Kerala’s port city of Kochi is a big tourist draw, with its complex history reflected in both the culture and architecture. From Chinese fishing nets, ancient mosques and spice markets,…
Homestay in the Alleppey Backwaters
When most people think of Kerala, the first place that comes to mind is the Alleppey backwaters. Lush green scenery with rivers and waterways filled with floating houseboats. Small villages surrounded…
Varkala – The “mini Goa” of Kerala
If you’re looking for an alternative to Goa, then just a couple of hours up the coast from Thiruvananthapuram is Varkala, a small beach town with a big focus on yoga,…
Thiruvananthapuram, Capital of Kerala
Thiruvananthapuram (try saying that at 5:30am at the airport check-in desk) is the largest city and gateway to the state of Kerala. We just stayed a few days, but found…
How to choose a company for the Inca Trail
A once in a lifetime trip, walking the original Inca pathways to the 550 year old citadel of Machu Picchu. There are hundreds of companies offering Inca Trail treks and…
How to travel to Easter Island on a budget
The mysterious Easter Island lies 3,600 km off the coast of Chile. Covered in hundreds of Moai statues, it still holds the secrets of a lost civilisation. Many people dream of…
Life and Death in Varanasi
“Don’t go to Varanasi.” That’s what we’d been told by a few people we’d met on our trip. “You’ll either love it or hate it,” others had said. It’s certainly…
Alipura and the Kama Sutra Temples of Khajuraho
Alipura is a small rural town in Madhya Pradesh. Around eighty percent of the Indian population live in small towns and villages like this one and it was a breath…
Village Life in Tordi Sagar
Tordi Sagar is a small village in rural Rajasthan, around a three hour drive from Jaipur. Our home for the night was Tordi Palace, a beautiful heritage hotel and the…
The Pink City of Jaipur
Jaipur, the capital of India’s Rajasthan state, is an amazing, colourful city, with chaotic streets and lively bazaars. Camels and elephants share the roads with scooters and cycle rickshaws. In…
New Delhi and No Signs of a Bad Belly
Namaste India! This one has been on the bucket list for a long time. We arrived to an extremely smoggy New Delhi late at night and the next day set…
Getting an Indian visa in Hanoi
We were half way through our trip when we decided we wanted to add India into the itinerary. We thought we could get the e-visa online, but it only lasts…
Rice Terraces and Hill Tribes in Sapa
Sapa is a town in the mountains of North Vietnam, originally a hill station for the French in 1922, now a base for trekking in the surrounding countryside through cascading rice…
3 Days in Sydney on a Budget
Sydney isn’t the cheapest city to visit, especially on a backpacker budget, but with a little effort it can still be enjoyed and doesn’t have to break the bank. Below are…