Last updated Jun 24, 2021 | First published on Aug 6, 2009 | Singapore
I could hardly believe what was happening in front of my travel weary, bloodshot eyes. One man was holding my passport and firing questions at me as fast as I could answer them. Meanwhile, his two assistants were reaching into every one of my pockets and piling the...
Last updated Oct 12, 2018 | First published on Jul 13, 2009 | Indonesia (Not Bali)
Getting off the Togean Islands was a little easier than getting to them. A speedboat took me to the dock where I caught an overnight ferry back to Gorontalo. Overnight boats, buses, and trains are the best because you save the money on that night’s accommodation...
Last updated Nov 29, 2018 | First published on Jul 6, 2009 | Indonesia (Not Bali)
Even with three years of practice, I still hate goodbyes. I fumble through them awkwardly, just glad to get them over with. That’s exactly what I did saying goodbye to Lina and her family before leaving Adonara. Luckily and unluckily, Bapa was already in the...
Last updated Oct 12, 2018 | First published on Dec 3, 2007 | Thailand
I could tell by the obnoxious smell that our ride was up. That was OK with me. The nightbus we were traveling on just wasn’t that comfortable anyway. It was full, the AC barely worked, and it was painfully slow. I amused myself by talking about tortured souls...
Last updated Nov 16, 2018 | First published on Oct 26, 2007 | China
About three hours into the bus ride, I knew it was going to be a long one. The bumpy-and-rutted road was winding through the mountains madly. We doubled back so many times that I was starting to think we had made no progress at all. The bus was fairly new, but...
