E-xpeditions | Ramblings

September 10 ->The Best and Worst of the trip

THE BEST of the trip (in no specific order)

1.	Getting engaged on Akaiami Island, Cook Islands
2.	Our wedding in Cesky Krumlov, Czech Republic
3.	Shi-shi safari at Phinda Private Game Reserve, South Africa
4.	Antarctica Cruise
5.	Hiking Torres Del Paine, Patagonia region of Chile
6.	Rio de Janiero, Brazil with friends Marcelo, Gabriela and Ronaldo
7.	Athens Olympics
8.	Visiting rock Hewn churches in Lalibela, Ethiopia
9.	Luxor, Egypt
10.	Scott summiting Mt. Kilimanjaro with friends Rob and Pat Hart
11.	Kenyan safari
12.	Galapagos Islands
13.	4-day jeep tour in the Salt Flats of Uyuni, Bolivia
14.	Exploring the Silk Road cities of Uzbekistan with Sanjar
15.	Petra, Jordan
16.	Watching the Naadam Festival, Mongolia
17.	Helicopter ride over the Tian Shan range and walking across the glacier, Kazakhstan
18.	Yuan Yang rice terraces and minority tribes
19.	Buenos Aires, Argentina
20.	Sailing in the San Blas Islands, Panama

THE TOP ACTIVITIES (in no specific order)

1.	Gliding above the Omarama plain, New Zealand
2.	White water rafting the White Nile, Uganda
3.	Gorge swing at Victoria Falls, Zambia
4.	Climbing Volcan Villarica, Chile
5.	Diving near Tofo Beach, Mozambique
6.	Kayaking Aitutaki islets, Cook Islands
7.	Shark dive in Holmes Reef, Australia
8.	Sailing in the Whitsundays, Australia
9.	Bicycling down the "Most Dangerous Road", Bolivia
10.	Llama trek near Huaraz, Peru
11.	Scrambling Wadi Rum, Jordan
12.	Diving the Thistelgorm wreck, Egyptian Red Sea
13.	Tracking rhinos on a CC Africa walking safari, Phinda Private Game Reserve in South Africa
14.	Diving and snorkelling in Roatan, Honduras
15.	Biking the "Circuito Chico" around Bariloche, Lakes District of Argentina

MOST MEMORABLE MEALS (in no specific order)

1.	All meals at the Rock Lodge, Phinda Private Game Reserve in South Africa
2.	Stefan & Annette's traditional Swedish meal during the Mid-Summer Fest, Swedish Archipelago
3.	Szechuan meal with David and Patricia Oro in Beijing, China
4.	Ceviche and seafood lunch at Rosa Nautica in Lima, Peru
5.	Zanzibar coconut bomb fish with mango salsa
6.	Jacqui's House BBQ with friends in Cape Town, South Africa
7.	Jun Sakamoto with Marcelo and Gabriela in Sao Paolo, Brazil
8.	Urumqi night market, China
9.	Sanjar's 18^th birthday party in Samarkand, Uzbekistan
10.	Dum Pukht in Delhi, India
11.	Egyptian restaurant on the Nile River with Kier in Cairo, Egypt
12.	Carnivores in Nairobi, Kenya
13.	Porcão Churrascaria in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
14.	Rincon de Fuego steak dinner in Tilcara, Argentina
15.	Thai meal with Nori's godfather Oddy in Bangkok, Thailand
16.	Grilled lobster meal in the San Blas Islands, Panama
17.	Kitfo or raw beef at Habesha Kitfo Restaurant in Gonder, Ethiopia
18.	Cerapcici with Riley in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
19.	Steak dinner at the Shady Rest Hotel after the Kokoda Trail in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea
20.	Rob & Anna's pre-wedding dinner at Han Lok Yuen on Lamu Island, Hong Kong

MOST MEMORABLE ACCOMMODATION (in no specific order)

1.	Honeymoon suite at the Rock Lodge, Phinda Private Game Reserve in South Africa
2.	Tashkent Le Meridien, Uzbekistan
3.	Mosquito Blue in Jericoacoara, Brazil
4.	Udaipur Palace Hotel, India
5.	Ryad Dar Jamila in Marrakesh, Morocco
6.	Bedouin Camp at Wadi Rum, Jordan
7.	Beach Shack at Fatima's Nest Tofo Beach, Mozambique
8.	Salt Hotel in the Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia
9.	Hotel Gold in Cesky Krumlov, Czech Republic
10.	Siwa Lodge at Siwa Oasis, Egypt
11.	Hotel La Cupula at Lake Titicaca, Bolivia
12.	Chalalan Lodge in Madidi National Park in the Bolivian Amazon
13.	Hotel Villa Magna, Madrid
14.	Ricky's Beachfront Cabins on Rarotonga, Cook Islands
15.	Gobi Ger, Mongolia
16.	Rincon de Fuego in Tilcara, Argentina
17.	Seagrape Plantation Resort on Roatan in the Bay Islands, Honduras
18.	Palermo Apartment in Buernos Aires, Argentina
19.	Hilton Nairobi, Kenya
20.	Langi Langi Beach Bungalows in Nungwi Beach, Zanzibar

BEST LOCAL CONTACTS

Pat & Marg Hart Paarl, South Africa

Stefan & Annette in Stockholm, Sweden

Dave & Patricia Oro in Beijing, China

Minisker Family in Istanbul, Turkey

Matt & Mandy Hunt in London, England

Gabriela & Marcelo and Ronaldo Fernandes, Brazil

John and Laurence Bonaccolta, Bordeaux

Melanie Asher in Ica and Lima, Peru

Sanjar Fayzirahmatov, Uzbekistan

Missionary relatives in Mbeya, Tanzania

Kier & Robyn Paesel in Cairo, Egypt

Rodrigo & Liz in Buenos Aires

Ben Haas in Granada, Nicaragua

Adam Santos on Roatan, Honduras

Riley Smith in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Host family Jose and Isaura in El Tambo, Ecuador

WORST DAYS ON THE TRIP

1.	Day 3 of the Kokoda Trail, Papua New Guinea
2.	Day 7 of the Kokoda Trail, Papua New Guinea
3.	Scott's near death Dive in the Coral Sea, Papua New Guinea
4.	Day Nori broke her foot, Ethiopia
5.	Ethiopia-Kenya border crossing
6.	Day we took a bus from Udaipur to Jodpur
7.	Both ends Nori, Kyrgyzstan
8.	Day 1 in Nukus, Uzbekistan
9.	First night in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
10.	Tanzania-Malawi border crossing
11.	Failed first attempt to take a luxury bus from Lusaka to Victoria Falls, Zambia
12.	Final day of our trip so we thought until we arrived at the airport to find out that our flight from San Pedro Sula to Miami with Aerohonduras had been grounded due to poor maintenance records.
13.	Day we took a bus from Kunming to Lijiang, China
14.	Panama-Costa Rica border crossing
15.	Getting pickpocketed on a bus ride to Kibale National Park in Uganda, still can't figure out how they did it!
16.	Nori breaking the new compact digital camera, Nicaragua

TOP SHITHOLES

1.	Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea
2.	Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
3.	Agra, India
4.	Shargaljuut, Mongolia
5.	Lilongwe, Malawi
6.	Nukus, Uzbekistan
7.	Tirana, Albania
8.	Puno, Peru
9.	La Libertad, El Salvador
10.	Mombasa, Tanzania
11.	Osh, Kyrgyzstan
12.	Udaipur, India
13.	Lusaka, Zambia
14.	Langzhou, China
15.	San Jose, Costa Rica
16.	Bucharest, Romania
17.	Carti in the San Blas Islands, Panama
18.	Fez, Morocco
19.	San Pedro de Atacama, Chile
20.	Tsetserleg, Mongolia

WORST LOCAL FOOD