A Cultural Walk In Bigodi, Uganda
Cultural Walk Bigodi Uganda. Sitting on the edge of the Kibale National Park, well-known for chimpanzee trekking, is the small village of Bigodi. Bigodi is a six-hour drive, west of Kampala, the bustling capital of Uganda. Bigodi is a village of rolling hills, thick green vegetation, and mud brick huts. While Bigodi might be an average village seen across Uganda, the village has created a sustainable and responsible tourism program, which provides a great experience for visitors while contributing money to the village. Visitors have the options of a community walk, swamp walk, and a local food experience. This endeavor employs locals as guides who welcome 4000 tourists a year. The funds from the project employs teachers, cooks, and support personal. The project has resulted in lower educational fees for parents, additional water wells, a mid-wife center avoiding a 40 km drive to the closest medical facility, and numerous other projects. Check out my tour and agenda with G Adventures. I was invited by G Adventures to attend this tour. And I will earn a fee [...]
Sascha Grabow … avoiding watermelons on the road
Sascha has traveled to 193 countries On today’s episode, I welcome Sascha Grabow to Counting Countries. I noted Sascha’s name on the top of the Nomad Mania’s best traveled for quite some time. We spent numerous months scheduling this conversation taking into account our travels as well as some time that Sascha spent in prison in the Solomon Islands. Before I introduce Sascha, I am reminding you that Counting Countries is now partnered with Patreon. Patreon is a platform that allows patrons, that’s you, to support creators, and that is me creating Counting Countries. I have been extremely fortunate to be be able to create this podcast and be able to meet so many interesting and compelling travelers, but I have also spent a tremendous amount of time and some money creating this podcast. So for example, some benefits are extended interviews. Some Patrons are able to listen to an exclusive additional 20 minute interview with last month’s guest, Petro. Or a five minute update from Lexie Alford who has traveled to 185 countries. She is [...]
What You Need To Know When Traveling To Luanda, Angola
Luanda Angola Travel Overview. Angola is the 7th largest country in Africa with 25 million souls located on the Atlantic Ocean. While Angola has been inhabited since Paleolithic times and was later colonized by the Portuguese, who appeared beginning in the 16th century. Angola gained its independence in 1975 from the Portuguese. A nearly 30-year, vicious civil war followed independence which engulfed the country in chaos. Angola is rich in resources, from diamonds to gold to oil. In fact, today Angola is rich with a GDP over $200 billion, making it the fourth largest economy in Africa. One thing Angola is not known for is tourism. Hypothesizing, Angola is a rich petro-state with also a high level of crime, still recovering from a violent civil war. It wasn’t worth the risk of welcoming a handful of tourists and potentially seeing them mugged or killed with a lot of negative western press. There is virtually no tourist infrastructure, is ranked as one of the most expensive countries, and very difficult to get a visa to visit the [...]
Planes, Trains, and Visas
In this ongoing post, I will document my travels in regard to the minutia of recording my flights, hotels, food, visas, lounges and other travel trivia. January 7 - Thailand Checking in at O'hare's international terminal with Korean Air. The first flight of the year was a long and uncomfortable ride from Chicago to Seoul. Sitting in the second to last row in economy, but was able to watch a couple of movies. My ticket to Seoul. At least it was an aisle. Thankfully, before this unpleasant flight I was able to get some free snacks before the flight at the Air France/KLM Lounge. What also made this an interesting flight was I brought my dog, Khan Mak from the states back to Bangkok. January 8 I made it to Seoul where I had a layover as I waited for my next flight to Bangkok. Around 60,000,000 passengers pass through this airport. And since I had a couple of hours to kill, I found my way to the Matina Lounge in Terminal 2, which was a much [...]
Petro Marais … and the slow boat to Laos
Petro has traveled to 63 countries Embed Code: On today’s episode, I welcome Petro Marais to Counting Countries. Petro and I have been internet friends for over a year, as we are both fellow moderators in the Facebook group of Every Passport Stamp. We communicate on a frequent basis, but this was the first opportunity I had to really learn more about her life. Petro is a child of both South Africa and Australia where she spent her formative years, partaking in roadtrips in both countries with her family. After high school she entered the Australian Navy, spending eight years in the service. After leaving the Navy her life of travel began in earnest. Petro shares with us her adventures in Somalia and Afghanistan, and the risks she took. She tells us why she loves Bhutan and considers it a special place. Petro talks about her frustration with Djibouti. I encourage you to subscribe wherever you listen, Apple Podcast, Google Play, Stitcher, or Spotify. Travel Buff wrote “Really love the concept of this podcast. Interesting to hear [...]
Visiting The Remote, Eastern Part Of Bhutan
Visiting East Bhutan. In the world of tourism, Bhutan is often an afterthought. Miniscule Bhutan located at the end of the Eastern Himalaya is squeezed between twin population bombs of China and India. Only 700,000 people call Bhutan home. Approximately 250,000 tourists made a visit to Bhutan in 2017, with 180,000 visiting from the region (mostly India) with another 71,000 international visitors. This ranks Bhutan at around 150th when it comes to tourist arrivals (France sees about 84 million tourists a year). Approximately 80% of visitors spend their time in the west, visiting the cultural highlights of Thimpu, Paro, and Punakha. What you need to know when you visit Bhutan. But what about the east of Bhutan, where only 20% of the visitors make their way? In the east, you will find the same mountainous beauty, warm people, and rich cultural history. But what you won’t see are the tourists. Well, literally only a handful. It was only at the hotel where I met some fellow travelers, but during the day, I was on my own. I [...]
