Posted by Seth on January 3, 2011 under Trip Reports | 
It is now the new year, with new goals and new milestones on the horizon. But not too late to take a quick look back at 2010 and the travel milestones I hit during the year. Not surprisingly, the more I travel the harder it is to reach new and different accomplishments. Indeed, 2010 had many fewer than 2009, though in a couple categories it surpassed the previous year.
Perhaps the most significant numbers of the year are the total amount of time in the air:
- 151 segments
- 208378 miles
- 18 days 13:31
Those numbers are “butt-in-seat” and based on the distances between the starting and ending airport as calculated on www.openflights.org. They do not include 500 mile minimums or the like. In most cases the durations are based on wheels up to wheels down as tracked by the appropriate authorities, not the block time of the flight or estimates. The 208K miles is the most ever for me in a calendar year as is the 151 segments.
Of the 151 segments flown, more than half (86, to be precise) were routes I had not flown previously. It is certainly becoming more and more difficult to find new ways to get to different places but I continue to try. New lines and new dots are still of value to me and I’m finding that I’m paying a bit more to get them.
I also passed through 77 airports during the year located in 18 different countries. I actually Immigrated 31 different times, including the various times I returned to the United States. On four of my trips there were multiple foreign countries involved.
I visited 15 distinct countries, plus the USA. Eight of those countries (St. Maarten, Sint Martin, Dominican Republic, Ghana, Togo, Guyana, Morocco and Tunisia) were new to me. Two of the crossings (into Togo and back into Ghana were on foot while the Sint Martin/St. Maarten crossing were by car; The others were all by plane. I also added a new state visited – Idaho – to my list even though I drove over from Spokane to get there rather than flying in.
My travels included flying on 24 different airlines (possibly a few more if regional/express carriers are included by I’m not great at tracking those). Of those 24, 13 were airlines I had not previously flown on (AC, AT, BA, BD, BE, HA, LC, RW, SN, TGY, VS, YV & YX). Again, it is getting much harder to find new ones at reasonable prices but I’m doing my best, including a couple booked for the early part of 2011.
None of my milestones north, south, east or west were new extremes for me this year. Nor was my longest flight (SYD-SFO) longer than previous records. I did get a new shortest flight for my list, one that will almost certainly never be broken.
Somewhat amazingly, of the 151 flights I only had three instances where I was struck by operations so irregular that they caused a missed flight. One of them – during my JetBlue AYCJ adventures wasn’t a big deal and I got back on track without really missing anything along the way. Two others – a US Airways delay out of Belgium and a Royal Air Maroc fiasco in Casablanca – caused me to overnight unexpectedly. The US Air incident wasn’t so bad but the Air Maroc one was pretty awful.
Finally, I managed to pick up five new aircraft types during the year. My favorite was probably the smallest, the Cessna 208 Caravan I, though the
| Saab SF340 was fun, too, and the Embraer 175LR was the best ride of them all.
And I got robbed once where the guy took money directly from my hands and probably a couple more times due to bad negotiating skills in markets. At least I robbed the guy who physically took the cash out of my hand back. |
And while I sit on the airplane now, enjoying a flight from Lufthansa into Frankfurt and on to Munich, I realize that I may only be three days into the new year but I’ve already got a new line for my map and tomorrow will bring another one, along with a rubber duckie souvenir. Not a bad way to start the year.
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Tags: Air Canada, bmi, British Airways, Brussels, Dominican Republic, Embraer, FlyBE, Flying, Ghana, Guyana, LoganAir, Lufthansa, Morocco, Togo, Tunisia, Virgin Atlantic
Posted by Seth on November 22, 2010 under Trip Reports |
We were supposed to be, but that’s just not happening. Well, first we were going to be in India but those plans got derailed so then we decided to visit North Africa. A great way to ring in the Christmas and New Year times, right? We’ll spend a few nights in Morocco – an easy way to acclimate to Africa – before heading over to Oran and Algiers. Flights were rather readily available on points and the intra-Africa flights were reasonably priced and fun new airlines to experience. So what happened?
The simple answer is that we actually did some research.
It started off well enough, with bits like this:
Nestled between the Mediterranean and the steep, forested hills that form its backdrop, Algiers is a city whose rich history can be seen in its architecture, from its Moorish mosques, Ottoman-style palaces and the Kasbah, a designated UNESCO World Heritage site, to its Berber fortifications, French colonial houses and modern boulevards.
But then we discovered other gems, like this one:
Having recently emerged from a civil war, intra-Algerian violence is far from finished, and this social and political instability is a threat only magnified for tourists as a result of Algerian Islamic hardliner attacks on Western visitors. Further, women must dress and behave with oppressive religious constrictions in mind when touring most of the country.
Still, a visit is manageable, so long as one stays in safe neighborhoods, well-known hotels, and indoors come nighttime. Also, keep drinking activity confined to the hotel bar and do not inadvertently offend anyone by discussing politics. Try to avoid public transportation and narrow streets. The old city and French city boroughs are not all that safe, but the beachfront is generally alright.
Hmmm…we cannot do most of the thing that we’d normally do during a vacation, like go out or ride public transportation or get lost wandering among the random alleys and passageways in town. That sounds a bit like a deal-breaker to me. Still, we were not completely dissuaded. Indeed, we next went to my favorite bookstore in the world, Idlewild, and started looking for some print references. Maybe a guide book or two would make it seem reasonable.
Nothing. Not a single book on the shelves related to Algeria. This place is a mecca of travel literature and guides and they had nothing. Not a good sign. But they could get a book for us. The Bradt guide to Algeria was available from their distributor and could be in the next afternoon. OK, make it happen.
As I thumbed through the book, checking out various suggested itineraries and some of the “peak” attractions I came across a rather disconcerting passage. Sure, the book starts with the typical notation that the petty theft issues are no worse in Algiers than in other major cities. So long as you do not demonstrate any wealth and you keep your head down you’ll probably be OK. And then there’s the awesome line, “I was warned out of the Casbah by youths who stated that a local gang was planning to come and steal my camera.”
When that’s the sort of welcome you get that’s about where I draw the line. I suppose it is a good sign that some of the youths warned him, but I’m not so sure that’s enough to make it a safe destination.
I’m willing to experience a lot of different things. I walked through Stabroek Market in Georgetown, Guyana and even got mugged in Togo (though I did take my money back from the schmuck) and I survived both of those just fine. I’m sure we’d survive in Algeria, too. But that’s just not the type of vacation that makes for a relaxing and pleasant New Years experience. Hopefully another day.
Instead we’ll be in Tunis and Carthage, enjoying all that Tunisia has to offer.
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Posted by Seth on September 19, 2010 under Trip Reports |
As I’ve mentioned in a few previous posts, there does not appear to be much of a tourist industry in Guyana. Still, the few things that do exist are quite enjoyable. At the top of any list of things to see in Guyana must be Kaieteur Falls.
Must. Be.
The falls are situated roughly 150 miles from the capital city of Georgetown but they are a world away in terms of the environment. The vast majority of civilization in Guyana lives within 50 miles of the coast. Further inland huge swaths of the country are dedicated as national parks, protected from development and from the timber and mining industries. It is in one of these parks that Kaieteur (or Kaiteur, depending on which version you believe) Falls is located.
The falls have a single drop of 226 meters (741 feet), roughly double that of Victoria Falls and more than five times the height of Niagara Falls. Combined with its rather impressive width (roughly 113 m/370 ft.), the falls have a volume of 23,400 cubic feet/second (663 cubic meters/second). This incredible combination has Kaieteur listed as one of the largest waterfalls in the world by folks who keep such lists.
Oh, and it happens to be rather beautiful, too.
 |
| A summary of the 10 hour trip to Kaieteur Falls in just under 10 minutes |
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Posted by Seth on September 8, 2010 under Trip Reports |
Three of my four days in Guyana were spent in the capital city of Georgetown. There were a couple specific touristy things I wanted to do – see the market and the sea wall mainly – but those were not nearly involved enough to really consume my entire stay. Lacking much of any other guidance or any real semblance of a reasonable tourist infrastructure I found myself doing one of the things I do best: wandering around.
I walked several miles, criss-crossing the northwestern part of the city pretty well and getting to explore some of the less commonly seen parts of the town. Hiding out in a cafe while a storm rolled through or grabbing a healthy dose of curry at one of the scores of local shops, I managed to keep myself busy and mostly out of trouble. I shopped with a couple of the local merchants and generally had a blast.
That said, the city did present itself of multiple personalities throughout my visit. There were the moments where the market seemed like any other I’ve visited around the world – just a bunch of merchants going about their day. And there were times it seemed ready to swallow me up and spit me out, a few pounds (or dollars) lighter. There were definitely times I knew I needed to cross the street but the trouble never really followed.
There were moments that the canals which traverse Georgetown seemed serene and beautiful, nearly akin to those in cities famous for their waterways. But then the stark reality would come creeping back in. The canals in Georgetown are not there for transportation nor are the there for beauty. They are there because the city sits several feet below sea level and receives a ton of rain annually. The canals are a lifeline, allowing the city to collect the huge rainfalls and drain them out to sea at low tide. Unfortunately, however, it isn’t just the rainfall that the canals collect. They become refuse points, gathering waste of both the commercial and human varieties. They are bathing facilities as I witnessed more than once. In many cases the water stagnates, becoming a breeding ground for mosquitoes (hooray, Malarone!) and for scents that I’m quite happy I don’t commonly experience. Indeed, the canals, like everything else in town, can be both beautiful and disgusting all at once.
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Posted by Seth on September 7, 2010 under All You Can Jet, AYCJ, Trip Reports |
The first day of All You Can Jet 2010 is here and I’m flying. Not really any way things could have gone much better. Well, maybe a little bit, but not enough that I’m complaining. I woke up this morning in Guyana so that meant a bit of a later start on the AYCJ adventure for me. I actually didn’t make it back to JFK until around 1:40pm but I was through immigration and customs and inside T5, boarding pass in hand and hanging out with some old and new AYCJ friends about 45 minutes later.
I knew that I’d miss the kick-off party because of the arrival time from Guyana. Still, I held out hope that there would be a few freebies around to pick up even after the main party had dissipated. The first AYCJ item I spotted was actually outside security in the ticket counter area. One of the crewmembers had an AYCJ 2010 pin on her lanyard. I was somewhat racing past to get inside to meet people but I stopped short upon seeing the button. A bit of chatting later and we agreed to a trade: one of the extra bag tags I had (thanks, Morgan!) for her pin. A no-brainer in my mind. Deal done, I attached the pin and headed in to the terminal.
Inside I immediately went to my usual seat. In the food court there are two raised platforms. The higher one has a plethora of power outlets to go with the great views of folks coming and going in the terminal. The very first day the terminal opened I sat up there for hours soaking up the experience; I haven’t left since. Just my luck as I got up there – I spotted AYCJ legend 30DaysOnJetBlue hanging out with a few other folks. Introductions and handshakes quickly devolved into conversations of itineraries, tips and destination debates. The AYCJ community truly is one, even if very much an ad hoc one that ebbs and flows depending on who’s around at the time. The common bond – a love of travel – is a great way to meet and engage with completely random strangers.
Speaking of completely random strangers, returning from the service counter where I was trying to get my return boarding pass printed I saw an AYCJ luggage tag hanging off a red backpack attached to a tall guy walking through the food court. Community needs fresh blood to grow. Before I knew it Adam was explaining the itinerary he and his wife had mapped out. They live in Toronto and drove down to Buffalo to start their adventures. A week in California followed by Bogotá and then maybe Bermuda. I invited them to join us for more travel talk which they did eventually once they realized we knew where the power outlets were.
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Tags: Airbus, AYCJ, AYCJ2010, Bermuda, Boston, Embraer, Flying, Guyana, JetBlue, Las Vegas, New York City, Photos, Toronto, Trip Report
Posted by Seth on September 7, 2010 under Trip Reports |
Given that the entire city of Georgetown, Guyana is built along both a major river and the Atlantic Ocean, the fact that it is below water is something of a challenge for the locals. They’ve managed to do a pretty good job dealing with the problem. Houses are built up on stilts and the canals do a pretty good job of draining out the rains that come in to town. Still, with the Atlantic Ocean bearing down on you a couple canals isn’t the solution to the problem.
For the folks of Georgetown the solution is the sea wall. Essentially a huge embankment running most of the length of town, the sea wall is first and foremost a protection against the elements. But it serves another significant purpose, too. It is a gathering point for folks in town. Most days it is rather barren; with no shade to offer it is brutally hot out there. The area isn’t particularly lovely. There may be a couple folks walking by or harvesting coconuts that are washing up on the shore but it is not a particularly social scene. Lots of empty benches out there.
But as the sun goes down the area picks up some crowds. Come Sunday evening, the crowd balloons to roughly ginormous. Merchants of every type show up to hawk everything from trinkets to trampoline rides to a wide variety of food. It is the collective experience of the city moving to the coast for the evening. Benches that sit empty most every day are suddenly packed with families enjoying the sea breeze or couples out for a date.Definitely an enjoyable way to spend a couple hours on a Sunday evening.
With a rather limited number of options for true sights to see in Georgetown the sea wall is definitely worth stopping by. Just avoid it mid-day when there isn’t much to see and the weather is likely to get the best of you.
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Posted by Seth on September 6, 2010 under Trip Reports |
Want to find out what’s going on locally? Just read the newspaper. Seems simple enough and my mother has been doing it for years as she travels but, for some reason, I never really took to the habit. Still, sitting in a cafe having brunch on Saturday afternoon I spotted a copy of the Stabroek News, one of the local papers here, on a table. I grabbed it and started flipping through. Mostly typical stories that reminded me why I don’t read newspapers – crime, corruption & scandal aren’t really my thing – but there was also a story in the sports section about a local basketball league. The story was not particularly exciting – just the results from the game a couple days prior – but it also included a note about another match being played that night. All of a sudden I had plans for the evening.
Shortly before game time, just as the sun was setting, I made my way over to the partially renovated Burnham Basketball Courts. Named for the first Prime Minister of the independent Guyana, the courts approximated what we had in the parks near my house growing up. Not particularly great facilities, but that doesn’t stop this league from playing ball. They’ve had some lights installed and there is a set of bleachers that can seat a couple hundred if they were willing to be close enough together that they’d all be stuck to each other because of the humidity. This night there were roughly 100 folks in the bleachers and another couple dozen surrounding the court on all sides. Many of the spectators fancied themselves coaches or referees and then cheers, jeers and other comments from the crowd were equally entertaining to the quality of ball being played.
Apparently I missed the better of the two games; the late matchup was somewhat higher quality according to what I could figure from the conversations around me. Still, getting to see a bit of the local scene in that was was rather enjoyable. I even managed to grab a couple photos, though the incredibly dark court made it rather difficult to catch anything resembling motion cleanly.
Overall, quite the enjoyable way to pass a few hours on a Saturday night in Georgetown, Guyana.
Posted by Seth on September 3, 2010 under Trip Reports |
Local markets are the heart of a city. Particularly in areas where the concept of the supermarket or Super Wal*Mart hasn’t yet caught on, the local market fills the gap, providing access to a little bit of everything. From toilet paper to clothes to shoes to vegetables to meat and beyond, the Stabroek Market in Georgetown, Guyana represents that role in the city.
Starting with its iconic clock tower, a view that dominates what little there is of a skyline in Georgetown and which does not appear to actually reflect the current time on any of its faces, and moving down to ground level, there is plenty to see and experience in the market. There are secondary markets that have sprouted up outside the main building, overflowing into the parking lot that also serves as the main bus station for local service in Georgetown. Merchants outside are selling many of the same products that are available inside, with a focus on consumer goods (CDs, clothing, etc.) and produce.
There were also a few merchants hawking fish of various persuasions. Given that Georgetown is right on the Atlantic I actually had expected a bit more of the marine life to be on sale but what it was lacking in volume was made up in presentation. Bunches of crabs, still alive and tied together hanging on the barrel was pretty cool to see.
After making a couple laps outside the market I headed inside. While several sources suggest great caution inside the market area, I did not experience any troubles or ever even feel uneasy about the space. Maybe I’m more alert following the Togo experience I had but even when I took my camera out to snap a few photos I didn’t feel like I was being sized up unusually by the locals. Certainly keep your wits about you and pay attention, but don’t skip out on the experience out of fear of what’s going on inside.
Inside was rather different than out. There was a greater variety of products being sold, including a pretty decent collection of butchers offering halal meats. The inside also has a collection of restaurants along the southern wall. Curries of a wide variety were available and reasonably tasty and priced. I paid less than GYD 1000 (~USD $5) for a large plate of rice & dahl along with mutton curry and a red soda (really, I had to order by color, not flavor).
There aren’t a whole lot of tourist opportunities in Georgetown. A trip to Stabroek Market is a great way to spend a couple hours just soaking up the local culture and watching the heart of the city beat on.
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Posted by Seth on September 3, 2010 under Trip Reports |
It is a nearly universal fact of life: Flight delays suck. And yet, as I sat in the Delta SkyClub last night waiting for my flight to depart, I could not have been happier about the delay of DL 164 from New York City’s JFK airport to Dublin. Originally scheduled to depart at 10:40pm, the flight left nearly two hours late, at 12:34am the next morning. Why should I care? After all, I arrived this morning in Georgetown, Guyana, not Dublin, Ireland. Actually, that’s exactly why I care.
It turns out that Delta doesn’t really think that the couple very late night departures they have out of JFK – namely Bogata and Georgetown – really need lounge access. The Dublin flight is actually the last flight out every night that rates lounge access. On most days the lounge would be closing up right as I got to the airport, three hours prior to my flight. Instead, I got to enjoy the rather nicely renovated facility for a couple hours beyond its normal operating hours, complete with a couple free drinks and all the Biscoffs I could handle.
So, yeah, I was cheering on that flight delay. Didn’t make me too many friends in the lounge as the Dublin passengers came and went three different times when they thought their flight would be boarding, but I made out just fine.
