TravelStream™ news feed for member jawad on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/jawad en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:50:25 -0400 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1070488800/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1070488800/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1070488800/tpod.html Wed, 16 Jul 2008 14:50:25 -0400 Journey to the Land of the Long White Cloud (and other antipodean adventures)

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Hermosa Beach, Los Angeles, California, United States

As we flew into Los Angeles International the views of the city were imposing, the shear size of it was simply overwhelming. Having seen greater London a few times from the air I am used to viewing vast metropolises but L.A. (with block after block of near identical buildings) seemed slightly unreal.Arrival and immigration in L.A. was swift and efficient, and once I had checked where to go for my onward flight to Chicago later on, I could relax and start to get used to being back on the northern hemisphere. Surprisingly, while standing in the sun it actually felt warmer to be in L.A. than Auckland (despite the fact that it is the start of winter here). Unfortunately I knew that this was not going to be the case when I arrive in Chicago.Not long after I arrived I met up with Tabea in terminal four (there are at least six terminals in L.A. International), who was also flying from Auckland but on a different flight. It was quite surreal meeting here, especially as the last time we met was on Tuesday evening on the other side of the world back in Auckland. Tabea (or should I say Tammy) was going to stay a few days at a place on the coast called Hermosa Beach, so I came along for the ride (free airport pick up if you are staying at the Surf City hostel there).Once in Hermosa Beach my previous thoughts about L.A. were put into perspective. This was a much nicer place to hang out than the downtown areas I had visited the last time I was here in 1996. While eating a very filling pita bread alternative to Subway on the beach, I noticed that there were a variety of birds milling around along with the die-hard surfers. Among them was a variety of Oystercatcher not too dissimilar from the Variable Oystercatchers of Opoutere Beach, but they were not as comical as the New Zealand variety.We got chatting to a local called Thomas who was fishing on the pier. He gave us advice about were to go and what there was to see and do in Hermosa. All the people we met here were very friendly and made me want to stay longer. The guys working at Pita Stop; the surfer dude; John who owned the retro scooter and skateboard shop (where you can also buy things made out of Duct Tape) and the playwright who invited us into the art gallery to watch his new weird and wonderful play. From the pier I had a perfect uninterrupted view of sun going down and sinking into the Pacific Ocean. I have seen so many sunsets in the last few months but they never cease to be awe inspiring and unique. When the sun did finally disappear I was soon reminded that although we were in California it was still winter, as the temperature dropped.By 10:40pm I was in a taxi heading off to the airport for my domestic flight to Chicago. It was not leaving until 11:50pm and domestic check-in can be as late as 30 minutes before take off. The electronic ticket self service kiosk was pretty swish, allowing you to visually select your seat. I wanted to stay awake for take off so that I could see L.A. by night, but I unintentionally dozed off for the first thirty minutes of the flight. Seeing the myriad of lights from anonymous cities along the way was quite stunning though.I really enjoyed my one day in Los Angeles, it just goes to show that every city has its nice parts worth visiting. You just have to know where to go.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1052091000/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1052091000/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1052091000/tpod.html Fri, 15 Jun 2007 04:59:07 -0400 Journey to the Land of the Long White Cloud (and other antipodean adventures)

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Moseley, Birmingham, England, United Kingdom

For those of you who wanted the recipes for my mother's Tikia and my sister's Banana Loaf I shall type them up here if I get a chance before I go.Just in case I don't get around to it and you want to have a go, keep in mind the following:Top Tip for Tikia: Don't boil the potatoes for too long and leave them to cool before peeling and mashing. Do not mash too much, otherwise the cakes will not hold their shape when frying.Top Tip for Banana Loaf: My sister uses Pecans instead of Walnuts; they taste much better in this recipe!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1159934400/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1159934400/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1159934400/tpod.html Sun, 24 Sep 2006 21:56:28 -0400 Journey to the Land of the Long White Cloud (and other antipodean adventures)

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Berlin, Germany

Describe lift
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1158291000/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1158291000/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1158291000/tpod.html Sun, 10 Sep 2006 19:26:26 -0400 Journey to the Land of the Long White Cloud (and other antipodean adventures)

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Paris, France

EurostarUni flashback (cables at GEC)
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1156392000/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1156392000/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1156392000/tpod.html Thu, 24 Aug 2006 13:02:12 -0400 Journey to the Land of the Long White Cloud (and other antipodean adventures)

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On the autobahn heading for Hamburg, Germany

Flight overPick up hitchhiker Dianagetting stopped by police"What are you hiding" in GermanBastian responding in English after waiting for my response that never came
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1152982800/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1152982800/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1152982800/tpod.html Sun, 06 Aug 2006 18:07:18 -0400 Journey to the Land of the Long White Cloud (and other antipodean adventures)

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Birmingham, West Midlands, United Kingdom

After over three years away I finally make it back to England. The reason? Have a look at the photo...
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Amsterdam, Netherlands

Meeting LisaGig in evening
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1155168000/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1155168000/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1155168000/tpod.html Thu, 03 Aug 2006 20:10:03 -0400 Journey to the Land of the Long White Cloud (and other antipodean adventures)

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Eindhoven, Netherlands

First Euro trip
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1154559600/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1154559600/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1154559600/tpod.html Thu, 03 Aug 2006 20:07:06 -0400 Journey to the Land of the Long White Cloud (and other antipodean adventures)

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Brighton, United Kingdom

National ExpressA23 accident, southbound traffic slowing down
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1150830600/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1150830600/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/jawad/aotearoa/1150830600/tpod.html Tue, 20 Jun 2006 09:49:46 -0400 Journey to the Land of the Long White Cloud (and other antipodean adventures)

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Bus station, Butterworth, Malaysia

The overnight train journey was comfortable enough, but I reckon the lower bunk is worth the extra baht - at least you get a window then and a wider bed. Unfortunately they were already bought up on my train as I only booked the day before.My 30 hour journey from the heat of Bangkok to the cool climate of the Cameron Highlands is almost complete. I've just bought a <i>Super VIP bus ticket which should pick me up in about twenty minutes. The bus station here at Butterworth is conveniently located right outside the train station, across the tracks and just past all the taxi drivers trying to pick up passengers for Penang. At RM28 my bus is a little pricey (and I reckon I probably paid RM5 more than the locals) but worth it for an airliner style a/c seat all the way to the top of the hills. It's a four and a half hour journey so I should get there before sunset.One of the first things I noticed when getting off the train was that the motorbike drivers were riding around with their jackets on back to front. I remember seeing this before when I was last here, but thought it was the trend everywhere in South East Asia. Having recently been to Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos it seems that this is just a Malaysian trait.
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