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Old Jan 18, 2014, 6:22 am
  #211  
 
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hauteboy / deepbluesky, how did you travel around the islands of the South Pacific? My girlfriend will be working in Adelaide this year and I think it's a good time for me to check out that area. Any airfare or ferry deals that allow for island hopping? I've spent a lot of time googling and searching FT but haven't come up with much yet!
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Old Jan 18, 2014, 12:29 pm
  #212  
 
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South Pacific is still a big hole for me other than Tonga that I visited on the QEII 15 years ago. No ferries that I know of. So it is down to basing in Fiji and doing side trips from there. Or the occasional special($$) cruise
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Old Jan 18, 2014, 2:10 pm
  #213  
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Originally Posted by Baldpacker
hauteboy / deepbluesky, how did you travel around the islands of the South Pacific? My girlfriend will be working in Adelaide this year and I think it's a good time for me to check out that area. Any airfare or ferry deals that allow for island hopping? I've spent a lot of time googling and searching FT but haven't come up with much yet!
There isn't really a cheap way and the best airfares generally either require local residence, or back-tracking via Auckland to go from one island to another.
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Old Jan 18, 2014, 5:50 pm
  #214  
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Originally Posted by Bloodshot2k
Theres a huge difference between just going to a country and really spending the time to see and learn the cultures in each. Are you guys just skimming it to put another notch under ur belt? Some countries you need at least a werk to few weeks to really see it.
It depends - after a day - you ve seen San Marino.

On the other hand, stopping for a day in Ulaanbator, how can one claim that as 'been' to Mongolia.
Flying into Kish island doesnt really qualify as "been" to Iran - but some may add that to their "list". In the end its about your personal desires as youve said.

As for chasing goals - I am now at a point where really there are few more places that I really have a burning desire to visit (after North Korea this year) - next year will probably only add 2 or 3 new countries, but still plan on using my entire 13-14 weeks vacation.

At 34, I no longer have as much freedom (or time) to travel as much as I did 5 years ago even. I guess I could aim for 150 next. But it may take a couple years.
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Old Jan 18, 2014, 8:47 pm
  #215  
 
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Originally Posted by Baldpacker
Yea, I just started following his travels. Interesting journey for sure. As I'm researching the list more I can see the $$$ adding up.
I was looking at Lee's latest trip to Antarctica, a 10 day trip that cost $US70k!!! (Although sounds like he got a portion of it refunded after it went to custard).
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Old Jan 18, 2014, 8:57 pm
  #216  
 
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Originally Posted by DanielW
I was looking at Lee's latest trip to Antarctica, a 10 day trip that cost $US70k!!! (Although sounds like he got a portion of it refunded after it went to custard).
Yep... and I was seriously debating taking that trip. Good thing I didn't as it went tits up. Though my latest trip did too.. though it was about $65k cheaper...
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Old Jan 18, 2014, 9:09 pm
  #217  
 
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Originally Posted by hauteboy
Yep... and I was seriously debating taking that trip. Good thing I didn't as it went tits up. Though my latest trip did too.. though it was about $65k cheaper...
An attempted coup is definitely more interesting than bad weather and a VVIP holding things up too.

Originally Posted by rankourabu
It depends - after a day - you ve seen San Marino.

On the other hand, stopping for a day in Ulaanbator, how can one claim that as 'been' to Mongolia.
I remember reading about the English guy who 'visited' every country without flying. Going to the DMZ counted as visiting North Korea (i.e. in the building that straddles the border), and talking to a border guard on the Bhutan border counted also. He also waded half-way across some river bordering Russia, until his GPS showed he was on Russian 'soil'. Guinness records called him out on that one though (since it was illegal entry).
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Old Jan 18, 2014, 9:22 pm
  #218  
 
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Originally Posted by hauteboy
South Pacific is still a big hole for me other than Tonga that I visited on the QEII 15 years ago. No ferries that I know of. So it is down to basing in Fiji and doing side trips from there. Or the occasional special($$) cruise
Originally Posted by Kiwi Flyer
There isn't really a cheap way and the best airfares generally either require local residence, or back-tracking via Auckland to go from one island to another.
Thanks for that. I'll have to look for cheap flights out of Fiji or Auckland from the soudns of it!

Originally Posted by DanielW
I was looking at Lee's latest trip to Antarctica, a 10 day trip that cost $US70k!!! (Although sounds like he got a portion of it refunded after it went to custard).
Yikes! For $70k I think I'd rather spend 2-3 years living on the beach of some third world country. I'm going to have to read more about his adventure though!

Originally Posted by DanielW
I remember reading about the English guy who 'visited' every country without flying. Going to the DMZ counted as visiting North Korea (i.e. in the building that straddles the border), and talking to a border guard on the Bhutan border counted also. He also waded half-way across some river bordering Russia, until his GPS showed he was on Russian 'soil'. Guinness records called him out on that one though (since it was illegal entry).
I read a newspaper article about this guy and was trying to figure it out how he did it. So many countries are impossible to get into over land borders that I could't believe it. It was still a very impressive journey though.

I'll be heading to the DMZ in February and am going to add it to my country list as North Korea* (the * to be removed once I visit North Korea proper!)
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Old Jan 19, 2014, 7:15 am
  #219  
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Originally Posted by Baldpacker

I'll be heading to the DMZ in February and am going to add it to my country list as North Korea* (the * to be removed once I visit North Korea proper!)
ok now thats a stretch, worse than counting Kish Island as having gone to Iran, or talking to a border guard .... Just go to NK - its so easy to do!

Illegal entries dont count? Scratch Angola off my list then
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Old Jan 19, 2014, 7:51 am
  #220  
 
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Originally Posted by rankourabu
ok now thats a stretch, worse than counting Kish Island as having gone to Iran, or talking to a border guard .... Just go to NK - its so easy to do!

Illegal entries dont count? Scratch Angola off my list then
A lot of his 'entries' were questionable where he didn't have a visa or go through immigration. Sao Tome, Belarus, Russia, Cape Verde, etc...

Though they would be valid according to my friend's criterea 'if you can be arrested there, you've visited there'. And he got arrested in Cape Verde and Congo.
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Old Jan 19, 2014, 9:20 am
  #221  
 
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Originally Posted by rankourabu
ok now thats a stretch, worse than counting Kish Island as having gone to Iran, or talking to a border guard .... Just go to NK - its so easy to do!
I will....that's why I said the * to be removed once I visit NK proper. Same goes for if I go to Kish Island, I'll add Iran* to my list until I visit Iran proper.
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Old Jan 19, 2014, 8:19 pm
  #222  
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Originally Posted by ironmanjt
This has no place here....nobody needs to criticize how others travel out of jealousy.
Define jealousy...?
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Old Jan 20, 2014, 3:17 am
  #223  
 
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Originally Posted by rankourabu
Illegal entries dont count? Scratch Angola off my list then
wow..that must be a story. Plus hopefully saving good bucks for their visa.
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Old Jan 20, 2014, 3:35 am
  #224  
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Originally Posted by rankourabu
ok now thats a stretch, worse than counting Kish Island as having gone to Iran, or talking to a border guard .... Just go to NK - its so easy to do!

Illegal entries dont count? Scratch Angola off my list then
So I have to push back!

Why not Kish? Just because it is a SAR?
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Old Jan 21, 2014, 10:11 am
  #225  
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Originally Posted by MatthewLAX
So I have to push back!

Why not Kish? Just because it is a SAR?
Count it if you like. Its your list.

But would you say going to Hong Kong will count as China?
Or going to Gibraltar as having gone to the UK?
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