Dan created this blog to document his South America trip, which covered every country on the continent and lasted over two years. He currently lives in Madison, WI.
Ruwan Perera hosted Katie and me at his home near Colombo, Sri Lanka. While we were there, Ruwan was also hosting a couple of tattoo artists from Ukraine. They asked Ruwan if he would like a tattoo in exchange for hosting them, and he said yes. In our podcast, Ruwan discusses getting his first tattoo, as well as some of the history of his country, and the importance of Couchsurfing and similar networks in this age of modern travel.
I met Ondrej and Nina at a guesthouse near the southernmost point of Sri Lanka. They both have become obsessed with surfing, so that factored into a large part of our discussion. And, I must admit, the beach we were staying on was perfect for beginner surfers. If only we could avoid the sunburn, we might still be there.
The earthquake that caused the 2004 tsunami happened at 6:30 AM in Sri Lanka, and the actual tsunami hit two hours later. It killed upwards of 280,000 people, including 35,000 in Sri Lanka. Aldo, the Italian man I met on the Amazon, told me that he had gotten up early that morning to go for a walk. He survived by clinging to a tree. Several people in his hotel were still sleeping and were killed when the tsunami struck.
I met Chris Hunter in a hostel dorm room in Kandy, Sri Lanka. Chris has lived in Berlin for most of his life, though he also spent five years in India and several years in San Francisco during his youth. Needless to say, he's an experienced traveler, full of knowledge. We discussed some of the places he knows well, and some of the ways in which travel has changed during his life.
Pigeon speak-easies, Muay Thai fighting, and more!
Last week at a job fair in Bangkok, Thailand, I met a number of interesting characters. Among them was Patrick Robert Scott, a travel writer who is journeying across southeast Asia for the first time. We talked about his recent adventures, as well as some interesting experiences in other parts of the world.
Here's an example of a Muay Thai pre-match ritual dance. Interesting how one guy just stands there, trying not to look preoccupied, while the other one is preforming the elaborate dance.
Jerome Hulin and I met in the small town of Jagna, on Bohol Island in the Philippines. He's a world traveler and a freediving instructor. I knew next-to-nothing about his underwater passion when I met him. He was gracious enough to sit down with me and talk about the sport of freediving in great detail. Whether you're an avid freediver or simply interested in learning more, buckle up and get ready for a great podcast.
Jerome's friends run a company called Apnea Sailing. Highly recommended if you are in the area.
And if you want to listen to a freediving podcast, you can check out Freedive Cafe.
Here's a video of a Filipino diver from the Badjao tribe. His methods aren't honed in the same way that Western freedivers' are, but damn, this is impressive to watch.
And here's a video of a guy diving to 145 meters. Totally insane!
On this episode, my wife Katie and I talk about our time bicycling in Taiwan. We go over all of the highs and lows of our trip, as well as the unique cultural aspects we discovered on this small island.
As usual, you can get more info about my new book on Amazon.
My guest for today is David Shand, from South Africa. We met in his adopted home of Chishang, Taiwan and chatted ceaselessly about random topics for two days. This podcast contains a snippet of those conversations.
Even as the threat of war builds, wildlife is flourishing in the DMZ. National Geographic has a great series of photos from the most dangerous part of the Earth.
Atomic bombs use fission, whereas hydrogen bombs use fusion. USA Today offers a longer explanation.
Here's a video of the toilet faucet that I talked about during the podcast. Genius!
How do you take a crap in Japan? I often felt lost, just like in this video:
One more toilet related link. Freakonomics did a podcast a few years called Time to Take Back the Toilet. Many of these problems have already been solved in Japan.
Yes, the Japanese government really issued an apology when a bullet train left 20 seconds early. Imagine Amtrak doing that.
And now for a few of my pictures from Japan:
We rode the Su Zhou Hao ferry for two days from Shanghai to Osaka.
First stop: Osaka, a foodie's paradise.
We found this heron at the Ritsurin gardens in Takamatsu.
One day we stumbled upon the Old Konpira, the oldest kabuki theater in Japan.
We saw plenty of rice fields while riding across Shikoku Island.
Many of the islands were connected by bridges...
…And other islands had an amazing ferry network connecting them.
Miyamoto the mask maker invited us to stay in his house one night.
Our trip would not be complete without a visit to the Great Torii on Miyajima Island.
Sento (public baths) and Onsen (hot springs) were a big part of our trip. Staying clean and relaxing our aching muscles proved easy, even while bicycle touring.
We also visited many temples. This one featured the oldest Buddha statue in Japan, created in 609 AD.
And of course, the we experienced peak fall colors season. The maple trees had a wild array of yellows, oranges and reds.
This book picks up shortly after Book 1 left off (in case you missed Book 1, you can find it here).
Here's the synopsis:
Dan Perry is living his dream. He quit his job, sold his stuff and bought a one-way ticket for Peru. He spent the next ten months traveling around South America, before flying home to attend his brother's wedding. But he's not ready to settle down. He's got a lot more traveling left to do.
While he's at home, Dan buys a tent, a small stove and two pots. Together with the rest of his camping gear and camera equipment, he's ready for any adventure that comes his way. Or so he thinks.
Shortly after returning to South America, Dan learns the hard way that it's not a good idea to cook using diesel. He's a little older, not much wiser.
Dan later reunites with his Australian friend Craig. Together, they take a 1000-mile boat ride down the Amazon River, climb a tabletop mountain, hang out with Guyanese gold miners, trek to the highest single-drop waterfall in the world and build a raft out of bamboo. Dan gets deep into his adventure when he spends a month walking a puma through the Bolivian jungle. Afterward, he returns to the Andes for one of the biggest challenges of his life.
1000 Days Between Part 2 is the continued adventure of a man who left his high-paying job to embark on the adventure of a lifetime. When will he stop traveling? Only time will tell.
Thank you so much for your support. I'm really looking forward to hearing your feedback!
