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Australia : A Continent In One Country
If you haven’t been to Australia or are planning to visit it a second time, then you must have all the information about the places to visit so that you can fully experience the wonderful land that is Australia. Australia is the sixth-largest...
Costa Rica - Tales of the Guaro
Every country has a unique beverage it claims as its own. In Costa Rica, the beverage of choice is Guaro.
Beverages
There is a certain national pride associated with claiming an alcoholic beverage. Think of Mexico and tequila immediately comes...
Hilton Head Island is Golf Heaven - and the Ocean Too
Hilton Head Island is Golf Heaven - and the Ocean Too
Mark Ridgway, Hilton Head Island Golf Professional
Imagine, 42 square miles of golf and surf
Hilton Head Island is appropriately called Golf Island.
Located just off the coast of South...
Port Douglas Carnivale - Village Celebrates
Port Douglas Carnivale began in 1993 and initially was designed
to celebrate the opening of the tourist season and market Port
Douglas as a holiday destination to both domestic and
international visitors. Carnivale is an award winning event...
Why People Flock to Lake Havasu for Spring Break
Teens and twenty-somethings are beginning to think of this body of water as a prime spring break location. In addition to the spring break requisite body of water, the area also has beautiful scenery - including the Sonorun Desert, the Mohave...
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Siberia Here I Come! - Adventure Travel Part 1
“You must really hate this job.” That’s what my boss said when I told him I was moving from San Diego to Siberia for a year. In reality, I was bored and looking for something that would be completely and utterly new. Whether it was sunstroke or a developing tolerance to margaritas, San Diego just wasn’t cutting it anymore. Heck, I hadn’t even gone to the beach in nine months and it was only a few blocks away. Time to rediscover a zest for life.
As you are doing now, I trolled the Internet looking for that rare opportunity that would renew my vigor and let me brag to my domesticated friends. Pick coffee in the South Pacific? No, I already drink too much of it. Sail around the world on a container ship? No, I wasn’t ready for involuntary self-reflection. Before I knew it, I had agreed to move to a city in Siberia known as Chita. Yes, I was going to be a professor at Chita State Technical University through a program put together by Siberian Intercultural Bridges. Donate - they need the money: http://www.siberian-bridges.org.
So, what does one take for a one-year stay in Siberia? Why, I’ll just go buy a guidebook on Siberia and read the “what to take” section. My search of the local mega bookstore was disappointing. Shockingly, there were no guidebooks for Siberia. I was tempted to write a nasty letter to Lonely Planet and others until the bookstore clerk said, “You’re going WHERE?” When she started giving me the “you must be a criminal on the run” look, it was time to go.
Fortunately, I was able to find experienced travelers that could provide me with
the details and items that were absolutely necessary. My girlfriend gave me the all-important electric blanket, a power converter and intimate details about what would happen to me if I should dare share it with another women. Grandpa gave me a World War II down coat that was about three sizes to big and made me look like a walking gopher. Family, friends and random strangers contributed further items and advice that would be critical to my survival.
Apparently rating my chances of survival at 50-50, friends and family put together a going away/never see him again party the day before I left. Of course, everyone brought Vodka as a humorous going away gift. The tide quickly turned, however, as all were asked/forced to try a “taste of Russia.” Many of the events of that night will remain forever sealed in antiquity, but it should suffice to say that the wife of one friend went into labor which made it a very fun night and subsequent day for him at the hospital. Few got off so easily.
Gigantic backpack, electric blanket, hangover and I headed to the airport the next morning. But that’s a story for part 2 of this nomad adventure travel series…
About the author:
Rick Chapo is with http://www.nomadjournals.com- makers of small, compact travel journals, hiking journals, rock climbing journals, fly fishing journals, bird watching journals and more. Record in detail special moments of your adventures so they don’t fade away with time.
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