TRIPS/EXPEDITIONS

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GEAR REVIEWS

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Sunday, 26 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Sat 25. Mumbai.

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Mumbai by night is a good way to see things. It is easy to get around with the available public transport. This city is 24/7. A truly global...
Saturday, 25 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Fri 24. Goa.

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Goa done and dusted. Got to experience the beaches and Aguada Fort (Lower fort included). Met some nice local people and got to do some basi...
Friday, 24 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Thu 23. Hampi-overnight train.

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Hampi is the best place to finish off the southern India tour. https://gilianlee.blogspot.com/p/2025-jan-india-thu-23-hampi-overnight.html?m...
Thursday, 23 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Wed 22. Hampi.

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I had a ranting blog writing morning, as we wasted 4hrs in the hotel lobby for check-in. We had arrived too early. Instead of doing somethin...
Wednesday, 22 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Tue 21. Mysore-overnight train.

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*There is something graphic mentioned in today's blog. You have been so advised.* I had planned to visit the Zoo and also Karanji Lake. ...
Tuesday, 21 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Mon 20. Mysore.

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2025 Jan-India Mon 20. Mysore.  OMG! Someone nearly died today. I nearly got ridden off the road by a nazi tuk tuk driver!  The police were ...
Monday, 20 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Sun 19. Madurai-overnight train.

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A day of self-exploring. Sadly, there is not much more to see in Madurai. Sites visited today were: 1) Thirumalai Nayakkar Palace. 2) St. Ma...
Sunday, 19 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Sat 18. Madurai.

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A private shuttle transfer from Periyar to Madurai.  Madurai is not really a walking tourist-friendly city. It's just a normal Indian ci...
Saturday, 18 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Fri 17. Periyar.

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This was a partially disappointing day. The morning was disappointing but the evening was good. In the morning, we headed for the walk to th...
Friday, 17 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Thu 16. Periyar.

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A transit day from Kochi to Periyar (5hr).  As we left, we went up to the lush mountains. Here, there are a lot of rubber trees and tea plan...
Thursday, 16 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Wed 15. Kochi. 

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This morning, I joined the tour group to revisit the daytime  St Francis Church and the Chinese Fishing Nets (see it in 'action'). I...
Wednesday, 15 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Tue 14. Kochi. 

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We caught a 2-hour boat back to Alleppey, and from there, the local bus was 70km to Kochi. Kochi is a small city that can be easily walked. ...
Tuesday, 14 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Mon 13. Kerala Backwaters. 

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This morning, we caught the local train to Alleppey. We had a quick lunch and then onto a boat to our hotel on the backwaters. Midday was st...
Monday, 13 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Sun 12. Varkala.

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In the late morning, we walked over to the Shri Janardhana Swamy Temple. Most temples are small, relative to what I have been seeing (palace...
Sunday, 12 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Sat 11. Varkala.

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This southern Indian region is so much warmer than the northern region. It was a significant temperature change. The local temp is in the lo...
Saturday, 11 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Fri 10. Trivandrum.

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When you have to wake up at 3:30am for a 7am flight, you never end up having a good night's sleep.  I am still feeling very poor. It doe...
Thursday, 9 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Thu 9. Delhi.

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From 11:30pm to 3pm...long train ride and then to the hotel. My stomach is feeling better but not perfect. I am happy that I effectively saw...

2025 Jan-India Wed 8. Varanasi - Delhi.

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I'm starting to get sick again (shivers). Feeling weak and yawning all morning long. I have to be careful that I have not caught any sto...
Wednesday, 8 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Tue 7. Varanasi.

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This was a massive day of sightseeing. I have seen everything I wanted in Varanasi. Tired. I will take it easy for tomorrow before we do the...
Tuesday, 7 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Mon 6. Varanasi.

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As soon as we checked into the hotel, I was off to see the sites. Most sites are by the Ganges River (the ghat is a set of steps down to the...
Monday, 6 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Sun 5. Agra.

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This morning was not as foggy as yesterday.  The sites visited today were: 1) Akbar's Tomb.  2) Agra Fort.  What surprised me was that t...
Sunday, 5 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Sat 4. Agra.

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We left Abhaneri and headed towards Agra. I visited the Taj Mahal in the afternoon. It was disappointing with the fog lingering in the after...
Saturday, 4 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Fri 3. Abhaneri.

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This is a short transfer day from Jaipur to Abhaneri.  Abhaneri is primarily known for the amazing step well (Chand Baori stepwell). It is a...
Friday, 3 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Thu 2. Jaipur.

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2025 Jan-India Thu 2. Jaipur. It was a huge day of sightseeing. Very rewarding day, indeed. Uber motorcycles the fastest way to get around.....
Thursday, 2 January 2025

2025 Jan-India Wed 1. Jaipur.

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We got into Jaipur at midday. This gave me some time to do a couple of sites and see the city. Sites visited were: 1) The City Palace.  2) H...
Wednesday, 1 January 2025

2024 Dec-India Tue 31. Pushkar (Ajmer instead).

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2024 Dec-India Tue 31. Pushkar (Ajmer instead). A big day of independent travelling. Not many pictures were taken today (300), but a lot of ...
Tuesday, 31 December 2024

2024 Dec-India Mon 30. Pushkar.

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Another early morning train ride to the next city (Udaipur to Pushkar). We arrived midday. This meant a free afternoon to power through the ...
Monday, 30 December 2024

2024 Dec-India Sun 29. Udaipur.

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Over 800 photos! A busy day indeed. It was only a handful of places visited but so much to see and take pictures of. The places visited toda...
Sunday, 29 December 2024

2024 Dec-India Sat 28. Udaipur.

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A transit morning with a free afternoon of local exploration.  This city is very photogenic.  https://gilianlee.blogspot.com/p/2024-dec-ind...
Saturday, 28 December 2024

2024 Dec-India Fri 27. Jodhpur.

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It was supposed to be a power-sightseeing day. However, I got to see everything without needing to power through. All the tourist sites are ...
Friday, 27 December 2024

2024 Dec-India Thu 26. Jodhpur.

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A boring transit day. There's not much to see nor do. It's best to have a rant about an annoying Canadian.  https://gilianlee.blogsp...
Thursday, 26 December 2024

2024 Dec-India Wed 25. Jaisalmer-Thar Desert.

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2024 Dec-India Wed 25. Jaisalmer-Thar Desert. Final sightseeing day in Jaisalmer. Spent the late afternoon and evening in the Thar Desert. h...
Wednesday, 25 December 2024

2024 Dec-India Tue 24. Jaisalmer.

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I am still getting over the cold and fever. Hope to have it shaken off by tomorrow.  Visited the Jaisalmer Palace and Gadisar Lake Jaisalmer...
Tuesday, 24 December 2024

2024 Dec-India Mon 23. Bikaner-Jaisalmer.

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We reached Jaisalmer Fort. We are staying within the compound walls. Great architecture.  I finally got sick on a trip. Hope to shake off th...
Monday, 23 December 2024

2024 Dec-India Sun 22. Bikaner.

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An 'angry' day for me. Not too eventful, but you get to see the real poverty of India...not too different from many aspects of Delhi...
Sunday, 22 December 2024

2024 Dec-India Sat 21. Delhi.

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It was a really easy day. I visited the real Chandni Chowk. It was hectic.  I then went back to Lodi Gardens to get away from the noise, and...
Friday, 20 December 2024

2024 Dec-India Thu 19. Delhi.

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I was supposed to take today easy...but I didn't.  Nearly got into trouble, but it was not my fault. I blame it on poor 'signage...
Thursday, 19 December 2024

2024 Dec-India Wed 18. Delhi.

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No sleep after arriving at 2am. This can mean only one thing. Power sightseeing day! https://gilianlee.blogspot.com/p/2024-dec-india-wed-18-...

2024 Dec-India Tue 17. Transit from Aus to Delhi.

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This was a really uneventful travel day. When one has travelled heaps, particularly on long distances from Australia (to anywhere decent on ...
Monday, 18 November 2024

Took more photos than I thought.

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Mistake...total photos taken was 10,290. I took a lot more on my smartphone than I had thought. My estimate was out by 900.
Sunday, 10 November 2024

So many pictures!

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I have a problem!  I take way too many photos when I go on holiday. My recent holidays resulted 9,300 pictures on the new camera. Not to men...
Thursday, 24 October 2024

Travelling is easy.

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23hrs just in the airport-to-airport phase. Then add in the transportation to/from the airport.  Pfft...what is a measly 24hrs+ in travel? D...

2024 Oct-Turkey Wed 23. Istanbul (Final day)

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I only had one thing left that I wanted to do in Istanbul. That was to check out the Anatolian side again, particularly Kadiköy. I am so hap...
Wednesday, 23 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Tue 22. Eskisehir

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Eskisehir is a town that has a genuine, normal, living feel. It doesn't have any notable historical features. It just has great architec...
Tuesday, 22 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Mon 21. Ankara

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Final day in Ankara. Visited the Anadolu Medeniyetleri Müzesi and the mandatory Anıtkabir (Atatürk's Mausoleum). Atatürk led the groundw...
Monday, 21 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Sun 20. Cappadocia/Ankara

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We left the hotel for Ankara at 9:00 am. As we left Cappadocia, we stopped at Bogazkale - Hattusha UNESCO Archaeological Site. This is a rea...
Sunday, 20 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Sat 19. Cappadocia

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I had a normal day tour to visit the sites around Cappadocia. Got the tourist bug out of my system. This is definitely a must vist place. I ...
Saturday, 19 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Fri 18. Cappadocia

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You can not take a bad picture in Göreme (Cappadocia region). I have been very impressed by how they have integrated the tourism buildings i...
Friday, 18 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Thu 17. Konya

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7.5hrs of total transportation from Antalya to Cappadocia (hotel to hotel). This place is small, and for us, it is more of a transit through...
Thursday, 17 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Wed 16. Antalya

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Seeing two waterfalls in Antalya was the best part of the day (Dudan Falls Upper and Lower). A simple boat cruise to view the Dudan Falls (l...
Wednesday, 16 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Tue 15. Antalya

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The city (main tourist area) is not as large as I had first thought. You can see most of the place in half a day. I just did a self-explorin...
Tuesday, 15 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Mon 14. Kekova

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Made our way down to Kaleucagiz. This is where we left for our afternoon sailing to Kekova Island and the various swimming locations. The wa...
Monday, 14 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Sun 13. Fethiye

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I enjoyed a good swim at Oludeniz and a nice stroll along the promenade in Fethiye.  The Mediterranean Sea was not overly salty, and the cle...
Sunday, 13 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Sat 12. Pamukkale

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Pamukkale is a tiny town with one significant feature...the Hierapolis Pamukkale with its natural  travertine limestone terraces. A lot to b...
Saturday, 12 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Fri 11. Selcuk

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I nearly picked up a wife 😉... You're got to love the hard-sell tactics. Visited the Greek structures and surrounding Selcuk. https://g...
Friday, 11 October 2024

2024 2024 Oct-Turkey Thu 10. Selcuk

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A 7.5hr transportation day. A bit too long to be stuck on a coach bus. Arrived into Selcuk hotel by 8pm. Quite late. I had a quick shower, a...
Thursday, 10 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Wed 9. Gallipoli-Canakkale

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Gallipoli and Canakkale done. Great mix of history and a fantastic little town. I had one of my best fish sandwiches (2x)! Stuff the diet! h...
Wednesday, 9 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Tue 8. Istanbul day 3

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I got to visit all the remaining places on my list for Istanbul. There are so many happening areas. A lively city indeed. I will have one fi...
Tuesday, 8 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Mon 7. Istanbul day 2

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Istanbul Asian side is definitely worth a visit. See the Bosphorus from a different angle.  I always enjoy night photography as there are wa...
Monday, 7 October 2024

2024 Oct-Turkey Sun 6. Istanbul

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A huge day getting to Istanbul, slowly waiting for the public transport system to work.  It is a huge city where every corner is a piece of ...
Saturday, 5 October 2024

2024 Oct-Croatia Sat 5. Split (Final Croatia)

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Split has been completely done and dusted. The island hopping was the best part.  Croatia is just over touristed. There is so much opportuni...

2024 Oct-Croatia Fri 4. Split (Islands)

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A big day island hopping. Visited: -Milna. -Palmizana. -Hvar. -Blue Lagoon.  -Trogir. https://gilianlee.blogspot.com/p/2024-oct-croatia-fri-...
Friday, 4 October 2024

2024 Oct-Croatia Thu 3. Split (Plitvice Lakes)

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A very long day trip to Plitvice Lakes NP.  It was a nice place to visit, except that our day was pouring with rain. An amazing natural wond...
Thursday, 3 October 2024

2024 Oct-Croatia Wed 2. Dubrovnik to Split

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Seeing final bits of Dubrovnik before I left for Split. Lucky I did an extra walk around. There were things I would have regretted not seein...

2024 Oct-Croatia Tue 1. Dubrovnik (Final tour day)

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Last day of the tour. It was a great tour. Finishing in Dubrovnik. Sadly, it means goodbye to the well-gelled group.  https://gilianlee.blog...
Tuesday, 1 October 2024

2024 Sep-Montenegro Mon 30. Kotor

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Kotor has some great hiking trails but the real activity is closer to the water. https://gilianlee.blogspot.com/p/2024-sep-montenegro-mon-30...
Monday, 30 September 2024

2024 Sep-Montenegro Sun 29. Kotor

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A long transfer day from Tirana to Kotor, Montenegro.  This results with a lot of night photography.  https://gilianlee.blogspot.com/p/2024-...
Sunday, 29 September 2024

2024 Sep-Albania Sat 28. Tirana/Kruja

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We visited Kruja (castle) in the morning. Then, a basic stroll through Tirana to relax and to see if there was anything that I may have miss...
Saturday, 28 September 2024

2024 Sep-Albania Fri 27. Tirana

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From the poo stench of Durres to the lively city of Tirana. https://gilianlee.blogspot.com/p/2024-sep-albania-fri-27-tirana.html?m=1

2024 Sep-Albania Thu 26. Berat

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Struga (North Macedonia) and Berat (Albania) are great little places to check out.  Struga has amazing clear draining from Lake Ohrid, and t...
Thursday, 26 September 2024

2024 Sep-Nth Macedonia Wed 25. Lake Ohrid

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A relaxing day on the lake and walking the town. Then it was refreshing to be swimming in a clean lake. https://gilianlee.blogspot.com/p/202...
Wednesday, 25 September 2024

2024 Sep-Nth Macedonia Tue 24. Lake Ohrid

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Lake Ohrid is a fantastic lakeside holiday location. Sometimes, it reminds me of Lake Como with the clear waters and no beaches. https://gil...

2024 Sep-Nth Macedonia Mon 23. Prizren and Pristina (Kosovo)

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Keeping the politics aside, Kosovo rocks! https://gilianlee.blogspot.com/p/2024-sep-nth-macedonia-mon-23-prizren.html?m=1
Monday, 23 September 2024

2024 Sep-Nth Macedonia Sun 22. Skopje/Matka Canyon

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First day out with the new tour group. Everyone appears to be normal (myself included). Visited Matka Canyon. Great place.  https://gilianle...
Sunday, 22 September 2024

2024 Sep-Nth Macedonia Sat 21. Skopje

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A great hiking day in Skopje. Went up Mt Vodno. Best exercise I have had in over 2 weeks. The views from above were excellent. Skopje is so ...
Saturday, 21 September 2024

2024 Sep-Nth Macedonia Fri 20. Skopje

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Another great day in Skopje. I thought I had seen most of the interesting places but I was sorely mistaken. I nearly missed the Bit Pazar. I...
Friday, 20 September 2024

2024 Sep-Nth Macedonia Thu 19. Skopje

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What an amazing place Skopje is. It is full of surprises.  One of the best tourist days so far. https://gilianlee.blogspot.com/p/2024-sep-nt...
Thursday, 19 September 2024

2024 Sep-Georgia Wed 18. Tbilisi

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The last day in Georgia. Great place to spend a couple of days. Got to see everything in Tbilisi that I had on my agenda.  Ready to fly out ...

2024 Sep-Georgia Tue 17. Gudauri to Tbilisi

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Left Gudauri and headed over to Tbilisi.  There is a lot to see in Tbilisi. It would full up 2 days nicely, if you power walk everywhere. Id...
Tuesday, 17 September 2024

2024 Sep-Georgia Mon 16. Gudauri/Stepantsminda

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The best tour day so far. Lot of things to see and laughter. Taking the piss (with good intentions) was had by all. https://gilianlee.blogsp...
Monday, 16 September 2024

2024 Sep-Georgia Sun 15. Gudauri

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A long day of driving.  Highlight was the Tsinandali Estate.  The natural mountains to Gudauri was also cool. https://gilianlee.blogspot.com...
Sunday, 15 September 2024

2024 Sep-Georgia Sat 14. Telavi and Gremi

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In Georgia! A big change from Azerbaijan.  https://gilianlee.blogspot.com/p/2024-sep-georgia-sat-14-telavi-and-gremi.html?m=1
Friday, 13 September 2024

2024 Sep-Azerbaijan Fri 13 Sep. Sheki

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A very light day.  Visited: The Palace of Shaki Khan's. Kish-Albanian Church.  Kish-Village Visit. This was just a drive through the hil...

2024 Sep-Azerbaijan Thu 12 Sep. Sheki (Nij - Udin village visit)

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Left the mountains and headed to Sheki. I finally got to swim, at the hotel pool. A lot of bus shuttle travel. Good to see how the non-Baku ...
Thursday, 12 September 2024

2024 Sep-Azerbaijan Wed 11 Sep. Caucasus Mountains/Lahij

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A transit day with some simple stops. Chilling in the small village of Lahij.  The village reminds me of some small Pakistani villages. As a...
Wednesday, 11 September 2024

2024 Sep-Azerbaijan Tue 10 Sep. Qobustan Petroglyphs +Baku Old City

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A normal day turned out quite good by the end. Met new people and had a view of someone's life in Baku. Page available on the trips sect...
Tuesday, 10 September 2024

2024 Sep Sun 8 - Mon 9 Baku

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First days in Baku. Eventful. Page available on the trips section.
Monday, 9 September 2024

2024 Sep-Abu Dhabi, UAE. A short stopover

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Just on holidays. Sharing a quick stopover in Abu Dhabi, UAE. That grand mosque is seriously awesome. Simple travelling is always a positive...
Sunday, 7 July 2019

Everest 2019 summary finally completed

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Yeah.  Finally finished writing up the summary.  Details can be found on the Trips/Expeditions section on the right.  I no longer need to te...
Saturday, 19 January 2019

2018 Tassie MTB trip (Blue Derby and Mt Wellington North South Track)

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A quick view of the MTB scene in Tasmania on the right trips/expeditions 'menu'. https://gilianlee.blogspot.com/p/p.html
Wednesday, 10 October 2018

Nepali helicopter rescue scam

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For those that do not know, there is a big problem with the dodgy rescue practices in Nepal. Here are a couple of articles highlighting th...
Tuesday, 9 October 2018

Everest 2018 (Unsuccessful) summary finally posted

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Hard to write up the quick summary...but had to get it done and moved into the brain archive.  Click on the right to get a glimpse of the di...
Tuesday, 25 September 2018

Review -Archer Components D1X wireless MTB shifter

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Review on the right of the amazing Archer Components D1X.
Saturday, 17 March 2018

Everest 2017 diary finally up on blog.

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On the right hand side is the raw events from my unsuccessful 2017 expedition.  So many things went wrong.  Best to learn from it and leave ...
Tuesday, 4 April 2017

A bit of humour -How to tolerate idiots on a mountain (undergoing development)

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I have a plan…seriously! One of the toughest things about an expedition is tolerating idiots.  It is sadly unavoidable.  After a few expedit...
Sunday, 15 January 2017

Review -Sony A7R camera with Sony Sonnar T* FE 35mm f/2.8 ZA lens

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Review on the right.  Is it the right camera for mountaineering?
Tuesday, 3 January 2017

Review -ONA Presidio Leather Sling Strap (Antique Cognac colour) and Peak Design CapturePro setup

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Review on the right.
Sunday, 23 October 2016

Staying motivated

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I have always seen house cleaning as a great motivator for mountaineering. Seriously. When you are cleaning and tidying you are applying...
Wednesday, 17 August 2016

The BS categories to mountaineering

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I’ve had enough of the constant abuse and use of mountaineering/climbing terms that try to elevate a mountaineer’s achievements. In Bro...

How to go to the toilet –SERIOUSLY!

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One of the difficult things to do on an expedition is to go to the toilet.  It could save you from frostbite!  Let me explain: 1) In base...