Have you ever moved on from a place only to discover that you still have an entire pocket full of change? Virtually no exchange houses, official or unofficial will take pocket change, no matter how much it may add up to. It is some sort of unspoken rule among the world’s money changers. A conspiracy to keep our pockets heavy and jingling.

It took us three countries to realize that pocket change might actually make for a great souvenir and not just a pain in the butt (no pun intended) to carry around. From that point forward we made it our mission to not only keep pocket change, but to keep an entire set of change from every country.

To make matters worse, or better depending on your opinion, we even started to collect old coins, buying soviet era tin circles off the streets of Eastern Europe’s capitals, coins that represented a currency now revalued, and even collectors coins for holidays in China. Oh yes, we sunk to a new low every city we went to, negotiating for more and more metal to add to our “light” backpacks. Literally, a new low, as the weight of each new set of coins added significantly to the weight on our backs.

Of course we didn’t carry it all around the world. Virtually every box or courier shipment that went home thanks to friends and family contained precious plastic baggies of coins.

And so they were scattered around the homes of friends and family when we returned and their temporary keepers were more than pleased to return the coinage as soon as humanly possible.

Fortunately we had a plan for the 100 pounds of coins (or so it felt).

A coffee table.

Yes, we were going to cover the top of a coffee table with these coins. For months after our return I hunted high and low (online shopping!) for the perfect coffee table to cover in coins. I did not find it and loosing patience with putting his drink on the floor, Danny implored me to just buy one.

Then the fun began. Coins are metal and if you remember Chemistry 101 in high school you know that metal reacts with other chemicals. Mainly oxygen. And so those coins we so carefully collected around the world? Well without oil deposits from human touch, they tarnished, darkened and in some cases changed color completely (why hello rust). And so Danny set upon cleaning them. After probably 20 hours of soaking, scrubbing, rinsing, scrubbing and drying the entire collection is virtually there. They’ve been “cataloged” or better yet organized and sorted, piled according to country and region and finally stacked in a 3″ binder.

And sometime in the next few days, those coins, which morphed from annoying pocket change to a precious souvenir of our travels will make their way onto a coffee table where they will live on to cherish one drink at a time.

Have you collected any one thing from your travels? What have you done with your collection?

These gondolas are nothing more than flat-bottomed row boats used for years in Venice. Originally used as the primary means of transportation, they have largely been replaced by more modern watercraft…usually with engines.  Nonetheless, these boats are very well suited for the Venetian Lagoon and are often found along the Grand Canal.

Once the single most important watercraft in Venice, the Gondolas now are seemingly only used by tourists.  People come from all over the world keep these boats from going extinct and their captains in business at the same time.  This picture here is nice because it shows Venice as a nice, peaceful city…those who make it out to Venice for carnival however know better!

IF YOU GO:  You’d better hurry up, check out one of the many Apartments in Venice for rent, and visit this place before it is too late.  The city is sinking and although modern engineering will probably keep it afloat for years to come, there will likely be some serious changes.  Trains come to Venice from all over Italy and Europe so there really is no excuse not to visit!

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Flickr user Dr. Savage via a creative commons license.

To see more of our favorite photos from around the world check out our travel photo page. Let us know your favorites and we’ll include them in our photo series.

Entering China from Kazakhstan is not a good idea.  This is what we did and rather than encountering the peaceful China in this picture we came across a minefield of civil unrest and division.  When we did finally encounter the China we all think about when we see pagodas and old movies we just needed to put our feet up and let someone else do the work for a few days.

And so when we found ourselves in Chengdu and some others at our hostel asked us if we wanted to join them for a day trip to the countryside we were more than willing to alter our travel schedule to make it happen.  We visited the town of Ping-Li where we first toured a small tea plantation, unfortunately none was ripe to be picked, and then went into town where we decided to take a ride in one of these nice boats for an hour.  The wonderful thing about this ride is that it comes complete with a all the tea you could want and there is nothing to do but relax, drink the tea, and enjoy each other’s company.

IF YOU GO:  Chengdu is a wonderful, modern city to base yourself in and we highly recommend Sim’s hostel there.  From Chengdu it is easy to book tours into places like Ping-Li and even Tibet.  Chengdu makes a great transportation hub for the area and, most importantly, is filled with some of the best food in all of China.

The ‘Christ the King’ statue or the Cristo Rei is situated in Lisbon, Portugal, and reigns over the city below.  This statue is situated in the central part of Portugal, where it stands tall overlooking the entire city of Lisbon.  The statue’s inauguration took place in 17 May, 1959 and since that day this statue has been standing tall in its place, spreading its hands towards the city of Lisbons. This statue is a very important piece of architecture for the people of Portugal and is also very famous around the globe. Every year, people from different parts of world come to see this statue and many people compare Cristo Rei in Lisbon to it’s ‘cousin’ in Rio de Janerio.

This picture though is rather remarkable.  First off, I have a bit of a sore spot for black and white photos but the overall composition with the clouds is absolutely outstanding.

IF YOU GO: If you do get a chance to go and see this beautiful structure, then you must take some time out to visit the coastal city of Almada. It is a beautiful place with a lot of rich history and if you were smart enough to staying in one of the many Apartments in Lisbon for rent then you’ll be able to get there on a really nice day trip.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Flickr user Uqbar is back via a creative commons license.

To see more of our favorite photos from around the world check out our travel photo page. Let us know your favorites and we’ll include them in our photo of the day series.

Sydney Opera House

The Sydney Opera House first opened its doors in 1973 and is a beautiful example of late modern architecture. It is situated near the Sydney harbor bridge, in Bennelong point at the Sydney Harbor, near plenty of Sydney accommodation.  The opera house is probably one of the most recognizable symbols of Australia to people abroad (after the kangaroo, of course) and is something of a national treasure to the people of Sydney and all Australians.

This really is a spectacular photo because it is so difficult to figure out exactly (pretty sure it’s the ceiling but it’s been a few years since I’ve been inside) what we’re looking at!  In this photo we see all the strange geometries and curves at work and these combine to create such a startling image.  When taking photos we always find ourselves trying to find a new way to see an old landmark and in this shot I think the photographer really nailed it…it’s just beautiful!

IF YOU GO: If you do get the chance to visit this amazing place then also take some time out to visit the Royal Botanic Gardens which are situated in the neighborhood of the Sydney Opera House.  The opera house itself is open for tours daily but wouldn’t be complete without a walk along the Sydney Harbor Bridge!  To access it all just ask for some help in reaching Circular Quay, it’s just a few minutes’ walk from there.

To see more of our favorite photos from around the world check out our travel photo page. Let us know your favorites and we’ll include them in our photo of the day series.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Flickr user Bruce Tuten via a creative commons license.

When I think of Spring Festival in China, images of red packets filled with money, heaps of food on the dinner table, and a seemingly endless barrage of fireworks comes to mind. But what does it all mean? Well, Spring Festival is the most important holiday for the Chinese culture, as it is their New Year celebration. Not only is it the longest holiday, but also the most expensive. It is estimated that during the 40 day period leading up to and following this holiday, 3.2 billion trips made by 300 million people will be made on the train network in China.

The official day this year is January 23^rd, and earlier than the last few years. The weeks leading up to the holiday, people begin buying tickets to go home, as well as gifts to return with. People cram together like sardines on trains, making terribly long journeys to villages still relatively unknown to the West. Families anxiously await the arrival of loved ones at the station, but you won’t see them greet with a hug or kiss. They either walk, or take small private vans to their homes, where a feast is waiting to happen.

Hours, if not days, are spent in agony bent over a fire cutting vegetables, slaughtering and cleaning meat. The younger family members clean the home from top to bottom to prevent the bad from last year from haunting good fortune happening in the new year. This opportunity will give them the chance to start fresh, and forgive all wrongdoing. When the feast is ready, the entire family gathers together and serves each other, the elderly eating before the young.

The men drink a clear alcohol called “bai jiu,” or “white wine,” which resembles more like moonshine than wine. In between glasses of bai jiu, the men smoke their favorite cigarettes and gulp food. The women take care of the children, making sure they’ve all eaten. Once the meal is finished, the women clean up and the men prepare the fireworks.

Red packets get passed out, and bubbling children shake them franticly in the hopes of determining how much money is inside. In the eyes of the Chinese, the more money you give, the closer you are to that person. It is not uncommon to receive huge sums of money, upwards of 500rmb (equivalent to $90 USD). To give you an idea, the average Chinese person only earns 1500rmb a month, and this is quite difficult to survive on.

Drunken men regress to children as they blow things up with fireworks, and then join the children in playing games. These activities last for several days. Bittersweet memories cleanly etched into the minds of the younger generations, they sadly pack their things and cram back onto trains to return home to the city and await the next holiday: Tomb Sweeping Day.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Flickr users scazon and tanakawho via a creative commons license.

Everyone takes photos of the Taj Mahal.  Once you arrive it is probably the very first thing to do.  As we entered the gate it seemed like all of Agra was right there with us trying to snap the exact same photo we were trying for.  So few images of the Taj however seem to really encompass the reflecting pool that sits beneath it.

For this photo we got a lot closer to the Taj Mahal and then took the picture with all the water we could include.  Most photos of the Taj Mahal focus on the Taj Mahal, and indeed with good reason….This one stands out for me though because of the reflection in the water and it stands as one of my favorites from the entire day.  What’s really remarkable is how peaceful this photo feels in comparison to the parking lot just a few hundred meters away. 

IF YOU GO:  We based ourselves in Delhi and made the Taj Mahal a day trip.  For us this worked great but we missed out on seeing the Agra Fort.  If you have more time, we’d recommend going and spending at least a night or two in Agra and then continuing onto Jaipur to complete the the triangle with Delhi.

To see more of our favorite photos from around the world check out our travel photo page. Let us know your favorites and we’ll include them in our photo of the day series.

Yes, that’s right, that penguin chick is only hours old.  We encountered this happy mom when we were touring Punto Tumbo in Argentina.  With a few others from our hostel we shared a car rental and drove to here to see the penguins as they hatched before continuing onto Puerto Madryn and Peninsula Valdez.

Our timing at Punto Tumbo could not have been better.  We saw nest filled with eggs, nests filled with broken shells who had just hatched, a few nests like this one and even a few where the eggs were rocking but the chick had yet to break through.  One of the people we shared the car with was an avid birdwatcher and he told us it can take some species all day long to hatch from their eggs.  With this little guy only a few hours old we kept a safe distance and didn’t linger for long.

IF YOU GO:  Peninsula Valdez is incredible but so is Punto Tumbo, a few short hours to the south.  There are several car rental agencies in town and if in a small group this works out loads cheaper than a full scale tour.  Base yourself in Puerto Madryn for exploring and plan to spend a night on the Peninsula as well.

To see more of our favorite photos from around the world check out our travel photo page. Let us know your favorites and we’ll include them in our photo of the day series.

Our visit to Argentina was a bit like the children’s tale about Goldilocks.  In the North we were a bit too late- the melting had begun and the rivers were swollen and in the South we were a little too early- the show hadn’t yet melted.  Somewhere in between things were just right.

We arrived in Argentina just as spring broke across the continent, or the period of time that the guidebooks refer to as “shoulder season”.  For Argentina, that meant that most of the cities and sites we visited were without the summer crowds, but it also meant that in the upper altitudes and to the far south, heavy snow still remained and trails, roads and even sites were still closed.  Patagonia to us, lived up to it’s stereotype- cold, windy and inhospitable.  To the far south, the nights in Ushuaia were frigid and the hiking trails through Tierra del Fuego National Park required waterproof snow boots.

On the other hand, in the north, the weather was a bit balmy still and the summer’s rains had increased the water level at Iguazu Falls so much that the river had reached historic flood stages and some of the walking paths and overlooks were closed.  We were probably a bit too late on the scene, but thankfully we avoided the summer mosquitoes and crowds.

Too early, and too late and yet ironically at the same time– just right.  The seasonal weather change had a tremendous impact on our month in Argentina, but in true Goldilocks fashion somethings we caught just right.  Like the penguins, who were still nesting on the beaches of Punto Tumbo and Puerto Madryn- the oceans not yet warm enough for their chicks to continue south.

The boats to Antarctica were just starting to leave Ushuaia, so the hotels and restaurants were open for the season.  And Bariloche still had plenty of chocolate!  The weather was perfect for biking through Argentina’s wine country and we were able to spend time at Perito Moreno without hordes of tour buses.

It’s hard to not have a good time in Argentina.  There’s no short supply of Alfajores, chocolate, good wine, and carne asada.  No matter where you are in the country the people are hospitable and there’s enough to do to keep you occupied for more than a month, no matter the season. So what can I say, it was the definition of shoulder season and for us, and things were just right.  Check out our guide to traveling in Argentina for more details!

For all the talk people make of London having a lot of security, it’s great eye is something of a disappointment.  The London Eye is Europe’s tallest Ferris wheel and it sits right on the banks of the River Thames.  At its height you’ll be sitting at (443ft) 135m above the river atop a diameter of (394ft) 120m.

Although the London Eye is no longer the world’s tallest Ferris wheel, as it once was, it is still the tallest one in all the world that is cantilevered.  (If you don’t know what ‘cantilevered’ means, take a close look at that photo….you might notice the photographer is under the supports and that there are no supports on the other side of the wheel.)   Since 2005 it has been the center of New Year’s Eve celebrations and will feature prominently in the upcoming 2012 Olympics.

IF YOU GO:  Don’t worry too much about the temperature on this ride, each of the 32 capsules is climate controlled and quite comfortable on the inside.  The biggest concern you should have about the London Eye is finding the a nice set of London flights to Heathrow or Gatwick to give it a shot.  If taking the underground to visit, you’ll want to get off at the Waterloo or Westminster stations.

To see more of our favorite photos from around the world check out our travel photo page. Let us know your favorites and we’ll include them in our photo of the day series.

Photo Credit: Courtesy of Flickr user Jim Bahn via a creative commons license.