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My backpacking journey has finally come to an end. Arriving in Montreal was a strange realization. In many ways my ending is bitter sweet. On the one hand you have everybody at home just waiting to catch up. On the other hand my heart is bleeding knowing that my travel experiences are over. There is no adventure waiting for me at my next destination just the real world.

So what have I learned from my trip?

Important Life Lessons Learned along the way:


1. There are good people in this world and there are shitty people. But overall, there are way more good people then bad people.

2. Traveling can make you appreciate exactly how spoiled we are in Canada. Simply having food to eat or being able to drink out of the tap is HUGE.

3. The world has absolutely stunning experiences, scenery's and cultures to offer that you will never EVER be able to appreciate from your own backyard.

Memorable experiences:

1. The annapurna circuit trek in Nepal wins my bet for the best scenery of anywhere I've ever been.

2. Biggest shock value is New Delhi, India. No way to describe it, definitely the place to be if you want to go somewhere completely different from any western country.

3. Best overall humbling experience would be the Camino de Santiago. 31 days with nothing but your thoughts, a backpack, and the wonderful people along the journey.

4. Best Beach: Fish Creek in South Western Australia

I have grown leaps and bounds from where I first began. I have learned some very important lessons along the way that will surely serve me well throughout my life.

Well I guess this concludes my trip and blog. Feel free to email me if I can help out in any way possible.

My Return Upon Cold Canadian Soil

Take care and so long
-Jonathan

Northern Territory: Darwin, Kakadu, Litchfield, & Katherine

Anybody who has been to the Northern Territory would say it is much different then anywhere else in Australia. But I am sure most of you are wondering how is it really different? One of the most obvious differences is the weather. Let me tell you about the kind of wild weather your likely to expect in Darwin. It tends to rain about twice a day and the rain is literally just a complete downpour. The temperature hovers around 30 degrees Celsius and is wet and sticky humid ALL the time (notice the capitalization).

I have met up with an old friend from my McGill days. Catherine and I have met up in Darwin, and with the help of another backpacker we rented a camper van to check out the well surrounding national parks. The advantage to renting a camper van is being able to cook your own food in the back with a gas stove. Also, you can sleep in it for cheap accommodation.

The bonus is that they are nicely decorated and look super cool. The fun part is that you have a lot of flexibility in deciding where and what you want to do. You can spend as much or as little time in each site as you like. Plus you don't have 50 other tourists hovering over you which is pretty nice. However, driving on the opposite side of the road was so strange. I constantly had Cat who was my safety in making sure I was on the proper side of the road.

We decided that with the time we had we would spend a total of 3 days. I would recommend spending at least 2-3 days in each if possible. We felt slightly rushed during our trip because you cover so much distance in such a short amount of time. We spent a day in each Kakado & Litchfield National Park and Katherine. Kakado was wonderful but a lot of popular sites were closed for the wet season. They get so much rain it floods the roads. We saw tons of wildlife such as Kangaroos, snakes, wild boars(Pumba), frogs, and lizards. Litchfield had more sites opened which included some great waterfalls
where you can and just swim around.

Litchfield Waterfall

This is actually really rare because most bodies of water are filled with crocodiles.



Me & a Croc Warning

Last was Katherine which had this awesome gorge. The whole trip gives you an awesome feeling of having nature around your every turn. 
Now we are all back in Darwin safe and sound. In just two days I will be off to Melbourne to meet some old friends from when I was in Egypt. Annette & Chris, I'll see you soon.

Until next time wonderful world.
-Jonathan   

The Bibbulmun Track



My Trusty Guidebook

 What is the Bibbulmun track? In short, its a trail hike that goes from Perth all the way to Albany that goes for a daunting 963km. Clearly I don't time to do the whole thing but I decided I owed it to myself to do a chunk. So last Friday I took a Bus to North Bannister which is 137km out and started my trek. Approximately every 10km you have a campsite that is set up in order to help trekkers along.

 As you can see from the sunset video below rain water is collected from the roof of each campsite building in huge tanks. The days are so incredible hot that you need to drink insane amounts of water. Everyday I would drink about 8 litres of water (That's a lot even for me). To top it off, your location is so remote there are no grocery stores so I had to carry all my food for 6 days. The cuisine was bland and consisted of powder milk, muesli, instant noodles, pita bread, and sardines. Of course, you have no garbage cans along the way so you also have to carry your waste along the way. Finally, because water is so scarce showers are just not possible. Let's just say that first shower when I got back was a long wonderful experience.

Since its off season I actually didn't run into anybody along the trail for 6 days. It actually felt very strange to talk to another person once I was done. You begin to to feel quite comfortable with your own thoughts and being alone (can anyone say Cast Away?lol). All jokes aside, its a great way to clear your mind.

The animal life is literally all around you. Everything from lizards, spiders, snakes and even kangaroos. You really do feels closer to your roots. Once upon a time, we were hunting those Kangaroos to survive.


Tiny Lizard in the Middle of the Picture

Spider



Snake Trail



Sap on a tree that definitely looks like Blood

I would definitely recommend the Bibbulmun Trail to anybody willing to get off the beaten track in order to see a wonderful secluded part of WA. But traveller beware, you need to be willing to rough it (as you can tell by my filthy feet, ahah).

My Filthy Feet



Rain in the distance on my last night

 

A Wonderful Sunset on my Last Night

Me at the Finish Line


Until next time wonderful world,
Jonathan

Australia: Perth and the Southern West Coast



The Reid's

Hello world,

I have been in Western Australia (WA) just under two weeks and it has been so jam packed that I haven't had the chance to blog. To your right is a picture of the wonderful family I have been staying with. This pictures is from last night just before a costume party we all attended. I met the parents (Susan and Phil) on the Camino de Santiago 7 months ago when I had just started my trip.

Here is a list of just a few fun expressions your likely to hear in WA:

sweatshirt = jumper
sunglasses = sunnies
barbecue = barbie
bathing suit = swimmers/bathers
...and my personal favourite... speedo = buggy smuggler..Ha!

Fisk Creek

Fish Creek

Here are two pictures from Fish Creek, likely one of the most beautiful places I will ever see. The area is extremely remote and only accessible with a four wheel drive. Absolutely beautiful.



Fish Creek has some good fishing. Here is our catch...We even cooked them up on the barbie, Yum!





A Kangaroo with her Joey on the side of the road

Australian Football League(AFL) is the sport of choice in WA. It has to be one of the quickest and most explosive games around. The West Coast Eagles (dark) ended up beating Hawthorn (light). It was good fun and very entertaining.

March 6th I will be flying to Darwin.
I feel like I have been living like a true Australian. It's official, WA is officially my favorite coast.
-Jonathan

Thailand: Chiang Mai & Ayutthaya

Chiang Mai, the wonderful north of Thailand gives a completely different vibe from it's southern counterpart. Our first day Dom & I decided to go for an authentic Thai cooking course. We learned how to prepare everything from pad Thai, fried noodles, and even made our own green, red and yellow curry from scratch. Needless to say we ate way to much and even left with dogie bags, yum! Thankfully, you also leave with little cookbooks so that you don't have to remember everything they show you. For the next three days we followed it up with some light trekking. After all, I think everything seems light after Nepal,lol. Our last day in town we visited CrossFit Chiang Mai. It was great, we did Helen and even got T-shirts to boot.

Helen (Here is what it looks like, but I'm way slower,lol) 
3 Rounds for time:
-400m run
-21 Kettlebell Swings
-12 Pullups

For our last stop, Dom & I stayed in Ayutthaya for a day. This small quaint town was much more enjoyable then I would have thought. The temple ruins in this town are absolutely wonderful. There are 3 major temples that are worth seeing. The audio guides make this completely worth it. It does an excellent job of painting a picture of what those temples used to look like. Based on the history it really seems like the city should be the capital of Thailand. The dynasty came to crashing end due to the Burmese army who dismantled everything. Overall, It was a perfect end to a wonderful Thai trip.

Now I am just killing a couple days in Bangkok until I leave for Perth Australia. I will be meeting up with some great friends (Su and Phil) that I met on the Camino. Onto the land down under.

-Jonathan

Thai Islands: Ko Lanta & Ko Phi Phi

After a painful 20 hour bus journey from Bangkok the first thing you ask yourself is what's so special about this place? You arrive in the afternoon when the tide is low making the beach hideous. Once the next morning rolls around you find yourself in paradise. A great way to explore the island is by motorbike. You can easily drive around the whole island stopping only at the most secluded beaches. The thing I loved most about Ko Lanta is that it remains a friendly local island which doesn't give you that big resort feel. Rumour has it that Leonardo DiCaprio has a house somewhere on Ko Lanta. He must have enjoyed his taste of the islands when he filmed The Beach on Ko Phi Phi.

Only one hour away by ferry is the widely known island of Ko Phi Phi. The island is known for its narrow strip which is bordered by beaches on both sides. Ko Phi Phi is exactly what you expect out of an island, beautiful beaches and fantastic mountain tops. The scenery is breathtaking. Moreover, the party scene is all there and then some. Many people will argue that the partying on Ko Phi Phi rivals the famous full moon parties.

Last night I arrived in Chiang Mai which is in the north of Thailand. Already I get a very different vibe from the islands.

I can't wait to see what's in store

-Jonathan

Cambodia: Battambang

I am now in Battambang. I have noticed some pretty big differences
from Siem Reap. On the first day I arrived I noticed how much more
layed back it was. Yesterday, I got a ride to one of the nearby
temples. The temple resembles those that I saw in Angkor but to a much
smaller scale. It is said that this temple is supposedly older (about 100 years) then Angkor Wat.  The center of Battambang itself has a market where all the action happens. But once night falls, the city dies except for a few street stands.




For all the CrossFitters:

Yesterday, I met a local Cambodian who invited me to workout at a

local gym. For the pure experience I said "Why not?". I got a couple
of pictures of the inside. All I really wanted was a pull up bar
Olympic barbell to get a decent workout. Instead I was greeted by a room absolutely packed with equipment (Picture 2). Of course I was stuck doing
bicep curls (Boring!). Also, if you check out one of the pictures carefully, you'll see a Cambodian girl on those archaic fat shaking machines (Picture 1). I couldn't believe my eyes. I felt walking up to one of the girls and saying "So you know those things don't actually work?". You
have maybe six machines with these women having their asses shaken repeatedly. It was like a room full of Shakira's. Needless to say I had to pinch myself a couple of times to stop from cracking up.


One thing I can't complain about is the food. Right near the market is
a great little place that serves up some local food. Here is what you
get for 1$ CDN, Some chicken, rice, soup and a small salad garnish.
Can't beat that...yum yum yum!




Today I am on my way back to Bangkok to meet Dominique and then it's off to those famous Thai islands. I can't wait to see what's in store...

Until next time Montreal & World,
-Jonathan

Cambodia: Siem Reap & Angkor Wat

Guess who is officially certified to dive in the open ocean? That's right, your truly...here is an under water pic from one of my practice dives. The sea life and water (28 degrees) was absolutely amazing.

I arrived in Cambodia only two days ago. After a whole day of travel from Ko Chang I was officially in another country. Siem Reap is the city which is closest to the city of Angkor. As soon as I got here I was floored by the amount of tourism that exists (i.e. the huge hotel resorts that probably cost a billion dollars to stay in). For the rest of us backpackers, you can find a place for about 4$/night. For those who aren't history majors the city of Angkor can be seen in both the Mortal Kombat and Tomb Raider movies. It's a reminder of an ancient city which remains incredible impressive to this day. After spending two days visiting a variety of different temples you realize how big the area is. Here is a couple of photos to jog your memories. I got a three day pass which leaves me with one more day to explore on my own. I plan on renting a bike and leisurely strolling around the area in complete aw of the whole thing. 

Next I head south for a day or two and then it's off to Bangkok to meet Dominique.
See you later Montreal,

-Jonathan

Thailand: Bangkok & Ko Chang

Fresh into the new year it was time to move right along. Sergio and I made such great friends in Kathmandu which made leaving super hard.  I have to say it's rare that I have made such amazing friends when on the road. I have nothing but great memories of Nepal.

I arrived in Bangkok ready for a different part of Asia. Holy cow Thailand is on a completely different playing field. When a city has huge high rises, it a fail safe sign of development.

After a couple of days in Bangkok I decided to get out of the city and head east. I got to the island of Ko Chang 3 days ago. I took a quick walk around and ended up I'm a dive school. Next thing you know I'm signed up for my PADI open water dive course. So fast forward, I have one more day left and I'll be certified to dive anywhere around the world for life. The diving here is awesome, I can't wait to get to the other islands.

Weather wise were looking at beautiful beaches mixed with sun and about 34 degrees. So how's that January weather Montreal? Here it's looking like flip flops and tank tops. Or as the Australians say thongs and singlets. Don't hate me :)

Your Thai Traveller,
-Jonathan

New Years in Nepal, Welcome to 2011

I have spent the last couple of days here in Kathmandu just relaxing with my buddy Sergio. Tonight will officially mark the end of 2010. Like most I can't help but reflect on everything that has happened. Personally, 2010 has been a year for change. The time to take the plunge and try something new. Not necessarily easy but very different.

2011 will be a new year and a new beginning for most. I for one can't wait to see what's in store. Here is one traveller who is wishing everybody a wonderful new year full of prosperity and health.

As the French say santé...
January 3rd I will be off to Thailand and warmer climates. I'm finally shaking off old man winter.

-Jonathan

Kopan Monastery

My seven day retreat is now done and I am back to the constant sounds of horns and haggling street vendors in Thamel (Tourist area of Kathmandu). The main thing that astounds me is that both locations are in the same city.

The retreat was great for recomposing myself. Sergio and I checked in just a week before Christmas. All meals are vegetarian and plentiful. Surprisingly, the variety was very reasonable. Tofu, beans and some egg are the go-to elements for protein. Unfortunately, we arrived at a point where meditation courses were not possible. So let's just say that it resulted in a lot of reading.

Every morning Sergio and I would:
1. eat breakfast
2. write in our journals
3. read
4. do a CrossFit workout (which I love)
5. Eat lunch
6. Take a walk
7. Stretch
8. Read
9. eat supper
10. Go to bed

I guess the beauty lied in the simplicity. I chose to do the first 5 days in silence. Holy cow was that challenging. You don't realize how much you reply on communication until it's gone. On the plus side, I do feel like it simplified life to some degree. It's almost as though you loose so much of the message while trying to communicate.

Overall, it was a great experience that I really enjoyed. Every morning began with the sounds of birds chirping and the sun on your back. What a wonderful environment.

I will be spending new years here in Kathmandu with some friends we made at a nearby bar. Should be great.

Merry Christmas :)
Your now Buddhist traveller,
-Jonathan

The Annapurna Circuit

I have officially made it across the Throng Pass, the most challenging part of the Annapurna Circuit. Needless to say the last couple of days have been extremely rewarding. After 10 days of trekking I am proud to say I reached a total altitude of 5416m. Very often trekkers will begin to feel sick around 3000m. Altitude sickness can affect people differently including loss of appetite, fatigue, dizziness, and nausea. Luckily for me I didn't feel any symptoms. At that altitude the air is extremely thin. After taking about 15 quick steps, I was left panting for oxygen...lol...

After 10 solid days of trekking I am in Pokhara relaxing for the next couple of days. Tomorrow Sergio and I will be heading to Chitwan.  

-Jonathan   

Nepal: Kathmandu

Home to the greatest mountaineering in all the world. Kathmandu is a much bigger city then I anticipated. They do a great job of catering to tourists. You can rent or buy almost anything needed to get going. Needless to say every 2nd shop in Thamel (Tourist area) is either a trekking tourist agent or selling mountain gear. Time for a real winter jacket.lol...

I have met up with my best bud serge and we will be leaving Kathmandu tomorrow to do some trekking.

The Annapurna base camp awaits. Should be awesome.

Your Nepalese traveller,
-Jonathan  

India: Delhi, Agra, Varanasi, Calcutta & Daljeeling

Welcome to India. This place is unmatched by any other place on earth. Let me try and paint you a picture of the environment.

1. A monkey, dogs & cats running wild
2. A cow wondering the streets and it's shit
3. Four different rickshaw drivers asking you if you need a ride
4. An Indian squatting down by the side of road and whipping it out to have a squirt
5. Multiple starving Indians sleeping by the side of the road that probably weigh 100lbs or 45kg.

All the while rickshaw and car horns are screaming relentlessly 24 hours.

Given the above, Delhi is the ultimate zoo. Needless to say everybody tries to rip you off. But given that a hotel can cost 5$ CDN and a good meal can go for 1.50$ CDN the amount they rip you off is insignificant. The Taj Mahal is in Agra and about 2 hours from Delhi. It is absolutely spectacular. Even walking toward it feels like I've ripped a page out of Aladdin.

Varanasi has a huge river that runs adjacent to it. The Ganga is used in so many way. Here are a few:

-Wash humans
-Brush your teeth
-Cremation remains are tossed in it
-Deceased who can't afford cremation are tossed into it with a rope a rock (mafia much?ha ha)
-Cows bath in it

Dead bodies are burned just on the edge of the Ganga for all to see. Every night locals will hold a ceremony to celebrate this river. Of course the river looks disgusting.

Calcutta was probably the most civilized city I visited. I began to wonder why. Then I found out it was occupied by the English for many years. Probably the first place you would want to visit if you want to ease into India.

Now I am in Darjeeling. I am up in the mountains north of India and bam a bug. I spent yesterday as sick as a dog with fever. Luckily I had A bunch of drugs with me and my fever has subsided. Gastro is part of the Indian purification process. Not a single local uses toilet paper. So your using your hand all the time? Needless to say, hygiene is pretty low on the hierarchy of needs. Especially when you have so little to eat.

In a couple of days I'll be meeting up with Sergio, one my best buds in Kathmandu. Wish me luck in
Nepal...

Your now Indian experienced traveller
-Jonathan

Mount Sinai, Egypt

Mount Sinai is best known as the place where Moses was handed down the twelve commandments.

At the ungodly hour of 1:30am our tour group was awakened in order prepare ourselves for the climb.

After a quick coffee we were off and ready begin the trek. At the base we were offered the possibility of riding a camel up. Of course taking a camel up would relieve me of all my street cred. The challenging uphill climb of 7km took us about 2 hours. Word to the wise, watch out for the camel shit when it's pitch black. Many of you may be wondering why we set off so early. By leaving so early we were climbing the mountain when the weather is cool rather then roasting like a thanksgiving day turkey. Temperatures during the day will easily hit 30+ degrees Celsius. Finally at 6ish the sun peaked it's head out from the horizon and our sunrise was born. Magnificent...

I only have a couple of days left in Egypt and then it's off to India. Can I get one more order of culture shock to go??

Yours truly,
-Jonathan

Egypt: Cairo & Temples

From the second I stepped off the plane, I knew the possibility of culture shock was imminent.

Welcome to Cairo, quite possibly the most chaotic city in the world. Driving in that situation would take some sort of divinity. Honking occurs as often as breaths, not to mention the amount of time people get cut off. Being with mom and sis made the insanity much easier to take in. We had all booked a tour group leaving from Cairo that would take us around Egypt including the Nile.

One of the most notable day trips we have had was visiting the Abu Simbel temple. The temple was constructed to pay respect to king Ramsey the second.  The temple has four statues of the king which show his age when he began his reign (19) and eventually when he died (97). To think this temple dates back 3500 years ago is absolutely overwhelming (I promise to eventually upload a picture of this temple when I have time).

So far Egypt has been far more then I have expected in every sense of the world.

Your now Egyptian world traveller,
-Jonathan

Thessaloniki & Athens (Greece)

Just a quick one today since I can't be sure of the next time I'll be able to blog it up.

I only had the chance to hit up two spots in Greece but I am very happy I did. Thessaloniki had that awesome sunset I showed you guys.

Next was Athens, home of the 2004 summer Olympics. Upon arrival, the city gave me a really dirty impression. But after a good day of touring around the hot spots I have to say I've been charmed. You can judge for yourself, just below left is a shot of the acropolis...

Athens, Greece

Of course I'll have to come back one day to get to those gorgeous Greek islands we always hear so much about.

Next stop, The pyramids...

C ya Montreal
Your favorite world traveller,
-Jonathan

Split, Dubrovnik (Croatia) and Belgrade (Serbia)

How can I really describe the Croatian coast line? It's like the french riviera but a lot more rocky, cheaper and less touristy. Split gave me the impression it was more like Cannes and glamorous. Despite the temperamental weather conditions, it was a great small town with lots of roman ruins to be admired. It felt like you were walking back to ancient Rome. Dubrovnik was interesting because of the castle walls that surrounded old town. Old town was a mix of many different streets that can be impossible to navigate without an excellent sense of direction. They don't call me GPS for nothing, lol. I also took the opportunity to check out a couple of islands while I was there which is part of the attraction. Overall, Croatia had much more to offer then I expected.

Last but not least was Belgrade. Let me begin by saying I had no idea what to expect when travelling to Serbia in general. When I was Budapest I was lucky enough to stay with some friends I made in the hostel. More then anything this gave me a great look at way of life. Typically, Serbs will have two meals a day which are breakfast and lunch. Breakfast is around 11:00am-12:00pm and lunch is from 5:00-7:00pm.

The picture to the above is the family and I getting ready to have breakfast. This was definitely the most filling meal I've had in months.

Also very interesting was the historical aspect of how Yugoslavia war which began in 1991. Given that I was 5 years old (and not a history major) I give myself a pass on being oblivious to the whole situation. Nonetheless, the history lesson was inspirational in order to get an in depth look at the country.




Our breakfast:
The red thing is a mix of roasted peppers. The pink cold cut is ham. The Plate in the top right corner is a type of strudel made with something. I can't tell you what but it was fantastic.

The things that look like three balls of vanilla ice cream are actually a soft cheese. It is made by preparing hot cream. Then once the cream cools, the top solid layer is removed and accumulated to make this cheese. The product is a mix between butter and cheese, absolutely satisfying.


No doubt, a very hardy meal...this definitely gets my personal seal of approval.

I arrived in Thessaloniki Greece yesterday and the weather is less then favorable so it's the perfect time to catch up on some much needed blogging. But on the plus side I did get a ridiculous sunset last night so that made me happy...take a look for yourselves.

Be Well Montreal (I just saw a high of 5 degrees for Sunday, should be a cold Halloween, yikes!)

-Jonathan

Budapest, Hungry and Krakow & Zakopane in Poland

Budapest is an awesome city. Essentially the city is separated into two parts, the Buda part and the Pest side. The two parts are separated by a river in the middle of the city. In every guidebook you will read about the famous Turkish baths in Budapest. On my last day there I had to give it a shot. For those of you who are unfamiliar, Turkish baths are a combination of hot tubs at different temperatures. The coldest would be 20degrees while the hottest would be around 40 degrees. Also part of the experience are saunas and hot steam baths so you get a taste for both extreme dry and humid heat. Many people will tend to stay almost all day bringing lunch and lots of water. Of course you sweat like crazy in there. It's definitely worth a try. Needless to say, I was ridiculously relaxed  when I left.

Krakow is said to be the place to be the heart of Poland. There is a lot of history which includes the home of the late John Paul II. Only an hour away is Auschwitz-Birkenau, one of the main Nazi death camps. I took a tour there in order to get a better understanding of the specifics. There is one word to describe the day "heavy". To think that this genocide happened only 65 years ago is unbelievable. This really gave me a better understanding of the operations on a daily basis. They would shave the heads of all women in order to reuse the hair for building mattresses. Everything was pillaged including gold teeth which was remelted into bars and sent to Germany. I realized exactly how efficient their operations were. What an eye opening experience.

Yesterday I took a day trip to Zakopane. It's location is on the south side of the polish border. Put simply, it's a small town with a great view of the mountains.

Today I am on a bus heading back to Slovenia in order to get to the Croatian coast. Krakow was 4 degrees last night which means it's time to migrate south for the winter.

Until next time
-Jonathan

Ljubljana, Bled, Diaca, and Zagreb

On the train ride from Munich to Slovenia I met a good ol Canadian boy from the prairies. Scott Smith is from Calgary and just graduated in chemical engineering. He decided now was the time to take off and see what else is out there. I guess you could call him my protege since his Europe was my Australia. Scott and I have had almost the exact same itinerary along our European route just in reverse.

Scott and I explored the last couple of days together. The incredible small town of Ljubljana offered a great view from the castle top (eventually I will upload all of my pictures, I swear,lol). Next was the small town of bled which was known for its lake and the gorge. This place just floored me. I guess I can only really think of two words to describe the place "natural beauty". Our third and final day in Slovenia was in divaca. They have a 3km long set of underground caves that you can explore with a guide. It's actually been declared a UNESCO world heritage site which means you know its awesome. Slovenia was so much more then I expected. I guess when you travel to a place like Switzerland you arrive already having that expectation from all the tourist dollars that gets pumped into building a public image. But I had no clue what a place like Slovenia had to offer. Needless to say I was pleasantly surprised.

Only a couple hours later Scott and I found ourselves in a whole new country. Welcome to Zagreb, Croatia. Did I mention how much I like the mobility Europe has to offer? After exchanging money for the Kuna we were off to explore the town.

I would have loved to spend more time in Croatia. The coast is said to be amazing. Unfortunately I came to the very serious realization that my Eurail pass is almost expired.

This brings me to the final day use for my Eurail pass. Today I am on my way to Budapest, Hungry to meet up with a friend I made in Stockholm. Tina and I kept in touch and will be travelling together for a while.

For now the next couple of weeks will be completely up in the air. Eastern Europe is my oyster to do with it what I will. One thing is for sure, Oct 30th I will be hoping on a plane to meet Mom and Sis in Cairo, Egypt. Let's see what those pyramids have in store.

Until next time,
-Jonathan