As regular readers of this blog have probably figured out, I am an independent traveler by temperament (and usually also by means). In China I take trains and local buses, and I avoid group tours like the plague. But here in Vietnam, truly “independent” travel is essentially impractical, at least when it comes to securing transportation.
Travel [...]
I rang in the New Year onboard the train from Nanning, China, to Hanoi, hopefully setting an appropriately adventurous tone for 2010.
The train turned out to be a very easy and economical way to get between the two countries. You can arrive in Nanning (the capital of Guangxi Province) without your Vietnamese visa and be [...]
(Warning: This post involves a lot of venting. More happy stories to come!)
Yesterday (location: Lanzhou, Gansu Province) was one of those days when it seems that China is trying to tell me that “you shouldn’t be here.” The day was all about transportation: buying tickets for the rest of our trip and then taking an [...]
Norway promotes the rail link between Oslo and Bergen as “the most beautiful train journey in the world.” Traveling across Norway from east to west, the train ascends to 1,200 m above sea level before arriving in Bergen, a port on the west coast. The scenery ranges from bucolic farms to spectacular mountains. Best of [...]
