In case it's one of your 2018 resolutions - just saying. Many people think of Antarctica as this far away, impossible-to-reach place, accessible only virtually via repeat viewings of Happy Feet and Happy Feet 2, but that's not true. Trust me, if I can get myself there, you totally can too (but hopefully with less vomiting). In a nutshell, there are 5 ways to get yourself to Antarctica: 1. Be a student taking a course on Antarctica that includes a study visit A number of unive

When you're on a once-in-a-lifetime trip, and it's so amazing that you're plotting on how to make it a twice-in-a-lifetime trip. Photo Credit: Siegfried Bruck, our official photographer on the trip This is a continuation of The Time I Puked My Way to Antarctica (Part 1). Read that first if you haven't already. *** The Day I Went Climbing on Antarctica After a sleepless night, we packed up our tent, cleared the campsite and returned to the warm and comfy ship around 5 am. I we

I've been wanting to visit Antarctica since I was a child - I finally did. The Day I Almost Didn’t Get on the Ship When you’ve paid a large chunk of your savings to go on the trip of a lifetime, you would probably be smart about it and not do anything stupid that will make you miss the trip. Not me. A few hours before the scheduled departure to Antarctica, I was nowhere near the port in Ushuaia, the City at The End of the World, where the ship was. I was far away, in the Tie

Continuation of the house-building adventures. The first week of building was exhausting, and I was starting to think that I had gotten into something that was completely over my head (and honestly, I wasn't even doing the hard parts!). A typical day for me is usually spent glued to my laptop - both for work and pleasure. I’d be in a nice, cool room, with a very high probability of being sprawled in bed, and I’d get things done without really having to move much. Building a h

In October 2015, I was two weeks into my 2-month trip through South America. I had just emerged miraculously unscathed from the Amazon Jungle, and had taken a long bus trip to Cuenca, Ecuador for a bit of civilisation. From this... ... to this... ... and this. Cuenca is a small city full of colonial relics, and I stayed for two nights, mostly to recuperate. Unfortunately, while my roommate slept soundly, I found myself slapping away mosquitoes and getting bitten in the unlike

My work visa in Tanzania was about to expire, and I needed to do a quick trip out of the country in order to renew it. I couldn’t be gone for too long, so it made sense to go somewhere nearby, like to one of the neighbouring countries, like… Kenya. Plus, I had a friend in Nairobi whom I haven’t seen in years, which also meant free accommodation... Okay, Nairobi, Kenya it is. I did a bit of research, and found out there were multiple ways to get to Nairobi. Flying in was ridic

In 2007, I was working in Nagasaki, Japan, during my college summer break. My team traveled around the prefecture, teaching English to adorable Japanese school children of various ages. In between, we got to enjoy breaks, and stay with host families so we can live like the locals. We were distributed among different host families, and I was partnered up with Laura. She was Latino, and she corrected my pronounciation of her name: “Its Lauuuura, not Law-ra.” I immediately liked

Reasons why climbing a mountain can be the best thing for you to do. [If you haven't already, read Part 1 first. This is a direct continuation of that article - enjoy!] 6. That feeling when you reach the top… That being said, I don’t climb mountains just for its good looks. I also climb it to build myself up, and perhaps even defy my own expectations. If you are feeling a little down, a little less sure of yourself, or in need of a change, I really believe mountain-climbing c

Reasons why climbing a mountain can be the best thing for you to do. I know, I know, mountain-climbing isn’t on everyone’s agenda. It certainly wasn’t on any of my to-do list or bucket list either. Being a dedicated couch potato who can barely run 2 kilometres without dying, it was the furthest thing on my mind. These are my lungs. Credit: theAwkwardYeti.com Yet in 2014, I found myself talked into my first mountain climb ever - Mount Kinabalu, Malaysia at 4095 m – At the star