open mind, empty stomach
travel, food, and fun
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Author: open mind, empty stomach
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Bologna was my first CouchSurfing experience and still stands out as one of the best. This was due in no small part to my incredible host Valentina. She ended up moving to Mojokerto, Indonesia to teach English for six months. Vale has since left, but let me know to drop by and visit the little…
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While Bali isn’t anywhere near the size of Java, it’s not a tiny island either and there is much more to it than just Denpasar. I rented a motorbike for 50,000 IDR per day (about $5) and my CouchSurfing host, Nina drove us to spend a couple days on Bali’s north shore. The drive took…
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“Bromo?” “Bromo?” “You want see Bromo?” From the moment I arrived in Probolinggo until I boarded the bus to leave, I was constantly bombarded with offers to see Bromo. Mount Bromo is one of Indonesia’s top tourist destinations and the nearby town of Probolinggo is the staging area for most visitors. Locals know what draws…
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Eat, Pray, Love features this little Balinese town located about 45 minutes north of Denpasar. I haven’t seen the film, but I’m thinking at least a few of the hundreds of foreigners occupying the town have. The Jetstar in-flight preview for Bali highlighted Ubud as a small, quiet, peaceful place of beauty that features terraced…
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Bali has a bad rap. The Indonesian island is known as a bastian for bogans (Australian for redneck), with an Australian dying in Bali every 9 days. While Kuta is the epicenter of the madness, the tourist imprint definitely extends to the rest of the island. The capital, Denpassar, has significantly less foreign visitors and…
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I like pork. A lot. I’m also a huge fan of spicy food; the spicier, the better. I avoid superlatives and cannot tell you my favorite cuisine, nor can I name my favorite dish, BUT Balinese food (and Babi Guling) is definitely up there. My 8 days in Bali were a pork fueled spice fest…
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Lina, “Do you want to wake up at 3 am for babi guling?” Me, “YES!!!” When we arrived just before 4:30 am, most of the other patrons were already finishing their meals. Tucked away in an alleyway off of a side street about a 40 minute drive from Denpasar, this tiny little purveyor of pork…
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Like many people, I was aware of modern day Australia’s roots as a penal colony for the British Empire. What I didn’t know was that out of the 165,000 convicts transported to The Land Down Under (where women glow and men plunder), tiny little Tasmania received 75,000. Most of the convicts were released to live…
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In addition to connecting me with hosts in Launceston and Hobart, friend and Tassie native, Edwina told me to check out Cradle Mountain and the East Coast on my visit. Tasmania isn’t exactly a hotbed of Couchsurfing hosts – especially outside of its two biggest cities – but I was able to find a great…
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Cradle Mountain-Lake St. Clair National Park is arguably Tasmania’s biggest attraction. The park’s Overland Track is considered to be one of the greatest walks on the planet. Conditions can be extreme even in summer and it is not advised to attempt the walk during the winter, especially by yourself without proper equipment. The situation tragically…
open mind, empty stomach 