7 Tips on How to Be a Real Traveller

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Tuk tuk village on Samosir Island, Lake Toba, Indonesia

Are you sick of being wrongly classified as a tourist? Not getting the recognition for travelling that you feel you deserve? Study these tips on how to be a real traveller and all your dreams will come true.

Constantly one-up everyone you talk to

Is someone telling a boring story about how they went on a safari in Africa? This is your chance to tell them, and anyone within listening distance, about the time you also did one, but instead of doing it in a truck you walked, and instead of staying in a lodge you stayed in a hut in a tribal village, and instead of being yourself you mysteriously morphed into an African for 2 days.

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Searching For Crocodiles at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, Singapore

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Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, Kranji, Singapore

You might think it’s crazy to search for crocodiles at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve in Singapore, but recent evidence might get you thinking…

Exhibit A: A wild elephant swims over from Malaysia and ends up on Pulau Ubin.

Exhibit B: Locals (also on Pulau Ubin), report sightings of a tiger prowling the island. While never verified, experts claim Pulau Ubin is within swimming range of Malaysia for a tiger.

It’s not much of a stretch then that a crocodile, a creature whose bread and butter is actually swimming (and eating, and fighting snakes) could swim over from the wilds of Malaysia and make its home in the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve. It wouldn’t be the first Malaysian to cross the border in search of better wages and a more comfortable standard of living, and with this thought in mind I started my search. I actually had no idea there might be crocodiles lurking until I saw sign after sign warning people about them. I’d received my challenge and was determined to spot one in the wild.

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Why I Should Be the First Travel Blogger in Space

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Hello NASA, Richard Branson and anyone else who might be reading this; I’m Jon, and although I might not seem like the ideal candidate to be shot into space for tourism (or scientific) purposes, I’m about to outline why I’d be an invaluable part of any future space crew.

I like monkeys

Based on a small amount of research (Planet of the Apes and space race documentaries) it seems as though space is crawling with monkeys. Chances are these monkeys have become hostile, so someone who shows them a little bit of respect and understanding could be very important.

I have seen pretty much every space movie

Who needs years of training, endless flight simulators and strict psych tests when I’ve already lived vicariously through every possible space disaster. I basically know how to space walk, fix broken antennas, attack enemy ships with lasers and listen to George Clooney’s pointless stories. I’ve learnt how to guide an Apollo rocket back to Earth and I know what it takes to journey into the sun.

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8 Travel Terms and Trends that are Starting to Annoy Me

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Little things annoy me, they always have. I started my travel blog nearly 4 months ago and it’s been an interesting experience. I love most things about it, and I’ve interacted with some great people so far, but the travel blogging world (and the wider travel world) is home to some fairly annoying terms and trends, and I can’t bite my tongue any longer.

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Galle Fort, Sri Lanka: Strolling Through Time

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The old colonial town in Galle, on Sri Lanka's west coast

Sri Lanka has had a colourful history when it comes to being colonized. The Portuguese, Dutch and English all had a crack, and all left an indelible mark on the culture and landscape of the country formally known as Ceylon. This history really comes to life in colonial Galle, a small Dutch-built town within an … Read more

10 Fictional Film Planets I Would Love to Travel to

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I think I was born too early. In 1000 years there will probably be someone just like me, reading a Lonely Galaxy guidebook and planning a galactic trip to remote planets. Until then I have to rely on movies to explore other worlds. Here are some fictional film planets that would be at the top of my space-travel list.

Fhloston (or Fhloston Paradise):The Fifth Element (1997)

Looking more like a Pacific island cruise destination than an alien planet, Fhloston looks like the ideal getaway from the annoyances of everyday life, that is unless you are situated in the vicinity of Ruby Rhod, the most over-the-top radio DJ known to man.  Fhloston apparently has 400 beaches (not many for a whole planet) and if you are lucky you could see a weird, blue alien singing opera.

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