Christian's Travel Blog

Tlo-hon-nipts - those who drift in from the ocean ... Native Indian legends tell of a few pale-faced men with black hair on their chins, drifting ashore with the wrecked ships on tribal beaches, up the wild and rugged northwest pacific coast line in ancient times. It is told, beeswax, the ancient cargo of a lost Spanish galleon, was dug from the sands of northern Oregon for generations, first by Indians (First Nation people) and then by white settlers.    This week I "drifted" ashore on British Columbia's Vancouver Island , crossing the Strait of Georgia on a comfortable Ferry into the harbor of Nanaimo - visiting Mike , my former study colleague at the University of Cape Town . What an exciting home base for my next adventures: excursions into the giant rain forests , hiking up the rivers to meet the grizzly bears , and watching the beautiful orcas playing in the narrow deep blue straits (enjoy this video clip from Mike to create a bit of appetite).

Two weeks since my touch down in the USA, my acclimatization process reached an advanced level: I enjoy walking through the streets of San Francisco. Off course, that's not a big deal. SF is a sympathetic town with surprisingly far less than one million inhabitants. And the down town hostel I dropped in represents most of the city's two-sided  charm - including a cute, colorful hummingbird , showing up by the hour at the window next the computer. On a trip ATW+20, you feel instantly certain changes based on the contradictions of the new reality and your memories. Three of them seem mostly present since I'm touring the States. Somehow they are all related with the economy - but that's what obviously counts most here. The first big thing while driving 3000 miles through the States was about "new cars". Although the three big American car manufacturers again report profits (after the close-to-default situation in the aftermath of the financial c

I'm new here - using the lyrics of Gil Scott Heron 's last album - landed in the country were the roadtrip was born. The radio plays Bowie's Ziggy Stardust while I wind down steep serpentines, diving deep into the dessert - below sea level. The digital info display indicates 40 degrees Celsius . I press the electric operating buttons to open the windows and switch the automatic gearbox in neutral position. The car takes up speed. Dry hot air blows into my face. I turn up the volume ... "Ground control to Major Tom ..." ... welcome to the Death Valley. Hard to believe that I had some morning frost on my tent. Nor that I crossed the Sierra Nevada at 9600 feet, taking a barefoot walk in the last snow - just to find myself midday below sea level at 40+C. This is what a roadtrip is all about. 9 national parks in 10 days; 3056 miles. Yosemite, Death Valley, Zion, Bryce, Capitol Reef, Arches, Canyonlands, National Monument, Grand Canyon. A route