Travel Planning

Packing for Cold Weather in China – Carry On Edition

Packing for a trip to China’s Western Sichuan province has been challenging. Most of the trip will be at altitudes over 3000m – in mid-late October the temperatures are looking at  zero to mid teens centigrade.  Not warm at all.  Plus I want to  carry just my carry-on sized 45l backpack and a smaller day…

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Best Currency Card for Travel

UPDATED August 2019  Often living in a small country at the end of the world is advantageous. But  not when you are looking for a great deal on cards to use when travelling.  Americans and Europeans have heaps of options for cash-back, point-hacks etc etc. New Zealand not so much. Until very, very recently we…

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Wellington Train Station

East Coast USA Itinerary – Well an Outline Anyway!

Starting to get excited now – I know living in the “now” is a big thing is some corners of the Interwebs – but I love to dream and plan! It’s a cold, wet and miserable  Maundy Thursday as I write this, and we will be locking the door behind us on Easter Sunday –…

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Singapore Changi Airport Pool

7 Tips for Stress Free Travel Flying – For Those of Us Who Can’t Afford Business!

This is a bit of a rant disguised as useful information – I just read a well-known travel blogger’s  take on stress-free travel. It all sounded very chill so long as you can afford priority access through security, lounge access and business class. Back in the real world, I don’t waste money of flights, I’m…

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Christmas Markets, Berlin

Travelling At Christmas – How To Survive

I’ve spent many Christmases away from home. The most memorial one’s probably include: spending most of the day on flights from New Zealand to India;  to the first time I spent Christmas in Australia – in Sydney; many years later spending Christmas in the middle of the Nullabor Plain; Christmas Eve in Singapore before flying to Hanoi…

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Model Railway, Hobart

2013 Vacation Plans – Where To Go?

I have a bit of a reputation I think. As soon as we got back from Burma, the first question people were asking was, when are you off again? Where’s the next trip to? Well frankly I’m not sure, but never one to stay at home too long I thought I’d see what was being…

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Camping Gear: Camping Lights

I’m going to do a series of posts looking at the type of gear you need to take with you to make camping comfortable when out exploring in you 4wD. As they say – any fool can be uncomfortable camping!To me there are 3 main types of lighting needs you need to consider: General Camp…

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Think like a Buyer to Sell a Vehicle in a Hurry

I intend in the future to do into the details of buying and selling paperwork in the various states of Australia, but today I found Dave’s post where he’s just sold his car in the States.Its always stressful when you are need to sell an expensive asset in a limited time frame. You might need…

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How much will a budget trip around Australia cost? Part 1: Day to Day Costs

The key costs I split into setup (capital if you will) and running costs (day to day budget). Obviously you need the money to buy gear and the vehicle up front but hope to get most of this back at the end of the trip. There is an old saying in Australia, “any idiot can…

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Explore Australia by 4WD

I thought I would do an occasional series of book reviews of books, maps and other gear that is of interest to those wanting to get off-road.Explore Australia by 4WD by Craig Lewis and Cathy Savage describes over 25,000 kilometers of remote tracks with detailed route directions and GPS readings. .It doesn’t include the main…

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