Let’s just say that the movie Monday that typically covers the week will only fit one of them in! Enjoy the first this week, and come back for Bethlehem next week!

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Is there more to this last pyramid than one might imagine? Only time can tell!

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I knew, before coming, that Azerbaijan might be tricky to travel in. I knew the language would be a challenge (hello Russian immersion experience!), I knew that the country hosts very few tourists, and I knew that their unfortunate border troubles with Armenia have discouraged many who might come.

But as with any new country, it has grown on me! There were absolutely some moments of discomfort, but thankfully, far more moments with friendly, welcoming locals, beautiful scenery, and a wonderful place to put my Russian practice to good use.

Enjoy this weeks movie Monday!

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Additionally, if you’ve spent any time on social media, you’ll know it’s equal parts frustrating, and doom scrolling, with only a hint of what most of us (most likely) joined to do: keep in touch with friends and family, and follow cute ——- (insert your preferred pet there) pages

During my last Movie Monday, my post was flagged and blocked for a song used. While I dispute the block (it was put together using my photos and music from iMovies, which states that personal use is allowed), the video is blocked.

Time to resurrect this blog, starting with my Movie Monday from yesterday. I must admit, I’ve missed writing here and there are lots of draft posts that one day, might see the light of the internet.

In the meantime, enjoy: Monasteries of Armenia.

I had always planned to do more with my movie Mondays, developing them into a bit of a ‘travel tool’ and explaining what was in them, so perhaps this is what I will attempt to do going forward.

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I’m not sure whether it was because I took in this ancient city less than 96 hours after coming down from my trip to Antarctica (I mean…what hope does Machu Picchu have when compared to Antarctica…?!), or because there is an enormous amount of hype around the city in the clouds…but whatever it was, it sort of fell flat for me. If you’re looking for something different to do in Peru (either after you’ve visited Machu Picchu, or seeking to do something else instead), check out this list below!

Visit the Sacred Valley

The Sacred Valley is located between Cusco and Ollantaytambo. It is ideally located on a day trip from Cusco. It features stunning scenery in the valley of the Andes, and ancient Inca villages. Some might refer to it as a ‘smaller Machu Picchu’, but due to being consistently downplayed by its more popular cousin, it is remarkably quiet, with an estimated half the number of visitors that Machu Picchu sees daily. Due to the spread-out nature of the area, and being somewhat difficult to access in a day, a tour is your best bet to do as a day trip. There are dozens of companies in Cusco that offer tours for between 25-50USD.

Engorgio yourself on street food in Lima

(Small Harry Potter référence there… 10 points to Gryffindor…) Lima has some of the most delicious and most varied cuisine in Peru. Whether you crave fresh ceviche, a fried pork sandwich, or something fancier (say, at a certain 3-starred Michelin restaurant…?), you can find it in Lima. And you can find it at very reasonable prices.

Try the chacaronnes fried pork sandwich at La Lucha in Lima

Rainbow Mountain

Do you dream about visiting rainbow mountain? Do yourself a favour and check out the ‘Alternative Rainbow Mountain’ tour that takes you to Palcoyo mountain. While you don’t get the full, head-on rainbow mountain experience of Vinicunca mountain, you also don’t have to deal with poorly-maintained paths, thousands of other tourists, and blatant lies of the advertisements. Everyone should know by now that every advertisement you see regarding rainbow mountain is extremely highly edited. The colours are saturated to laughable extremes, and with the mass tourism that has hit the area, it is not going to get easier to visit.

By checking out Palcoyo instead, you’ll have a beautiful side-view of rainbow mountain, with the muted, but still beautiful, colours. You’ll have a short hike (about 50 stone stairs and as much or little of the 1km hike you feel you want to do – you can see the mountain from the parking lot, which makes it ideal for those with limited ability, or those who struggle with the altitude, which is a real issue at 5400 meters. You’ll also contribute positively to the community. At nearly double the price of regular mountain tours, it can be a tough sell to the budget-conscious traveller. But by weeding out the super budget travellers, you’ll also have a much more quiet experience. My group of four travellers arrived at the mountain at 7am; and we had the place to ourselves until we left just after 9.

Ok, I admit, I made the sky a bit bluer in this photo…only because it was a pretty dreary day…but those colours are accurate

Visit Paracas – see the penguins!

Ever since Antarctica, I’ve decided to make it my next life-goal to see all 17 species of penguin. With that goal in mind, I set off to visit Paracas; sometimes known as the ‘poor mans galapagos’. On a short boat tour out to Balestras Island, which cost about 10$, you can hope to see Humboldt Penguins, sea lions, dolphins and of course, plenty of birds.

Explore the only desert oasis in Peru

Huacachina is relatively new on the tourist track, mostly because it’s only been really affordable to the everyday adventurer for the last five years or so. Previously, it took an expensive taxi ride, followed by an even more expensive luxury hotel stay, to see this incredible lagoon. Tourism has shot through the area in a big way through. Buses are coming through the town at a steady rate; and there is no shortage of activities to do, including sand boarding, and dune-riding. There are even a few nice hostels in town to help you save even more on your stay. Just in time for another round of pisco sours, right?

Ride The Rails

Of course. Trains are going to get a shoutout here. While train travel in Peru isn’t particularly fast, or cheap, it does take you to some of the farthest reaches in the county, and along some truly beautiful scenery. The Machu Picchu train goes from Cusco to Aguascalientes (or from Ollantaytambo in the rainy season) and it goes right through a stunning series of valleys and the Andes. It is a minimum of 90 minutes of total train bliss. Another great route to explore runs from Cusco to Puno, on lake Titicaca. The route is more valley than mountain, but prepare to see some stunning Peruvian countryside.

Explore the Amazon

Peru truly has it all. Deserts, lakes, coastline, mountains, and of course, in the north, it is connected to the Amazon River. Iquitos is the most obvious jumping off point, due to having a well-located airport in town. While the town itself is certainly worth a few days to check out, the main draw is to spend some time on the river. Many tours operators are located by plaza de armas and will help set you up with anything from a simple day tour, to a luxury cruise all the way into Brazil…for a cost ;).

Explore the highest altitude lake in the world

At an altitude of just under 4000 metres (12,500 feet), lake Titicaca has the honour of being the highest lake in the world.

From Puno, you can take a boat trip out to any number of reed-islands. While some are definitely catering to tourists, there are still some unique experiences to be had, especially if you have the time to spend a night or two on one of the farther reed islands.

Explore the second largest canyon in the world

Colca Canyon is nearly twice as long, and twice as deep, as the Grand Canyon. Most people come to explore from Arequipa. It can be done as a day trip, but it is a four hour drive, each direction, and involves a very early morning.

It is much better to spend the night in one of the small towns closer to the canyon. There are a number of hostel and guest houses available, and if you book with a tour company, this is usually included with the cost of the tour.

If you’re into trekking, the canyon provides endless trails, the shorter being a day or two, up to more than a week.

Even if you aren’t a trekker, the area is famous for bird watching, excellent (and accessible!) viewpoints of the canyon, and wonderful interactions with the locals who call the surrounding area home.

There you have it! Peru is much more than Machu Picchu, and, if you’re like me and found it somewhat….less than what you expected, consider checking out the rest of what amazing Peru has to offer!

The post 9 Things to do in Peru that aren’t Machu Picchu appeared first on The Musical Meanderess.

Australia

Melbourne

I spent two days in the city of Melbourne, where I was fortunate enough to get the very last ticket to Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (my 5th time seeing it…but the first in Australia!) and spent two days exploring the Great Ocean Road with a small group tour!

Sydney

The latter half of my time in Australia was quite fast. I had mostly two-night stays, which I’ve determined that I’d really prefer not to have, but I managed to cover a lot of ground and get many ideas for the next time im in Australia! My hostel bed in Sydney was the most expensive of the trip so far at 60$/night, but it had a view of the opera house, and was a 5 minute walk to The Rocks. I’d definitely stay there again.

I managed to see Mahler’s Klingarten Lied inside the opera house during my time in Sydney, and it was absolutely magical to be able to get into the building!

Cairns

Obviously, I couldn’t go to Australia and not see the Great Barrier Reef… I was both excited and nervous about seeing the reef. I really hoped that I’d see lots of fish, living coral, etc, but I knew from previous experiences, that it could be just about anything.

Thankfully, my experience was amazing. I did Scuba-doo in the Great Adventures reef platform, because I was very interested in getting to reef-level, but not quite up for the time and expense needed to get scuba-certified. It was incredible to ride among the fish and corals and definitely made me want to look into scuba diving experiences.

Airlie Beach

I took a day trip out to the Whitsunday islands with my one full day in Airlie Beach. I was able to see the famous lookout point, spend about 75 minutes on a silica-sand Whithaven Beach and snorkel in two different places (one including a visit with George, the massive but gentle Maori wrasse fish).

Brisbane

My last stop in Australia, my time in Brisbane was spent with my great-aunt. We enjoyed swapping travel stories, exploring the Southbank area of Brisbane, and sampling more delicious Australian wine. What a great end to my time in the country!

Argentina

Ushuaia

My arrival into Ushuaia came after a massive 36 hour day of travel. I arrived 20 hours after departing Brisbane, thanks to the dateline, but spent most of the first day in bed, recovering from some jet lag, and getting used to the unexpected chilly temperature of 2°C.

I’d arrived in Ushuaia early, as it was the departure point for the single most expensive purchase of this trip (and second most expensive purchase of my life, coming in only second to my mortgage…) my voyage to a Antarctica.

I did manage to take a day trip out to the Tierra del Fuego, and ride the train to the end of the world (a pretty major tourist trap…but… trains…)

I also explored the town and picked up some last minute additions to supplement my cold-weather gear, and an external hard drive for photo backup (I opted not to bring a laptop with me this trip, but I knew that the ship would have computers available and I planned to dump my SD cards at roughly the halfway point of the trip, in hopes that they will last me the rest of the time…in retrospect, the best 80$ I’ve spent for tech gear this trip…)

And then came Antarctica. Due to the immensity and amazing-ness of this trip, I’ve given it its own post, and due to the expense, I’ve also not included it in December’s budget and cost breakdown.

Budgeting

While spending most of my time this month in Australia, I came out a bit over budget for the month…oh wait…, in budget terms, this month was only 17 days long…ahaha…ahahah…whoops…). In total, I spent 1754.44$

Accomodation: 266.91$ – exclusively hostels

Long Distance Travel: 304.24$ – I took trains whenever possible between cities in Australia. I did have one flight from Sydney to Cairns. (That one turned out to be my cheapest transport of all my long distance travel this month, coming in at just 42$ for over 3000 kilometres of distance!)

Food (restaurant): 7.07$ – wow – this has got to be some sort of record! I ate out only one meal this month (at the food stalls in Sydney!) however, I know I enjoyed a few coffees, especially in and around Melbourne, so I’m going to bump that up to 15$

Food (grocery store): 66.35$ – mostly groceries this month, thanks to well-equipped hostel kitchens and easy transit between cities. Yay me!

Local Transport: (bus, metro, Uber) 27.68$ – another record low! This month I had great accommodations and I was able to walk nearly everywhere. Woohoo! The largest expense was a round trip ferry ride from Sydney Harbour to Manly beach. Definitely worthwhile!

Entertainment: 927.91$ – ouch… I’m not really surprised at this for this latest month. Between my great ocean road tour, seeing the cursed child, and two Great Barrier Reef tours…well, it was a busy two and a half weeks! Here’s to more careful entertainment choices next month !

Miscellaneous: (laundry, walking tour tips, visas, etc). 154.28$. Most of this was some necessary cold-weather and waterproof gear. I realized, while in Australia, that many stores were having ‘winter clearance’ sales. I had planned to purchase a pair of waterproof pants in Ushuaia (mandatory for zodiac cruising in Antarctica), and I needed a good pair of winter gloves as well. Thankfully, I was able to find both on sale for significantly less than if I had waited until Ushuaia.

Favourites

Favourite Meal: because I ate out so little in December, my favourite meal was my own early Christmas dinner. I was staying at a hostel in Ushuaia, the day before I was leaving for Antarctica. I went out and bought some groceries, including mystery meat (I suspect horse?), potatoes, veggies, and a delicious chocolate ball for dessert. I also opened up a bottle of bubbly that I had carted alllll through Australia with me. (I kept meaning to open it and just never had a chance hahah… no better time than Christmas!)

Favourite Tourist Experience:

In such an amazing month, it was really hard to choose a favourite. Seeing Cursed Child, a play I’ve now seen five times, was surreal. The difference in audiences and locations made it a different, yet very familiar, magical experience. I enjoyed the play sitting next to a young family seeing it for the first time, and I teared up a number of times throughout while listening to their excitement and engagement in the magical world. On the other hand, I’ve dreamed of seeing a performance at the Sydney Opera house since could first recognize the structure…it was completely magical and again, a tear-worthy experience. Finally, snorkelling, but more amazing, scuba-doo-ing thé Great Barrier Reef. Never having done anything other than snorkelling below the water before, I remember descending down about 5 meters and upon seeing my first burst of coral, and hundreds of fish, my immediate thought was “I need to learn how to scuba dive…this underwater world is so much more magical than it looks from the top of the water…” so suffice it to say that…it’s a three-way tie?

What I Read:

This month, I was really looking forward to my read. I’d actually bought TWO new e-books to bring to Antarctica with me, in addition to a book my great-aunt bought me for Christmas. I figured that I would have lots of downtime on the ship and couldn’t wait to curl up with several good books.

Let’s just say, it’s a good thing I arrived to Ushuaia with most of my December book done, as I didn’t read more than a sentence while on board (how could I skip out on a penguin or whale lecture??).

I read The Septembers of Shiraz by Dalia Sofer, an Iranian-American author. It follows two families in Iran starting in 1981, as they struggle, and ultimately succeed, in navigating the post-revolutionary Iran. Some parts were definitely difficult to read, as it follows the imprisonments of the main characters father, but overall, a unique story! It was really interesting to read the descriptions of life in Iran during a tumultuous time, and then shortly after finishing it, hearing the news of Trump’s attack and the ensuing global concerns. While I still hope to visit Iran this year, only time will tell if I’m able to do so!

And that concludes month five on the road!

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Places Visited

Cambodia

Phnom Penh

I am quite the excitable traveller. I am usually determined to see the great in every city, and as a result, most of the cities I visit, I love.

I didn’t really love Phnom Penh.

I arrived via a boat from Vietnam, (which was super cool and highly recommended – I did Vietfun’s tour here – great on a budget!) and explored a bit of the Mekong Delta.

Phnom Penh was just a bit too much ‘big city’ and everyone was trying to get a bit of the travellers budget. No matter where you were, someone would accost you to try and sell you something.

The Killing Fields were good to see; a solemn reminder of the recent genocide of the Cambodian people of their traditions and culture.

Killing Fields outside of Phnom Penh

Siem Reap

I travelled to Siem Reap mostly to take in the temples! Most famously, Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom, but many smaller temples as well.

Sunrise at the temples of Angkor Wat

I also took in a really amazing performance called Phare. The group takes in orphaned and children living on the street – many in their circumstances because of the genocide – and educates them, both in regular academics, but also in a performing art, usually a traditional one from their lost culture.

The students perform several times a week and all income from tickets goes to supporting their efforts. The ‘circus’ started in Battambang, but now has a Siem Reap school as well.

Myanmar

Myanmar was a bit of a question mark. There’s very little information available on how to travel within the country, and even less of it is accurate. Definitely going to put together some information for you if you’re planning to visit this amazing country!

Yangon

I started, and ended, my time in Myanmar in Yangon. When I arrived, I had only an evening and a few hours in town, so I went to my hostel and purchased some groceries for the train journey the next day.

At the end of my time in Myanmar, I spent three days in Yangon. I explored a number of pagodas and temples. I also got to see Frozen 2 on opening day! This was a great way to relax after two weeks of sometimes tricky travel, and it was a third of the cost of a first-run movie in Canada…

Taunggyi

From Yangon, I took the Slow Train To Thazi, as I’d read about so many years ago. This starts with an all-day train ride from Yangon to Thazi, spending the night in Thazi (take a horse-drawn taxi ride to the Moonlight Guesthouse), and then an early departure on the most incredible scenic train ride from Thazi to Schwenyang. From there, I took a group taxi to my hotel in Taunggyi.

I went to Taunggyi, this little tiny town at the top of a mountain, for their most famous festival; Tazundaing (better known as the Fire Balloon Festival). Occurring over the week leading up to the full moon of the 9th month of the Burmese calendar, the festival culminates in a weekend of massive paper balloons being set over the city. During the day time, balloons are shaped and coloured like animals. In the evening, massive amounts of fireworks are strapped to the balloons and, in theory, go off when the balloon is 300 feet above the crowds, or balloons will have hundreds of small tea lights surrounding the balloon or hanging down below.

Sounds like a health-and-safety hazard right? Just a bit.

Fireworks balloon at the Fire Balloon Festival, Taunggyi

That’s why this festival is unique to Myanmar. No where else in the world, that I’m familiar with, would allow this to happen over crowds of over 100,000 people. But that’s why it’s special .

Nyuangshwe

Nyuangshwe is a pretty little town just north of Inle Lake. The town is mostly set up as a cheaper, touristy jetting-off-point to explore the lake. The lake is definitely beautiful , and worth seeing. Just know that those famous fishermen photos you see? They actually don’t fish like that, and the poses are exclusively for tourists, and they do expect a small tip for their acrobatics. Consider it your contribution to their livelihood, as the tip money enables them to provide a far better life for their family, for much shorter work days.

Inle Lake fishermen at sunset

Mandalay

I had a very short time in Mandalay, mostly because of my desire to travel from Mandalay to Bagan via boat along the Irrawaddy River (otherwise known as the Road to Mandalay, as written about by Rudyard Kipling).

I did manage to check out a traditional puppet and fine arts performance – Mandalay is often referred to as the birthplace of this form of puppetry, and several of the most impressive pagodas and temples.

Temple Explorations in Mandalay

Bagan

I spent three days in Bagan – two staying in New Bagan and one evening in Old Bagan. I spent my time in the area by renting a scooter and literally getting lost on the backroads and trails and, at times, pure fields, travelling between the pagodas of Bagan.

I’d never ridden, much less driven, a scooter before. But it was the only foreseeable way to travel through the backtrails of Bagan the way I had been dreaming about for the last five years.

Exploring the temples in Bagan, Myanmar

It was easier than I thought, and while I was probably one of the slowest and most cautious of the scooter-ers, I also manage to stay accident free, despite a few close-calls while trying to get through soft sand trails.

Here is where, for only the second time in my travel-life, google maps failed me. If you plan to scoot through the backroads and don’t want to be *completely* without a map, download maps.me to work offline. It shows infinitely more of the tiny dirt paths you will inevitably find yourself on.

Australia

Approximately six years after telling my friend ‘I think I’ll be coming to Australia soon!’, and promising a relative to come and visit her, I finally made it to the Land Down Under.

Perth

I flew into Perth so I could do two things. 1) I had to go visit Rottnest Island, the only place in the world where you can see the Quokka’s – meant to be the friendliest animal in the world. Secondly, I’d wanted to take the Indian Pacific train across Australia; and had decided to take it from Perth to Adelaide. It was definitely an expensive ride, but it was absolutely incredible to see the vastness of the outback!

You don’t want to know how many selfies I took to get one with a Quokka looking at the camera happily…

Adelaide

I divided my time in Adelaide between Glenelg and Adelaide itself. I was in Adelaide to see a friend I’d met several years ago while traveling in Sweden. I’m pretty sure we both thought I’d be in Australia shorter than six years from that point, but we wasted no time in exploring the beautiful surrounding areas of Adelaide, and as many wineries and vineyards as we could. What a fantastic week!

Looking out the beautiful McLaren Vale wine area

Budgeting

This month started off wonderfully, with inexpensive Cambodia and Myanmar. And then I went to Australia and turned that around a bit (). Despite being in Australia for a third of the month, it was still under budget, coming in at $1255.47 (note that this does not include the full cost of train trip from Perth to Adelaide. Because I booked this particular train nearly a year ago, this cost went into the pre-trip budget allotment and costs. For those interested, the most inexpensive cabins on the Indian Pacific start at 1100 AUD. Sadly in 2016, the company that runs the trains opted to permanently get rid of the red class, effectively making this extremely difficult for backpackers and casual train enthusiasts to afford, and turning it into a luxury train experience. While it was amazing and I would highly recommend it, I really hope a more budget-friendly seat choice comes back, because I’d really love to take their other train journeys as well!)

Accomodation: 461.02- mostly hostels

Long Distance Travel: 83.93$ – train travel in Myanmar is amazingly inexpensive.

Food (restaurant): 216.41$ – a little higher than usual…darn you Australia…

Food (grocery store): 64.28$. The lack of guest kitchens is definitely a bit of an issue for this in the counties I visited.

Local Transport: (bus, metro, Uber) 88.80$. Half of this is due to an expensive taxi ride between Taunggyi and Nyuangshwe. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get the public bus to work for me and my hotel in Taunggyi was out of town. It was an expensive transfer!

Entertainment: 151.20$. Considering that 75$ of this was the Angkor Wat pass, my entertainment budget was low this month.

Miscellaneous: (laundry, cell service, walking tour tips, visas etc): 99.26$. This included a Myanmar SIM card as well.

Favourites

Favourite Meal: I’ve got to go with my first time trying kangaroo in Australia. It was the perfect setting, with a beautiful vineyard, perfectly crisp sparkling wine, and delicious food…check it out at the Red Poles Vineyard in McLaren Vale if you’re in the area…

Kangaroo steak at the Red Poles Winery, Australia

Favourite Tourist Experience:

It seems like there were so many this month… but I think my favourite experience was renting my scooter and exploring Bagan. Getting totally lost amongst 1000+ year old temples, turning a corner and finding yourself alone with all of that history, watching the sun set amongst a field of temples as far as the eye could see…and doing all this without any barriers or typical tourist regulations…it was such an incredible experience!

My electric scooter for zipping along the Bagan temples

What I Read:

Magic Bus: on the hippie trail from Istanbul to India by Rory Maclean was an unexpected but really enjoyable read. He returns to the ‘Hippie Trail’ that ran overland through Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and Nepal, obtaining interviews with westerns still living where they found their enlightenment in the ’60s, and with locals who saw it happen. The book is full of short stories from every angle, and is both funny, and wistful in its memories of the time period.

And that concludes month five on the road!

The post Month Five – Recap appeared first on The Musical Meanderess.

Places Visited

Egypt

Egypt straddled the months of September and October, so for the first part of this country’s adventures, check out the month three recap here.

Aswan

Aswan got the least amount of time in Egypt. I was there only two days. The Nubian museum is excellent, and the Philae Temple light show was one of my favourites of the four or so I was able to see. Most people who get as far south as Aswan come here to do a day trip to Abu Simbel, but as I would be getting there separately, being in Aswan was a nice place to relax for a few days.

Abu Simbel / Lake Nasser Cruise

While many people come to Egypt with the hope and plan of doing a Nile River cruise, it was recommended to me by my aunt and uncle, who had spent considerable time in Egypt, that a Lake Nasser cruise was infinitely more interesting. Not having done the cruise on the Nile, I have nothing to compare it to, but it was absolutely wonderful.

Lake Nasser was originally a thin strip of Nile, just like the rest of the river. Each year, the Nile would flood. The people depended on this flooding, but some years, it wouldn’t come and drought would plague the country. With the creation of Lake Nasser, the Nile no longer floods; and Egyptians are no longer dependent on this flooding.

The problem was that many temples were built along the Nile; and with the creation of the lake, these temples would be lost. For this reason, a massive undertaking was started to move hundreds of temples that lined the Nile, some as far as hundreds of kilometres from their original position. The most famous of these is Abu Simbel, and its story is definitely one to check out.

Jordan

Wadi Rum

One of the adventures of this part of the trip was the overnight excursion into the desert of Jordan. While it can be done as a day trip, spending the night allows you to see a wonderful sunset and sunrise, and to spend the night in a Bedouin tent.

I don’t even camp in Canada, where I know what can and can’t kill me. It’s another thing completely to camp in Jordan; in the desert.

Thankfully, the camp was cosy and secure, and while it wasn’t something I’d hurry back and do again, it was a great experience.

Petra

One of the seven new wonders of the world, Petra should definitely be visited. I spent two days touring the incredible ancient city of Petra, including a visit to Petra at night (a rather expensive tourist activity…though the experience of walking through the ancient river basin to the Treasury is definitely magical).

For the best experience, you need to get there as early as possible. The gate opens at 6am and if you can make it there, you’ll be rewarded by being one of only a few people on the paths and you’ll arrive at the Treasury and have the place almost to yourself.

Most hotels will offer a breakfast box so you can eat on the go, or eat in the shadow of the treasury while you watch the sunlight slowly brighten the massive walls.

Dead Sea

I spent two days at the Dead Sea and it was absolutely incredible. Two days full of mud masks, body masks, floating in the sea, and enjoying the various pools at my hotel. It was perfectly relaxing and an amazing experience. You really do float standing up!

Jerash

With just one day to explore the ruins of Jerash, it’s easy to do. The early you get there, the better. If you arrive at the opening (8am), you’ll be rewarded with no crowds, very few tours offering various things to buy, and will have great light for your photos. As you leave a few hours later, you’ll find the entrance packed with tourists – much less enjoyable!

Madaba/Amman

On a quick day trip to get to my flight in the evening, I visited the famous Mosaic Churches of Madaba (the most famous being St Georges, which has a mosaic of a map of the Middle East), and then the Amman Citadel. I also managed here to find my favourite meal of the month…see below…

Bahrain

I visit Bahrain on a brief layover. I took a tour with Bahrain City Tours which took me through the massive Al-Fateh grand mosque (which was the first mosque I’ve ever had a tour through, which considerably improved my knowledge of what I was seeing. Everyone who visits the mosque receives the tour, and the guides are incredibly open and informative, and very good about answering questions), the Bahrain Fortress, the Bahrain National Museum, and the Muharraq Souq.

The massive Al-Fateh Mosque in Bahrain

Kuala Lampur

Another layover city stop, I had 22 hours in Kuala Lampur. Unfortunately, it torrentially rained while I was here, and I spent most of the day relaxing indoors. Eventually I braved the rain and managed to make it to the night market, and to the Petronas Towers.

Vietnam

My first foray into South East Asia!

Hanoi

Hanoi was an intense introduction to Vietnam, but it was worth it because after my time there, I felt very comfortable getting myself around the traffic of the rest of Vietnam, and even into the rest of my time in Asia.

I spent three days visiting temples, wandering through the night market, and eating street food.

Time well spent!

Street food in Hanoi. All the street food…

HaLong Bay

After my time in Hanoi, I had a three-day, two-night trip out to Halong Bay. I booked the long trip because it got out to Lanha and Batulong Bay, both quieter and cleaner versions of the overly-touristy Halong Bay.

Lanha Bay, Vietnam

While the bay was certainly beautiful, I’m not sure it quite deserves the hype around it. I feel like a day or two would have been plenty to have experienced it, and tours were likely to be cheaper if bought in Hanoi, or on Cat Ba Island. That being said, probably worth it to see once.

Hue

I took the overnight train from Hanoi to Hue, with the sole reason being to check out the somewhat (in)famous Abandoned Waterpark (Thuy Tien Lake). It takes about twenty minutes to reach it from Hue. If you go through the main entrance, you’ll have to bribe the guard 20,000VD to get in, or you can go through a fence around the back, but your cab driver is unlikely to be willing to take you there, and it’s a much farther walk to the dragon, the main sight of the park.

The dragon – the famous entrance to the now-abandoned waterpark

After getting through the entrance, you have to walk about 15 minutes through the forest before emerging in the main entrance of the park.

Tourism is being found here, and while you won’t see crowds, you’ll probably not be the only one there, and there are a few sellers offering water and beer, for rather steep prices.

While tourists do climb up the dragon to get to the viewpoint, it’s unlikely to be permitted much longer, due to recent accidents, and the lack of maintenance being done (this is very much an abandoned waterpark, and technically, people are not allowed to be there. Use your best judgment to what should and should not be done…)

Danang

I did a quick stop of two nights in Danang to see the Golden Hands Bridge (within the Sun Hills Amusement Park), and the Dragon Bridge that shoots fire and water on Saturday and Sunday evenings at 21:00. The show only lasts about 6 minutes and doesn’t repeat, so make sure you’ve got a good spot to watch from.

The Golden Bridge became ‘Instagram famous’ when it was first built. It’s actually inside an amusement park, so prepare for an expensive entrance ticket and lots of other tourists.

Hoi An

I was in Hoi An for the end of a beautiful Lantern Festival. I thoroughly enjoyed wandering through the old town, drinking coffee, eating street food and watching endless paper lanterns float down the river.

A little street in the Ancient Town of Hoi An

Ho Chi Minh City / Saigon

Last (and least, coincidentally…) was my two days in Ho Chi Minh City. I liked this the least of all of my Vietnam adventures. It just felt like any other big city, and with the exception of the language, I could have been in any large city in the world. It seemed full of expats, and was definitely the most expensive city I was in during my time in the country.

Book Street in HCMC – a beautiful, shady street lined with book stores and coffee shops. A great place to poke around!

Budgeting

This month, thanks to the majority of the month being spent in Vietnam; home of the 3$ hostel and 1$ street food, was delightfully inexpensive. It was my least expensive month so far, having spent 1283.68$

Accomodation: 495.91$ – mostly hostels, though I saved accomodation in a few places with overnight flights and trains.

Long Distance Travel: 202.24$ – several overnight trains throughout Vietnam.

Food (restaurant): 100.63$ – an impressively small amount, considering I ate out just about every meal this month…

Food (grocery store): 49.50$ – I guess I had a few fridges here and there :p

Local Transport: (bus, metro, Uber) 38.15$ – a bit of Grab use in Vietnam, but mostly in Malaysia and Bahrain.

Entertainment: 282.33$ – darn you, Sunworld and my Bahrain City tour…plus some museums and temples, and the Jordan pass.

Miscellaneous: (laundry, walking tour tips, and VISAS etc) – 114.92 – visas were expensive this month, with Vietnam, Malaysia, and Jordan all requiring payment (Jordan’s was through the Jordan pass…)

Favourites

Favourite Meal: falafel in Amman, Jordan. Specifically, Al Quds Falafel on Rainbow Street. The small family-run business dishes up the cheapest, and best, meal in Amman, and doesn’t charge you for being a foreigner! Eat it nearby, because you’ll definitely want to go back for a second!

Al-Quds falafel

Favourite Tourist Experience:

It seems like there were so many this month…but I think I have to go with floating in the Dead Sea. It was a sensation unlike anything I’ve ever experienced; just totally relaxing and soothing. The floating, combined with the two days of bliss at my hotel there were a definite favourite this month.

What I Read:

Magic Bus: on the hippie trail from Istanbul to India by Rory Maclean was an unexpected but really enjoyable read. He returns to the ‘Hippie Trail’ that ran overland through Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and Nepal, obtaining interviews with westerns still living where they found their enlightenment in the ’60s, and with locals who saw it happen. The book is full of short stories from every angle, and is both funny, and wistful in its memories of the time period.

And that concludes month four on the road!

The post Month Four – recap appeared first on The Musical Meanderess.

I’ve done it. I’m always on the hunt for interesting food places, local places, and best of all, budget-friendly awesomeness.

I’m about to tell you about a place in Pristina that fits all of these, and perhaps best of all, nobody knows it exists.

Well, not nobody, because obviously, they’re still in business and the place filled up when I was there.

And I’m telling you all the secret…so please don’t ruin it…

But this place is worth traveling to Kosovo for.

Pristina was ok.

But renaissance made my trip. It made me want to go back to Pristina, only to eat here again.

The church of Mother Theresa

Ready to hear more? It fits all the hallmarks of an amazing place.

It’s hard to find

I had an address to go on. But nobody I asked had heard of it. The website leads only to a Facebook page, (which the owner is very responsive on.)

There’s no sign.

There’s no directions.

There’s nothing to tell you that this place is different from their neighbours.

It’s hidden. And it’s awesome.

You need to go down this desolate back alley that I probably wouldn’t have gone down, if it were dark, and I wasn’t absolutely intent on finding this gem.

You access the restaurant through a non-descript back alley garage door. You don’t even know it’s a restaurant until you push open the door and see the beautifully set tables and sparkling fairy lights.

The somewhat-hidden entrance to the restaurant

There is one seating

The restaurant opens at 18:00. If you have a reservation, you can show up anytime that’s convenient for you. Running late? No big seal. The table is only for you.

There is only room for about 18 dinners at the most. All the tables are outside under a canopy of trees and magic (ok…just trees ).

The restaurant space

There is no menu

Here’s what sold me on this place. (Well, among everything else I’ll mention…)

There is no menu. Like I told my tables when I was a server: ‘it’s all special’. Except here, it’s true ().

There’s no need to pick and choose, no need to worry about what’s fresh.

Every day, the chef picks an array of local I gradients to make whatever local dishes strike his fancy.

Every dish is a highlight of his country.

Every dish is made directly from what is available that day.

But I can’t afford to eat here!

Yes. You can. The entire meal, plus all the wine, rakija, and bottled water you can drink is served for only 15€ per person. It’s actually unlimited. I finished my meal, paid, and then continued to sit there, enjoying the atmosphere for over an hour. Every time I finished my wine and my water, they brought me more. Opened up a fresh bottle of water, brought over more wine.

Maybe a tad on the expensive side for Kosovo, but really. Where else can you get a 5-course meal of unique, local dishes, for that price?

Each dish is presented perfectly, and explained by the serving staff.

Need to know details

It’s a family-run business, and they take most of the month of August off for holidays. If you need to visit, best to do so in another month.

Make a reservation. The place was full, and there were no walk ins that I noticed. Be safe, not sorry, and reserve your table via their Facebook page messenger.

Their address is 35 Musine Kokalari in Pristina, Kosovo. As I mentioned, it’s down a back alley and there is only the address on the garage door. It doesn’t look like a restaurant; but there is absolutely magic behind that simple door!

I’ve had some truly spectacular dining experiences. I actively seek them out. But this is one that I will absolutely be repeating.

The post Renaissance: Pristina’s Best-Kept Secret appeared first on The Musical Meanderess.

Places Visited

Bosnia Herzegovina

Mostar:

I’ve been trying to get to Mostar for about five years. I first heard about it when I stumbled upon this beautiful photo of the old bridge. It’s now quite well-know, and for good reason. It’s really beautiful!

I stayed in this amazing guesthouse called Goa Guesthouse. If you are fortunate enough to get the room with the balcony, you’ll have the best view in town of the old bridge.

Emir and his family own the guesthouse and want nothing more than to make sure you love Mostar like they do. They take great care in their guesthouse, offering a fresh breakfast for 6€, made almost entirely from what Emir grows in his organic garden.

I’d also did a short day trip out to Blagaj and Počitelj. Blagaj features a beautiful old monastery nestled into the mountains on a crystal clear blue lake. Počitelj has a well-preserved fortress located high in the mountains. It’s a quick 20 minute hike up and the views are absolutely worth it.

Croatia

Dubrovnik

I feel quite bad for Dubrovnik. It’s rare that I don’t really enjoy a city. I can find a positive in just about any travel situation. I was really excited about my Airbnb (it used to belong to a concert pianist and her old piano was in the apartment!).

But sadly, Dubrovnik just didn’t live up to the hype for several reasons.

1. It was massively tourist-ridden, with 3 cruise ships in each day I was in town. There were endless parades of people down the Main Street.

2. It’s very expensive. Considering how newly ‘touristy’ Croatia is, I was surprised to find prices on par with cities like Paris and London.

3. Probably due to the mass tourism, nobody seems to try too hard to impress. I tried to book a ‘troubadour walking tour’ that sounded amazing , and the guide never showed up. I tried booking it again for the following day and he emailed me shortly before the tour saying he would not be doing it due to (nonexistent) rain, and also being ill. The other walking tour I did was less than an hour. While short and sweet is great, most walking tours I’ve done are at least two, and you feel like you’ve gotten to know the city a bit. The tour seemed rushed; probably because the guide had other tours to do that same day. There was no personal connection made.

Make your own conclusions (and if you’re a game of thrones fan, you might enjoy it more than I did…), but I’d recommend a visit any other Croatian city before I’d suggest Dubrovnik.

(As mentioned below, I was fortunate enough to get a ticket to a symphonic performance in an ancient castle. That was extremely cool, but also exceedingly expensive – see number one above).

Saplunara, Mljet

The island of Mljet is home to just 400 permanent residents. In the summer tourist months, about 800 tourists will make their way to the island.

That still makes it one of the least touristy places I will be on this trip!

The reason I went to Saplunara is because it is home to one of the very few sandy beaches in Croatia. Most Croatian beaches are pebbly at best, and rocky at worst. The Limuni beach in the town of Saplunara is a crescent shaped beach protected by a natural marina, which means the water is super calm, shallow, and very warm. The beach is also surrounded by a forest, which means there is plenty of shade.

I spent two days at an Airbnb literally at the end of the road, just outside the town and 40 meters to the beach. It was paradise.

Split

Dubrovnik’s less touristy, (much better in my opinion…) little sister, Split is beautiful with Diocletian’s Palace occupying the majority of the old town, and featuring most of the places to see.

The promenade by the ocean is lovely at night with live music, restaurants, and great people watching.

Zadar

I went to Zadar for one reason. To see the Sea Organ. It did not disappoint and I can’t wait to arrange it into a song for my students back home.

Zadar is also home to an ancient Roman Forum and a beautiful old church with a light show in the evenings.

Plitvice Lakes

Originally, this was supposed to be a day trip how most people end up doing it; either from Split or Zadar.

The problem with that, is that the day starts and ends with a 90-120 minute drive to the lakes.

By staying in the town, or close to the lakes, you can arrive when the park opens, spend two hours of quiet alone time on the trails, go back to the hotel in the heat of the day, and return for the last two hours of quiet while all the day trippers are leaving.

100% worth staying close to the park.

Make sure to buy a two-day pass if you’ll use it, instead of two one-days; you’ll save significantly this way.

Slovenia

Ljubljana

This little town was a very pleasant surprise. A unique blend of old town/fortress and baroque-style of Vienna, it is full of great things to do and see, and is cheaper than some of its neighbouring countries.

Lake Bled

Another major bucket-list item I’ve been wanting to see for ages. Lake Bled is somewhat difficult to get to, but is well worth the effort.

Consider staying away from the town to get some peace and quiet and enjoy the idyllic nature of the lake.

I arrived just as the fall colours were starting to appear but I’m sure it would be even more gorgeous a few weeks or a month later (perhaps around the middle of October).

Germany

Munich for Oktoberfest!

I spent five days in Munich taking in the sights of the largest harvest festival in the world.

I booked my accomodation about 9-10 months in advance and while it was definitely over the ‘per-day’ budget, it wasn’t nearly as expensive as I thought it might be.

Oktoberfest itself is actually free to go into. You can go into the tents, meander through the midway and enjoy the parades totally free.

The beer costs between 11-13€ a litre and the meals start about 9€ and go up from there, getting increasingly more expensive the more ‘unique’ it is.

Egypt

Another huge bucket list item, I spent 12 days exploring Egypt from Cairo all the way down to Abu Simbel.

Giza:

Home to the pyramids and the great Sphinx. Is there really anything else to say about Giza? Make sure to visit Sakkara and Dashur, and the Egyptian museum in Cairo. The museum is supposed to be moving to its new building but it hasn’t happened yet. A number of items are packed and wrapped, ready to be moved.

Giza can be tricky to get around without a guide. The attractions are far apart and Cairo is messy to navigate. While some public transport exists, there are no routes and a rather confusing method of hailing the bus you need. Stick to Uber, or hire a guide for your time there.

Luxor

Probably most well-know for being the Valley of the Kings/Queens, it is also where the tomb of King Tutankhamen was discovered; the areas most recent discovery, and one of the only tombs (yet!) to be discovered fully intact, undisturbed by tomb-robbers.

A visit to the temple of Queen Hatshepsuit; the only female ruler in ancient Egypt, is well worth a stop.

There are two tombs with additional charges. King Tut’s and Nefatari’s tomb. King Tut’s has some reliefs and some colour on the walls, and his sarcophagus. All the other items discovered in his tomb are with the Cairo museum.

Queen Nefatari’s tomb is a very expensive 10-minute visit, at 1300 Egyptian pounds per person (~60€). It is absolutely worth it, as the paintings in the tomb are extremely well-preserved and it gives you an idea of what the original discoverers may have found. The colour is bright and glossy, seemingly to have been painted yesterday, instead of some 3000 years ago.

Budgeting

This month, surprisingly, despite the costs of Oktoberfest, I came out very slightly ahead in budget! Woohoo! 1544.39 was spent.

Accomodation: 910.63. Another fairly large budget for rooms, however, like London last month, half of that went towards my room at Oktoberfest. I guess that’s the price of being a 6 minute walk from the Theresienwiese grounds.

Long Distance Travel: 120.86. Several buses in Croatia, a few trains in Slovenia, and one long distance train that I booked a solid six months ago (but totally worth the commitment. I got the train ticket for a mere 35$, when the last minute price was 360$ – heck yes for being a planner!!)

Food (restaurant): 109.64. With Croatia being so expensive, and occupying a majority of the first part of the month, it was a bigger grocery-store month for sure.

Food (grocery store): 195.71 – hello bread, cheese, and water! (There may have been a cheap 4€ bottle of wine in there…)

Local Transport: (bus, metro, Uber) 11.85$

Entertainment: 186.20$

Miscellaneous: (laundry, walking tour tips, etc) 9.50$

Favourites

Favourite Meal: Kochary in Egypt. This street food is made in tiny little restaurants and street food stalls and is made for the average Egyptian. Comprised of a delicious mixture of lentils, pasta, vegetables, and a tomato-based spice paste sauce, and usually served in metal bowls for as little as 1$/serving, it’s the perfect start, or end to a busy day!

Favourite Tourist Experience: seeing the Dubrovnik Symphony Orchestra perform in the Rectors Palace. Despite my disappointment with Dubrovnik, this was an absolutely magical, musical evening

What I Read:

Daughter of the Gods by Stephanie Thornton is a book about Queen Hatshepsut, the only female ruler in Ancient Egypt. I actually got to see her temple in Luxor, and her mummy, on display in the mummy room at the Cairo Museum.

The fiction work imagines the daily life of the ruler, and keeps historical accuracy, helping to make sense of the various names and dynasties in Egypt.

While interesting, due to my travels in the area, it wasn’t so gripping that I would have to read it again .

And that concludes month three on the road!

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