubles as a small city museum, with information and artefacts from the towns colourful history. Across the street from the train station is a Viking museum which explains viking burials and culture that was an active part of Ribe’s early years. While the town doesn’t have much for museums, the town is steeped in antiquity, and walking down the cobbled streets installs the feeling that you have stepped into a postcard.

The small shop fronts house everything from cellphone repair, to handmade waffle cones to hold the homemade ice-cream, to art galleries. But if you take 3 right turns you’re back in the town centre. The courtyard of which, belonging to the church, had been excavated during the church renovation to reveal graves older than 5 centuries.

Just outside of town, accessible by a foot and bike path, is an open air museum that focuses on viking recreation archaeology, with some showmanship thrown in for good fun.

You can buy jewellery that is handcrafted with traditional methods, watch a viking battle, or ask the people about their daily lives.

Adventures of a 'Gypsea', Mother-Daughter Adventure

Time Traveling in Denmark: Roskilde and Lejre

August 13, 2016 TravelGypSea Leave a comment

A 30 minute train from Copenhagen brings you to the quite town of Roskilde. It is easy enough to stay at your accommodation in the city and make the day trip, however we found that if we did the trip again, we would have stayed at the Danhostel in Roskide and taken a day trip to Copenhagen. The hostel, which was more of a hotel, is located about a hundred meters from the Viking Maritime Museum. The museum focuses on recreation archaeology, putting the theories about how the ancient mariners ‘did it’ to the test. for 100 danish Krona extra to the Museum ticket you can go for a sail around the fjord in a replica of one of the viking ships that they had discovered at the bottom of the fjord as a defence.

The 5 ships that were discovered had been purposely sunk, theoretically to block the deep and easy passages into the fjord, causing any ‘visitors’ (including attacking ships) to take a more risky route that would require the navigation of a local who knows the waters. The ships were brought up in the 1960’s as a large archaeological project, and were treated and now on display in the museum. (Free guided tours are available in English.) The manmade island where the viking ships sail from also hosts an open air style museum, with blacksmithing, rope making, and even the shipbuilding as in-situe recreation archaeology. In addition, if you want to get your hands dirty, you can chisel runes into a thors hammer pendant, or mint a coin in ‘ye olde’ way with a hammer and minting stamp. if you want to join the kids table, they even have a wooden shield and sword.

From Roskilde, taking a train to Lejre, and bus 233 from the station, you can visit ‘Land of Legends’, a open air museum dedicated to Denmarks’ history form the Stone age, through the Viking age, into the Iron and Middle Ages. The encourage getting your hands dirty and joining in the activities. learn to flake stones or make rope with the cave men, you can buy naturally died yarns from the weaver, or pots and mugs thrown by the potter. The park can be seen comfortably in 3-5 hours, longer if you participate in the settlements.

12 hour itineraries, Adventures of a 'Gypsea', Mother-Daughter Adventure, Uncategorized

12 Hour Pompeii (from Rome)

July 26, 2016 TravelGypSea Leave a comment

We made our way to the train station and grabbed our 2 round trip tickets to Naples from Rome Termini station (be warned this is the expensive part, though prices vary by the train line, times, and location on the train.) With over an hour till the next train, we grabbed some breakfast and socked up at the small grocery that is in the station. (I recommend grabbing snacks, since Pompeii does have a restaurant but its really expensive. Don’t take sandwiches because they get super soggy. Fruit and Focaccia bread pizzas are prime.) The Bullet train got us there in an hour direct where we had to change trains to the Circumvasuvio line (which is down a floor from where the log distance trains stop.Follow the signs to get to the ticket office, where for only 2.90 Euro each way you can get a round trip ticket that is valid for any time.)

Villa of the Mysteries

The train, which was 15 minutes late, was preceded by three other equally late trains, which meant many of the fellow tourists that waited to be Pompeii bound with us jumped onto trains that we are still unsure where they went. Once we figured out the board, we realised that the times being posted with the train destination were the times that the train was supposed to arrive (which is how we knew it was 15 mins late). We realised this and explained it to a family that was waiting on the platform with us and had tried getting on one of the previous trains before being told it didn’t go to Pompeii.

Once on the train, the half hour ride was crowded, but offered some amazing scenery of Vesuvius and the Island of Capri before dropping you off nearly at the gate for the site of Pompeii (which is marked Pompei Scavi, you would need to keep an eye open for it, since the stops are not announced.) For us it was pretty easy to find because that is where the entire train emptied in a flood of tourists onto the platform.

Courtyard in residence near city centre

Getting off there train, ticket offices and shops are just to the right as you get off the platform. Right away we were asked if we would want to join a group, and we thought we would just want to do an Audio guide to go at our own place and hit the places we would find most important. We bought our tickets to the site and the museum for 15 Euro, and went to look for the audio guide. In the building behind the ticket office, up a flight of stairs, is the audio guide office. The guy at the counter informed us that the audio guides were only in Finnish, and we would have to join an English speaking tour. As I turned around, I saw guidebooks. I highly recommend getting one.

The guide book, which is offered in many languages, comes with a pullout map labeled with the different attractions, which have a short paragraph that tells you about them. For 10 Euro in the guide office, this is also a wonderful souvenir.

Original door in the Villa of the Mysteries

Pompeii is big. Once you’re in the site, its almost a lot to take in. Its best to have a list of about 5 things you really would like to see, and then spend the rest of the time wandering. We had little idea where to start, but I have made a list of some key places of interest

Villa of the Mysteries, with a great preservation of the art on the walls and a couple bodies in the lobby.
Temple of Apollo, The statues and the view. You really feel like you’re in the heart of Pompeii.
Garden of the Fugitives, An example of how devastating the site was. (We were rained out in the late afternoon, and didn’t make it.)
The Brothel, which has some raunchy pictures on the wall. (When we were there they were excavating that area, and it was blocked off.)

We left early because a thunderstorm rolled in, but that turned out to be a good thing.

Tip: The train to Pompeii, and the train back to Naples from Pompeii, is usually late. If you have a return ticket, it is a good idea to look at the time table, find the train that gets you to Naples before your train to Rome, and leave a train earlier.

The site is massive. We could easily have made a weekend out of it. Wear good walking shoes, bring a water bottle, and plenty of sun screen. (Mum brought the umbrella, and she recommends it.) Also, with the enormity of the structures, I recommend a wide angle lens for photography.

A person praying

12 hour itineraries, Adventures of a 'Gypsea', Mother-Daughter Adventure

When in Rome, do as much as possible.

July 24, 2016 TravelGypSea 3 Comments

For an ancient city, Rome offers plenty to see and do, no matter what you want out of traveling. The key is to have a good plan before jumping in.

As we left baggage claim at the airport, a Mobile Sim card company snagged us for a sim that will work in almost all of the countries that we will be visiting along this trip. The card, which we got with both internet and phone minutes, has already helped as we wondered the back alleys around our hostel looking for our street. And if you’re carrying a internet enabled phone, Google Translate (which you can download for offline use of typed text translations) can use your phones camera to translate signs on-the-go.

We stayed at Orsa Maggiore (for women only), which is centrally located in Rome, though got in early enough to drop our bags at the hostel and go wonder at the ancient wonders near by. The Colosseum and Roman Forum, stooping for Gelato on the way.

When approaching the Colosseum, we were stopped by numerous tour guides with the same plug trying to get us to join their tours for an additional 18 euro.

My recommendation: Get a Roma Pass (the price varies by how much time you would like to keep it active for. There is a special line for both the Colosseum and Roman Forum for pass holders. While the guides were trying to convince us it would take nearly 2 hours to get through with the pass, it was really only 10-15 minutes. We also get free transportation with it, and makes the pass a worthy addition to our planning. If a tour sounds like a good idea to you, they offer audio tour devices just inside the gates into the Colosseum.

When walking all over the forum, there are a couple things you will want with you. A camera, a hat/sunscreen, A water bottle (which can be refilled at one of the many water fountains in the city,) and a map/guidebook (we have the DK eyewitness Italy book, which explains a bit more about what were looking at.)

Adventures of a 'Gypsea', SE Asia Adventure, Videos

Food Adventures!

June 15, 2016 TravelGypSea Leave a comment

Adventures of a 'Gypsea', Videos

Waterfalls, Cliff jumping, and the GoPro “Hero”

March 26, 2016 TravelGypSea 4 Comments

Down on the Gold Coast, away from the high-rises of Surfers paridise and off the path of public transportation, is Killarney Glen. The area is winding roads and farmland, and we would have probably missed the trail head if not for the line of cars parked hundreds of meters on either side of the local attraction. A swimming hole, known as the Killarney Glen waterfall, is a heart-shaped pool fed by a 6 meter waterfall, lined with spectators on a warm summer Saturday afternoon.

Spectators gathered as timid individuals gathered courage for their leap, while those who frequent the pools tried their hand at flips, all aiming for the deep water. Just off of the “jumping area” is a small grotto, which accumulated jumpers to spectate from a view they achieved from their jump. Families, twenty-somethings, teens on easter break, lined the top of the cliff faces either to watch, or when waved forward from the other side of the canyon, to jump.

I’m afraid of heights. I’ve never been graceful, and feel that standing on something tall makes me ‘kinetic energy’. In high school I would jump with my friends in Colorado into the Arkansas river. Not high, still terrifying. I would swing from our boat into the water in the Bahamas. It took me about 5 minutes of looking out 2 meters below me before I could make the jump. And to this day, as silly as it feels, I hold my nose.

Fastforward, I am standing in a dried up wash-out that juts out over the ‘deep water’, 4-5 meters below me. GoPro strapped to my wrist, though my hands were flat on the rock on either side of me for stability. The girl behind me, no more than 10 years old, comments on my shaking. Her older sister, about 12, wants to help me out by giving me a count down. At first I didn’t notice, since all I could think was ‘S#!t, this is high.’ I try to get in the zone during the second countdown, but psych myself out somewhere between “…3…” and “…2…”. Seconds later I pull myself together, ask her for one last count, and at “…1”, step off the cliff.

(Taken with a Nikon and Sigma Wide-angle lens, uploaded with eye-fi.)

I felt the rush of wind then cold water, then the feel of the strap of my GoPro slide over my small wrist. I surface and accept that the camera may have been claimed by the river gods, and briefly remember a youtube video of a GoPro that fell in a river and was found a couple years later. Oh, well.

I swim to the mermaid grotto, and attempt to slide onto the surrounding rocks, helped by a new friend, and mentioned that the camera went the way of the waterfall. The next jumper, a young blond guy was about to swim past when we asked “is there any chance of finding a GoPro over there where I jumped?” “GoPro?” The kid smiled, turned around, and dove. He surfaced seconds later to applause, with my camera in hand.

I tried to find him after to thank him, and couldn’t. He had one green eye, and one blue eye, and was kind enough to fetch a strangers camera. To you sir, if you are reading, THANK YOU!

(Screenshot from the GoPro of the good samaritan)

Update: added video March 27. Keep an eye out at ~2:30.

TravelGypsea