That’s why I’m glad I stumbled across travelblogsites.com. I’ve been following this website for a little while now. They rank the webs best travel blogs on a weekly basis, and profiles the best ones daily. It’s sort of like a one stop shop for quality, independant travel writing. It’s run by the guys from travelpod (which in my humble opinion houses some of the worlds best travel journals… you can read mine here) and I’ve been fortunate enough to now have sanchezjalapeno.com join the TravelBlogSites community which I’m very excited about.

The site is a great resource while to while away a few hours, or get inspired by some really creative travel writing. Check it out or follow TravelPod on twitter

Follow Shane on Twitter , read his guest posts at havepack.com or catch up on his travels here.

The Local Fauna

 That’s the number of  holiday makers that have attempted to reach Australia by boat in the past few years.

Most never make it to the mainland, instead their short detour to Christmas Island turns into a permanent stop over. But can you blame them? Christmas Island has it all. From the flora and Fauna (like the bigger-than-a-child coconut crab, pictured here climbing a freaking garbage bin), to the super friendly locals, oozing with charisma – you’ll often seen waving their bright shiny guns at you from the other side of the razor fence. For what ever reason, Christmas Island is quickly turning into the must visit destination of 2010, especially if you’re from Asia or the Middle East.

 A trip to Christmas Island doesn’t come cheap. Most tourists end up exhausting all of their savings just for a seat on a rustic yet charming raft type contraption. Lovingly refered to by Australian’s as ‘Boat People’ these adventure seekers don’t have a lot of mid-voyage entertainment to keep them occupied, but that doesn’t really matter as they’re too busy trying not to drown. Nature Buffs would love it – you can’t get much closer to nature than you do when your raft capsizes during the monsoon.

Reception

 What ever your trip lacks in aesthetics it makes up in customer service. Before you even reach the island you’ll be greeted by a boat load of government officials who have come out to greet and escort you in. That’s a nice touch. Once you’ve docked you’re whisked away to the reception area of the islands only resort. After you’re processed checked in, you’ll be shown to your room – conditions in the garden & electric-fence view rooms are a little cramped but that’s just because the place is so darn popular. The owners prefer not to use terms like ‘over capacity’, instead referring to it as cosy.  Just be mindful of a weird process where they tend to sepeate you from your family – we’ll call them travel companions- but think if it as a good way to meet new people.

 In house activities for the lucky refugees guests include English lessons, some sports, competitive fasting and an interesting game called lip sewing (usually only played by those Negative Nancy’s that whinge about everything… there’s always one, right?)

 Money exchange is not a problem, you simply wont need any. This is an all inclusive resort – you’re provided with a $50 dollars worth of resort points per week, redeemable for such luxury items as toothpaste and medication.

 Spots are limited so to secure your place at this amazing resort, speak to your local Travel Agent (people smuggler) about this once in a lifetime trip.

For further information or to request a brochure contact the UNHCR

And I’m sorry.

But the truth is I haven’t just been on my merry way, with nary a care in my little world. I’ve been busy. Honest. For one I’ve been a guest author at havepack.com , where Jeff Patch has been gracious (or drunk) enough to let me dirty up his pages once a week with my ’special’ brand of travel writing. I’m also trying to keep up appearances over at Trazzler – it’s like twitter for travel stories.

But the thing that has been keeping my away from you – my eChildren – the most is project-happi.com It’s a new website where I’ll be documenting all the trials and tribulations of starting a new life abroad. From sorting locations to getting visas I’ll be blogging and asking for you guidance in setting up an expat business. I’m really excited to see where this goes and if all goes well, then Project-Happi will have a new base in Thailand or Laos, probably in the form of a guesthouse or cafe. I can’t wait to see what happens!

- Shane

Locals and tourists alike find themselves here in Djemaa el Fna as the afternoon turns to evening, to meet friends or snap a photo, and of course to eat. This is why I’m here, to fill up on fresh food from the famous night market.

As I walk into the open space it is still very warm and at this time of the day more stalls are being set up for the nightly show. I’m early.

Take a breath and look around for a bit, you’ll be eating soon, I tell myself grumbling stomach. There is an atmosphere of excitement, as if a big party is about to take place.

This is exactly what it turns into in an hour or so, when all the stalls are up and running, people are everywhere chatting excitedly and looking around at the feasts in front of them. Produce is set out proudly and tantalisingly – a variety of fish and other seafood, kebabs of meat or vegetables, piles of fresh salads, olives and dried fruits. Other smaller stalls are selling mint tea or coffee with deserts of cakes and biscuits. Some I walk past specialise in just one thing, like snails, and a huge bubbling pot fills the entire little shop with a line of bowls next to it waiting to be filled and someone squeezed behind it smiling and waving for you to come closer.

The sounds of cooking are all around me – things are chopped, then sizzling on the stoves while spices and herbs are added, and smoke wafts around you as you walk, giving you delicious hints at what you could have if you stop at this one for dinner tonight. The stalls go on and on, a little temporary labyrinth built each night in the centre of the square.

Beside the food is an area where a visual feast is decked out – ladies sit doing henna tattoos, street performers all dressed up sing and dance, and round each corner is the possibility of walking into an area where snakes and their charmers, or a monkey on a leash can be found. I stick to the food but many are seduced into getting a photo taken with these animals – that or they have a snake or monkey draped on them before they know it.

Lights come on, the music swells and the food smells become too good to continue looking around any longer. I stop and see the variety on show in front of this stall, decide its where I want to be and point a few things out as my order, then sit down. A man places a paper mat down in front of me and some olives are set out. As I watch my food being cooked, I realise all my olives are gone – should never leave them alone with me for a minute – I’m given some more.

Then my food comes out – roast eggplant, kebabs, vegetable cous cous. Prawns, Moroccan salad, beetroot. I have been waiting for this all day. I get to work and more bread is placed beside me. The flavours are fantastic, that freshly grilled taste coupled with coriander, cumin and others flavours I don’t know. The olives are simple but with a light marinade of herbs. The bread is fresh and I mop up the juices from the salads and sauce from the kebabs and vegetables. I eat and eat and the night world goes on around me. More people duck in to sit at the long tables next to me and the routine begins again as they pick their food and the chefs get to work. The music seems to get faster as I eat, whirling as the tastes whirl in my mouth.

After I’m done I slowly get up and decide I need to walk my eating odyssey off, still steering clear of the monkeys and snakes. The night is warm and everyone is happy, me most of all.

Marrakech is my first stop in Morocco and I don’t want to leave, a day here in Djemaa el Fna makes me hungry for more.

Follow Milli on Twitter, Flickr or read more of her travels here

My Easyjet flight arrives into Marrakech an hour early, but any time saved is quickly lost during the 2 hour wait in the Immigration line. The queue isn’t even that long, but it’s excruciatingly slow because all the immigration officers keep chatting to each other. The guy in front of me waits ten minutes while two officers seemed to be talking about the size of different breasts. Or watermelons. I don’t speak Arabic and it’s hard to say just by reading hand gestures.

Our Taxi driver flies through the peak hour Marrakech traffic, trying to get us to the Medina before it pours with rain. We dodge scooters carrying whole families, and men riding donkey’s with gas cylinders strapped to their backs (the donkeys, not the men) heading for the Djemaa el-Fna – The centre of the Medina and the location of the nightly food market.

© Milli Vukovic

We arrive at our Riad, or as close to it as our driver wants to go – the alley ways become increasingly narrow, so we are unceremoniously dumped by the side of the road. I scan the maze before us, scratch my head, and start to panic. Out of nowhere comes a guy with a cart – sort of like a wheel barrow mixed with a car trailer. Thinking it was a little primitive, but my feet were aching from the wait in the immigration queue, I start to hop in. The guy just grunts, glares at me and points to my backpack. Seems I’ll be walking, but my bag hitches a ride. I’m just happy that I’ll be getting to my Riad at all. After we arrive it’s starts to pour down rain, so I go to the roof and watch the electrical storm, getting drenched in the process. We go to bed early, I’ve got a busy day planned in the souqs tomorrow.

Day two. 7:00am.

© Milli Vukovic

No one is around, so I unbolt the giant Riad door and sneak out, headed for the Djemaa el-Fna. I want to see Marrakech go to work. The Orange juice sellers are just setting up so I get a freshly squeezed juice out of a dubious looking glass. I remember my guidebook telling me to not use the utensils and cups in the market– sound advice but how do you do that when it’s already been poured in a glass? It’s silly to be too precious about this sort of thing anyway, so I shrug, gulp down my juice and continue walking.  

The square is slowly coming to life, and we go for a walk to a nearby Mosque. It’s especially beautiful, and it seems to have some relics in different states of repair dotted around the outside. Unfortunately some angry looking youths start walking towards us, one of them making suggestive comments towards my girlfriend. Her father tells me not to accept anything less than a Mercedes and two camels; these boys hardly seem like the type to pay up, so we quickly scat.

There is a fair bit of sugar in the mint tea

It’s souqs time. I gather my thoughts, attempt a calm Zen like composure and dive in. The Labyrinth is full of butchers carving camels heads, men selling ‘Genuine’ Genie conjuring rubbing lamps, leather bound journals and jewellery. There are dried fruits, olives, spices and preserved lemons in one lane. In another I find men cooking shawarmas , drying fish,  and a Dentist for good measure. My plan is to get hopelessly lost and maybe arrive back in the square for a tajine about lunch time. It works, if a little to well. All roads may very well lead to Rome, but they seem to stop by the Djemaa el-Fna first.

Lunch is a Moroccan Salad (coriander, tomato and onion) for starters, a vegetable tajine for the main, followed by a pot of piping hot mint tea. This comes to about 3 dollars making me a very happy little backpacker. After lunch it’s a quick trip back to the Souqs so I can pick up a new pair of sunglasses. The shopkeeper is friendly, and he asks what I will take to give him my girlfriend. I relay the conditions to him, he says that’s ok – he has  a Mercedes, it’s the name of his camel. No deal.

Before I realise, it’s dusk. The Djemaa el-Fna is alive with snake charmers, acrobats and the smell of roasting lamb. The nightly food market is well underway and we navigate through the stalls, being pulled this way and that by touts offering up such tasty morsels as lambs brain and cow intestines, we settle on a small restaurant and order olives, Moroccan salad, tajine, and fried prawns. A monkey escapes his handler and runs for freedom, but is caught after about a minute. Another monkey aided in the escape by jumping on the face of the handler. Good teamwork.

Fried lambs brain, if you're keen.

Day three. 2:00pm.

The train to Fès has broken down many times today, but this is the final nail in the coffin. Everyone has jumped out onto the tracks and we walk for a few kilometres to the next station. We’re packed like sardines into the back of a Mercedes, 4 people each over 6ft tall sitting and sweating uncontrollably on each other. It sounds much saucier in print than it was in reality. You haven’t really lived until you’ve had your nose crammed into the armpit of a ginormous, sweaty Moroccan man.

A bonding experience

With Fès still a few hours away we settle on the nearby town of Meknès. Again we are unceremoniously dumped from the car – it seems to be a national sport – and we find a hotel for the night. Meknès is pretty and cosmopolitan in the Ville Novelle (new town), and there are no other tourists around. The reason for this is that it’s a fairly boring city with not much to occupy a traveller. Still, I’m happy to see something off the tourist trail.  

Day four. 8:00pm

The train breaks down a few more times today, but always seems to spring back to life just as everyone disembarks. We arrive a few hours late, but it’s better than not at all. Tangier is beautiful. It’s a vibrant city where everyone seems happy, teenage couples hold hands and overlook the Medina from the lookout in the Ville Novelle, and bars give tapas for free. Yep – free. All you need to do is buy a drink, and they bring you tajines, fish, chickpeas and salad. I vow not to buy dinner once in the next 3 days.

© MIlli Vukovic

I’m enjoying a beer and some tapas in the ‘America’s Pub’ – which is decked out like a London tube station. A local introduces himself to me, when I ask what he does he tells me he’s a ‘business man’. He doesn’t elaborate. He does mention later that his job takes him to Spain all the time, and that he can speak 5 languages fluently. I feel very embarrassed with my one and a half languages, but he’s happy to speak in Spanish with me so I can work towards getting that to 1 and ¾ languages.  

My new friend seems to know everyone in this town, he’s constantly shaking hands with people, and he commands the attention of the bar staff by a mere click of his fingers. It’s almost as if they fear him. He tells me he’s good friends with the chef as he walks into the kitchen like he owns the place. On his way out the bar he tells me that the chef’s going to look after us. He wasn’t kidding, I’m presented with fish piled so high I can barely see over the plate. I think I’m in love with this town.  

Day five. 2:00pm

Holy crap, next door to the hotel is a Spanish donut guy! He’s got a tiny hole-in-the-wall shop where he sells these tiny morsels of heaven in bags of ten for about 30 cents. I’m in love even more now.  

I go for a walk in the Medina, the souqs are much different to those in Marrakech. For one all the roads are paved here, and the shops have security systems and fancy lighting. Also most things are priced in Euros and are about 3 times as expensive as they were in Marrakech. I guess it’s to do with the proximity to Spain.

Lunch is at Anna e Paolo’s Italian restaurant. Freshly made ravioli and a bottle of Moroccan red wine for about 10 dollars each. I don’t think I can love any harder than I am right now.  

Day six. 5:00pm.

Pretty much a repeat of day five. Lunch with Anna e Paolo, a walk around the Medina and up along the coast. We go to the bar which was the inspiration for Rick’s café. It’s an amazing piano bar in the ritziest hotel in Tangier. A scotch on the rocks cost me about 14 dollars. So I tell him to ‘play it again’ and then steal the toilet paper to take back to our hotel room;  we’re running out. It’s the little things.

Day seven. 11:00pm

© MIlli Vukovic

I’ve tried the tapas at most bars in the Ville Novelle. I’ve eaten so many Spanish donuts that the guy selling them has asked me to move in with him. I’ve walked around the Medina so much that I’m now timing myself doing laps, trying to beat my personal best of 10 minutes 22 seconds. And finally I’m relaxing with a coffee in hand, MacBook in the other watching Tangier pass me by. Tangier is the most un-Moroccan city in the country, but I find that I could easily live here, like so many artists have done before. William Burroughs and some others from the Beat Generation used to have a room in the hotel I’m staying in and Oscar Wilde, Tennessee Williams and Winston Churchill have all at one stage stayed longer than planned. I can see myself living in the shoddier, run down part of town, just me and my laptop in a sea view room writing away about the artistic decadence of Tangier. But then I look at my bank account balance; While the tapas are free the drinks certainly are not, and I realise I need to move on to cheaper pastures – I can’t live on Spanish donuts for ever, despite what the guy working there keeps telling me.

Follow Shane on Twitter , read his guest posts at havepack.com or catch up on his travels here.

Photo by Milli Vukovic

- He wasn’t kidding. More charming than anyone I’ve met before, Kovacs introduced himself to us while we were exploring the Baščaršija – the Turkish quarter of Sarajevo, following our noses around alleyways into pastry shops selling Burek and tiny cafes brewing Bosnian coffee. I was in love with Sarajevo and had been devising business plans in my head, ready to write to my mother telling her I wasn’t coming home, when I was brought back to planet earth by the sight of this tiny man, waving at us and dancing in the street.

We spent 10 minutes (or was it 20?) standing in the middle of the street talking to this interesting man about his life (born in Turkey, lived around the world and had been working in Sarajevo as a waiter for 3 years), the languages he can speak (10, thanks for asking) and would his boss mind if he snuck off for a beer? (“Fuck the boss, lets drink”).

Kovacs led us through the maze of the Baščaršija, past men in workshops belting metal into shape, women chatting in the drizzling rain outside of silk shops and teenagers sipping coffee on tiny stools in hole-in-the-wall coffee shops, until we arrived at the ‘Balkan café’ – a funky bar/live music venue that later that night would be hosting an evening of jazz meets Sevda (local Bosnian music – a bit Soviet, a bit Middle Eastern, very cool). We sat down and ordered some beers. Kovacs explained how he understood his religion “Mine is heart. We’re all people, so just love with your heart”. He then belted out a few acapella versions of some blues songs – he’s a singer and guitarist – much to the dismay of the über cool crown that came to hear the jazz band upstairs. He promised to serenade us if we came to his restaurant the following night. We sipped šljivovica (local brandy) from the mini flask around his neck – a gift from a travelling Scottish lady who though he was hilarious (modest, he is not).

Kovacs was prone to going off on a tangent, which made it hard to follow what he was talking about; I gave up the notion of taking notes. Instead, we drank beer and laughed. Soon after he ran off to work hoping to get back there before his boss noticed he was gone, and we stayed at the Balkan café and chatted with the owner- he introduced himself to us when he noticed we were admiring the cool artwork on the wall. The café had only been open for a month, but it was packed with alternative 20 something’s sporting wild, unkempt hair and dressed in black turtleneck tops.

All we need is šljivovica

We watched the first band take the stage in the upstairs smoke filled room, they played a mix of songs, some big band hits from the 20’s and 30’s mixed and then some slow jazz versions of more popular songs like Radiohead’s Creep. Before I realised it was after midnight so we retired to the hotel, there was a lot of sight seeing to do the next day.

Some beautiful Mosque’s can be found in the Baščaršija. I sat in a café adjacent the biggest Mosque in Bosnia, and listened to the call to prayer, which was just as breathtaking as the ones, I’ve heard in Turkey and Malaysia. Sarajevo is a melting pot of religions; there are Mosques, churches and synagogues around every corner. I spent the remainder of that day walking around the city, with a stray but happy dog following me around. That night we went to see Covaks at the restaurant, where true to his word, he serenaded us while we sipped red wine and ate trout and grilled veggies drowned in olive oil. A midnight drink at the Balkan Café followed, the crown danced and couples kissed in the dark corners and I wished I could stay longer. All good things come to an end I guess, but I hope that’s not true. I’ll be back soon to find out.

cats and dogs of Progresso, Mexico

After a swim in the sea I walked back to my hotel in the lovely town of Progreso, Mexico, and the sun beat down mercilessly. I turned down a quiet street and passed a small shop with a man and a boy playing dominos, I stopped by to have a look at what he was selling. With that small decision I ended up having a wonderfully interesting afternoon chatting to possibly the sweetest person I’ve ever met. It reminded me why I loved travelling so much.

Alvaro Perez

Alvaro was a local to Progreso but had been in the USA for the last 23 years, he recently brought his youngest son back with him to Mexico to live. Now back in Progreso Alvaro had started a travel and tour company, was a real estate consultant, and also had the shop we were sitting in where I was buying a few gifts for friends. I felt a little lazy after hearing all this! As we spoke more, it was his work for a particular group which caught my attention. Alvaro calls himself a ‘vigilante’ working for an organization dedicated to stray animals. The group was called the ‘Proteccion de Perros y Gatos’.

Mexico, like many other countries, has a multitude of unregistered dogs and cats that wander the streets, eat garbage, dodge cars and get ‘friendly’ with one another. The scenes of unwanted puppies or dead dogs by the side of the road is constant in many countries – one thing that always bothered me when travelling, making me wish I could adopt them all and take them home with me.. Here was a man whose love for animals had led him to become part of a group fixing these issues in his home town. I was inspired and wanted to know more.

Progreso is not far from the state capital of Merida and a few hours from Cancun. Though small it is quite popular with locals and tourists, and one of its claims to fame is having the longest industrial pier in the world. It fades off into the distance as you look out to sea and is quite a sight.

While Merida, like other big cities in Mexico, already has a large registered organization set up to capture, house, de-sex and control the animal populations, smaller places like Progreso do not have anything. Peoples mentality to animals differs from say, Australia, where you can be fined for not cleaning up after your dog – let alone have unregistered animals wondering around. Currently the local municipal government for Progreso are in charge and they pick up strays, but often just drop them away from town, which doesn’t solve much.

Alvaro told me that his organization aims to convince the local government, as well as individual pet owners, to take more responsibility for cats and dogs.

The group is formally constructed with a president, vice-president, treasurer and secretary, some of them Mexicans like Alvaro and others American and Canadian that call Progreso home. When cruise ships dock at the pier they ask for donations from tourists and as the group saves more and more money they are preparing to get the organization up and running.

The organization plans to open a building in town dedicated to housing stray animals, and to get veterinary students to donate their time and skills to de-sex or provide any medical attention needed for sick animals. These services would also be open to the general public and their pets, hopefully for free. Their group are always in touch with the Merida organisation and this communication is mutually benifical when it comes to gathering data and swapping ideas.

Progresso’s homeless

The more I spoke to Alvaro the more passionate he became and I wished I wasn’t just stopping by for a few days before moving on.

What the group also want to do is educate the public, have mandatory registration for animals, and have laws passed to fine people for lost animals or ones not de-sexed. As it stands the government does not want any new legislation as they say the people are too poor to deal with fines.

Currently the group need to get permits, more donations and more willing people to take part. Public market appearances and raffles are planned for the future to attain more exposure.

As the afternoon heat refused to go away, I bought a bookmark and bracelet from Alvaros shop, donated some money for the dogs and cats cause, and we chatted some more. It was sad to leave as I had made a lovely friend, learnt a lot and become thoroughly inspired. It only strengthened my love of Mexico and I resolved to return soon and find out how he was going with all his ventures, particularly the dogs and cats. An unsuspecting Sunday had turned into one of the favourite highlights of my adventures and it gave me a spring in my step as I thought about the next place I was to go and who I’d meet there.

Alvaro and the group are out to make a difference, it is free to join them and they need more help.

If you are travelling through that side of Mexico, stop by Progreso – it has great seafood and a street fiesta every Sunday. Get in touch with Alvaro for some tours, he has a wealth of knowledge and will inspire you. He may even give you a honey sweet as a treat. (I can’t get enough of them now).

Alternatively if you cannot make it there but are interested in giving their organization more exposure or donating in any way, the contact details are:

Proteccion de Perros y Gatos a.c.

Jose Alvaro Perez, vigilante

Cel: 999 994 8525

Apartado Postal No. 30, 97320 Progreso, Yucatin, MEXICO

For information regarding Alvaro’s tour company and real estate venture you can email him or call using the number listed above.

About the Author

Milli Vukovic is a freelance photographer currently in Croatia, but is just as likely to be in Morocco this time next  week. Backpacking around the world in search of the weird and wonderful, Milli is always on the look out for a the perfect shot, an amazing beach and the worlds best laksa. You can follow Milli on twitter or read her travel blog.

Milli@sanchezjalapeno.com

]]> http://sanchezjalapeno.com/progress-in-progresso/feed/ 2 http://sanchezjalapeno.com/trans-siberian-on-the-cheap/ http://sanchezjalapeno.com/trans-siberian-on-the-cheap/#comments Sun, 30 Aug 2009 15:34:21 +0000 Shane http://sanchezjalapeno.com/?p=76

Photo by Milli Vukovic

An abundance of borsch, cranky provanistas and desolate, snow capped pine forests that stretch forever. Riding the Trans Siberian rail is probably the most amazing thing I’ve ever done. I often recommend it to travellers I meet along the way, but Soviet bureaucracy (amongst other reasons) stands in the way of a lot of people thinking they can do this on a backpackers budget. There is a ton of paperwork you need to fill out, and even more companies willing do complete this for you in exchange for your life´s savings. The thing is, with a bit of forward planning you can do it yourself for a fraction of the cost that a lot of people pay to ride the worlds longest railway.

When I was planning my trip I looked into getting a company to handle all the details for me. The cheapest I could find was through Vodka Train – a subsidiary of Sunlanders travel. They would take care of everything for me, and if I paid them, they would courier my passport around to all the embassy’s required and organise my ‘invitation’ to enter Russia (A requirement of all foreigners). Basically all I would have to do is sign the paperwork, submit a few photos for visas and fork over the cash. I paid them a deposit and they gave me a dossier explaining my itinerary, the places I would be staying and a cost breakdown.

I took a close look at the dossier. The journey I wanted to take departed from Beijing, visited Ulaanbaatar, Irkutsk & Lake Baikal, Moscow and St Petersburg. The trip was for 21 days (which included arrival and departure days, so really 19 full days), would be in 4 berth 2^nd class carriages on the train and dorm accommodation when we stopped along the way. The group size would be somewhere between 8 and 15 and there would be guides at stops enroute in the form of ‘Honchos’ – local students employed by the company to take us around the sites.

All up to do this trip with Vodka Train, it would cost me $3,990AUD (including a mandatory local payment of $150USD, payable to the Honcho in Beijing). As a backpacker this was an incredible amount to fork out, considering it didn’t cover any visa fees or meals, but as I was pretty naïve and hadn’t been particularly fastidious in researching, I didn’t really know if this was a good deal or not. I noticed in the price breakdown the hostel dorm I would be staying at in St Petersburg was listed as costing $70 dollars. I knew Russia was expensive but thought this was crazy, I checked it out online and the cost through the hostels website was $35!

I decided to purchase the Trail Blazers Trans Siberian handbook, and the Lonely Planet Trans Siberian guidebook. These books gave detailed information on how to purchase the tickets at each leg, the chaepest way to travel – but you run the risk of not being able to get a train for days if not weeks on the busier lines, a risk I couldn’t really run due to time constraints. Both books gave excellent recommendations for independent tour companies in many countries that can organise train tickets and one company they both mentioned was Real Russia– Based in Moscow with an office in London.

I requested a quote and was it was prepared for me in a few hours. 1^st class tickets (in a comparatively luxurious two berth compartment, including meals on the train) and the Russian visa invitation letter came to $3000AUD. For a 2^nd class 4 berth compartment the cost would be about half this. I opted for first class – the equivalent of 7 days travel on the trains without stinky cabin mates appealed at the time, but in hindsight I do regret that I missed out on this opportunity to share food, beers and interesting conversations with other travellers.

I had to organise the visas myself, but all this involved was filling out a few forms and sending my passport off to the embassy’s. My accommodation for the trip came to about $400 dollars (all in private rooms, twin share) so in the end I saved over $400AUD, travelled in style and got to stay in some really cool guesthouses, in some of the most amazing cities I’ve ever visited, for duration that I chose, not one decided for me. If I chose the 2^nd class cabins, I would have saved $2000AUD, more if I stayed in dorm accommodation along the way.

I’m not saying these sort of package tours are bad. Obviously these companies need to make a profit otherwise they’d be bankrupt. If you are short on time and don’t want to do all the research yourself then go for it. But if you’re a budget traveller with a desire to step into the unknown and figure it out yourself, then forget the tour, do the research and plan yourself one of the best trips you’ll ever take.

Hints and Tips

• The Trailblazers and Lonely Planet guides compliment each other. Fork out the dough and get both. The maps are better in Lonely Planet and the format is familiar, with good recommendations for accommodation and the history of the route, but the Trailblazers guide is full of interesting sights to see and practical information (like if you are a UK resident, bring along your triangle gas meter key, it fits exactly to the toilet lock so if you find yourself busting to go during the 8 hour border crossings you can sneakily let yourself in. Just be warned that it all goes onto the train tracks below…) the Seat61 website is a great source of information for all things rail.

• Bribe the Provanistas– they’re the cranky carriage attendants that make sure the water in the samovar is always full and piping hot. Bring them with a gift from your country and they get a lot nicer, I was even allowed to use the toilet while we were at the Russian border as long as I promised it was only a number 1, and they gave me some great Russian chocolates (which are amazing, so don’t bother bribing with chocolates -even the crappy no name stuff in Russia is better than most in Australia)

• Sure bring a book, but don’t bother with War and Peace, there’s too much to see, you probably wont get through half of it. Though make sure you are stocked up on 2 minute noodles – you can pick them up from the Babushka’s on the station platforms along the way – they sell everything including icy cold Russian beer, home made soups and pastries. Awesome.

You can read about my travels on the Trans Siberian here

]]> http://sanchezjalapeno.com/trans-siberian-on-the-cheap/feed/ 0 http://sanchezjalapeno.com/favourite-couple-of-days%e2%80%99-hangout-spot/ http://sanchezjalapeno.com/favourite-couple-of-days%e2%80%99-hangout-spot/#comments Mon, 24 Aug 2009 03:47:05 +0000 Shane http://sanchezjalapeno.com/?p=62 A city that surpasses every expectation. It doesn’t happen all that often. Sure, you would have travelled through some really impressive cities and had a great time, but how often can you say that you enjoyed every aspect of the place you’ve visited? The local inhabitants, public transport, funky bars, delicious restaurants, and the travellers you’ve met along the way. It’s not very often you can give the tick of approval to each and every one of these criteria which make for a fantastic city. Having said that, we’ve all been to at least one (and if you haven’t, turn off the computer, pack your bag, and head straight for the bus station. As long as your ticket doesn’t say Canberra, you should be ok)

To celebrate all those really cool places that we just stumbled into, every few weeks I’ll be asking some fellow travel writers what their absolute favourite city is from a different viewpoint.

This week I asked “What is your favourite ‘couple of days’ hangout spot?”

Paris

Photo by Milli Vukovic

When thinking of a place I would always love to pop over to and just hang out in, my thoughts easily turn to the eternal city of Paris, France.

While this beautiful city has many world famous sights and even more queuing tourists to view them, there is so much more to entice someone back again and again.

I love to discover another quirky little bookshop or funky boutique (window shopping only), and I will always attempt to master more of the scores of art galleries along leafy cobblestone streets.

Then I often end up just walking around slowly taking in the different architecture of the buildings and churches, or even stumbling on some extravagant gothic stonework found in shady cemeteries, interspersing this with stops for a coffee of course.

Be it summer walks in the immaculate parks or sitting in a warm café with a hot chocolate for winter there is always something I love to do here.

At some point in the trip I will endeavour to sit outside an eatery where the chairs are set up facing the street, and with a wine or a pastry in hand I will become a voyeur along with others  beside me, watching as the fashionable Parisians strut down the street while the afternoon sun warms us all.

Then the evenings pose quite the predicament – out to a glorious dinner and some theatre or find a tiny bar and listen to some jazz?

Being such an expensive city and me a poor backpacker it has never been somewhere I have been able to stay too long in, and not knowing the French language could never really see me get a good career here and call it home, but Paris is definitely a place I can return to and dream in for just a few days.

Milli Vukovic is a freelance photographer currently in Mexico, but is just as likely to be in Morocco this time next week. Backpacking around the world in search of the weird and wonderful, Milli is always on the look out for a the perfect shot, an amazing beach and the worlds best laksa. You can follow Milli on twitter or read her travel blog.

Casa Katy

My favourite hang out spot is perhaps not one you might expect of an article such as this one.

I know this is far too vague an introduction for an article on a website entitled ‘Sanchez Jalapeno – Spicy Travel’. I should really be documenting my exotic adventures in Spain, or describing in great detail the various blisses that come from lounging on a Thai beach whilst my colleagues back in Australia are grumbling about early starts and long hours at the office.

But the truth is that I have never been to Spain or Thailand. I did go to Italy whilst studying Italian in VCE, and loved Rome – in spite of the fact that my travel buddies (teachers included) left me stranded in a strange hotel because they were unaware that I was taking a nap. However, as I’ve only been to Italy once, I have come to the conclusion that it does not qualify as my ‘favourite place to hang out for a couple of days’.

How on Earth have I completed two paragraphs and one sentence without actually disclosing my favourite hang out joint? Would it be possible for me to captivate a travel audience for 300 words without this all-important piece of information?

I won’t deny that it would be a literary risk to embark on such a journey with my readers. And whilst I do like to take measured risks, as a budding publishable author, I have just enough fear and desire inside of me to let you know where my favourite travel spot is. I truly hope that my credibility within the fringe markets of writing is not lost as a result of my blatant audience-pleasing tactics!

I have 50-or-less words to inform you that my favourite place to hang out for a few days is at home. I recently bought my own house, you see, and I love nothing more than to fall asleep at night in solitude, knowing that I am at one with where I am at right at this moment.

It’s simple, and it’s me. One day I will explore Spain – I met a travelling busker from England who will be eventually settling in Spain with his wife. I have to meet their babies! They’re gonna make gorgeous babies. And a psychic once told me that England is where I will truly feel at home, although there are some definite holes in this theory. I am a complete wuss when it comes to the cold, and from all accounts, England seems to have one season, and it’s not summer, spring or autumn. Who am I to argue though? – psychics can tell the future, and this lady was a psychic. So she should know.

But for now…I’m setting up my life where I’m at. And where I’m at is enjoying my favourite hang out – home. Yep.

Sucre

Photo by Shane Brown

The judicial capital of Bolivia, isn’t La Paz, it’s Sucre. I didn’t know that before I arrived in the country, and from the moment I set foot in Sucre after 12 hours of dodgy buses I was enchanted by the place. All the buildings are white washed, the streets are clean, and the locals take pride in their town – They’re more than happy to recommend to you their favourite museums and art galleries (of which there are many) and the owner of a bar we were drinking at even gave me her bicentennial ‘collectors’ calendar, which catalogued for each month a significant piece of local history.

It’s a very affluent town, lots of cool clothing and department stores, and an abundance of funky cafes and bars, of which quite a  few have some Dutch influence (or owners); which means pomme frittes, European coffee and a good selection of imported beers. There’s heaps of Chinese restaurants which proves a good respite from the normal fare, and plenty of bars have wifi (at decent speeds too) which helps when you’re trying to update your blog and catch up with friends on Skype. One café even has a cinema upstairs showing the latest in Bolivian comedies (The white lama) as well as a few other alternative movies, like The Motorcycle Diaries.

This only scratches the surface of what Sucre has to offer, but as far as being just a place to hangout for a couple of days and recharge, you’d be hard pressed to beat here.