Naked Itchy Feet

Photo album: São Paulo

Kelvin Luck — Fri, 04 Jul 2014 00:00:00 GMT

A few days in Brazil's most populous city visiting family and friends and the chance to see their final victory of the World Cup.

Photo album: Olinda

Kelvin Luck — Tue, 01 Jul 2014 00:00:00 GMT

A day wandering around the beautiful old town of Olinda - famous for it's colourful buildings and local artisans.

Photo album: Canoa Quebrada

Kelvin Luck — Sat, 28 Jun 2014 00:00:00 GMT

Paragliders, stunning beaches and another victory for Brazil in Canoa Quebrada.

Photo album: Jericoacoara

Kelvin Luck — Thu, 26 Jun 2014 00:00:00 GMT

Sand dunes, capoeira, beaches and a mystery fever in the ever-popular Jericoacoara.

Photo album: Lençois Maranhenses

Kelvin Luck — Thu, 19 Jun 2014 00:00:00 GMT

In the north of Brazil lies "the bedsheets" - an expanse of spectacular sand dunes. After the rainy season the dips in the dunes fill with water to form hundreds of deliciously refreshing swimming pools.

Photo album: Ilha de Marajó

Kelvin Luck — Thu, 12 Jun 2014 00:00:00 GMT

Marajó is an island at the mouth of the Amazon river - the largest fluvial island in the world. With golden sands and mud streets where buffalos roam freely. A welcome escape from Belém and a great place to see the opening match of the World Cup!

An unexpected change of plan

Kelvin Luck — Thu, 12 Jun 2014 00:00:00 GMT

After over a year on the road we arrived in Brazil ready to slow down our travelling wheels. And we did - but not as planned - with ultrasounds, an epidural, surgery and even pregnancy tests culminating with a drastic change to our Brazilian dream.

Photo album: Belém

Kelvin Luck — Tue, 27 May 2014 00:00:00 GMT

Longer than planned mostly dealing with doctors and hospitals in the in the North Brazilian city of Belém

Photo album: Manaus

Kelvin Luck — Wed, 21 May 2014 00:00:00 GMT

Sitting half way down the Amazon river, Manaus is the capital of Amazonia. After four days on a boat we were glad to set foot on land and explore its city streets, beaches and beautiful opera house.

Photo album: Boat down the Amazon

Kelvin Luck — Tue, 20 May 2014 00:00:00 GMT

Four days sleeping in a hammock on a boat down the Amazon river from Tabatinga at the Colombian border to Manaus.

Cruising the Galapagos Islands

Priscila Santos — Sun, 20 Apr 2014 00:00:00 GMT

Going to the Galapagos Islands had never featured in our immediate travel plans, so it was very unexpectedly that it became one of the highlights of our year around the world. Kelvin's mum, Carol, decided to celebrate her 60th birthday doing something memorable and a cruise through the islands sounded like that sort of thing. It was also an invitation (and privilege) we couldn't refuse.

One year on the road

Kelvin Luck — Wed, 16 Apr 2014 00:00:00 GMT

On the 16th April 2013 we set off from Heathrow with a very vague plan and some date-changeable intercontinental flights. Today, one year later^*, we are in the Galapagos Islands looking back over a full year.

Photo album: South Colombia

Kelvin Luck — Sat, 05 Apr 2014 00:00:00 GMT

After Bogota we only had a week to get to Ecuador and see all the highlights on the way. The first stop was the smallest desert we have ever seen - El Deserto de Tatacoa - where we learned about the Southern Hemisphere night sky. In San Augustin we found a real friendly Colombian small town where an ancient civilisation left a mysterious legacy. Then we headed towards Mocoa's lush wet jungle and took the "trampoline of death" towards the border with Ecuador where we slept the night at a hotel run by nuns next to the amazing Santuário de Las Lajas - a church built on a bridge over a deep canyon.

Photo album: Bogota

Kelvin Luck — Fri, 28 Mar 2014 00:00:00 GMT

Our South American journey started in Bogota, the capital of Colombia. We enjoyed the cool climate, street art and colonial feel by foot, cable car and on two wheels. And had our first proper South American steak!

Photo album: La la land

Kelvin Luck — Mon, 24 Mar 2014 00:00:00 GMT

A flying visit to the City of Angels was a great chance to catch up with old friends.

Photo album: O'ahu

Kelvin Luck — Wed, 19 Mar 2014 00:00:00 GMT

From Waikiki to the big surf of the North Shore and the empty beaches of the west coast, O'ahu has something for everyone.

Photo album: Kaua'i

Kelvin Luck — Sun, 16 Mar 2014 00:00:00 GMT

Kaua'i is known as "the garden isle" and is one of the oldest of the Hawaiian islands. We visited the Na Pali Coast, Waimea Canyon and surfed the waves of Hanalei Bay.

Support Brazilians at the World Cup

Priscila Santos — Sun, 16 Mar 2014 00:00:00 GMT

In just a few months, Brazil will host the next World Cup. While this is really exciting for football fans around the globe and for Brazil's tourism industry, the costs of hosting the event will leave Brazilian tax payers with a sky high bill to pay. As it stands, the government has already blown the budget, and isn't even close to delivering the infrastructure initially promised to outlive the Cup as a legacy.

Photo album: The Tongariro Crossing

Kelvin Luck — Sun, 16 Feb 2014 00:00:00 GMT

The Tongariro Crossing is said by many to be the best day walk in NZ and maybe even the world... 20 kilometers across a crazy moonscape between volcanoes and lakes. And a side trip up Mount Doom aka Mount Ngauruhoe!

Photo album: Wellington & Taranaki

Kelvin Luck — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 00:00:00 GMT

We passed back through Wellington and caught the start of the rugby sevens and then headed up to the Taranaki Peninsula to see the surf, the mountain and the clouds.

Photo album: Kaikoura

Kelvin Luck — Tue, 04 Feb 2014 00:00:00 GMT

More stunning NZ landscapes... Mountains right down to the sea! And **swimming with dolphins**!

A stolen glance at Fiji

Priscila Santos — Thu, 12 Dec 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Fiji surprised me in many ways. The warmth of the people, the beauty of the landscapes and how these people are so proud of their country are all reasons why it was so easy to fall in love with the place. But Fiji has many egos and can be many different things to those who visit. Even to those who live in it.

Photo album: Fiji

Kelvin Luck — Mon, 09 Dec 2013 00:00:00 GMT

A week in paradise. In cyclone season!

Photo album: Albany to Esperance

Kelvin Luck — Fri, 11 Oct 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Stunning white sand beaches with turquoise waters made this one of the most beautiful parts of Australia for us.

Photo album: Australia - The South West

Kelvin Luck — Tue, 08 Oct 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Cafe culture and skyscrapers in Perth, surf and vineyards in Margaret River, a terrifying climb up a 70 meter tree and then more surf in Denmark!

Photo album: Back to Lombok

Kelvin Luck — Thu, 26 Sep 2013 00:00:00 GMT

A quick trip back to Lombok to refresh our Australian visas.

Photo album: Australia - The West Coast

Kelvin Luck — Sun, 15 Sep 2013 00:00:00 GMT

From Exmouth down to Perth - sand, sun and surf!

Western Australia - Lake Argyll to Exmouth

Priscila Santos — Fri, 30 Aug 2013 00:00:00 GMT

After a few hundreds of kilometers on the road, the Northern Territory border with Western Australia slowly approached. The scenery was vast - full of space, freedom and magic colours.

Photo album: Australia - The North West

Kelvin Luck — Thu, 29 Aug 2013 00:00:00 GMT

We crossed over the border into Western Australia and visited Lake Argyll - the campsite with an amazing infinity pool. Then on to Broome then Karijini National Park...

Photo album: Australia - The Top End

Kelvin Luck — Wed, 21 Aug 2013 00:00:00 GMT

In the first fortnight in Australia we saw crocodiles, waterfalls, sunsets, gorges, termite mounds and desert roads in "the top end".

Aussie Beginnings

Priscila Santos — Fri, 16 Aug 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Choosing Darwin as our point of entry into Australia wasn't extensively thought through. The idea started (and ended) with a cheap flight from Bali, ignoring how far Darwin is from anything else in Australia. In fact, we had ignored how far everything is from anything in Australia

Photo album: Bali - Ubud & the Bukit Peninsula

Kelvin Luck — Wed, 07 Aug 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Monkeys and dance in Ubud, the incredible surf of the Bukit Peninsula and a visit to the bamboo buildings of the green school.

Photo album: Bali - Tianyar & Sidemen

Kelvin Luck — Fri, 02 Aug 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Two weeks teaching English at Yayasan Widya Sari in northern Bali and a weekend trip to Sidemen

Sun Worship photo challenge

Kelvin Luck — Tue, 30 Jul 2013 00:00:00 GMT

We recently found out that Lonely Planet runs a weekly photo challenge on Flickr and we're proud to say that our first entry - into the "Sun Worship" challenge - was awarded joint third place.

Photo album: Gili Islands

Kelvin Luck — Thu, 18 Jul 2013 00:00:00 GMT

After climbing a volcano some serious relaxation was called for and the Gili Islands were just the place...

Photo album: Rinjani

Kelvin Luck — Sun, 14 Jul 2013 00:00:00 GMT

At 3,726 meters high, Rinjani towers over the island of Lombok, Indonesia. For some crazy reason we decided to celebrate Kelvin's birthday by spending three days and two nights climbing it!

Guidebooks - a modern take

Kelvin Luck — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT

The problem with guide books is having to carry them around… And that they are always out of date by the time you are using them… And that the further off the beaten path you get, the less use they are… But mostly having to carry them around! We came up with a few different ways to ease the pain.

Photo album: Sengiggi

Kelvin Luck — Wed, 03 Jul 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Our first stop in Lombok was Sengiggi where we were lucky enough to catch the annual "Festival Sengiggi" - a celebration of traditional costumes and dances.

Photo album: Boat to Lombok

Kelvin Luck — Sun, 30 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Boat to Lombok

Flores

Priscila Santos — Fri, 28 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Flores' beauty is exciting. When the Portuguese got here in the 15th century they called the island Cabo das Flores (meaning Cape of Flowers) due to its luscious green landscape.

Photo album: West Flores

Kelvin Luck — Thu, 27 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: West Flores

Photo album: 17 Islands Marine Park

Kelvin Luck — Tue, 25 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: 17 Islands Marine Park

Photo album: Bajawa

Kelvin Luck — Mon, 24 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Bajawa

Photo album: Kelimutu and around

Kelvin Luck — Sat, 22 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Kelimutu and around

Adventures on Pelni

Priscila Santos — Thu, 20 Jun 2013 19:00:00 GMT

Most tourists choose to travel between Sulawesi and Flores by air for the obvious reasons of speed and convenience with flights scheduled everyday. Most Indonesians however travel by ferry in economy class at a fraction of the cost of a flight. The journey takes 2o hours and there is only one ferry every two weeks so no wonder not many travellers choose this alternative - it takes some organising and timing.

Photo album: Pelni to Flores

Kelvin Luck — Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Pelni to Flores

Death as a way of living in Tana Toraja

Priscila Santos — Tue, 18 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

An equatorial Switzerland, Tana Toraja is the mountainous heart of Sulawesi. It allows for vertiginous views across the valleys and bright green rice paddies fill the landscape creating stairways for giants to touch the heavens. And it is heaven that brings us here, or Torajan's interpretation of it. We are going to a funeral.

Photo album: Tana Toraja

Kelvin Luck — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Tana Toraja

Photo album: Sulawesi Tengah

Kelvin Luck — Fri, 14 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Sulawesi Tengah

Island hopping in Sulawesi - Bunaken and the Togeans

Priscila Santos — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 19:00:00 GMT

We left Myanmar and embarked on a marathon journey to Indonesia involving three days of flights, buses, bemos and a day in Singapore. We needed island life urgently.

Photo album: Togian Islands - Poya Lisa

Kelvin Luck — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Togian Islands - Poya Lisa

Photo album: Togian Islands - Lestari Malenge

Kelvin Luck — Sat, 08 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Togian Islands - Lestari Malenge

Photo album: Togian Islands - Sifa Cottages

Kelvin Luck — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Togian Islands - Sifa Cottages

Photo album: Tongkoko

Kelvin Luck — Fri, 31 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Tongkoko

Photo album: Bunaken

Kelvin Luck — Mon, 27 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Bunaken

Photo album: Singapore

Kelvin Luck — Tue, 21 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Singapore

Money in Myanmar

Kelvin Luck — Mon, 20 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

For a long time, taking money to Myanmar meant getting your hands on pristine USD notes and changing them into local Kyats on the black market. That is all starting to change.

Photo album: Pyin U Lwin

Kelvin Luck — Sat, 18 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Pyin U Lwin

Photo album: Bagan

Kelvin Luck — Thu, 16 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Bagan

Tips for the south of Burma

Priscila Santos — Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

On our trip to the south of Myanmar we had to do quite a bit of investigation into the available options for accommodation and travel. This is the difficulty of travelling in an area before it's covered in the guidebook! The below is what we found out - hopefully it is useful to others.

Burma - into the south

Priscila Santos — Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

We made a last minute decision to visit the mysterious country as it won't be long until it changes. We wanted to see the genuine side of what they now call Myanmar.

Photo album: Myeik

Kelvin Luck — Mon, 13 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Myeik

Photo album: Dawei

Kelvin Luck — Sat, 11 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Dawei

Photo album: Mawlamyine

Kelvin Luck — Thu, 09 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Mawlamyine

Photo album: Yangon

Kelvin Luck — Tue, 07 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Yangon

Air BnB in Bangkok

Kelvin Luck — Mon, 06 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Like many long term travellers in South East Asia, Bangkok has become a kind of base for us. Whether for vaccinations, visiting dentists or getting visas for the next destination we have spent quite a bit of time in the city. On our last visit we discovered a different way to stay…

Getting a Myanmar visa in Bangkok

Kelvin Luck — Mon, 06 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Our decision to visit Myanmar was a bit last minute and we were already in Thailand so we needed to get our hands on a Myanmar visa whilst in Bangkok. This turned out to be pretty easy but we did have to do a bit of searching around to find out how to get to the embassy and what we needed to bring. Hopefully the information below will help others out...

Photo album: Bangkok

Kelvin Luck — Sun, 05 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Bangkok

Bangkok in May

Priscila Santos — Sun, 05 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Bangkok in May is hot, and I mean very hot, too hot to do anything. You won't have much fun if your plan is to get lots of sightseeing done.

Photo album: Koh Mak

Kelvin Luck — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Koh Mak

Photo album: Koh Chang

Kelvin Luck — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Photo album: Koh Chang

Travel Money

Kelvin Luck — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT

The days when taking money abroad with you meant travellers cheques or wads of cash are long gone. If you are heading on a long trip is still definitely pays to do your research before you set off though so that you aren't loosing money with every transaction.

What's the plan?

Priscila Santos — Fri, 05 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT

What is our plan? There isn't one really...but thats how travelling is best done, right? Just wander around and see beautiful places, weird cultures, and go where the wind blows us. We have a rough itinerary booked consisting of a few intercontinental flights - and we can change the dates of those so nothing is set in stone.

Photo album: Kuta Lombok

Kelvin Luck — Tue, 09 Jul 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Kuta is a small laid back surf town on the south coast of Lombok surrounded by some of the most beautiful bays and beaches in Indonesia.