Transfăgărășan Highway: Does Jeremy Clarkson Pick Up Hitchhikers?

Now that he’s fired from Top Gear, perhaps Jeremy Clarkson has some free time now to pick up a hitchhiker at the Transfăgărășan Highway in Romania? I mean, he does say that “this is the best road in the world”. I’m also accustomed to hitchhiking with problematic people. So… I basically hitchhiked to the start of the Transfăgărășan Highway just to take this photo (and make this joke). A month ago, Jeremy Clarkson still worked at Top Gear. I’d hoped to put out a little call to action to hitchhike with the crew of Top Gear. It’s a program IContinue reading

Belgradian Sunset—Serbian Spring

This free home in Belgrade has two balconies on opposite sides of the apartment. That makes it perfect for witnessing the Belgradian sunrise as well as a Belgradian sunset, such as this one. People on Instagram call these types of photos #sunsetporn. I’m not sure if I’m doing it right, not being great at photography but having a passion for pretty pictures nonetheless. I’m trying and occasionally improving. Mastering the self-timer is always the most important part of travel photography, methinks. Spring is here on some of the days. I’m all giddy for where I’ll travel once I leave this comfyContinue reading

Dumped Kitten at Mont Limon + Limon Confit Rescue Story

Tuesday, 7th of June 2022. We decided to finish the unknown hiking trail at Mont Limon, the highest peak in Rodrigues. But our plans of having a casual little hike with no trouble were thwarted by the criminal who decided to dump their kitten next to the trail. This is the rescue story of a dumped kitten we (temporarily) named Limon Confit. Contents1 Meows on the Alternative Ascent to Mont Limon2 Freeing a Dumped Kitten3 Walking Down + Contemplating the Next Steps4 Naming the Dumped Kitten5 Pizza + Chicken Spam Time!6 Driving Limon Confit to Mourouk7 Finding a Forever HomeContinue reading

Hitchhiking to Bern from Freiburg im Breisgau—Jonas’ First Time in Switzerland

All this happened on Wednesday the 17th of May, 2023. We kissed Moritz goodbye after catsitting him for two weeks in Freiburg im Breisgau. We walked to a hitchhiking spot to travel from Germany to Switzerland. Jonas hadn’t been to Switzerland before and we were both excited to go hitchhiking to Bern. Doing the Research for Hitchhiking to Bern During our stay in Freiburg, Jonas and I had to decide how to get from the catsit of Moritz in Germany to the one in Switzerland. I really wanted to hitchhike and I really wanted to visit Switzerland’s de facto capitalContinue reading

Travel Light, Shoot Big: Creating Stunning Travel Videos

1468 grams. That’s the combined weight of all my photo and video equipment, accompanying me on every journey. It’s a concise kit, with just three items: iPhone 14 Pro Smartphone Tripod DJI Mini Pro 3 (Drone) I use them to shoot videos like these: Riddersholm, Stockholm, Sweden  Huai Choi Reservoir, Chiang Mai, Thailand  The Evolution of Travel Videography Travel videography, once dominated by hefty equipment, has undergone a major transformation. With these in hand, I’ve revolutionized my approach to travel videography. Gone are the days when I’d be weighed down by heavy gear. Now, I capture the essenceContinue reading

Hitchhiking from Heniches’k to Kherson: Familiar Road, New Surface

Things described in this piece happened on Tuesday the 5th of October, 2021. Jonas and I hitchhiked from Heniches’k at the Sea of Azov to Kherson. Kherson is the capital of Kherson Oblast, which hosts both towns. The city of Kherson is located on the Dnieper River close to its mouth in the Black Sea.  Contents1 Preparations to Hitchhike to Kherson2 Young People Don’t Know What Hitchhiking Is3 Heniches’k to Novotroits’ke with a Couple of Stops4 Wind, Dust, and Losing Time in Novotroits’ke5 Huh? Now Older People Also Don’t Know What Hitchhiking Is?6 Ckhalove to the M14 at NovaContinue reading

Brazil

So Brazil is a country I've been to twice. During my first time in 2011, while learning Spanish in Buenos Aires, it was only a short trip to the Brazilian side of Foz do Iguaçu (Iguazú Waterfalls). The second time I visited was during the repositioning cruise from the Canary Islands to Brazil. Back then, our first stop was in Salvador do Bahía, the second stop in Búzios, and the final stop in Santos nearby São Paolo. Then from there, I launched my two-year trip into South America with and without Jonas. Though I've spent a lot of time in South America, I haven't spent enough time in Brazil. The main problem was a language problem because I only spoke nothing useful the first time I was there and only Spanish the second time I was there. Alternately, you can read about countries in South America I spent more time in, such as Uruguay, Argentina, Colombia, and Perú. Next Time… Read more >

The Cutest Nameless + Abandoned Observatory in Samarkand

One completely spontaneous find in Samarkand was this adorably small abandoned observatory in Central Park (Uzbek: Markaziy Bog’—Russian: Центральный парк). We walked past it one evening (19th of July) on the outside and I snapped some photos. Since the best restaurant for vegetarians – Old City Restaurant – in Samarkand is located a stone’s throw away from Central Park, I knew we’d be back. Here’s a Google Satellite view of the observatory where you can clearly see the observatory’s round metal roof: From the ground behind the fence, it looked much like an abandoned observatory, but I couldn’t be sure.Continue reading

China

China is a country I've only been to for five days on their 144-hour visa-free regime from 2019. During that trip, I went to Shanghai and even managed to enter Zhejiang province, hitchhike the Donghai Bridge back. That was awesome. Shanghai left a very good impression on me and I can't wait to go back. I'm very happy that I had the opportunity to have an impression of this country before the pandemic. I have a very long list of places I want to visit in China in my lifetime. This will probably need to be accomplished over multiple visas because the country is huge. Next Time in China: Hitchhike more. During my five-day stay, I was happy to squeeze in one hitch. I've heard good things about hitchhiking in China and the mobile translation technology they have there makes it easy to communicate without having to do years of Duolingo first Explore the capital Beijing: the history, the food,… Read more >