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The Itinerary - Subject to Change!
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12/2/04
Australia - Sydney (12/2/04) and the Great Barrier Reef (12/8/04) - For the most part, we are saving Australia for another trip. In other words, we are cutting it short with visits to only Sydney and Cairns. Cairns is the town for experiencing the Great Barrier Reef. Otherwise, we are coming back another time to play down under. Too bad, because we need to hang out with the Aussies while we are still young enough to keep up with them.
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12/18/04
New Zealand - Auckland (12/18/04) and the South Island (12/28/04) - we will fly from Cairns to Auckland and spend a day or two there. We expect to pick our bikes up in Auckland and ride to a couple peninsulas north and east of Auckland. After a week or so on the North Island, we are heading to the south island for 7 weeks of cycling, sight seeing, kayaking, hiking and frolicking in general. We might even get a day of glacier skiing in… since we are missing ski season in Colorado.
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02/06/05
China - Beijing: Unfortunately, we have only planned to spend 2 weeks or so in China. We could spend our entire year here as well. So like Australia, we are going to need to come back on another trip. While we have not entirely nailed down our itinerary, we plan to spend our time in China in Beijing. With economic growth, the skyline of Beijing is rapidly changing. However, the temples and history remain. Places we plan to visit include - the Summer Palace, the Temple of Heaven Park, the Forbidden City and of course the Great Wall.
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02/20/05
Vietnam: Beyond relaxing on Vietnam's fantastic coastal beaches, and taking in the misty, dense forests and towering inland mountains, our basic intent is to experience Vietnam's ancient traditions and friendly people. Can you tell we are psuedo-plagiarizing? It is not an exact quote so work with us. We have not figured out exactly when the rainy seasons hit the various areas in Asia. We hope we do not get to experience the part of the movie, Forrest Gump, when "sometimes it was raining up".
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2005
Cambodia: Unlike Thailand, our research indicates that Cambodia remains a somewhat unknown travel destination, but that is changing as you read this. By the time we get there, it will probably be inundated with tourists. Years of war and isolation, have kept Cambodia's ancient temples, beautiful beaches and magnificent forests - a still intact buried treasure. More psuedo-plagiarizing. Our research also indicates that it is best to stay on the beaten path in Cambodia as the recent (and in some areas current) instability also means landmines and rebel/bandit activity. Does anyone have a minesweeper? A portable minesweeper would be most helpful. Maybe I can convince Maggie to walk 10 feet ahead of me?
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2005
Laos: Laos has had a tough go of it. We're not sure if we will be able to make it in yet, but we've heard from several people that visiting this country is a must. Of the SE Asian countries, Laos is said to be one of the least developed making it a must see for us. Political instability took Laos off the travel destination list in the 1970's. Having been off the tour map for a couple decades, they have some work to do with their infrastructure to accommodate a greater influx of tourists… we hope to get there before they open the floodgates.
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2005
Thailand: Everyone that we know that has been to Thailand, could not stop talking about how much they enjoyed the country, the people and their visit overall... so we're not going... ha J... just kidding. "You must experience the food, people, culture, history" and on and on and on … yea, yea, yea… Whatever. Actually, Thailand is also a must see and experience destination for us. We plan to spend quite a bit of time there. From all the input we've gotten, we can't wait to get there.
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2005
Indonesia: Since the nightclub bombing, Bali tourism has taken a beating. Andy, our neighbor is the exception - he's planned a surfing trip. While we are not yet sure that we will visit Indonesia, the drop in tourism in the area is attractive to us. The concerns with visiting the area are still very real as racial and religious tensions as well as corruption are commonplace. That said, Indonesia includes thousands of islands, endless cultures and exploration options uncommon in developed countries.
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2005
Malaysia - Singapore: We are getting mixed reviews regarding Malaysia and Singapore. One source says go and the next is not so positive and says to proceed with caution. All indicate that Singapore is a 21st century city with lots of glass and metal. The twin towers, which you might know from a couple movies, have become the icon of Singapore's economic growth.
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June - 2005
Nepal - Katmandu and base camp (Mid June): Our goal is to see Everest and spend a couple nights at base camp. We will determine later if this is a reasonable goal as we learn more. We definitely want to visit Katmandu and see the Himalayas. Want to join us?
Political commentary: There are areas that we would like to visit in Northern Africa, SE Europe, SW Asia and the Middle East. The Middle East and many other areas have had problems for millennia, which will probably not change in our lifetime. However, these areas are now even more unsafe due to the war in Iraq and due to recent and ever present terrorism in these areas.
While Hussein was not a "good" person and he and his family abused their power, we believe it was a mistake for the US to invade Iraq without full support of the UN. The United States is a free country because the people made it that way. The people in Iraq needed to organize and reach out to take control of their destiny.
The continued resistance in Iraq shows that the war and freedom was not the common goal of the people. No weapons of mass destruction have been found in Iraq and there is no proof that Hussein was linked in any way to the 9/1l attack. In addition, we have failed in the effort to catch the people that were responsible for planning and orchestrating 9/11.
That said, many people think we are crazy to do this trip and that the world is not a safe place to travel for Americans, including Todd's mother. Americans are certainly not as welcome in many areas due to the war in Iraq. While all of these issues are relevant, we don't want to live our lives in fear - thank you for pointing that out to us Michael Moore... knock on wood.
There will always be conflict, but that does not translate to shutting ourselves to the people and experiences of the world. It is the people that make the world wonderful and the people with power that make it safe or otherwise. We will have to pay close attention to the issues and what is happening so we can stack the odds in our favor.
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July - 2005
Africa: while planning and scheduling in advance are often advisable, we have decided to keep our options relatively open in Africa. We have allocated around 8 weeks to Africa, which is clearly not enough. In Africa, the political climate changes frequently and this is why we want to stay flexible.
Our neighbor, Helen, who has been and continues to go to Africa on a frequent basis, says that the people in West Africa are wonderful. We definitely want to visit South Africa. It would also be fun to climb Mt Kilimanjaro, go on Safari in Kenya, etc.
Kenya's (Nairobi) reputation for tourist muggings, is grounds for visiting other places instead. Overall, we are finding that the people in most parts of Africa are fantastic. Other areas we would like to see include Ethiopia, Victoria falls and Todd's cousin, Jen, says we need to run the Zambezi river on body boards - Jen, aren't there Piranha in the Zambezi?
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2005
South Africa: S. Africa is quickly winning over travelers and we are no exception. Still in its infant stages of democracy, there are still plenty of risks. We understand that the Safari options in S. Africa rival that of Kenya. Should we forego Nairobi in an effort to avoid getting mugged, we will pursue safari options in S. Africa.
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September - 2005
Brazil - Rio & Sao Paulo: We have to do Rio … it is a must on our list. Also, Maggie has a child sponsorship in Sao Palo so we are going to visit. I am not going to do Brazil justice, as I am ready to stop writing today. However, in fairness to the Brazilians, the rumor is they live life to the fullest. In the event you did not know, Rio is hosting the Olympics in 2012.
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September - 2005
Argentina - Buenos Aires: We have not learned to tango yet … well at least the dance. So, maybe it is time. In addition to learning this exotic dance (erotic is probably a better word), we look forward to seeing the city and getting a steak dinner as Garry and Mary said steak don't get better than this. Argentine beef is known all over the world. We probably will not climb Aconcagua. We understand, that those interested might need ropes and some skills in addition to a tolerance for altitude. At the same time, it simply ain't on the agenda. We will visit Buenos Aires and a couple other places and call it good. There just isn't enough time to do it all and hang out with the porteños.
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October - 2005
Chile - Santiago and Patagonia - Jen and Matt Davis as well as Garry and Mary have provided some great suggestions for Patagonia … so after visiting Santiago, we are heading south... Torres del Paine is one stop, but there is plenty to see with 5 major regions not to mention the southern most city in the world, Ushuaia. Like everywhere, the southern tip of S. America has too much to offer and we will want to spend more time than we have set aside.
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October - 2005
Peru: No mudslides - our hope while we are in Peru. We changed our gameplan so that we would miss the wettest months - January thru April. It starts to get wet when we plan to be there so keep your fingers crossed. Machu Picchu is on the list. One of the most spectacular settings on earth (says the journals and write ups), Machu Picchu is the sacred center and royal retreat built by the great Inca Ruler Pachacuti… sounds naughty and I am sure Mr. Pachacuti was naughty… sacred center … yea sure you betcha. We still need to do a little research on Peru otherwise. I am not sure much more than Pachacuti's "retreat" is on the list, as we will be running out of time.
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November - 2005
Costa Rica: We are going to finish learning how to surf. Todd plans to get his first lesson in surfing in Australia. His next lessons will be in SE Asia and funds permitting, he hopes to nail the sport down here. Maggie is going to do some surfing as well, but it is not as high on her agenda (she says she is balanced challenged and does not have aspirations of doing a surfing movie). Having nearly finished her SCUBA lessons, that might be another option for Maggie. Otherwise, we will be lounging in hammocks and enjoying the sun and beaches. We will probably do some "eco-tourism" as well - you know … volcanoes, jungles, lizards, exotic birds, sloths, crocodiles, etc.
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12/01/05
Mexico - the Mexican Riviera or Tulum more precisely: We have talked about it and if all goes well… we behave ourselves, get along and play nice; we might just get hitched in Tulum. We will keep you posted on this website… check it frequently as we will be updating it as frequently as internet cafes and time permits. Don't get your tickets now - Todd doesn't make a decision until he has done painstaking research … Maggie will certainly let everyone know … if Todd actually has the cohunes to pop the question. Maybe Maggie will have to do the deed, relieving Todd of the burden of making a decision … what a wus.
Regardless, Tulum is about 80 miles south of Cancun. In or near Tulum, there are Mayan ruins, beaches and a very good attitude towards life in general. It has not been developed like Cancun yet. So come and join us or go on your own.
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