Blush Magazine

Just when you guys thought you were done hearing from us...

A friend of my dad's wrote an article about Eric and I in Blush Magazine (a magazine published in Chattanooga, TN). The writer interviewed Eric and wrote an article based on their discussion. I did an online questionnaire and she included some of that as well.

The magazine is also online so you can check it out!!

www.blushmag.net
We are on pages 32 – 33...

Travel Checklist for World Travel

This checklist will enable you to take everything you need (in most countries) around the world with ease. Many low cost airlines cover the cost of checked luggage up to 15 Kgs (33Lbs). If over this limit, many airlines will charge for extra weight. Beth and I had our packs right up to that number most of the time.

CLOTHING:

• 1 (maybe 2) pair of Jeans.
• 1 - zip off nylon pants/shorts.
• 1 - swimming suit.
• 1-2 dry fit t-shirts.
• 1- light, compact-able Rain jacket.
• 1 - hooded sweatshirt.
• 1-2 dressier items (for guys a polo, girls can probably get 2 dresses).
• 3-4 pair of Dry fit Undies. (I recommend Exoficio Travel underwear, washes well in the sink).
• 1 fleece.
• 2 pair of Smart Wool socks.
• 2 pair of regular socks.
• 1 pair of flip flops (non leather).
• 1 pair of shoes that you can wear hiking, casually, and into restaurants.
• 1 travel Towel. They dry quickly and fit nicely in your pack. Many hostels in Europe include towels in your stay, the rest of the world does not.

ESSENTIALS:

• 4-6 Passport sized photos - many countries require that you purchase Visas on arrival. If you don't have "passport sized" photos, they can cha rge a hefty fee.
• Duct tape is a must.
• 1 Headlight - use when reading at night, or rummaging around your hostel room in the dark.
• 1 medical kit including: advil, travel meds, mosquito repellant (at least 20% DEET), water purification tablets, tums, and all other medications.
• 1 Masterlock combination lock.
• 2 smaller locks (used for zippers on your pack and day pack).
• 1 unlocked cell phone (iphone is the best).
• 1 bandanna.
• 3-5 Tide Laundry travel packages (depends on length of your trip).
• 1 cap/hat.
• 3-4 small 99 cent travel tubes of SPF 30 Sun Lotion. The last thing you want is to lug around a large tube.
• 1 memory stick(8 or 16MB). Even if you are not taking pictures, you might meet someone who documents everything. You can swap photos easily this way.
• 1-3 rolls of Charmin travel size rolls of toilet paper. This is a MUST have.
• small scissors and/or knife.
• student ID.
• Salt and pepper packets are great for bland food (you can always snag these somewhere).
• 1-2 small carabiners.

BRING PHOTO COPIES OF YOUR:

Visas

Credit Cards

Passport

Travel Insurance (if you have it)

TIPS:

If you are planning a large trip (4+ months) I think that a small laptop (otherwise referred to as a Netbook) is a MUST. This is great for backing up photos, taking notes, and most importantly, trip planning. Computer usage fees can be pretty expensive at Internet cafes.

When at the airport and the immigration lines are really long, stick to the outside lanes if you can. Chances are they will open up another one (if you keep your eye out, you can time it perfectly).

Bringing a roll of duct tape can take up way too much space. What I do is wrap around 10-15 feet of it onto my nalgene water bottle.

Bringing a student ID can save you heeps of cash. Every museum, park, event, or public transportation hub we went to, I asked politely if th ey gave a student discount. Often times they did! If you don't have one, ask anyways.

I like to roll my duct up on my water bottle. That way, it's pretty much always with you during the day.

If you don't carry a water bottle, just take a quarter or half roll with you and flatten it.

I recommend having a buddy with a decent camera shoot some head shots of you and stick them on a 4X6 print out so that you have several with you at all times. This is also very cheap. 6 passport sized photos will run you at least 10 bucks in a CVS. This way is is about 1 buck per copy of 6.

Here is a list of travel resources that I used while planning my trip:

www.skyscanner.com (amazing for flights)
www.wikitravel.com (best free guidebooks in the world)
http://travel.state.gov/travel/travel_1744.html (all info on Entry/Exit requirements)

www.cdc.gov (the only way to find out exactly what immunizations you need)

www.youtube.com
www.tripadvisor.com
www.hostelworld.com

Back to the "real" world

To catch everyone up to speed...

I am now working for a new company in Atlanta and Beth is currently doing freelance graphic design work at a firm in North Atlanta. We are both getting back into the groove of our normal, busy lives. We think about our trip daily and often wonder what else is out there. What else is there to see? What did we forget to bake into our round the world trip? Many say, "man, I bet all that travel only made you more liable to be get "bug" bitten again." Well, as much as we love getting lost around the globe, we are ready to move forward with our careers and goals. Don't worry though, we have talked about the next destination for vacation, and it is going to be REAL good, but its going to be a while before that happens.





Some notes I wrote on the last flight of the trip...

Beth and I tried new foods, drinks, and experiences, pushing the limits of our comfort zones. We used public transportation everywhere possible, attempted to communicated in the native tongue, and always had a pocket full of coins and bills from different countries. We took 38 flights, 7 ferries, 10 buses, and 7 vans to fully circumnavigate the globe. In India alone we used at least 14 different methods of streets transportation (mototaxi, elephant, horse rickshaw, etc). 25,000+ miles around the earth and here I sit.

I am here in the Austin airport about to board the last and ONLY delayed flight of my entire trip. I feel as if nothing ever happened. No trip, no experience, nothing. I really have to focus to remember just how I felt in the abscence of warm showers, potable water, air conditioning/heating, and how life seemed so hard and frustrating on one hand, but completely pure and comfortable on the other. I try to tell myself that I am a completely changed person, but after a shave and a few days of R&R in Austin, I am suddenly back to my old routines. I guess what I am trying to get at is that it is hard to step outside of our fantastic US of A and see what the world has to offer, even after you have seen it. Thoughts of the children in Laos, the street hustlers in India, the surreal landscapes of New Zealand, and all the fellow travelers along the way, made the whole experience worth it.

My only advice to anyone considering a trip that you have been dreaming about: stop dreaming and do it. That is was a buddy of mine told me. "Tietz, do it"

Thanks for reading, Beth and I have appreciated your comments and questions.


...Soon I will be posting a round the world checklist for y'all out there who don't know what to pack.

Last But Not Least, Sydney.

Eric and I arrived back in Australia on February 5th. We were both ready to get back to one more large city before heading back to the USA. Sydney welcomed us with rain, not surprising.

The hostel we booked, Wake Up Hostel, proved to be a key factor in enjoying Sydney. Our roomates were very welcoming and we bonded over goon immediately.

Room 306.

The five days we spent in Sydney went by really quickly. The entire weekend was full of rain but that didn't stop us from enjoying our last weekend abroad. We spent lots of time around our hostel watching movies and catching up on some much needed sleep. We visited Bondi beach, which is the main surfers beach of Sydney. Luckily the rain didn't stop us from watching people catch the large waves. We also made it out to the very popular World Bar in Kings Cross. All in all it was a very wet yet productive and fun weekend.

Beaches are just not as cool in the rain.

Enjoying a night out with our roomates.

World Bar served drinks in tea pots. Eric of course found a new use for the cups.

Monday morning we woke up early to catch the Superbowl (which by the way is not nearly as cool on a Monday without the American commercials). After teaching our English friends the rules of American football we all decided it was about time we actually saw some of what Sydney had to offer. The sun finally decided to make an appearance so we took the rest of the day to walk around Sydney. Darling Harbor, Sydney Harbor Bridge, and the Opera House were just as spectacular as everyone had said.

Enjoying views from the Sydney Tower.

Fountains in the city.

Finding the entrance to the bridge is trickier than one may think. It took us about 30 minutes of wondering around to figure out how to get up there.

Hello Opera House.

Our last day abroad could not have gotten much better. The sun was finally out with no clouds in the sky. We took advantage of the day and hopped on a ferry to head over to Manly Beach, a beach located about 7 miles northeast of Sydney city. We shopped and spent the majority of our day laying on the beach and watching surfers attempt to ride the waves. We steered clear of the water after hearing so many horror stories of shark attacks in southern Australian. After finishing our picnic dinner we made the journey back across the harbor just in time to see the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Bridge silhouetted in the Australian sunset. Manly beach was definitely my favorite spot in Sydney.

Leaving the harbor.

Cruising to Manly Beach (yes I know the pole needs to be photoshopped off of my head).

As our travels quickly came to an end on February 10th, Eric and I both felt that we had completed a huge accomplishment. We had successfully traveled around the globe with no enormous mishaps or illnesses. Everything that we had planned (mostly that Eric had planned) proved to be fantastic and full of great memories. The 15 (or more) countries that we got to experience left us with so much insight into other cultures, religions, and cuisines of the world. There are many places on the list that will for sure be revisited. We will definitely be talking about memories from the trip until we are both too old and gray to remember them.

For now, it's home to America to get back to our family, friends and careers. Hopefully this trip will cure the travel bug for at least a year, no promises though.

Heaps of fun in New Zealand

On Thursday, January 21st we took an afternoon flight from Melbourne to Christchurch. With the 2 hour time difference, our arrival time was 11 pm, 18 hours ahead of Atlanta. We had a reservation with a car rental company for the following morning and the pick up was at the airport so another night in the airport terminal was in store. After several failed attempts to sleep on the floor, our New Zealand trip finally began. Leaving the airport we were greeted with NZ's finest weather, full on rain with cold winds. Fantastic.

A few days prior we had planned out a rough 14 day itinerary for the south island. The first part was heading into Marlborough wine country where we would explore vineyards, valleys and excellent beaches.

We spent the first day heading up the coast with a stop in Kaikoura to see the fur seals then on to Picton for the evening. Picton is known for is Queens Elizabeth hikes and also for its port which serves as the gateway to the north island. The next day we decided to skip the hiking there since the weather was less then ideal and push forward to Nelson, a town right outside of the famous Abel Tasman national park. Cruising through the mountains and lush valleys with vineyards on either side was a real treat. In this region there are over 150 vineyards. The climate provides a perfect environment for Savaugnon Blanc. We decided to post up on Nelson for the night and check out some of the local eateries and bars. In an attempt to save money, the whole eatery idea turned into Beth and I eating ramen for dinner and having some beers with the locals.

Enjoying a roadside stop with our vehicle "Twitch." The name came to mind as I was struggling in first gear when leaving the rental agency. The clutch was a little different than our vans from Australia.

A cool shot of hundreds of shoes along a roadside fence in Marlborough.

In the morning we set out for Abel Tasman, a huge national park on the north western coast that spans for miles along some of New Zealand's best beaches. Beth and I decided to take a boat tour of the entire park. On our return we ask the captain if we could hike back and he said it was an easy 3 hour, 12 kilometer walk through the rainforest. In! This was certainly one of the best decisions I had made in a while as this hike turned out to be our favorite experience in nz. The hike did infact take around 3 hours but the scenery was much more beautiful than we expected. Ferns about 20 feet in diameter and waterfalls every quartermile made me feel as if I was in a different world. One much like the planet from the blockbuster AVATAR, except without crazy dinaosaur wolves and sAgornie weaver. We finished the trail around 8 pm, grabbed dinner at a local pizza joint, the drove into a neighborhood, parked the car, and carcamped for the evening. Money was VERY tight so sleeping in the car would have to do every few nights or so.

Hiking the Abel Tasman park was outstanding. From lagoon, to beach, to rainforest and back to beach in a matter of minutes was truly amazing.

Capturing waterfalls is my new favorite thing to shoot.

The following day we made our way down to Hamner Springs, a quaint mountain town outside of Christchurch known for it's sulfur hot spring pools. This was our last stop in the north before heading west to glacier country.

1. I hate Swans. 2. My uncle Rudy said that if you can act bigger than any bird, even ostriches, they will submit. 3. I win.

On Tuesday we came back through Christchurch for lunch and then pushed forward to the west coast. Along the way were many excellent scenic stops for tourists. My favorite was Arthur's Pass, a narrrow pass through high peaks with super windy roads and small, one-lane bridges. We also checked out the pancake rocks and blowholes in Punakaiki. Thousands of years of compression of flattened rocks stacked on top of each other created these huge coastal crags. We went at high tide to catch a possible blow-holing. This only happens when the wind is strong during high tide. Well, I thought conditions were perfect but evidentliy they were not. The " blowhole" did nothing but disappoint. We left and caught the sunset on the coast (by the way, this was at 9:40 pm. what time is the sun setting in Atlanta?)

Scenic stop at Arthur's Pass.

A random stop on the way to Franz Josef. Not sure how the water could actually look like this.

The next stops on the list were the two glacier towns; Franz Josef, and Fox. There are more tour companies around these towns then you would ever imagine so choosing a tour became quite tedious. With little input from Beth I decided that we would do a skydivve tour of Fox glacier and then a half day glacier hike on Franz Josef. I figured the "go ahead and book it" technique would prevent Beth from backing out of skydiving. Truth be told, it worked and little nervous Beth found her self at 12000 feet wondering what she was doing and why she was still with me. In the end, the thrill overcame the anxiety and she loved the experience, as did I... of course.

I think Beth looks pretty excited in this picture don't you? You should see the one before it.

If you look closely you can see Beth cruising around in the background.

A perfect landing.

The following morning we made breakfast, grabbed some crampons (spike attachments for hiking boots) and joined a tour for Franz Josef Glacier. I must say, glaciers are way more impressive than I thought. Everyday the snow/ice/rock mass moves and changes, making the tours exciting for guides and tourists. We saw small ice caves and drank glacier water. Climbing was tricky at times but very manageable. Another great one.

On Franz Josef Glacier.

That's a lot of ice.

Making our way further south we headed into queenstown, the extreme sports capital of the world. If any of you out there know me well, you would understand why I was excited. On our way in (early Friday morning Jan 29th) we stopped outside of Qtown to do some sledging, which is basically white water rafting on a boogie board. We had a quick instructional session then jumped in the freezing water and began to sledge. Beth hated the first half of the trip and I loved every second of it. I coached her through it and somehow she managed to enjoy getting tossed around in rapids for the following 45 minutes. Afterwards we high tailed it to queenstown, but wait...not yet. Beth spotted Aj Hackett's bridge bungee jump, the first one of it's kind in the world. She said "E, let's just go and have a look." I knew this was in trouble. Within 20 minutes I found myself on a platform deciding if I wanted a dry jump or a dunk-in-the-river jump. Surprising I know, but I went with the dunk. Broke and starving we arrived in queenstown with a full day to explore.

Sledging down the Roaring Meg.

I always have trouble getting these things off.

Free as a bird.

Sorry mom, I had to.

Queenstown is nestled right in the mountains and sits right next to Wakatipu Lake. Everyone other store in town is either a cafe or an extreme tour outfit. Since we had already done most of the activites we wanted in the previous days, we used our time there to relax and listen to the live concert in the city center.

Enjoying an afternoon on the lake.

Giant Sequoias.

Our last major stop on the south island was Milford Sound. Even though it's not actually a true sound, Milford is one of the most beautiful in the world. Some argue that tours and overnight expeditions are not worth the hundreds of dollars that the tour companies charge, we drove up there to check it out nonetheless. The 2 hour drive through fjordland national park was spectacular on it's own, but nothing beat the 25 dollar, 1.5 hour boat cruise that we took in the sound. We spent the rest of the afternoon exploring the park and then spent the night in Te Anau, where we had already scoped out a restraurant to watch the australian open finals match on TV.

Milford Sound.

The rest of our time was spent making our way back up to Christchurch before heading to Sydney, the last stop on our fantastic voyage.

Game. Set. Match.

Eric and I arrived in Melbourne on Friday, January 15th. My friend Andrew (that I knew from Auburn) lives over here so him and his fiance, Elizabeth, picked us up from the airport. We would be staying with them in the city the next six nights. Their apartment was amazing. It over looked the water and is located right in the Docklands (an area of downtown Melbourne). The night we arrived we chatted for a bit and then went to bed to rest up for our Saturday tour of Melbourne.

Everyone who comes to Australia must try Vegemite.

We tried it... and will never eat it again.

Saturday morning we lounged around and then decided that the best way to tour Melbourne would be a pub crawl. Andrew and Elizabeth showed us around the city while we sampled great drinks from their favorite bars. Our pub crawl ended in the late afternoon, just in time to have an aussie bbq at their apartment.

Eric and I enjoying the sun at a bar in the city.

Sunday we walked around the Docklands visiting the market and a few other stores in the area. Afterwards Eric and I introduced our aussie friends to Cosco. We immediately felt at home because this is one of our favorite Sunday afternoon activities back in the states. After stocking up on food and of course having a slice of pizza we made our way back to relax for a bit and enjoy some couch time (something Eric and I haven't done in months). That night we ate at a popular Japanese restaurant in the city and also checked out the massive Crown Casino (luckily we didn't play any games because we don't have much money left to lose).

Who doesn't love Cosco?

Enjoying our Japanese dinner.

Monday morning Eric and I rented a cute little Nissan and made our way to the Great Ocean Road. It takes about an hour and half to get to the coastal road and the drive itself is about four hours. The drive consists of lots of steep inclines, quaint towns, surfers, koala parks, and lots and lots of beautiful turquoise water. The end of the drive is the most magnificent with the twelve apostles breaking through the sea.

What a view!

Visiting the Twelve Apostles (although there are no longer twelve because the waves cause the rock formations to crumble).

The rest of our time in Melbourne was focused on the Australian Open. The four of us bought ground passes for Tuesday night. We found that these passes were great because you can get right next to the outside courts. Watching the players that close is a really unique and exciting experience.

Enjoying a match on the outside courts.

These girls behind me were intense.

Wednesday Eric, Elizabeth, and I bought tickets to go watch the Roddick vs Bellucci match at the Hisense Arena. These tickets also included two other women's matches and the Blake vs Del Potro match. Eric and I were in the arena for nearly 12 hours because the Blake vs Del Potro match went into the fifth set. It was a great game, even though Blake was defeated.

Roddick showing off his amazing serve. He got quite feisty at the end of his match which was very entertaining.

Enjoying a few cold ones while cheering for Blake. We really lucked out on our seats. We had a perfect view of the game and the seats were shaded most of the day.

Our stay in Melbourne was fantastic. Andrew and Elizabeth made us feel at home and were great tour guides. Melbourne's great mix of arts, music, and sports makes it really appealing to young professionals. It's definitely a city that I hope to come back and visit someday in the near future.

I guess it's time for us to act like backpackers again... we are setting off for a two week trip to the southern island of New Zealand before returning to Australia one last time to visit Sydney. Our around the world tour is quickly coming to an end but the next two weeks should be a great mix of adrenaline pumping sports and beautiful sites.

1700 Kilometers in 7 Days

First of all, happy new year!

Eric and I arrived in Brisbane Australia on December 31st. We both had extremely high hopes for our new year's eve. Our hostel, The Bunk, had a connecting bar and all sorts of festivities planned. As it turns out was the lamest new year's celebration I have taken part in in 26 years. Around ten I began to run a fever and promptly went to bed. Eric stayed out about another hour before also giving up and returning to our room. We were woken up to a happy new year by our roomate peeing on the floor. Yay. Luckily the rest of the aussie experience got better.

New year's day I woke up feeling pretty crappy but was determined to see Brisbane. Eric and I climbed aboard a bus to the Lone Pine Nature Reserve where we were able to see all sorts of Australian wild life. We got to pet kangaroos, view bats, wallabies, tasmanian devils, and the highlight, hold a koala (sorry kangaroos you've been replaced).

Eric's new friend.

These were the laziest kangaroos I've ever seen. People feed them all day long and they just lounge around waiting for the next meal.

My new best friend. Koala's are actually pretty stinky animals. The eucalyptus leaves that they eat causes them to smell similar to molding mulch.

The rest of our days in Brisbane were spent exploring the quiet little city and celebrating our new year (just a few days late). Our hostel was located right in the night life district which made going out a little too convenient.

Now for the real adventure... our Wicked Camper. Eric and I rented a camper van and took off up the east coast of Australia. We spent seven nights driving, eating and living out of our stylish camper van.

Meet Wiki.

Of course no one informed us that the east coast's summer is very wet and full of cyclones. The journey was filled with lots of rain but it did not stop us from seeing the coast and the beautiful country. We made our way up the coast stopping each night in a new town. We camped in Hervey Bay, Rockhampton, Arlie Beach (for three days), Mission Beach, Port Douglas, and finally arrived in Cairns on the 11th of January.

The journey was sprinkled with day trips to the Great Barrier Reef, visits to gorges and caves, wildlife sightings, coffee fields, lots of rain, lots of pasta, and lots of great people. We both highly recommend the camper - it was great for making detours to small towns and snapping pictures of the beautiful scenery. It definitely wasn't the best sleep I've had in my life but it was worth every second.

Every night in Hervey Bay the bats come out to hunt. Almost the entire sky was filled with these creepy creatures.

Our visit to the Capricorn Caves, right outside of Rockhampton.

There is a huge chapel located inside the cave.

Just another night spent with Wiki. We became very good at cooking pasta in the dark.

We took a day trip from Arlie Beach out to the Great Barrier Reef. We spent the day on a pontoon boat snorkeling, viewing the sea from the glass bottom boat, and taking full advantage of the water slide.

We had to wear wet suits every time we entered the water because the marine stingers that are located in Queensland cause a few deaths a year. Luckily we escaped unharmed.

Best snorkeling ever!

Our second day in Arlie beach we took a sailboat out to the islands. Unfortunately it poured the entire day and was freezing. This family failed to notice the lack of sun for the day.

The rain paused long enough to allow Eric to take his first shot at Cricket.

Trying to make the best out of the rain while on a sailboat.

Enjoying my cappuccino at Jaques Coffee plantation outside of Mareeba.

Jaques had a map with push-pins of where everyone was from who visited the fields. I of course was not the first to place a pin from Atlanta.

Eric enjoying the sunshine. It probably rained about ten minutes later.

Apparently we were pretty lucky to see the endangered cassowary. I'm really glad we didn't hit him as he crossed the street.

Lesson learned. Don't take a hike without a raincoat.

Cairns was proven to be just like everyone said, nothing special but a good place to stop. Our hostel, Gilligan's, was more of a resort than a hostel and was a great way to catch up on some much needed sleep and sun. Eric got to enjoy some more of the Great Barrier Reef while I spent my day shopping and getting to know the city.

Eric learning to play the didgeridoo.

Diving the Great Barrier Reef off of Port Douglas.

From Cairns we had to take a six hour bus ride back down the coast to catch our flight from Townsville to Melbourne. Instead of staying in Townsville we took a ferry over to Magnetic Island for the night. Our hostel, Base, was located right on the coast with a fantastic view. Each room was a small hut that had eight beds. It had a great view and a great deck bar. We took part in some fun trivia and retired to our room fairly early for the night. The next morning we went on a two hour hike through a forest that had old war forts and koalas hiding in the trees. Of course, this was the highlight of Magnetic Island for me.

This baby koala was the cutest thing I have ever seen. He was making squacking noises and trying to climb out on the branches of the tree.

A quick stop while hiking to enjoy the view.

Another koala siting. This one had no problem posing for pictures.

The view from Base hostel. Not bad.

Later that afternoon we took the ferry back over to Townsville and set off for our next destination, Melbourne.