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. [booking location="Brazil" address="Sao Paolo, Brazil"] 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,… 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. [booking location="China" address="Shanghai, China"] 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:… Read more >

Voting as a Nomad: My Frustrating Attempt to Vote in the 2021 Dutch General Election

I have never once voted in a Dutch general election. Not because I didn’t want to or didn’t try. But because in the Netherlands, they make voting near impossible for homefree people. Contents1 A Short History of My Voting Attempts2 20163 What Changed in 2020?4 Contacting Mom5 My Attempt to Vote in the 2021 Election5.1 Toos Deserves La Chancla5.2 A Tour of the Dumb Bitch Juicery™ of The Hague6 6.1 The Solution: How my Mom used to Vote for my Dad7 What Should Change in the Netherlands?7.1 Security Questions8 Good/bad/meh read? Consider buying me a Fristi9 Sharing is possible, yetContinue reading

Hitchhiking Bucket List: #5 The Dakar Rally

Yes, this is another stretch. But I’d love to ride along in one of the rally cars of the annual Dakar Rally. It doesn’t have to be in the desert on a heavy sand dune. Heck, it doesn’t even have to be with one of the rally drivers. It could be with the maintenance on the way to Lima or Riyadh. I don’t care. The Dakar Rally used to be organized in Africa, known as the Paris–Dakar Rally. The route used to travel overland from France to Spain, Morocco, Western Sahara, Mauritania, Mali, and Senegal’s capital Dakar, though sometimes theContinue reading

Traveling in Malaysia during the Pandemic (Another Heckin’ Diary)

This little diary is a continuation of the ‘Pandemic in Penang’ diary I’ve kept during Malaysia’s harder lockdown. Long story short: we were traveling in Malaysia and other Asian countries when the coronavirus lockdowns caught us in George Town, Penang. We stayed there during the various phases of lockdown, from MCO to CMCO and RMCO (“Recovery Movement Control Order”). When interstate travel opened up, we planned our departure from Penang to travel within Malaysia’s borders. “SOP” stands for “Standard Operating Procedure”. Days since we entered Malaysia: Days since the start of the Movement Control Order (MCO): Travel days since we finallyContinue reading

Penang Hill to Ourselves: Funicular + Hiking without the People

Events in this story happened on Tuesday the 9th of June 2020. It was the last day of the Malaysian government’s Conditional Movement Control Order (CMCO). You can read more about our experiences of the coronavirus pandemic in Penang in the dedicated diary. We took the funicular up Penang Hill and then hiked it down to the botanic gardens. Click here to skip to the Penang Hill Tips + Map. Preparations I can’t even remember the last nature hike we went on. I think it might have been in Kota Bharu before we came to Penang. We’d been less thanContinue reading