6 Middle EastDaily NotesEgyptWhat I Had Today (Food)

Kushari @ Abou Tarek, Cairo, Egypt, February 14, 2019

Kushari Kushari or Koshari is one of the traditional Egyptian dishes, made of lentils, macaroni, and rice, accompanied by tomato sauce, vinegar, chickpeas, and fried onions. The two metal jars in the background contain spicy sauce and vinegar, which are optional, yet still critical in my opinion. The rumor has it that the food was first invented during the British occupation, and later evolved through Egyptian soldiers. For me, the dish offers a hard-to-fail combination: garlic, vinegar, spicy sauce, and the crispiness and sweet taste of...
6 Middle EastDaily NotesJordan

Last moment in Jordan @ Aqaba ferry terminal, jordan, February 11, 2019

Last moment in Jordan Finally the moment to leave Jordan has arrived. I’m taking an overnight ferry from Aqaba, Jordan to Nuweiba, Egypt. As usual, I overstayed in this country, by a couple of days. It was because I met some good people whom I wanted to know better, there was unexpected rain, and I liked the city Aqaba more than I had expected. Many regard Jordan as an attractive travel destination, because the infrastructure for tourism is well established, it is safe and the country...
6 Middle EastDaily NotesJordan

Dead Sea @ Dead Sea, Jordan, February 4, 2019

Dead Sea In the distance, the Dead Sea seemed barren. There is almost no vegetation around it, nor is a sandy beach. But the moment you go into the water, you become a child with a cool new toy. The floating experience is cool and literally effortless. And you keep drifting with the wind. It is known that the Dead Sea is the lowest point on Earth and its water has 342 grams of salt per 1000 grams of water, which is about 10 times as...
- TRAVEL DIARYCyprusMoments Together (Friends)

Florence and Sebastian (France and Chile) @ Larnaca, Cyprus, January 29, 2019

On one of my last days in Cyprus, I had to pleasure to be invited for a dinner with these experienced travelers from France and Chile. More than the attention-grabbing title, ‘cross cross-continental hitchhikers’, I was curious about their unique life stories such as what led you to start this, and what keeps you going. The ‘why are you doing this?’ question is one that I get asked almost every other day from people I meet, but I also ask the same question to other travelers with...
- LISTENING TO .OTHERSKorea

Listening to Jinyoung and Seona, an overlanding couple from Korea, December 2018

Until now, I have not met any other overlanders (people who travel overland, usually in motorized vehicles) from South Korea. While posting questions on one of the biggest overlanders’ forum online, PanAmerican Travelers’ Association, I ‘ran into’ Jinyoung there. Soon we figured that our itineraries across the Americas were very similar but not so much so that we could not actually coincide there. After several attempts of coordination, we could finally meet in one of the least expected places, Korea, when we were both having ‘breaks’...
- TRAVEL DIARYCyprusDaily Notes

Quiet nights @ Larnaca, Cyprus, January 28, 2019

Quiet nights One thing I learned in Cyprus is that it can get really quiet at night. For sure, it depends on the season and the place, but I think Cyprus in winter is usually very quiet at night. In this particular neighborhood where I am staying in Larnaca, there is almost nothingness in terms of sound in the streets. Every other day around midnight, I come outside to workout at the front patio. The only thing I can hear is the noise made by my...