12/24/13 – 12/28/13: Routeburn / Caples Track, Glenorchy, New Zealand

When Katie and I decided to go on a RTW trip we had no idea where we’d be traveling. The options were limitless. How would we narrow it down? An easy way to start narrowing it down would be to immediately rule out places we’d visited before. For instance, New Zealand, where we’d experienced 9 weeks of nirvana back in 2011. It was, literally, the perfect vacation. Based on that perfection, it was hard to resist the opportunity to return…

01/02/14 – 01/21/14: Queenstown to Nelson, South Island, New Zealand

As you know, our trip to New Zealand in 2011 beguiled us to no end. We told anyone who'd listen about the country's welcoming people, adventurous spirit, and extraordinary beauty. You can't turn your head without seeing another sublime vista or mountain begging to be climbed! It truly is a remarkable place. (No, New Zealand isn't paying us to be ambassadors of their country, though they should!)

01/31/14 – 02/02/14: Kepler Track, Te Anau, New Zealand

Finding ourselves alone once more, without the distraction of parental guidance, Katie and I buckled down for a week’s worth of RTW trip planning. With year-long travel it’s impossible to map out everything ahead of time, you need to make room for research along the way. With this in mind, we rented an airbnb outside of Christchurch for a week-long sequestering, nothing but the internet and a fridge full of groceries to sustain us.

2/6/14 – 2/15/14: Wellington to Tongariro Northern Circuit, New Zealand

Hiking Kepler Track was a sweet conclusion to the South Island of New Zealand. I wish I could say the North Island gave us a warm welcome, but apparently we did something to piss it off. 

2/17/14: Hobbiton - Matamata, New Zealand

After principal photography for The Lord of the Rings trilogy ended in 2000, the sets were quickly dismantled, leaving the New Zealand countryside as the filmmakers had found it. Understandable, since you don't want travelers stumbling upon broken down, two-sided castle facades while traipsing through the mountains. What Kiwis didn't realize was that Peter Jackson's films would become the cornerstone of their tourist trade.

2/21/14 – 3/3/14: Cape Reinga / Kaitaia, New Zealand

Seashells crunched below our tour bus as it barreled down Ninety Mile Beach toward Cape Reinga, the northern tip of New Zealand. Katie and I were on a day-tour that consisted of sand dune sledding and lunch at Tapotupotu Bay, but it was the beach cruising that had lured us in. There something about speeding headlong down a sandy beach in a gigantic bus that felt…unique. Our juggernaut got us to Cape Reinga in record time.

3/3/14 – 3/8/14: Bethells Beach, New Zealand

Pretty much everyone who knows Katie and me knows that we love the show Xena: Warrior Princess. In fact, we met because of that show over 19 years ago. So when the opening narrator says “her courage will change the world” I can definitively say that it changed mine for the better.

3/13/14 – 3/19/14: Bali, Indonesia

After spending roughly four months in western worlds, traveling through Australia and New Zealand, we were suddenly thrust into much-needed culture shock when we landed in Bali, Indonesia.

3/19/14 – 3/22/14: Yogyakarta to Jakarta, Indonesia

Our flight from Bali to Yogyakarta (pronounced “jo-ja-cart-a”) was a spiritual one. We knew we’d soon be visiting the largest Hindu site in Indonesia, as well as the largest Buddhist temple in the entire world, but in the midst of contemplating these holy places we weren’t expecting the sudden contemplation on our own fragile mortality. Specifically, Katie’s very real fear of her bladder bursting.

3/27/14 – 3/31/14: Singapore

Singapore delighted us soon as we entered the airport and walked by a dazzling sculpture called “Kinetic Rain.” Hundreds of copper covered raindrops slid up and down invisible strings, floating through the air in magical waves.  We would’ve stood there for an hour if not for the fact that we had very little sleep and were very hungry.

3/31/14 – 4/11/14: Bangkok

Bangkok is overwhelming. Heat and humidity coat the city like a long wet tongue. It mingles with the smell of fried food, the din of traffic, the sticky sweat clinging to your clothes. History and modernism press together like two long legs squeezing into a tight pair of pants. They fit (just) but that doesn’t make them comfortable.

4/12/14 – 4/14/14: Chiang Mai

I didn’t know what Chiang Mai would be like, but I can tell you I never imagined walking its streets soaked from head to toe. But when you arrive during Songkran, Thailand’s New Year’s festival, it’s bound to happen, so it’s best to embrace the onslaught of water being thrown in your face.

4/14/14 – 4/20/14: Elephant Nature Park, Thailand

Did you know elephants roar like lions? Squeak like mice? That you should never stand directly in front of an elephant because that’s their blind spot? That when we say elephants never forget it’s not hyperbole? I never knew these things. I never knew I wanted to know these things. But now I do, thanks to Elephant Nature Park.  

4/22/14 – 4/28/14: Koh Phangan, Thailand

Ah, the island life. It’s a pleasant combination of relaxation and lack of motivation. When we arrived in Koh Phangan, Thailand, I hadn’t yet realized that’s exactly what we needed: a vacation pit-stop after six months of non-stop travel. Oh yes. Pity us poor and weary travelers. Such difficult lives we lead…

4/29/14 – 5/7/14: Siem Reap, Cambodia

Siem Reap feels like someone took a bite out of Bangkok and spat it into a jungle. It’s got the same frenzy with none of the structure. Tuk-tuk drivers line the streets hunting for fares outside rows of restaurants and souvenir shops filling city blocks. It was in one of these shops where we learned what sets the city apart: It’s modest. It doesn’t like to gloat. As demonstrated by this slogan we read on a t-shirt: “Cambodia – Probably the best temples in the world.” You see what I mean? Probably the best. Well, we were about to find out.

5/7/14 – 5/13/14: Phnom Penh, Cambodia

The Cambodia Landmine Museum was a disturbing eye-opener to the inherited trauma of war. The devastation imprinted upon the land by the Khmer Rouge, but also rained down by the bombing campaigns of the United States, left silent assassins below the earth’s surface. Undetonated mines and bombs still terrorize generations of Cambodians every day.

5/13/14 – 5/20/14: Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

When we arrived in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam it was nighttime. Our taxi drove us to a busy square and dropped us off on the opposite side of the road to our hostel. We spent the next ten minutes trying to cross the street like scared squirrels. Giant buses and tiny mopeds bared down on us with equal enthusiasm, not a crosswalk or stoplight in sight. We managed to scurry across during an extremely brief gap in traffic.

5/20/14 - 5/27/14: Hoi An, Vietnam

Of all the South East Asian cuisines I think Vietnamese food is my favorite. At least, it was while I was in Vietnam. It’s fresh and flavorful with unexpected spices and tangs that delight my palate. And there was no better way to explore those flavors than in Hoi An.

5/27/14 - 6/08/14: Hanoi, Vietnam

Cat Ba Island sits off the coast of Northern Vietnam and is a beloved destination for both international and domestic travelers. It supplies ocean views, beachfront fun, and picturesque rocky islets that weave their way through surrounding Ha Long Bay. We decided to take part in this traveler's paradise to enjoy a bit of nature, which we were sorely missing. But first, we had to get there...

06/08/14 - 6/11/14: Delhi, India

Our flight from Hanoi to Delhi was delayed for many hours. I spent that time snacking on free mini samosas and mentally preparing for India. By all accounts, India is a country of extremes. Everything we’d experienced in South East Asia was about to be amped up to 11. The heat. The poverty. The food and water safety. The culture shock. As one acquaintance put it, India will be the hardest trip of your life, and possibly the most rewarding. We were about to find out.

06/11/14 - 6/12/14: Bikaner, Rajasthan, India

The layout of a sleeper train car is very economical. During the day an area for six passengers has two benches facing one another with a padded backrest. Overhead there’s a rack to put your bags on. When night falls the backrest swings up to become a bed and the upper rack, which is also padded, becomes a third bed. And just like that you’ve got six “bunk beds” ready for a good night’s sleep.

06/13/14 - 6/14/14: Jaisalmer, Rajasthan, India

We’d expected hot, dusty, packed and uncomfortable for our train ride to Jaisalmer. It actually turned out to be an unexpectedly pleasant ride. Sure, it wasn't air conditioned, but with every window open we were able to stay decently cool because of the constant air flow. It was also far from packed, allowing us to spread out and move around. The trip went by quickly because we kept ourselves entertained with memory games, card games, and Aura did a few magic tricks for us.

06/15/14 - 6/16/14: Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India

Katie and I arrived in the lobby the next morning at 4:47am. The wobbly concept of time I’d witnessed in India meant I didn’t think twice about being two minutes late for our meet-up. Well, I was dead wrong! Aura gave everyone a talking-to about the importance of punctuality later that day and we made sure to be early to everything from that point forward.

06/16/14 - 6/20/14: Udaipur to Pushkar, Rajasthan, India

Udaipur is known as the “City of Lakes” which is why I noticed a touch of dampness to the normally desiccated air when we arrived. The numerous man-made lakes surrounding the city create a more mediterranean feel, which may be why Udaipur is also known as the most romantic city in India. Well, it’s either that or the gorgeous City Palace that graces the city’s skyline. Either way, I was definitely enjoying a new, refreshing feeling as Aura led us toward the palace lights.

06/20/14 - 6/21/14: Jaipur, Rajasthan, India

Jaipur is the capital city of Rajasthan, and when Aura pulled us into the heart of the city we found it flowing with the endless energy of all who inhabit it. We climbed to the top of a Hindu temple and watched the wheel of life whirling below us; a hectic rotary spanning our view hosting cars, buses, tuk-tuks, motorcycles, bicycles, push carts, camels, and the occasional elephant. It was organized chaos. Everything seemed to work in spite of the odds.

06/22/14 - 6/24/14: Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India

Agra is destination #1 for nearly every tourist in India. Not because the city is impressive or unique (on the contrary, it seemed much like everywhere else we’d visited), but because it is home to one of the most breathtaking structures in the world, the Taj Mahal. We were enthusiastic about finally witnessing this world wonder in person.

06/24/14 - 6/28/14: Varansi, Uttar Pradesh, India

It was 2am and people were strewn about the train platform sleeping in various positions. Delays had fouled up everyone’s itinerary and people were catnapping where they could. Our group hunkered down on a platform overpass, some lying against their luggage, others nodding off on one another. Aura paced and waited and made sure strangers left us alone. As usual, even at 2am, a series of Indian men had slowly gathered at the top of the stairs to observe us.

06/28/14 - 07/08/14: Dubai, United Arab Emirates

While flying over the United Arab Emirates I was mesmerized by its endless waves of sand. Not a hint of life appeared over miles upon miles of golden desert. Then, as if coming upon a picnic blanket laid upon an arid field, the city of Dubai appeared; a glittering oasis of steel and fantasy. We couldn’t have picked a more different place to visit after India.

It’s been nearly 10 years since the start of our Round-The-World trip. In many ways, taking so long to write about our journey has been a blessing. It’s kept it alive and well in our minds far longer than we could’ve hoped for. For this reason, I’m grateful for my procrastination.