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July 7, 2008
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Asia, Experiences
Thousands of Kilometers (China #4) In the last few days Oker and his Mandarin has allowed us to have some pretty unique experiences. When walking in the Long Ji rice terraces he was in his usual state of hunger and asked a goat-herding peasant if the nearby village had a restaurant, which it did not. …
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June 12, 2008
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Asia, Experiences
I write to you from the Zhuang (a minority people) village of Pingan in China, perched on green hills looking out onto beautifully terraced rice fields. I’ve been in China proper for five days now and have had some pretty awesome experiences already. My first otherwordly experience occurred when Alex and I were
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June 7, 2008
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Asia, Experiences
First Impressions (#1) I made it to HK alright, nearly an hour ahead of schedule! Not bad for Air Canada. They even fed me on the plane. Three times! Alex and I connected and I also had no problems getting into my relative’s flat. This place is rainy and humid, but bearable. It’s breathtakingly beautiful,
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November 24, 2007
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Americas, Backyard, Experiences
Despite an absence of updates since my return to Canada, I have not abandoned this blog. It was a mere state of hibernation as I plunged, like some nutty Scandinavian member of a Polar Bear Club, into the first semester of my final year at UBC. This term I opted to forego involvement in the …
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August 25, 2007
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Africa, Experiences
The conclusion of my adventures in Africa has come. The final days proved the most exciting and eventful, because of a few memorable journeys.
The bus trip down the coast to catch my ferry was sticky and humid, yet nobody would open the window. I had the aisle seat, so bus etiquette meant I had no control over
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August 20, 2007
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Africa, Experiences
Since my last update I've experienced almost a week in Kenya. I spent most of that in Nairobi and found the city surprisingly safe, and refreshingly modern. The people spoke English perfectly and the busy cosmopolitan city was bustling with smartly dressed professionals; suits, shiny shoes, and a mobile phone.
But
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August 13, 2007
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Africa, Experiences
I've returned from my safari to Lake Manyara, the Serengeti, and the Ngorongoro Crater. The wildlife was plentiful and we saw everything I wanted besides a rhinocerous (I'm told on cold days they hide in the woods.) We even saw a rare tree-climbing lion, and the very shy and hard to spot leopard. I also loved the
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August 5, 2007
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Africa, Experiences
So, I got robbed. Well, maybe the correct word is conned. Where can you draw the line? If you figure out you've been conned within 10 seconds, and the perpretrators are still visible, does a connery turn into a robbery? I was trying to change money on the street because the official places were closed on Sunday, but
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July 15, 2007
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Africa, Experiences
Strike stricken So the miners are on strike. It all began when the workers’ union representatives traveled to the Zambia head-office to negotiate, and were promised a 21% raise on their base salary plus back-pay from the start of negotiations. This was expected to come into effect last week but due to an accounting
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July 3, 2007
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Africa, Experiences
Defrost At night the temperature here drops into the single digits, and my tin-can accommodation has absolutely no insulation. Fortunately I remain comfortable with plenty of blankets, but I still dread that first contact of bare-feet to floor each morning. With the temperature rising rapidly early in the morning and
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June 21, 2007
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Africa, Experiences
Despite the potential for unfriendly animal encounters in the bush whilst surveying, I survived unscathed. My snake paranoia, driven by tall-tales from everybody at work, was fortunately unfounded. The local villagers living in the area have killed and eaten anything larger than a mouse, and besides a plethora of
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June 5, 2007
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Africa, Experiences
With 100 channels on the satellite television, I can watch motorcycle racing, a 5-day cricket match, and even beach volleyball. But not the Stanley Cup finals. Before arriving I was aware of the prevalence and importance of mobile phones in Africa. Without the infrastructure for landlines, mobiles bring communication
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