Hi! just wanted to drop by and say just how much i enjoyed reading your post about making it to base camp of mt. everest... I want to travel as much as you do one day and your blog is really fascinating. Keep on being awesome!
Thanks, I think you’re probably the… 5th person to ever read it. I was re-reading it myself a little while ago for the first time since I wrote it and I found myself enjoying my own jokes, which is a bit like highfiving yourself. Anyone can travel like I have if you make it a priority in your life. At the moment, I only get to bring home about $200 per month after taxes and bills, but I’m working up to another trip, probably next year at this rate, to Iraq or Iran. I guess that’s the problem with traveling, it emboldens you a bit too much.
» Asked by rhyelee
I am the toilet king.
My precious.
These are some things I brought back from Nepal/Himalayas.
From left to right: A very old jade pendant, when held to the sun it looks like an eye. A moderately old jade mandala. It’s opaque green and pretty sturdy. The carvings aren’t as detailed, so I wear it around my neck most days. A thunderstone double dorje pendant. Thunderstone, or “sky iron”, is a very rare and mythic material. It’s a kind of iron alloy said to be from meteorites that have fallen in Tibet.
The last picture is a silver dorje phurba, a tri-bladed ceremonial dagger with a dragon’s head at the base. The blade represents fire from the dragon’s mouth. It’s used in archaic rituals to fight off evil spirits. This one is all silver and I traded it for another in Nepal that was much more special. The one I traded it for had a handle made from a solid piece of lapiz lazuli from Afghanistan. Lapiz, at one point, was more valuable than gold as it was valued so highly by Renaissance painters for its striking blue tones. It was ground into a powder and combined with oil to make blue paints.
God damn, I love Tokyo. When I first arrived in Tokyo, it seemed like Mordor. A vast, sprawling concrete slab completely devoid of non-human life. What I missed was in the details. There’s beauty and peace everywhere in this city. For a city of dozens of millions, the air is surprisingly clear and even though the population density can be up to 2 people per square meter, everyone is polite and they treat each other with dignity.
How do you get the opportunity to travel so much? And where do you get the money? I'd love to travel, but finances are an issue.
I took care of my debts at home and I travel for next to nothing. I constantly sacrifice comfort, safety, and alacrity for frugal traveling. I try to stay with friends or share rides. Many people host travelers because we have interesting stories and observations from around the world, so it’s not hard to find a place if you really look. Being outgoing and culturally observant also goes a long way when opening up new opportunities. Where would you like to go? I might have some tips for saving money.
» Asked by Anonymous
Good morning, Vladivostok. Sprinkled around the building were hypodermic needles and the misery of -40 degree weather.
A sneaky ninja picture I took in Bohemian Grove, California. That’s the giant owl statue on the right.
The mirror palace inside Amer Fort, India.
Shikoku Monks.
Statue from a buddhist temple in Japan.
I took this during Holi in Vrindavan, India.
The neon bark of the concrete jungle that is Tokyo.
In Calcutta, everything feels older than it really is.
One of the chillest places I’ve ever been. A town called Dahab on the Red Sea coast of Sinai, Egypt.
A Sufi Muslim dancer in Cairo, Egypt. They spin and spin and spin as a means to enter a trance and get closer to god.
