Seeing The Top Of The World And Dodging Death By Rhinoceros In Nepal
Keeping it real, Kathmandu is a shithole. I never get headaches, except when in Kathmandu. The air quality is terrible, not to mention the place recently got hit by a massive 7.8 magnitude earthquake, and it wasn’t the prettiest of cities to begin with. But that makes sense. Nepal is a country of contrast. This…
Partying in the Arctic: A Trip to The Far, Far North Of Norway
I’m not in need of a Norwegian passport. But if I was ultra-motivated to pick one up and it meant spending seven years living within the Arctic Circle, I would be ready and willing to migrate… to Svalbard. Situated above the 70th parallel north, Svalbard is farther north than Antarctica (at least the part I visited)…
Exploring A Long-Lost Nazi Civilization in Antarctica
I didn’t just go to Antarctica for bragging rights or to see penguins (You already know I love animals). I was on a mission to discover a long-lost Nazi civilization in a part of the world to which few ever venture. The destination was New Swabia, or Neuschwabenland, named after the German territory of Schwabenland.…
Going Rogue as a Traveler in Nagorno-Karabakh
Even though I became a stateless man several years ago, I had never been kicked out of a country. That changed on this trip to a hotly disputed and, at times, fought-over territory in the South Caucasus. As a stateless man, it is only fitting for me to travel to places where no state exists,…
Betting Against My Country In China’s Gambling Mecca
Recently you learned that I love animals and someday when I grow old I may be a zookeeper, or rather a zoo owner. Now it is time for you to learn about another hidden passion of mine. This one has a bit of a darker side to it and could be characterized as a dangerous…
Being The Outlier In The Outback — Going Back To Backpacking
Once upon a time, I was a backpacker. I slept in hostels, partied with young travelers and quietly built an internationalization brand in between sightseeing time and nights at the club. Even though I had global (tax-free) business ambitions, I still fit in. Those days have come and gone. That doesn’t mean I must always…
Visiting Pitcairn: Life With The Modern-Day Mutineers On The World’s Most Mysterious Island
Have you ever gone on vacation and stayed in the home of a mayor-turned- … wait for it… wait for it… convicted child rapist?! That’s right. My host was the mayor, and now he is a convicted child rapist. Better yet, he is a direct descendant of the Bounty mutineers, and more than two…
Overcoming Phonebreak On Magnificent Mangareva
It was just supposed to be a stopover on the way to the ultra-isolated Pitcairn Island. Mangareva was where my French Polynesia trip would come to an end and I would brace for my encounter with the descendants of the Bounty mutineers in Pitcairn, the most difficult to reach territory in the world. Entering my…
Dodging German-Eating Cannibals In The Marquesas Islands
Cannibals? They still exist? They eat Germans? They prey on tourists in French Polynesia? No one seems to know exactly what happened. It was 2011. A German tourist named Stefan Ramin was on an exotic trip around the world with his girlfriend. Ramin died after going on an excursion with his girlfriend and a local…
Going Wine Tasting In The Tropics
Having met the seasteaders in Tahiti, Roadstered around Moorea and summited my future honeymoon destination of Bora Bora, I moved on to lesser-known islands for the second half of my French Polynesia trip. Have no worry… the fun will come. Following a pleasant flight that involved no TSA hassles — or any airport security procedures…
Honeymooning with my laptop in Bora Bora
I have yet to find my bride, but I have already found my honeymoon location. In fact, I have already honeymooned there. Some people say to reward yourself first and the desired result will come. The idea is that if you get a taste of what you want in life — even if you are…
Racing through Moorea
Tahiti is famous. Couples dream of vacationing or honeymooning in Tahiti. The island, with its rugged interior surrounded by Polynesian beaches, makes for a great getaway destination. The fact that it is the seasteading capital of the world makes it even better. But when beauty beckons, it comes from the next island over. On my…
Meeting the Seasteaders in Tahiti
The road to the seasteaders of Tahiti was a long, wet, windy one. Well, not exactly. But the road to the hotel was. It was also dark, and I had not driven in four months, let alone in the middle of a rainstorm. Kicking off my excursion into French Polynesia, I landed in Tahiti, where…
Flirting with the Moais on Rapa Nui
Love can be expressed in a multitude of ways. In Latin America, the chicas — and their relentless passion and expressiveness — can bring out the eros in me. The German tendencies inside me subside, and I embrace touch and physical forms of expression. And due to a recent discovery, even more eros has been…
Going Anarchist In A Mexican Danger Zone
It is a level 4 danger zone. “Armed groups operate independently of the government in many areas of Guerrero. Members of these groups frequently maintain roadblocks and may use violence towards travelers,” the U.S. State Department says. The U.S. government instructs its citizens not to visit the Mexican state of Guerrero, the location of the…
Cruising California Topless
California dreaming. You’ve heard it. Many people live it. All over the world, especially in cold places, there are people who dream or occasionally fantasize of moving to California and rubbing shoulders with the stars. I don’t. It’s a tax hell. But that doesn’t stop me, as a perpetually traveling, tax-free, anarchocapitalist global citizen, from…
Getting The Drug Criminal Treatment On The Way To Peru
I’m not necessarily against drug use. I am a libertarian, and I believe people should be able to do what they want with their bodies. But, I didn’t have any drugs on me, nor did anyone else on my bus, including the one hippy-looking guy. That didn’t stop the Ecuadorian police from stopping us over…
Babes And Babushkas In Odessa, Ukraine
We thought it was an English-speaking club. My travel buddies and I had already attended one English practice meetup in Odessa and days prior another one in Transnistria, the unrecognized country that broke away from Moldova. Departing our beach area apartment, we walked to the center of Odessa and found a semi-random guy waiting for…
Libertarians Gone Wild In Prague
Prague is the modern European capital of hedonism. Whether you want to score some drugs from a friendly street salesman or after-party at a club that opens at 6 a.m., Prague has you covered. While this doesn’t represent my day-to-day, everyone needs to let loose once in a while and what better time to have…
Dodging Authorities In An Unrecognized Country
When you are attempting to enter a country that does not formally exist, you might figure that you will encounter some problems. Maybe the Soviet-styled border guards will not like that you are traveling with an American in your group. Maybe they will demand a bribe before granting passage. Neither of those issues surfaced when…
My 5-Day Viennese Birthday Party
I outgrew birthday parties before my perpetual traveling career began. But before my 27th birthday, I decided to bring them back. Now I celebrate my birthday with 5-day parties. In all seriousness, it’s an event that is needed, and I am just using my birthday as an excuse to put it on. The month was…