So here’s my story, of how I had plans that were thought out plans but no longer can be plans because things, as they often do, change. When getting ready to visit Peru this last holiday season, my partner in crime Bouncy McTigger and I volunteered to get bumped off our flight. They were dangling a $500 flight voucher each, provide hotel accommodations and fly us first class the next day, the catch – our flight left from Newark, NJ and we were in Houston, TX plus the whole leave a day late which we were perfectly cool with because well $500 and first class is pretty cool.  Well we have been plotting and planning to go use these flight vouchers for Tokyo this holiday but then the prices went up and we got to thinking – I have the month of June off she has a house in Peru why not bounce and swing our happy furry butts back to Peru and see all the sights we missed out on? Well we hit a road block.

She has to work, she can’t get off so I am stuck with finding an alternative way to entertain myself for the month of June. Further, I have no responsibilities to tie me anywhere since I’m kind of couch surfing for the three months until I find out if my work grant gets renewed thus continuing my job and my free grad school plan. It seems my landlord isn’t too keen on the month to month thing and I’m not paying almost double what I do now which would prevent me from saving any kind of money. Sure I could work on perfecting my poo flinging but I’d rather work on the #1 of my New Years Resolution List – TRAVEL.

Here’s my plan I get on my motorcycle and go places, far away places but most likely still in the US seeing as Canada is well Canada and the border towns of Mexico are a wee bit dangerous and my bike isn’t out running anything. The catch is that it’s an old bike so I will likely be taking back roads since she tops off in the 70 mph range before she starts wheezing, I mean it’s a 1983 Kawasaki LTD 440 it’s older than me and it wasn’t even that bad to the bone of a bike when it was new.

My biggest dilemma is where the heck do I go? I’ve never been to any major cities on the east coast but I’ve never  spent time outside of Los Angeles when I was out west. I love Texas but only explored the Rio Grand Valley and I have a place in Puerto Rico I could visit if I can find a way to get my bike to the island, fishing boats anyone?

Seeing as this is a travel blog I’m up for suggestions, especially from people who are doing just that, motorcycling their way around the US like Brian from BikeAndBoots.com. I mean serious this guy has his gear and stuff planed out, he added freaking heated hand grips while I just added new spark plugs to get it working again after changing the oil pump and giving it a horn. Do you see the difference – I’m just making my bike run while he is adding comfort and style. If we worked at TGI Fridays he’d be the one with all the flare, while I’d be getting questioned by the manager about all the missing bananas.

I am perfectly comfortable with the idea of letting some of my readers help plan out my future endeavors, seeing as I change my plans and seem to go on a whim of an idea anyways. Where should I go, I figured I could use up my rent money to supplement my travel which means some serious budgeting I’m talking Natural light beer and Super Duper Extra Cheap Motel 8² or some couch surfing across the US, do they couch surf in the US?

So what do you think, besides I’m a little over crazy and under prepared.

My current checklist off the top of my head of things I need to do.

• Get my actual motorcycle license (only have my temps)
• Call AAA because I don’t want to pay for tows and things I can’t afford
• Find out what I’ll need and how I’ll store it on my bike with what I have or inexpensive purchases
• Make a test run where I ride my bike for 3+ hours to make sure she can handle what I’m planning
• Figure out where to go – then contact friends in cities along the way
• Create a realistic budget

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Don’t forget to fling this post to others if you like what you see!

Motorcycle Diaries-Tell Me Where I Should Go! is a post from: Monkey Brewster

Check out one of these related posts

• The Final Countdown – Part 3 of Moving Out and Riding On
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Really, I can't feel them gnaw on me and their bites don't make me itch or cause a bump. I found this out the hard way.

On my first research trip to Malaysia for Lonely Planet I did a bunch of pre-research, trolling the web for comments about hotels and hostels around the country. When it came time for me to book a cheap backpackers for myself in Kuala Lumpur I was hit with a terrible realization: nearly every place I looked at had bed bug complaints. Now at this point, as far as I thought I knew, I had never slept with a bed bug and I really, really didn't want to start, not ever in my whole life.

All parasites gross me out but bed bugs are the worst - I mean, is anything more disgusting than having bugs crawling over you all night sucking your blood? No, there isn't. A little mosquito buzzing in your ear, micro-bugs surreptitiously living on your scalp or even a quick working leech, they are all parasitic ladies and gentlemen compared with the invasive and crafty bed bug.

So I booked the only place I could find within my budget that didn't seem to have a bed bug problem. It was depressing, windowless, next to the bus station and a few notches below mediocre, but that all seemed OK as long as there were no bugs. I was so tired from traveling when I arrived that I went straight to my room to go to sleep. But wait . . . . what's that in the corner?

It was a tiny beetle-like bug and I was sure it was evil. This was a bed bug, maybe - or maybe not. I had seen computer terminals in the guesthouse lobby so decided I'd bring out the little beast and see if I could ID him online. I'd been traveling for about 30 hours at this point, was dehydrated, hungry and could hardly keep my eyes open but I tried my best to compare the little squirmy guy I had in a napkin with an online picture. He kind of looked like a bed bug and kind of didn't. So I brought him up to the front desk and asked the guy at the counter.

"No," the guy said. "Not a bed bug. We don't have bed bugs here."

OK, cool. So I went to bed.

Now you're probably waiting for the punchline here about how I got brutally mauled during the night, but that didn't happen. I slept peacefully then spent the next two years traveling back and forth to Southeast Asia without incident. During that time I saw dozens of people with severely bitten arms and legs - but I never got bitten, not once. I began to think I was charmed, miraculously getting all the bed bug-free rooms from riding on some groovy travel Zen.

But then it happened: I was on Tioman Island, once again in Malaysia, in a perfectly OK room on the beach. I'd been in the room two days already but the last morning I had to get up in the dark, early morning to catch a boat out. My alarm went off and I turned on the light next to my bed. Bed bugs were everywhere, crawling around the bed, trying to escape up the mosquito net and under my sheet. I almost threw up. I checked myself but I didn't have a single bite. I had slept soundly and hadn't been disturbed by them at all until now.

There was nothing I could do. I quickly wrote a note: "You have a severe bed bug problem in room #4!" and left it at the front desk then went and caught my boat. I felt violated and dirty. While on the boat I called my favorite author buddy Brandon in Borneo who icked and eeewed with me. He decided I just had some weird travel writer gene mutation that made me impervious to bed bug bites - this made me laugh and feel better. When I got home I burned my (luckily old and falling apart) backpack and all my (luckily old and falling apart) clothes.

Who knows how many times I've slept with bed bugs? I now have a permanent case of the creepy crawlies and an annoying habit of waking up at 3am just to turn the light on to make sure the bed is free of blood-suckers.

The new Lonely Planet Malaysia, Singapore & Brunei guide has a whole boxed text dedicated on how to avoid and/or deal with bed bugs - I seriously rallied for this addition. There is also some great info on the web including a very well-informed blog post from Health Conscious Travel that inspired me to write this story. Check it out. Even luxury hotels get bed bugs and it's better to follow protocol than to bring bugs home - the ultimate bug nightmare!

If you're still curious, here's a short video on the bed bug's horrific come back from the perspective of an etymologist and an exterminator cowboy:

Say hello to the weekend! Here are Three Travel Bites of the Week:

1. Yes, we love to travel but sometimes the world faces stiff competition from home. I found this great article in my local magazine by travel writer Laura Fraser that perfectly describes just how fiercely loyal San Franciscans are to their city even when they are traveling to someplace else on the other side of the globe. It was a unique perspective that I think can apply to all travelers no matter what town they explore because sometimes nothing can measure up to that special something that rests at home.

2. Not only do I love San Francisco, but I love California in general, which is why I am giving away a book! I just read Travel Temptations, Sun California by Lena Katz – a great guide book to off-the-beaten path experiences that will take you in all directions around the Golden state. You can read the review here, on my regular blog for Wanderlust & Lipstick, and all you have to do for your chance to win the book is subscribe to the blog by midnight on May 10th. I will randomly select the winner to be revealed on May 13th.

3. Vegas anyone? Gray Cargill from SoloFriendly.com just recently launched VegasSolo.com. Solely a resource site for lone travelers traveling to Sin City, you can plan your trip from hotels and restaurants to shows and shopping, Gray has put together an awesome site dedicated to a city that we all love to visit to unwind and she helps make the planning just as relaxing.

Confluence of Faith: Evenings at the bank by RaviShankar

Sosauce Photo: Upload your travel photos in hi-res; post to other sites; share and embed; edit, enhance, and show your artistry!

The week is coming to a close and I hope you’ve learned something about being “green” that you didn’t know before. As… Read the rest

Our good friends at Off Track Planet hit a huge mile stone and is publishing the first printed independent travel lifestyle magazine this summer. I’m vouching for them on this one. I’ve had a preview of the magazine and I must say I was quite impressed. We don’t really have anything else like this in the United States. You’d figured being in New York City that we’d have several of these types of magazines floating around (like Sydney does) but for some reason we don’t and I’m glad Off Track Planet were the ones to get it started.

If you’ve read their blog, then their first issue should come to no surprise on what their featuring for their first issue.

The magazine will feature a “Backpacker’s Travel Guide to NYC 2010” with hostel reviews including “where to get drunk, party, have sex and eat on a budget in NYC”. NYC’s local art, music, fashion, sub-cultures and volunteer/work/study/internship opportunities will also be covered.

The Off Track Planet magazine is set to be released on June 15th, 2010. It’ll be distributed throughout NYC, Washington D.C., Boston and Philadelphia so keep a look out for these.

Toledo was the former capital of  Spain where Christian, Jewsish and Moorish people co-existed together. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. From Madrid, Toledo was about a half an hour train ride away. It’s the perfect one day getaway on Renfe, Spain’s national transit system.

The beginning of my trip started out a little nauseating and the French babble that swirled around my head didn’t make it any better. The only advice I have is this: Dr. Scholls is a traveler’s best friend. As charming as those narrow cobblestone streets are, they are brutal on the feet.

Check out my previous post on Toledo: A Day Trip To Toledo

This Photo Friday is actually a video created by Chris Christensen of the Amateur Traveler. In our recent post “Starting a Career Break Movement”, we noted the lack of Americans using the term “career break” in a search. Sherry Ott wrote: “When you are ready to finally un-tether your bootie from your desk, or you’ve reached a [...] Related posts:

1. Photo Friday: Patagonia, Argentina
2. Photo Friday: Cartagena, Colombia
3. Photo Friday: Perhentian Islands, Malaysia

Leaving everything behind at Melbourne Airport on Saturday morning was both incredibly exciting and overwhelmingly scary. I went from deep sadness leaving my family at the airport; failing to keep it together as I left them and walking through the gates into customs, to joy as I boarded my plane to Singapore. What is it about getting on a plane to somewhere that just gets the adrenaline pumping.

This was going to be a 9 hour flight to Singapore Airport where I was to wait out 7 hours of transit time before continuing to Paris. Given the whole ash cloud problem that had threatened to cancel my flight and delay me days or even weeks the plane was packed.

Pleased I at least had a window seat to grab a photo or two of my travel I settled in and wasted away the time between watching movies on my tiny screen and being fed copious amounts of food. I’ll say this for Singapore Airlines, they sure do produce some awesome plane food.

Landing in Singapore I had two goals. Buy an adapter for my headphones as I forgot mine and I was going to die if I had to use those plane provided headphones again. The second goal was to seek out a power point to charge my electrical gadgets.

You would think finding a power point in an airport would be easy right… WRONG. The only points I could find were either way up the corridor to Gate A or halfway down to Gate B. Look for the feet massage chairs and you won’t be far from an outlet. There I sat for the majority of my delay, sitting on the floor of Terminal 3 wasting away my time on the free wifi that exists.

When boarding time came I was eager to get aboard the big Singapore Airlines A380 and hopefully catch some sleep. Sleep soon become less important once I sat in my seat and stared at the huge screen in front me. Twice the size of the measly one I had been watching on the last flight, I was going to be in movie heaven.

Some 12 hours later, a couple of movies, about 3 hours of drool inducing plane sleep and again more food I landed in Paris. Those gut wrenching feelings returned and I had a minor freak out walking towards the customs officials. What if they were to give me grief like Melbourne did when I didn’t have a valid ticket out of Paris? Well there was no problem as I hardly stopped walking as I handed over my passport and got it back in my hand almost instantly.

Breezing through the rest of the airport and finally working my way out to the trains and getting a ticket I was relaxing and beginning to enjoy where I was. I had found my feet, but only just. The entire first day was going to be an adventure and it started with a view like this…

Related posts:

1. One Ticket To Paris Please
2. My First Day In Paris
3. My First Overseas Trip Part 3

When people think of adventure travel they don't really think of Wildlife photography. But being a big fan of any type of photography I like to push my limits. Photographing wildlife is a challenge as anyone can tell you. From birds in your back yard to the Big 5 in Africa they all require different skills.