Richard and Miranda, Author at A bear and a pig

In Azerbaijan

What to eat in Azerbaijan – A quick and easy guide

January 28, 2019 No Comments

What To Eat In Azerbaijan By far the least visited of the three Caucasus nations, Azerbaijan stands at the crossroads of Europe and Asia. It’s cuisine takes strong influence from Turkey, Iran, Central Asia and its most recent conqueror, mother Russia. This leads to a diverse cuisine which both surprises and delights. Knowing what to eat in Azerbaijan makes decoding those complex menus much, much easier. Eating in Azerbaijan you will run into the language barrier at some point since English is not widely spoken outside of Baku. The majority of the dishes below can be found in almost any restaurant. So in the event you can’t communicate or read the menu this guide should help! Naturally we cannot cover everything that’s available in this fascinating country, but these were certainly some of our favourites. Feeling hungry? Here’s some of the best things to eat in Azerbaijan Breakfast Many guesthouses…

In Taiwan

What to do in Taipei – Your ultimate guide

January 27, 2019 No Comments

What to do in Taipei Welcome to one of Asia’s most dynamic and diverse capital cities. For many this is their point of entry into Taiwan, and it is certainly a fantastic place to start. The city centre itself is chock full of temples, historical buildings, museums and delicious food. However just an hour or so on the MTR or bus can have out in the middle of mountains feeling like you’re a million miles away from the 2.7 million people that call Taipei home. This wonderful mixture of city and nature is just one of the things that makes Taipei such an intoxicating place to visit. Getting there and away Most flights will land at Taipei’s Taoyuan airport which is about an hour or so from the city centre so plan accordingly. Do be aware that immigration can be a long wait if there are a lot of flights…

In China

Visting the Dazu Buddhist Caves from Chongqing

January 23, 2019 No Comments

Visiting the Dazu Buddhist Caves from Chongqing Why Dazu? Along with the Longmen Grottoes (龙门石窟) in Luoyang, the Yungang Grottoes (云冈石窟) in Datong and the Mogao Grottoes (莫高石窟) in Dunhuang the Dazu rock carvings (大足石刻) outside of Chongqing make up China’s four most prominent sites of buddhist art. Of the 4, Dazu is probably the least visited, in part due to the fact that Chongqing itself is quite isolated from other popular travel areas in China. Also it is a long journey from the city itself. The vast majority of visitors will take a private tour. However it is quite easy to take use a combination of public transport and taxis to visit the site for a fraction of the cost. The carvings are about 160km west of Chongqing, one of China’s most impressive metropolises. They surround the town of Dazu (大足) across 5 sites. The biggest and most popular…

In China

What to do in Zhangjiajie – A perfect 3 day guide

January 20, 2019 No Comments

Visiting Zhangjiajie Zhangjiajie may not mean much to many, but this is one of China’s most popular travel destinations. Located in northern Hunan province it is most famous for being the inspiration for the film Avatar (the whole site is sometimes erroneously referred to as the Avatar mountains). The park is huge and there are numerous different sites, trails and paths giving you the chance to experience the stunning scenery close up. However this is not like national parks in Australia, the US or New Zealand. You can’t just head off on your own adventure and explore freely. You have to stick to the concrete paths that wind their way throughout the park. The main reason for this is due to the parks size and the huge number of visitors it receives on a daily basis. The scenery more than makes up for this lack of freedom though. Welcome to…

In Japan

Is Japan expensive? Making your money go further

January 13, 2019 No Comments

Is Japan really that expensive? Japan has had a reputation as being expensive for a very long time, people paying hundreds of dollars for a piece of Kobe beef or a sliver of the finest bluefin tuna. Prices of hotels can be among some of the most expensive in the world. Public travel, whilst incredibly reliable can also make your eyes water. Well, some of this is true and some of it is a little more than a rumour that we have all perpetuated. Many people are put off traveling in Japan for a long period of time because they believe it’s so expensive. This isn’t always the case. We spent two months in Japan and it is comfortably cheaper than Australia, New Zealand, Western Europe and in some cases in is even cheaper than China! It sounds crazy, but here are a few really simple tips that could save…

In China

A journey along the Karakoram Highway

January 13, 2019 6 Comments

We spent two days along the Karakoram Highway (中巴友谊路) at the end of September 2018. Our guide Ali was fantastic and was able to give a fascinating insight into life in this part of Xinjiang. Check out our article on Xinjiang click for everything you need to know when planning a trip down the Karakoram Highway. You have two options for travelling in this region. Private or pubic transport. Unless you have a lot of time then public transport is not really an option. So that leaves private transport as the most realistic option. You can either hire a private driver or go as part of a package tour. Unless you want to be herded on and off a bus, hiring a private driver is probably the best option. Our article on Xinjiang has a plenty of useful information for booking a driver. Do remember that an English speaking guide/driver…

In China

What to do in Chongqing – China’s most unique city

January 9, 2019 No Comments

Welcome to Chongqing Often mistaken for being the worlds largest city, until 1997 Chongqing municipality was part Sichuan province. Since then it has been it’s own municipality, similar to Beijing, Shanghai and Tianjin. It is now one of China’s most important financial centre’s. With rumours of free trade zones in future, a skyline that could rival anywhere on earth, a diverse and powerful history and some of China’s most sumptuous cuisine, Chongqing is one of the middle kingdom’s most vibrant cities. In spite of all of this Chongqing is still unknown to the vast majority of visitors to China. Getting there and away Located in south western China, Chongqing is easily reached by train and plane from almost anywhere in China. Both the airport and main station, Chongqing north (重庆北站) are directly connected to the subway. However Chongqing station (重庆站) and Chongqing west (重庆西) are not connected to the subway and…

In Japan

Visiting Nikko from Tokyo

October 20, 2018 No Comments

Visiting the World Heritage Site of Nikko Nikko is located in Tochigi prefecture in central Japan and is an easy trip from Tokyo. A world heritage site filled with temples, stunning scenery and onsen’s, it’s an excellent example of Japans Edo past. There is a lot to do in the area however things are quite spread out. For example the temples of Nikko are located centrally, very close to Nikko Tobu train station. The vast majority of onsens are a further train ride away. Further way still are the areas around national park areas dominated by the gorgeous looking Lake Chuzenji. If you are travelling on a 2 day pass you are likely going to have to drop one of the above three options. Since we only had 2 days we decided to drop the Lake Chuzenji area and focus on the temples and onsens. Also do bear in mind…

In Japan

What to do in Tokyo

October 3, 2018 No Comments

Welcome to Tokyo What can you say about Tokyo? For many Tokyo is the highlight of any visit to Japan; food, history, museums, culture and plenty of quirky things you’ll only find in the land of the rising sun. There is a lot to see and do in Tokyo, certainly plenty more to see than what’s listed below. However one of the joys of Tokyo is simply walking around and exploring. We have an article on budgeting in Japan, giving you some really helpful tips on making your money go further and explaining why Japan isn’t as expensive as many people think! Getting there and away Tokyo is served by two huge airports; Narita and Haneda. Haneda is closer to the city centre and can be reached via a combination of toei, subway and JR lines. Narita is much, much further away. You have a choice of the skyline or…

In Uzbekistan

What to do in Tashkent – Your ultimate city guide

October 1, 2018 No Comments

What To Do In Tashkent – Your Ultimate City Guide Welcome to the largest city in Central Asia, as Tashkent begins to establish itself on the map check out our guide on some of the best things to do in Tashkent. Central Asia’s largest city doesn’t really get a lot of love from the travel community. In Soviet traditions wide tree-lined boulevards are flanked by grandiose buildings paying homage to science, politics and occasionally, the arts. Most travellers in Uzbekistan will find themselves in Tashkent, usually when entering or exiting the country. Consequently most don’t have much time to explore. However there is certainly enough to keep you occupied for a few days. We started out in Tashkent before heading off the the Aral Sea, Khiva, Bukhara and Samarkand with a short trip to Turkmenistan sandwiched in the middle. Getting Around Tashkent Tashkent is huge and public transport can be…

In Italy

Day trips from Florence

October 1, 2018 No Comments

3 Easy Day Trips From Florence Located amongst the rolling hills of Tuscany, Florence is probably one of Italy’s most popular and most beautiful cities. As well as having a huge amount to see itself, there are plenty of awesome day trips from Florence to take advantage of some of Tuscany’s beautiful towns. Lucca Getting there and away Lucca is a beautiful walled city located around an hour away by train. Trains run from Florence train station on a reasonably regular basis, but check the day before so you can plan more appropriately. Journeys take approximately an hour, but can be faster or slower depending on what type of train you get. Trains back to Florence are as regular as those heading out, roughly once an hour give or take. We visited in August, one of the busiest times of year and the trains were surprisingly quiet. What to do…

In Japan

What to do in Osaka, Nara and Himeji

September 10, 2018 No Comments

Exploring Kansai As Japan’s second largest city Osaka is an excellent place to base yourself and explore the surrounding area. Although Kansai is dominated by Kyoto there is still plenty to see and do around Osaka most notably Nara and Himeji. The big highlight being Nara. One of Japan’s ancient the city is most famous for is gorgeous temples and hordes of friendly, but very hungry deer. Below we have guides for Osaka, Nara and Himeji, covering transport, eating and sleeping as well as few awesome things to see and do. Nara and Himeji make excellent day trips from Osaka, and in truth a day is enough for each location. You can obviously stay longer and explore some of the more hidden gems, but most people don’t have that much time. We have a detailed guide on budgeting and saving money in Japan. This includes a section on JR passes…