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Where to next? This is a journal about Phil's progress as he backpacks his way west from his beloved Japan.

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There are [0] photos and [19] stories tagged with "general".


Milan and Bergamo

ITALY | Tuesday, 4 Dec 2007 | Views [837]

If I had only known that on the day I arrived in Milan, arguably the world's football capital, there would be a match between AC and Juventus...  This probably contributed to there being very few places to stay that night in Milan, all of those available ... Read more >

Tags: general


Bologna and around

ITALY | Tuesday, 4 Dec 2007 | Views [840]

Despite seeing few tourists there are plenty of reasons to go to Bologna.  It's a very pretty university town (older, I believe, and dare I say it, than Oxford and...what's that other place called?), it is the inventor of the world's beloved spag bol, ... Read more >

Tags: General


Florence

ITALY | Tuesday, 4 Dec 2007 | Views [770]

Unbelievable!  3 months spent in "Developing countries" (Third World) and barely a hitch on the trains.  First one I take in "civilised" Europe disappears off the noticeboard into thin air, the second is late and I get to Florence ... Read more >

Tags: General


Rome

ITALY | Friday, 23 Nov 2007 | Views [725]

As expected, my final couple of days in India weren't up to much.  I basically wandered aimlessly, felt tired and read in coffee shops.  In Barista Coffee, the Indian equivalent of Starbucks, I met a slightly crazy German guy who was WALKING around India.... Read more >

Tags: General


Goa

INDIA | Saturday, 17 Nov 2007 | Views [891]

Firstly, apologies for the lack of photos recently - something's up with these computers.  Who am I apologising to, anyway?  Does any bastard still read this crap? Anyway, today is the final day of my obnoxiously long stay in Goa.  I've been here for ... Read more >

Tags: General


Bombay (Mumbai)

INDIA | Sunday, 11 Nov 2007 | Views [816]

Bombay.  Mumbai.  So good they gave it a new name, which is actually the old name, and stuck it in annoying parentheses, despite most Indians insisting still on the good old colonial pronunciation. What a lovely surprise of a city!  I was determined ... Read more >

Tags: general


Jodhpur

INDIA | Tuesday, 6 Nov 2007 | Views [738]

Jodhpur.  Funny name.  No matter how long I've been here I can't help thinking of baggy pants, horsie types and toffs from the country, and yet nothing could be further from the truth.  While this is quite a bustling, friendly little town, it's full ... Read more >

Tags: General


Jaisalmer

INDIA | Friday, 2 Nov 2007 | Views [850]

Before I get into Jaisalmer I'll mention briefly what came about to bring me there in the first place. On my final day in Delhi - of Delhi belly infamy - I was struck down with a violent, both ends erupting case of the above. This was from a meal the ... Read more >

Tags: General


Delhi

INDIA | Monday, 22 Oct 2007 | Views [762]

Old Delhi, New Delhi, Subway Delhi, Delhi Belly, my God there are a lot of Delhis!  From the slightly seedy Paharganj area where I'm staying to the jolly chaos of Chandni Chowk market to the colonial austerity of central Delhi there's a lot to take in ... Read more >

Tags: General


Varanasi

INDIA | Monday, 22 Oct 2007 | Views [778]

The most noticeable thing about entering India from Nepal was the space.  No longer hemmed in by mountains, it was refreshing to feel the vast plains of northern India stretch out for miles into the distance.  The journey from Sunauli, at the border, ... Read more >

Tags: general


Hanging around...

NEPAL | Wednesday, 10 Oct 2007 | Views [754]

So, following the trek I spent a few days in sleepy Pokhara.  Very relaxed place on the edge of Phewa Tal (lake).  I just couldn't get enough of walking miles everyday so I hiked up to the World Peace Pagoda overlooking the lake, a temple built by some ... Read more >

Tags: General


Kathmandu

NEPAL | Sunday, 16 Sep 2007 | Views [863]

I'm still in Kathmandu and enjoying myself lots.  The only thing I would change about this place is the incessant up-the-arse tooting of every bastard on the road and those hawkers who attach themselves as would a second shadow.  Apart from that it's ... Read more >

Tags: General


Tibet

CHINA | Monday, 3 Sep 2007 | Views [886]

Shangri-La, the Land of Snows, call it what you like Tibet is here and so is every tourist and his dog. Lots of dogs actually. Lhasa is like nowhere else you could imagine. Just hundreds of people walking clockwise around religious edifices such as ... Read more >

Tags: general, sera monastary, tibet


Xining

CHINA | Monday, 27 Aug 2007 | Views [864]

Somehow managed to wake up at oh-my-god o'clock and get to Xi'an station, board my hard sleeper and sleep reasonably well.  The first thing I saw when I woke up were big mountains and drizzle - western China.  Spent most of the journey chatting a bizarre ... Read more >

Tags: general


Gonna miss you, Xi'an!

CHINA | Saturday, 25 Aug 2007 | Views [810]

So here I am waiting until FOUR O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING to catch my train to Xining, cash in hand and fingers crossed.  I love Xi'an.  What a lovely city!  Nicely balanced between the insanity of Shanghai and the lifelessness of Beijing (historical ... Read more >

Tags: General


Pingyao

CHINA | Wednesday, 22 Aug 2007 | Views [772]

THIS is the China I've been dying to see!  It was definately worth the never-again train ride to don't-go-there Taiyuan.  Getting onto the train in Beijing was like trying to push to the front of a rave carrying a rhino.  Half-naked, incredibly sweaty ... Read more >

Tags: General


Beijing

CHINA | Saturday, 18 Aug 2007 | Views [783]

Talk about luxury!  Soft sleepers are pricey but what a wonderful way to sleep through the night and arrive in Beijing the next day! It's a different world from Shanghai.  So much more space, greenery and chilled-out-ness.  Unlike Shanghai I no longer ... Read more >

Tags: General


Shanghai

CHINA | Saturday, 18 Aug 2007 | Views [835]

"Welcome to Shanghai!" said the flashy neon and enormous buildings doing their best to peer through the thick smog and drizzle covering the city.  Thanks to the typhoon and a detour via North Korean seas we arrived 5 hours late, leaving Sai ... Read more >

Tags: General


The ferry

CHINA | Friday, 17 Aug 2007 | Views [689]

Finally, a computer which works!  Having issues uploading photos though...  Anyway... So the ferry trip was fun.  Kind of.  I guess I don't recommend going in typhoon season.  We were hit by a pretty big one and let's just say some of the smells and ... Read more >

Tags: General



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