A brief stopover in Bratislava has been just the ticket as an introduction to Slovakia. The capital is noticeable for the slower pace of life and laid back attitude of the locals compared to neighbouring countries. Although it seems the Slovakians are reserved I recommend experiencing this relaxed lifestyle in a small city of 440,000 inhabitants. There are just over 5,000,000 people that inhabit the country of Slovakia. The Velvet Revolution in Prague bought down the communist regime in 1989 and the Slovak parliament voted to declare sovereignty from the former Czechoslovakia, thereby becoming an independent country in 1993. When arriving in Bratislava the Soviet era apartment blocks on the outskirts of the city provide a stark reminder of the…

The demise of the Soviet Union has led to extraordinary changes within the former Eastern Bloc in the last twenty years or so. Following on from an effortless bus commute out of Vienna, a cursory glance at my passport was all it took before being stamped into Hungary en route to the capital Budapest. The journey from Vienna to Budapest is a little over 200 kilometres by road, yet the contrast in heading from west to east is not that noticeable, due to the massive economic advances made since the Republic of Hungary was declared in 1990. Hungary has since gone on to become one of the ten newest member states of the European Union after the results of a…

The first port of call for my European holiday is wonderful Germany, and the flight from Sydney arrived smack bang in the middle of the world famous Oktoberfest. I touched down in the commercial hub of Frankfurt, and then boarded a Deutsche Bahn down to Munich to join in the celebrations. The city was absolutely heaving and many Germans opted for traditional Bavarian costumes, with the frauleins an absolute stand out in traditional low cut tops as part of their colourful dresses. The guys featured a range of colourful hats to match their suede shorts, including frothing litre glasses and beer kegs on their nogguns. The festival is great fun although some of the revellers were feeling the worse for…

The change of seasons is dramatic in North America, constant reader. Spring is upon us and there is a tangible bounce in the step of the locals, who must feel like bears emerging from hibernation in spite of the substantial snow covering still on the ground. The travel journal continues from Quebec City, with the weather warming up for my lover and I as we enjoyed a weekend going out and meeting her friends. The restaurant food was superb, the city was a picture and the Quebecers I met were generous and friendly. However it was soon time to move on and south is the new plan. I had a great time and wish to extend many thanks to my…

I feel privileged to be posting this journal from Canada, dear reader, while enjoying my first visit to this wonderful country. While on the road Canadians have always held a special place in my heart, and they share with Australians a spirit of fun and adventure that ensures they are always excellent travel companions. Now I'm pleased to report I can finally dispense with the worn out travellers line that I would love to visit your country. Here I am and very glad to be in the country that was narrowly beaten into third position in the recently completed 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, just behind Germany and the United States in the overall medal tally. Although the men's ice…

We battled through the snowstorm in Maine while driving to a social function. In the car my sister, her husband and I were frantically trying to stay warm before making a dash through the driving snow and into the venue. We awoke the next morning to find the whole neighbourhood blanketed in nine inches of perfect snow, providing a beautiful backdrop with an outside air temperature of minus 17 degrees celsius. Wait a minute ... was this some kind of vivid dream? I'm from Australia and I've never experienced anything like this before! But that's one of the joys of travelling and has become my new life for a time, as I visit family in the gorgeous Maine suburb of…

The passengers were ushered through immigration in Cancun like VIP´s after we arrived back from Havana. The return flight was fun as I bumped into an Aussie guy from a hostel in Guatemala, and we had an animated debrief of our respective travel experiences in Cuba. From Cancun I organised a bus to the famous Mayan ruins of Palenque where I spent an engrossing morning exploring, taking photos and meditating at this wonderful sight in a peaceful setting. I then pushed on to the quality Backpackers hostel in the gorgeous colonial town of San Cristobal, where I effortlessly slotted back into the backpacker scene. The difference was striking as I had been spending all my time with Cubans of late,…

The flight from Cancun to Havana took one hour, but experiencing Cuba in 2006 is like flying into another world. It feels like you're entering a museum amidst a visual explosion of once in a lifetime travel sights and experiences. Where else, for example, can you catch a taxi ride in a 1948 Dodge as you can in downtown Havana? Ah Cuba; the rhythm, the rum, the salsa dancing, the music and the beautiful Cubana chicas, the rum (¿did I already mention that?), the havana cigars, the colonial buildings and the fiestas by night. There's a good chance you will have the travel experience of a lifetime in Cuba, but the initiation can be quite challenging. This is because Cubans…

The country is the home of tequila slammers, the sombrero, guitar playing singers to serenade us, tacos and burritos, and of course corona beers with a slice of lime. Where else but fabulous Mexico, and it's wonderful to be back here after an absence of too many years. I previously visited Baja California twenty years ago, but now I'm on the other side of the country visiting the yucatan peninsula, for a sticky beak at the world famous resort towns that line the coast. The yucatan is by far the most popular destination for tourists in Mexico, and is often described as not the real Mexico. However the gulf coast is indeed the real deal ... it's the big time,…

Guess who's back on the caribbean coast again, dear reader, with the rasta cats feeling bless-ed man? Yes that's right, it's your intrepid travel journalist happy to post this entry from Belize. Within a minute of arriving at the bus terminal in Belize City I walked around the corner and saw two local women; one of whom approached with outstretched arms, missing teeth but a winning smile and said to me ¨Hey baby, come to mama!¨ Well, that sure was an interesting opening gambit. So anyways, I go a little further down the street towards the marine terminal, and give some skin when offered by a rasta cat who was chilling with his brothers. The cat glances at my face…