36 hours from Manaus to Santarém, Brazil via locals Ferry
In the picture below, you'll notice how excited Doug and I are to begin this journey. Thirty-six hours in a swaying hammock, on a breezy ferry, down the Amazon River sounded like just the kind of adventure we were looking for! We would travel in the 'local style' and make local and traveler friends along the way. ...
A small taste of the Cyrillic alphabet
At first the long street names and crazy letters are quite daunting, but then you start noticing words like ресторан resemble the word restaurant when you realize that the p is actually an r sound. кафе is also obviously cafe, with the phi type letter is an f sound. Can anyone guess what this word means бар...now you've learned the most important words when traveling in Russia: restaurant, cafe and bar ;) ...
Traveling teaches you...
Traveling teaches you patience. It teaches you compassion and understanding. You may be thinking, 'I already possess those traits' but when you travel you realize you only possess an iota. Now, I'm not talking about going on vacation for a couple of weeks. I'm talking about immersing yourself in the culture and spirit of a place. Taking a ride on a bus that was probably built in the 70's that goes up a mountain hill slower than you can jog there. ...